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Main Area and Open Discussion => Living Room => Topic started by: lanux128 on November 04, 2007, 10:02 PM

Title: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: lanux128 on November 04, 2007, 10:02 PM
after maintaining for so long that CRTs are better for gaming, i am forced to make the change to LCD.. thus the need for this thread.. :) i have my eyes for this model: Samsung 931BW (http://www.samsung.com/ca/products/monitor/lcd_digital/ls19mewsfxaa.asp) and there is also a 'gaming' model - 931CW but somehow i'm not too keen on that. anyway, i have some basic questions regarding model..

• is it better to go wide-screen if i'm not going to watch movies on PC? since i sort of miss the extra height of the normal size..
• if i go for the wide-screen model, will my games be shown stretched?
• this model doesn't come with any extras such as USB ports etc. is this a plus or a minus?
• what is the general feelings of this model, if anyone is using?

Samsung SyncMaster 931BW
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Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: nudone on November 05, 2007, 02:19 AM
some games will look correct widescreen and some won't. you'd think by now that all games would have a correct widescreen aspect ratio but they don't. some even claim to have widescreen but really it is just stretched - so there is no way of knowing until you try the game.

but there is help at this website that is all about widescreen gaming http://www.widescreengamingforum.com/ they have a list of games and also talk about methods to force games to be widescreen. many times someone will have wrote a little util to induce the correct aspect ratio.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: jgpaiva on November 05, 2007, 04:08 AM
• is it better to go wide-screen if i'm not going to watch movies on PC? since i sort of miss the extra height of the normal size..
-lanux128 (November 04, 2007, 10:02 PM)
That depends on what you'll be doing.
For regular web browsing, if you usually use the window maximized vertically, you'll notice the lack of vertical screen space. On the other hand, you'll be able to see your desktop of the windows beneath the browser though its sides (since you don't really need to maximize it horizontally).
For coding, i'm pretty sure there's nothing better. You'll be able to see 2 files at the same time,and that's VERY useful ;)

• if i go for the wide-screen model, will my games be shown stretched?
-lanux128 (November 04, 2007, 10:02 PM)
Yep, it does happen sometimes (less in more recent games), but i actually prefer most games streched.

• this model doesn't come with any extras such as USB ports etc. is this a plus or a minus?
-lanux128 (November 04, 2007, 10:02 PM)
That'd be useful, but definitelly nothing i'd give more importance than the actual quality of the screen.

• what is the general feelings of this model, if anyone is using?
-lanux128 (November 04, 2007, 10:02 PM)
I don't have that specific model, but i have a samsung 205bw (http://www.samsung.com/ca/products/monitor/lcd_digital/ls20hawcbqxaa.asp?page=Specifications) and love it. The only problem is that my laptop's vga out isn't that good and i sometime see some flicker :( From what i've read, this is solved by using the hdmi interface. Unfortunatelly, my laptop doesn't support it.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: f0dder on November 05, 2007, 07:46 AM
I'd stay away from widescreen unless it's specifically for the purpose of watching movies. For anything else, you're better off getting dual regular monitors. And especially for coding.

Wouldn't worry about extras like USB or audio, never used those... but make sure the monitor has a DVI port and not just a standard VGA.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: cranioscopical on November 05, 2007, 07:48 AM
after maintaining for so long that CRTs are better for gaming, i am forced to make the change to LCD..
-lanux128 (November 04, 2007, 10:02 PM)

I felt the same way for years, until I freed myself from the tyranny of monstrous, desk-eating CRTs :)
I still think CRTs are a bit better but not enough so that I'd switch back.

• is it better to go wide-screen if i'm not going to watch movies on PC? since i sort of miss the extra height of the normal size..
I think that's always a personal preference, it's not my choice. I don't watch movies.

• this model doesn't come with any extras such as USB ports etc. is this a plus or a minus?
None of mine have extra ports, it never mattered to me.

• what is the general feelings of this model, if anyone is using?
FWIW, at one point my wife had a 930 and was perfectly content with that.
I have a couple of 214Ts and am happy with those.

I am a bit nervous of the 'soft' LCD screens when it comes to cleaning them. On the other hand, they don't attract as much crud as a CRT would.

I wish all LCDs came with a 'food, drink, and sneeze repulsion field' ;)
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: mouser on November 05, 2007, 09:37 AM
I have a pair of Samsung 204b (http://www.samsung.com/ca/products/monitor/lcd_regular/ls20brdbbvxaa.asp) lcd monitors.

Moving to lcds was one of the best things i did -- huge benefit in terms of desk space and no downsides.

I'm very happy with the samsungs, though i have to say after moving them to a new house after a year they both developed little areas of discoloration.

