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question about lcd tvs as computer monitors

post #1 of 6
4/25/07 at 5:33am
Thread Starter 
hey guys.

i currently have an old westinghouse 27" lcd that i believe has a max resolution of 1366x720 or something along those lines. sometimes when i switch from input to input and go back to the computer screen, the desktop is all out of whack (ie, i can't see my taskbar and start menu and some of the desktop icons will be chopped off).

to further complicate issues, i'm using onboard video with my htpc motherboard so i can't even get a high resolution.

here are my questions:
1) when i get a tv, which almost certainly will be 40-47" and capable of 1920x1080 resolution, will my screen still mess up when i switch from input to input? are there certain brands that don't do this? easy fixes?

2) (this may be for pc buffs, but i'll ask anyway) are any video cards on the market today, even the under 4150 cards, going to support resolutions up to 1920x1080? i would assume so but want to make sure first.

3) if i want to view my desktop in 1920x1080, do i connect it up via VGA, DVI, or will it not matter?
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post #2 of 6
4/25/07 at 7:45am
Quote:
Originally Posted by steveklein View Post

hey guys.

i currently have an old westinghouse 27" lcd that i believe has a max resolution of 1366x720 or something along those lines. sometimes when i switch from input to input and go back to the computer screen, the desktop is all out of whack (ie, i can't see my taskbar and start menu and some of the desktop icons will be chopped off).

This sounds like overscan. If so, it's the TV not the PC that's causing it.

Quote:


here are my questions:
1) when i get a tv, which almost certainly will be 40-47" and capable of 1920x1080 resolution, will my screen still mess up when i switch from input to input? are there certain brands that don't do this? easy fixes?

2) (this may be for pc buffs, but i'll ask anyway) are any video cards on the market today, even the under 4150 cards, going to support resolutions up to 1920x1080? i would assume so but want to make sure first.

3) if i want to view my desktop in 1920x1080, do i connect it up via VGA, DVI, or will it not matter?

Many video cards will do 1920x1080. Whether you use DVI/HDMI or VGA depends on how the TV handles those signals, but either can look good.

So, your current card can't do 1360x768? Are you sure?
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post #3 of 6
4/25/07 at 8:22am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by chrisherbert View Post

This sounds like overscan. If so, it's the TV not the PC that's causing it.



Many video cards will do 1920x1080. Whether you use DVI/HDMI or VGA depends on how the TV handles those signals, but either can look good.

So, your current card can't do 1360x768? Are you sure?


about the overscan... is this a common problem on lcd tv's? what models/brands should i look at to avoid this? is there an option on most tv's to fix this?

as for my video card, it's onboard video from the motherboard so it's pretty bad. won't let me go igher than 1024x768 i think. i'll make sure i get a video card that supports 1920x1080... and i suppose when shopping for tv's i should take note of which inputs will accept 1920x1080 signals, correct?
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post #4 of 6
4/25/07 at 8:59am
Quote:
Originally Posted by steveklein View Post

about the overscan... is this a common problem on lcd tv's? what models/brands should i look at to avoid this? is there an option on most tv's to fix this?

as for my video card, it's onboard video from the motherboard so it's pretty bad. won't let me go igher than 1024x768 i think. i'll make sure i get a video card that supports 1920x1080... and i suppose when shopping for tv's i should take note of which inputs will accept 1920x1080 signals, correct?

Even onboard video should let you go higher than 1024x768, unless the PC is from 1994.

Yes, you definitely want a TV that will accept 1920x1080.

People like Westinghouse for HTPC connectivity, but there are many options. Just do research and make sure that it will accept 1080p over DVI/HDMI or VGA, and that it either doesn't have overscan or that overscan can be turned off. My LCD, for example, doesn't have overscan when you use VGA, but it does for component and HDMI.
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post #5 of 6
4/26/07 at 5:40pm
I connected a Macbook pro to a Sony 52" LCD using the HDMI and it works fine. On the Mac, when it detected the connection was a TV, I had the option of turning overscan on and off (on the Mac), but without overscan, there was a 4" border around the image. With overscan on, it overshot the edge of the monitor by about 2".

Overall, I was pleased, although since DVI doesn't pass audio, this is not as convenient as it first appears.
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post #6 of 6
4/27/07 at 11:26am
I think the Mac is performing "underscan," meaning that it's shrinking the image to guarantee that it will show the entire screen. Since it doesn't really know the extent of the overscan, it has guessed incorrectly and left some blank space around the edges. Essentially this is an issue with the TV, not the computer.

I'll bet that you can get a 1:1 image with no overscan even on that Westinghouse and the PC with the onboard video. Try using VGA.
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