40in 1080p tv

i'm thinking of getting a 40in 1920/1080 tv and was hoping to plug my pc into it and i was just wondering about a few things.

will having a bigger screen affect the graphics card even if the res is the same? i'm looking at a 40in but i can get a 32in for half the price and its still 1080p. what difference will it make? if any.

it will be a vga input too which is not supposed to be as good as dvi, is it noticable?

what kind of graphics will be needed for serious gaming? i have a 512 4870 right now, will i need another one? or does that tie into the screen size again?

as far as i know what matters for the GPU is the resolution you will be gaming at. Since you will be playing games at 1920x1080 a 4870 is more than capable of delivering an enjoyable gaming experience at that resolution.

For vga vs dvi-hdmi, i can say that on my 32" 1366x768 (720p) tv games seem the same to me for either connection. maybe slightly better on hdmi, i honestly can't tell. web browsing though or anything with documents is infinitely more comfortable using the vga connection. my tv is my monitor.

I'm thinking of getting a 38 or 40" lcd tv as well with dvi-hdmi input rather than vga. I'm asking myself the same questions... will regular computer stuff look good on a tv over a monitor?

I've been told the big thing that makes a difference in these sort of things is contrast ratio.

Yes, contrast ratio makes a difference. But, every company measures it differently, so it is only useful in comparing units from the same manufacturer. As far as VGAvsDVI/HDMI, as long as the desired resolution can be output from both outputs, the only other thing that would matter is the distance from output to display. Digital signal (DVI/HDMI) will carry signal over long cables much better than analog (VGA).

moto211 said:

Yes, contrast ratio makes a difference. But, every company measures it differently, so it is only useful in comparing units from the same manufacturer. As far as VGAvsDVI/HDMI, as long as the desired resolution can be output from both outputs, the only other thing that would matter is the distance from output to display. Digital signal (DVI/HDMI) will carry signal over long cables much better than analog (VGA).

Click to expand...

What is a good contrast ratio? How can you figure out what is good from each brand?

If signal is degraded over long distance then why doesn't everyone just buy dvi-hdmi...I'm sorry I'm new to this as well. Maybe there is an obvious reason.

Edit: In terms of resolution, 1600x 1280 is good on a 22" screen monitor but the same resolution stretched across a 40" lcd tv, is this the same quality? Maybe I'm not understanding what is important here.

Insofar as picture quality is concerned, 40" 1080p is pretty good at 3-4 feet away. Contrast ratio is important but keep in mind that each company rates it differently. (Samsung tends to be overly generous in its rating while Sony tends to be more stringent -- you'll need to look at reviews instead of looking at specs.) Resolution is usually a different animal when it comes to HDTVs; you don't have as many options as you do with LCD Monitors. 1920x1080 is a great resolution though and 16:9 (what most HDTVs are now-a-days) looks better than 16:10 aspect ratio IMHO as it's wider.

Something else to consider while on the subject. I have a 40" 1080p TV (this one) and I'm having a hard time finding a desk just to put the thing on that will support its gaudy seventy pound weight and give me enough depth to have it sit 3 feet away. Unfortunately wall-mounting isn't an option for me. Be sure you have a clear idea of what you'll be using to support it.

I just got a 42" Sharp LCD for Xmas.

At my desk the picture is jagged, on my couch the picture is clear.

Difference?

Desk is 3' away
Couch is 6-8' away.

I am going to have to totally redo my arrangement to use the LCD as a monitor in my case.

mrbobc said:

i'm thinking of getting a 40in 1920/1080 tv and was hoping to plug my pc into it and i was just wondering about a few things.

will having a bigger screen affect the graphics card even if the res is the same? i'm looking at a 40in but i can get a 32in for half the price and its still 1080p. what difference will it make? if any.

it will be a vga input too which is not supposed to be as good as dvi, is it noticable?

what kind of graphics will be needed for serious gaming? i have a 512 4870 right now, will i need another one? or does that tie into the screen size again?

Click to expand...

You might wanna check the detailed specs for your TV coz a 1080p HDTV might not accept such a high res if you're using VGA input. My 46-inch Sony does 1440x1050 max if I use VGA input...which sucks. So get a DVI-HDMI cable or DVI-HDMI adapter if you already have a HDMI cable. Yes the difference is night and day. If you dont use the native res for your HDTV, the image quality will not be sharp and you'll be disappointed with the results.

Adragontattoo said:

I just got a 42" Sharp LCD for Xmas.

At my desk the picture is jagged, on my couch the picture is clear.

Difference?

Desk is 3' away
Couch is 6-8' away.

I am going to have to totally redo my arrangement to use the LCD as a monitor in my case.

Click to expand...

Is there a way to make the picture crisp at a 3' distance?

I never thought about the weight of the TV. I have a glass top desk but could reinforce it with a wood frame underneath.

Would it make sense instead to buy a large LCD monitor or two? Would this give the same experience as an LCD tv?

i use a 42" tv as my monitor connected through the dvi to hdmi adapter that ati provided with my 4870's and i must say it looks ****ing awesome

the thing is that if you want to run a 1080 resolution for your desktop n stuff then you need to be pretty close to the monitor and it really odd to be right infront of a 42" tv lol

the way my room is setup is i have my tv mounted on the wall and im about 6 feet away from the tv and i run a 1280by720 resolution which is 720p i use this for web surfing n stuff.... the letters are big enough to see them perfectly 6 feet away

and when i game then i bump it up to 1080 to get the best picture possible...

i have 20 20 vision and there is no ****ing way you can read the forums at 1080 being 6 feet away from the tv lol i would say you have to be 3 to 4 feet away...

a good place to get cables and wall mounts would be monoprice.com cheapest place there is and high quality stuff...