Personally i went for 2 side-by-side normal aspect ratio screens, rather than 1 widescreen.  the trend these days seems to be for widescreen, but i prefer 2 normals.

As far as not having things like usb ports, i wouldn't give that the slighted thought -- not important at all. 
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Lashiec on November 05, 2007, 02:40 PM
I prefer 4:3 as well, you get plenty of space, and if you can afford two, the better. Manufacturers are pushing wide screen panels because they're cheaper to make, but, objectively speaking, none of the so called pluses are actually that, like for example, that you get a bigger screen (LOL) or a 16:9 screen feels more natural for reading (of course, go to those sites that expand the layout to fill all the screen, like NeoGAF, to see how nice and natural feels reading something like that).

On the other hand, what João comments, having two files side by side, it's a big plus, and a true one, not mentioned too often.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Deozaan on November 05, 2007, 03:29 PM
I'll just say this: My first LCD monitor I bought had built-in speakers. They suck! I didn't go all out for quality as I was just trying to get a monitor for my new computer but I'd rather they spend the money on quality of picture than throwing in some useless speakers/usb/whatevers.

Quality of picture is most important. Anything else is fluff.

Definitely get DVI. I'd go for dual DVI if I could, but that's because I have two computers and two monitors. One computer is dual monitor, the other isn't. In other words, two computers are using the same monitor. It's like a TV you can switch the inputs on. It's nice, but the quality is limited on one computer since it's a DVI/VGA and the other monitor only has one VGA (no DVI). :-(

You could also get a small HDTV with a DVI so you can connect your TV/PC/Whatever to it.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Deozaan on November 05, 2007, 03:31 PM
On the other hand, what João comments, having two files side by side, it's a big plus, and a true one, not mentioned too often.
-Lashiec (November 05, 2007, 02:40 PM)

I prefer dual monitor for this. I often have documentation in one monitor and coding in the other. Or I can leave IRC on in one monitor while I do stuff on the other. It's nice!
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: tomos on November 05, 2007, 03:40 PM
I like the 4:3 format
but imagine with widescreen I'd be able to work nicely on my 4:3 (Olympus) photos
& have a nice bit of space at the end for the tools/panels

but I wonder would a regular 19" monitor have more height than a 19" widescreen?
24" please :)
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: f0dder on November 05, 2007, 05:26 PM
On the other hand, what João comments, having two files side by side, it's a big plus, and a true one, not mentioned too often.
-Lashiec (November 05, 2007, 02:40 PM)

I prefer dual monitor for this. I often have documentation in one monitor and coding in the other. Or I can leave IRC on in one monitor while I do stuff on the other. It's nice!
-Deozaan (November 05, 2007, 03:31 PM)
Same here - MSDN + cmd.exe on the right monitor, visual studio on the left. Oh, and mirc/miranda etc. underneath the MSDN window :-[ . Also works for games, game on the left monitor and IM stuff on the right. Wonderful.

I like the 4:3 format
but imagine with widescreen I'd be able to work nicely on my 4:3 (Olympus) photos
& have a nice bit of space at the end for the tools/panels
-tomos (November 05, 2007, 03:40 PM)
Get two monitors - run the main photoshop window on one of them, drag the tool panels onto the other. It's so much nicer being able to hit "maximize" and only maxing to one monitor, instead of having to manually dragresize windows (ok, or use gridmove :)).
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: lanux128 on November 05, 2007, 06:33 PM
thanks guys for all the comments & suggestion. i'm glad that Samsung looks to be the favourite here in DC. the dual-screen idea is very tempting but it's slightly out of my budget. i have been thinking of getting one now and another one six months down the road but i'm afraid that model might not be available by then..

i also checked out the DVI part and from the table i saw in the specs part (pic), i guess i'm covered here..

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Source: http://www.samsung.com/ca/products/monitor/lcd_digital/ls19mewsfxaa.asp?page=Specifications
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Darwin on November 05, 2007, 07:06 PM
I'm going to have to take the plunge and get a secondary monitor. This thread is an interesting read - most interesting to me is the discussion around USB ports and such - WTF? I'm slow at the best of times, but tonight I'm having real difficulty envisioning what good such a feature would be, except to increase the number of USB ports available on one's computer.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: f0dder on November 05, 2007, 07:06 PM
Doesn't matter too much if you can't get the exact same model (if you don't matter a heterogenous look on your desktop), you can even mix and match resolutions (although I wouldn't recommend it).

