TV as a monitor?

February 5, 2008 5:29 PM

Will I be dissapointed by using my television as a monitor?

I have a cheap Dell Dimension 2400 with a VGA output for my monitor. I also have a Vizio W32L HDTV, and would like to use it as a monitor.

Why? Well, I am thinking about Netflix's "unlimited downloading" for movies at 8.99 a month, and am wondering if I could simply run a VGA cable to my tv and watch them in my living room. ( I would be running a fairly long VGA cable through the attic.) My television has instructions on hooking up a computer to the television, and states that "for best quality, please place TV timing mode" to VESA 1366x768 at 60Hz."

Looking at the video properties of my Dell, I can only adjust the settings to 1024x768.

So, spending 50 bucks on a long VGA cable - will it be worth it? What will my video quality look like? Will movies be okay on my television?

posted by bradth27 to computers & internet (17 answers total)

You may be able to use PowerStrip to force your video card to display at 1366x768. Lots of HTPC users use it so their computers display to their HDTVs at native resolution.
posted by zsazsa at 5:35 PM on February 5, 2008

I wouldn't go past 9 or 10 meters for VGA at 1024x768. Longer, you could probably get a picture if you used the right cables but I would expect considerable image degradation.

I wouldn't worry about resolution too much, unless your netflix movies are HD.

Aside from the question of cable length everything else should look great; though you might find it frustrating to go upstairs to pause your movies.

Find a store with a good return policy and buy the cable. Try it out! If it looks terrible that's a completely valid reason to return it.
posted by aubilenon at 5:37 PM on February 5, 2008

Dell's driver may only offer you those resolutions based on the monitor connected, or limits written into their driver. Try the latest driver for your card.

As for a long VGA cable - in my experience longer VGA cables may introduce some 'ghosting' issues if they aren't well shielded and all. If your TV has HDMI or DVI you might be better off buying a cheap videocard with one of those outputs.
posted by pupdog at 5:42 PM on February 5, 2008

As for a long VGA cable - in my experience longer VGA cables may introduce some 'ghosting' issues if they aren't well shielded and all. If your TV has HDMI or DVI you might be better off buying a cheap videocard with one of those outputs.

Unfortunately, the cheap Dell does not have a slot to upgrade the video card - I can only use what I have on. (it's integrated in the motherboard.) The cable I will use will have to be about.... oh, 40 to 50 feet.....
posted by bradth27 at 5:51 PM on February 5, 2008

Unfortunately, the cheap Dell does not have a slot to upgrade the video card...

I'm sure it does. You can get cheap PCI cards (not PCIe) that have DVI and other outputs on them. For the distance you're going, you might want to look at component. Yeah, it won't be ideal.

How do you plan on controlling the playback?
posted by ODiV at 6:02 PM on February 5, 2008

er, I meant composite, not component. Though you might find a card with component. I don't think I've seen a cheapie card support that.

Maybe s-video?
posted by ODiV at 6:04 PM on February 5, 2008

I am pretty sure the dimension 2400 is a desktop and there for it has a slot to upgrade the video card. its called either pci or pci express and will fit down lower on the mother board.
posted by DJWeezy at 6:04 PM on February 5, 2008

The cable I will use will have to be about.... oh, 40 to 50 feet

That isn't going to work. Your cable will either cost much more than a new PC, or will produce a terrible image at that distance.
posted by b1tr0t at 6:12 PM on February 5, 2008

If you can't bring the computer any closer to the TV, you could send the data by network to another device that's plugged into your TV. This device could be another computer (you can probably find one pretty cheap), or if you google "network media player" you might find some products that would suit you, though I have no experience with these. The XBOX 360 and PS3 might allow you to do this too.
posted by PercussivePaul at 6:49 PM on February 5, 2008

I *regularly* use VGA cables in the 100' range, and they work fine with minimal ghosting all the way up to 1280x1024.

Check cablesforless.com - they have the 100' HD-15 cables we've been using for about $42, and 50' for about half that.

