Angel Tarragon
Dawn Dragon
In the next 5-6 months I'll be buying a new PC and HDTV. I am considering using the HDTV as a monitor for the new computer.
Is this a good or a bad idea?
Is this a good or a bad idea?
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Using an HDTV as a PC monitor?
- Thread starter Angel Tarragon
- Start date
Kid Charlemagne
I am the Very Model of a Modern Moderator
I just tried (and rejected) this system. A couple of caveats - it could have worked in the right setup, I think.
1 - my HDTV is a 2-year old Panasonic 42" 720p plasma. Not the ideal monitor, as the resolution is lower than ideal. If you're buying 1080p, you'll do better. Also, my monitor didn't have a PC input so I was going DVI-to-HDMI, which worked, but I think other monitors are set up to support this better than mine was.
2 - I was working from my couch. Not as comfy as I had hoped, even with a laptop thingie to rest my keyboard on. If you can set up a real working desk it will work better.
3 - As Blackrat points out, get the good keyboard mouse combo, ideally bluetooth. Regular wireless works fine for the keyboard, but wireless mice only transmit out to about 6 ft. Bluetooth mice go to 30 ft. I have a nice Logitech keyboard/mouse combo, but the mouse didn't work terribly well, and my couch was right at the 5-6 ft mark, so the transmission could be spotty.
After two months of that, I sprung for a regular monitor. I think it CAN work, though, with the right gear.
1 - my HDTV is a 2-year old Panasonic 42" 720p plasma. Not the ideal monitor, as the resolution is lower than ideal. If you're buying 1080p, you'll do better. Also, my monitor didn't have a PC input so I was going DVI-to-HDMI, which worked, but I think other monitors are set up to support this better than mine was.
2 - I was working from my couch. Not as comfy as I had hoped, even with a laptop thingie to rest my keyboard on. If you can set up a real working desk it will work better.
3 - As Blackrat points out, get the good keyboard mouse combo, ideally bluetooth. Regular wireless works fine for the keyboard, but wireless mice only transmit out to about 6 ft. Bluetooth mice go to 30 ft. I have a nice Logitech keyboard/mouse combo, but the mouse didn't work terribly well, and my couch was right at the 5-6 ft mark, so the transmission could be spotty.
After two months of that, I sprung for a regular monitor. I think it CAN work, though, with the right gear.
Remember 1080p is only a max rez of 1920 x 1080, which is fairly low rez, especially for a screen as large as most TVs.
Plus you'll be tying up your TV when ever you want to do computer stuff.
You can get a decent 19" or 22" for $200 or less so. So I'd probably just get a monitor.
Plus you'll be tying up your TV when ever you want to do computer stuff.
You can get a decent 19" or 22" for $200 or less so. So I'd probably just get a monitor.
ThirdWizard
First Post
Very important. If you were expecting lots of screen space, you're going to be out of luck. It'll just be bigger. Now, it's great for watching video that you have on your computer or playing video games (assuming you have wireless keyboard/mouse and can sit back). But, it's not like you're going to be able to have Word, firefox, and a host of other applications running on the screen at the same time.
I would recommend going with dual widescreen monitors if that's what you're after.
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