Quality diff between a computer monitor and a TV monitor?

[wstcoaster07]

Ok, so a buddy of mine asked me why he should spend 600 bucks on at 23in dell widescreen monitor when he can get a Westinghouse 32" Flat-Panel LCD HDTV from for 800 bucks.

I remember back in the day hooking up a tv to my computer and it looking like crap. However, he claimed that he saw another guy with a 32in lcd tv on his computer and said it looked pretty sharp.

Well, obviously I am asking in here cause I did not know the correct answer. So does anyone know somethign major that makes a computer monitor better/worse/same quality as regular tv LCD screens?

 

[Hose]

TVs do not make good computer monitors. TVs are designed to be viewed from 6 ft. or more (large pixels, strong "screen door" effect close up), computer monitors are designed to be viewd from 2 ft. or so.

 

[lschiedel]

This brings up a question that i can't seem to get answered.

If an LCD monitor with a particular "claimed" resolution includes a TV tuner, does that make it less worthy to be used as a PC monitor?

I just saw a review of a 20" widescreen LCD with tv tuner that said the device had problem with small fonts vs other monitors. Is this because of the resolution? (ie the other monitor had a higher native resolution?) Or does adding the tv tuner force changes in the electronics that impare its use for details (ie optimizing for fast motion or video color affects how it processes colors by changing contrast, color gamma, or even lcd hardware differences)

I know that a large lcd tv with the same resolution as a smaller lcd will yield larger pixels, but two monitors of the same size (say 20" widescreen) with the same resolution (say 1366 x 768) have the same size pixels in the same positions.

So why would the version with the tv tuner be less usefull for pc use?

And why would a PC review not BLAST the manufacturer if the tv tuner version can't display a perfectly valid image in the RATED resolution as good as PC only monitors? How can you get away with calling your LCD tv 1366 x 768 if it does display text as well as a PC LCD of the same size and resolution?

After all, digital cameras that claim a certain megapixel resolution but that cannot capture that many alternating bars on a test image, get HORRIBLE reviews and get called on LYING about their native resolution. But why does a LCD tv that "claims" a particular resolution, get away with not being able to show that many discrete different color pixels (as needed to show small text fonts).

Is there some hardware they have to add to a LCD tv that makes a video picture better (say some kind of pixel blur or jitter or color gamma) that cannot be turned off while in "PC mode"? And if so, why doesnt the VGA connection bypass that entire circuitry?

As an aside, why can't i buy a box that sits in between the pc and a PC only LCD, that includes a tv tuner?
If i turn the box to tv mode, the PC shouldnt have to be turned on. The box should just output the tv signal out the vga port if the box is put in TV mode.
Since dvd players with progressive scan outputs sell for < $50 now, why wouldnt a box with a tv tuner and a scaler, a high res vga to vga passthrough, and a switch between scaled tv and simple passthrough, sell for a similar price?
This would allow me to buy whatever LCD i want, and plug the box inbetween and have the best of both worlds. (or am i dreaming an this box would not work with most LCDs because they lack that special circuitry that makes videos look good?)
Even a dvd player that had this builtin would be great.
Or what about one of those dvr devices? Why don't they have vga input/output so they can do the job? Maybe i need to wait for a hi-def dvr to do it?

 

[Hose]

"... If an LCD monitor with a particular "claimed" resolution includes a TV tuner, does that make it less worthy to be used as a PC monitor?..."



No.

But having a TV tuner built into a monitor isn't the best idea. You can do better, cheaper, and with less potential hassle with either (a) TV tuner card in your computer, or (b) "stand alone" TV tuner box.

 

[Hose]

"... I know that a large lcd tv with the same resolution as a smaller lcd will yield larger pixels, but two monitors of the same size (say 20" widescreen) with the same resolution (say 1366 x 768) have the same size pixels in the same positions...."

The would not have "same size pixels in same postions"...

A 20" Standard Definition LCD TV would be able to display ONLY 480 lines of resolution (or 720 if HDTV). A 20" widescreen LCD displays 1680x1050.

TVs do not make good computer monitors, however a computer monitor can make a good TV.

 

[lschiedel]

The would not have "same size pixels in same postions"...

A 20" Standard Definition LCD TV would be able to display ONLY 480 lines of resolution (or 720 if HDTV). A 20" widescreen LCD displays 1680x1050.

TVs do not make good computer monitors, however a computer monitor can make a good TV

You miss my point and make incorrect assumptions.

I was not asking about Standard definition LCD TVs.
I was asking about LCD TVs that claim 1366 x 768 (or just better than 720p HDTV) and their are a lot that do so.
And not all 20" widescreen LCDs are 1680 x 1050 (just the more popular ones or the newer ones), some are 1366 x 768.

Is it possible that they are not really (natively) 1366 x 768 but are say 1280 x 720? (or even 1024 x 800)
If they are natively (ie have 3 rgb dots spaced 1366 across and 768 down), then why would they display text poorer than an LCD that claims 1366 x 768 but doesnt have a builtin tuner.

or are the reviews at fault, and are comparing 1366 x 768 LCDs to 1680 x 1050 LCDs, both at 20", and are complaining that the lower res LCD cannot display small fonts (of course since the first admits its 1366 x 768) without admitting they are comparing two different resolutions.

My big problem is that i cannot find a store that will connect one of these beasties to a pc, next to a similar PC only LCD of the SAME SPECS also plugged into a pc, so i can compare the text readability for myselft instead of relying on incomplete magazine reviews.

I would love to do this, and even bring in a magnifying glass to see if the tv one was using fewer pixels than the pc one, (and thus lying about its native resolution), or was aliasing the pixels on the text (ie forced blur or color correction or just an inability to change color from pure white to pure black in the span of two pixels).

Maybe the TV tuner models come with a VGA interface that does not have the bandwidth to cope with a 60hz 1366 x 768 vga signal so it has artifacts when rapidly changing pixel color on the edges of text.
(the question is then WHY???)

 

[lschiedel]

But having a TV tuner built into a monitor isn't the best idea. You can do better, cheaper, and with less potential hassle with either (a) TV tuner card in your computer, or (b) "stand alone" TV tuner box.

How is having to have your computer turned on (with its noise etc) and the software tv viewer playing, less hassle then turning on the LCD TV and hitting the button to change to tv signal?

And where are "stand alone" TV tuner boxes that output a VGA signal (and therefore need a passthrough fo the PC or an LCD with two inputs)
so i can hook up a pc LCD monitor? Who makes such a box and where do i buy one? Do they have hdtv tuners too?

 

[Hose]

Potential hassle comes in if you want to change either the TV device or the monitor... can't do it if built into one unit. Besides, some tuners are better than others. If you get a built-in, you just get what's included. If you keep them separate, you can pick one which suits you better.

A TV tuner box will have a VGA interface, but that's just to have video output. All you can display is the TV input... likely 480 lines. A TV tuner card will have no video interface (OK, maybe an ATI AIW, but that's a special case)... it too will display only 480 lines, regardless of the monitor it's hooked up to.

Search Newegg.com. They have both tuner cards and stand-alone boxes.

 

[Jessie77]

Ok. The answer was never answered. We know that a standard tube tv sucks as a monitor. Does a 22" 720p LCD HDTV flat tv make for a good monitor for computer. The reason I want to know is that I'm disabled and am in the bed alot. I'm looking to see if a flat tv like this will make a good monitor because it's cheaper. That way I can either watch tv or be on the computer on the same monitor. Thanks

 

[Baladya]

Remember also that big screens aren't good for gaming like everyone says. If you will play FPS then small ones are better. (although its okay to play stuff like racing or football games on big screens)