You can likely only set your Dell's resolution to the 1024x768 setting because of the sense pin settings in the monitor you have it connected to at the moment. When you connect it to the Vizio, the new resolution will almost certainly become available in your Display Properties.

Seriously - I do this all day long. We consider 100' to be about the longest you should run 1024x768 VGA without a Distribution Amplifier, but we've done runs of 300' with a DA in line with no ghosting.
posted by tomierna at 7:48 PM on February 5, 2008

Just seconding what tomierna says. The fear of loss of image fidelity usually comes from people who've never actually tried it. Furthermore, full-motion video will absorb any loss of clarity you might think you perceive.

Your cable will either cost much more than a new PC, or will produce a terrible image at that distance.

The only reason it would cost more than a new PC is if you're a sucker and buy special de-oxygenated 14k gold-plated cable from Monster or similar retail huckster. There's no reason this should cost more than $75. The real problem is going to be controlling the playback: if your laptop is in a different room, you risk missing some of the movie when you have to get up and pause it to go to the bathroom, for example.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 10:55 PM on February 5, 2008

I have a related question. The original poster is asking about watching movies on his TV. How about using a TV as a monitor for things other than video-viewing?

Say, for instance, working with a word processor, working with photoshop to optimize digital photos / working with photoshop to produce wireframes, browsing the web, etc.?

I want a setup that allows me to sit on my couch with a cordless mouse and keyboard and do my work from there.
posted by syzygy at 3:45 AM on February 6, 2008

Thanks for all the advice! I went ahead and hooked it up temporarily to see if it would actually look decent - and it looks fantastic. The video is much, much better than expected - literally as decent as my monitor itself. I'm going to go with Tomierna's advice and buy a cable that will suit my needs and just try it out.
posted by bradth27 at 5:28 AM on February 6, 2008

syzygy, so do it!

I have a HTPC connected to a 37 inch LCD, and a wireless keyboard and mouse on my coffee table. It will look fine on an LCD, though you'll have to experiment with resolutions and font sizes to make it readable. On an old school TV, not so much. The text will never look good since it's basically 640x480.

It's basically impossible to do work on though, unless you can type comfortable from that position. I really need a desk and proper chair to be doing that for any length of time.
posted by utsutsu at 7:18 AM on February 6, 2008

I've connected a PC to this particular model TV, so just wanted to say the picture quality should come out to be very clean and readable.

The long VGA cable should be ok, but if you're not into running wires you could look into a wireless VGA solution which will only set you back 1 or 2 bills, and will cover the desired range (making it easier if you decide to move your TV later on).

I would also look into a wireless RF keyboard/mouse solution that will cover the distance between the TV and PC (I'm a personal fan of using gyroscopic technology for remoting PC DVRs.)
posted by samsara at 8:10 AM on February 6, 2008

Thanks utsutsu. I'm looking for a solution that will allow me to shift between a desk and my couch. I'm also planning to get a desk that shifts from sitting height to standing height.

Sitting in an office chair all day long is murder on my back. I figure switching between a combination of positions - sitting at the desk, standing at the desk, sitting on the couch - will be better for me than just sitting in the same chair 8-10 hours a day. I can type pretty comfortably with a keyboard in my lap (on the couch). I do this with my laptop now, but I'd like to have the screen at eye level, thus the TV question :)

Again, thanks - that's a setup I've been considering for awhile, but I wasn't sure if using an LCD TV for work was a good idea.
posted by syzygy at 8:41 AM on February 6, 2008

The great thing about getting a PCI card is that you can run dual displays.

I *regularly* use VGA cables in the 100' range, and they work fine with minimal ghosting all the way up to 1280x1024.

Refresh rate makes a big difference too! It being an LCD, that doesn't matter so much.. In general, I've had serious ghosting using certain combinations of monitors, cables, and video cards. Nothing I've looked into carefully, so I wouldn't dispute the point, but I'm a little surprised.
posted by Chuckles at 3:39 PM on February 6, 2008