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[Glitch]

Hi everybody

I wanna know if anybody out there is using and HDTV as their monitor, what is the quality like? is it good or bad?. I'm currently using an acer 22" @ 1680 x 1050 but its too small so I wanna upgrade. I have an external tv tuner for it and it's dying only after a year  . So I was thinking why not kill 2 birds with 1 stone and just get a HDTV. I'm currently looking at a VIZIO 32" 1080P model (because its the cheapest and it's 1920 x 1080). The reviews of this brand are mixed but are leaning more to the positive side. Does anybody own a TV from them, what is the quality like? It's going for about $498USD at walmart but I figure its gonna cost me about $950USD to get it in my hands (stoopid customs import duties  ).

If anybody has any brand suggestions for a 32" 1080p HDTV besides this VIZIO please reply.

[urgannagru]

The things to remember about an HDTV are:

- It likely has a different color range. This may or may not be important to you
- It likely has way more contrast and is way brighter. Of course these settings can be adjusted, but don't forget.
- 1080p is great, assuming your video card can take it
- 32" 1080p has bigger pixels than 22" 1080p. If you sit too close the grain will hurt your eyes.
- 1080p isn't going to look good with a non-HD TV signal.
- Bigger size = more electricity (so if you use your monitor as much as I do its definitely something to consider. My bill went down about $30 per month when I stopped using my HDTV as a monitor).
- New satellite/cable boxes often have either a VGA or HDMI out on them anyways and wouldn't need a tuner in the TV.

Not to deter you, I just want to make sure you know what you're getting into, as I had to learn by trial and error

[Glitch]

-Well my card can handle it ( I have an EVGA GTX260 SC)
-plan on using HDMI as my input source
-I usually sit bout 2 1/2' to 3' from my monitor, what distance is recommended? 4' to 5'?
-won't a SD signal look like a SD signal on SDTV? will it look worse on a HDTV?

Our cable boxes onlly have component as the highest ouput no hdmi 

Btw this is the monitor I wanted to get  http://www.vizio.com/product.aspx?id=2715&pid=1506

[CptCafne]

I currently use http://www.vizio.com/product.aspx?id=2732&pid=1508 , and have to say I love it.  So far everything looks crisper.  urgannagru is right about the brightness/contrast needing to be toned down a bit, but other than that I love it.  I am using a HD signal from my system as well, and CS:S looks so much better.

[Glitch]

Okay but like urgannagru said a 32" 1080p HDTV has bigger pixels than 22" 1080p but I guess I'll just have to play around with my viewing distances( I hope its not over 6' my room is really small ) Btw how is the build quality of vizio? any weird attributes with your set CptCafne? I really want a good quality set because if it breaks shipping it back to the US will be murder  . Also since the nearest Walmart is 500 miles away/2hr plane ride, a return just isn't that easy.

[urgannagru]

4' or so should be fine with 1080p i would think (i was just trying to use my 720p 30" from a 2' distance and after a while i noticed my vision getting worse)
---
a sd signal will have less pixels than the hdtv, so i say it won't look as good because its like trying to run a computer LCD monitor at non-native resolution (640x480 stretched + zoomed to 1920x1080). modern HDTVs usually come with an upscaler built in to try to counteract this, so you may not notice, i'm not sure.

[YucA]

I have a d-sub vga cable on my 37" Vizio that i use to hook up my machine to.  As long as your video card can handle 720 or 1080 native res, you'll be good.  This isnt even a digital dvi cable or anything, and i am MORE than happy with the output.  You have to fiddle with the color settings a bit to work best for the PC, but ive even used this thing while working on PS with no real issues. 

Get something with a DVI input, and you will definitely be kosher.

[CptCafne]

Well, I have had this tv for a week only, but so far nothing odd.  Seems fairly sturdy.  but then again, I don't swing it around or anything

[bliq]

-Well my card can handle it ( I have an EVGA GTX260 SC)
-plan on using HDMI as my input source
-I usually sit bout 2 1/2' to 3' from my monitor, what distance is recommended? 4' to 5'?
-won't a SD signal look like a SD signal on SDTV? will it look worse on a HDTV?

Our cable boxes onlly have component as the highest ouput no hdmi 

Btw this is the monitor I wanted to get  http://www.vizio.com/product.aspx?id=2715&pid=1506

When buying a TV, I often heard the rule of thumb is 2 feet per 10" of screen size.  That said, you may need to sit closer if you're using is as a monitor.  I have a 25.5" monitor and I'm probably about 3 feet away.

[Glitch]

I have a d-sub vga cable on my 37" Vizio that i use to hook up my machine to.  As long as your video card can handle 720 or 1080 native res, you'll be good.  This isnt even a digital dvi cable or anything, and i am MORE than happy with the output.  You have to fiddle with the color settings a bit to work best for the PC, but ive even used this thing while working on PS with no real issues. 

Get something with a DVI input, and you will definitely be kosher.

Thanks everybody.... I really dont see any with dvi-d connections in my price range offered at walmart/sams/costco. Btw YucA can you personally see the difference in Dsub and hdmi?
Is it like night and day? or is the difference minimal?



Can anybody recommend a good 32" 1080P HDTV with dvi output and PIP/POP (very important to me) price cap is $600USD. Trying to keep the cost down because of our ridiculous import duties    It's 66% of the product price. Damn these customs bastards 

http://www.vizio.com/product.aspx?id=2710&pid=1506  I'm leaning towards this one but it has no DVI Sam's has it for $527.00 plus tax (do i really neeed DVI? my card can do HDMI with sound just fine and there is always VGA)