I personally run 2x17" TFTs at 1280x1024 each, once is an Acer AL1722 (the primary monitor) and the other is an AL1715 - works like a charm. I'd go for 19" if I had the money though, or 20" to get 1600x1200... but this setup is nice :)

I'm going to have to take the plunge and get a secondary monitor. This thread is an interesting read - most interesting to me is the discussion around USB ports and such - WTF? I'm slow at the best of times, but tonight I'm having real difficulty envisioning what good such a feature would be, except to increase the number of USB ports available on one's computer.
-Darwin (November 05, 2007, 07:06 PM)
Having an USB hub in your monitor could be decent, but it's nothing vital imho. One of my monitors has another kind of USB connector though, it basically lets me access the monitor on-screen menu via software instead of pushing the buttons. Somewhat useless to me, but it's a gimmick nonetheless.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Darwin on November 05, 2007, 07:25 PM
I have a friend that bought a 21.4" Samsung with 3000:1 contrast ratio. I'm not sure why he needed it (suspect he doesn't) but I'm gathering from people's choices here that 800:1 (which is a lot cheaper where I am) would be just fine for normal usage?
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: mouser on November 05, 2007, 07:40 PM
My rule of thumb is avoid all combo-accessories (usb hubs, speakers, etc.) they tend to break or be sub-par or become obsolete and then it's annoying to have them attached to the main device.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Deozaan on November 05, 2007, 07:57 PM
i also checked out the DVI part and from the table i saw in the specs part (pic), i guess i'm covered here..
Source: http://www.samsung.com/ca/products/monitor/lcd_digital/ls19mewsfxaa.asp?page=Specifications
-lanux128 (November 05, 2007, 06:33 PM)

Be sure to notice that that monitor doesn't come with a DVI cable to connect your monitor to your PC! Just a VGA (D-Sub) cable.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: lanux128 on November 05, 2007, 08:15 PM
i also checked out the DVI part and from the table i saw in the specs part (pic), i guess i'm covered here..
Source: http://www.samsung.com/ca/products/monitor/lcd_digital/ls19mewsfxaa.asp?page=Specifications
-lanux128 (November 05, 2007, 06:33 PM)

Be sure to notice that that monitor doesn't come with a DVI cable to connect your monitor to your PC! Just a VGA (D-Sub) cable.
-Deozaan (November 05, 2007, 07:57 PM)
in that case, will a DVI-VGA adapter work?
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: RobC on November 05, 2007, 09:53 PM
This touches on something that has severely annoyed me.
I believe a law should be passed (or the equivalent to enforce this in the manufacturing and retailing of LCD Monitors)
They are confusing/fooling a lot of people, by being allowed to call a model say a 21" wide screen, when in reality it probably is the equivalent height of a 18" (4/3) model (I don't have one to measure, but you get the idea)

They should be forced to call that model an 18" wide screen

Imagine the number of people who have been fooled when purchasing laptops.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: RobC on November 05, 2007, 10:14 PM
PS
If anyone is not convinced, imagine if theatres are built to show a new format called Super Wide, which is twice as wide as we have now.

When they built LCD monitors and laptops to cater for those, will they be allowed to call them 42" Super Wide  ?
When their height might be 5"
 
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Deozaan on November 05, 2007, 10:31 PM
When they built LCD monitors and laptops to cater for those, will they be allowed to call them 42" Super Wide  ?
When their height might be 5"
-RobC (November 05, 2007, 10:14 PM)

RobC: All monitors and TV sets and screens in general are measured diagonally from corner to corner. And in response to the above quote: That's why it's important to know the aspect ratio. A 42in. "Super Wide" that was only 5in. tall would be something close to 8:1 (which means that it's 8 times as wide as it is tall)

Use the Pythagorean theorem for the real answer. A^2 + B^2 = C^2, where in this case A = 5 and C = 42 which means B is about 41.7 inches. Or, to put it in a more readable format: The monitor screen is 5" tall, about 41.7" wide, and is measured/advertised as 42" (diagonally).

in that case, will a DVI-VGA adapter work?
-lanux128 (November 05, 2007, 08:15 PM)

A DVI-VGA adapter will work to get it to plug in properly, but you still lose the benefits of DVI (DVI is digital, VGA is analog), and thus don't have the nicer picture quality. It's like recording a vinyl record album to mp3. Sure, it's playing as a digital mp3, but that doesn't improve the audio quality beyond the original vinyl record.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: lanux128 on November 05, 2007, 10:55 PM
A DVI-VGA adapter will work to get it to plug in properly, but you still lose the benefits of DVI (DVI is digital, VGA is analog), and thus don't have the nicer picture quality. It's like recording a vinyl record album to mp3. Sure, it's playing as a digital mp3, but that doesn't improve the audio quality beyond the original vinyl record.
-Deozaan (November 05, 2007, 10:31 PM)

so that means i'll be better off buying a DVI cable separately.. since i'm still finding my feet here, i'm going to google some pics on both type of cables..
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Deozaan on November 05, 2007, 11:12 PM
A DVI-VGA adapter will work to get it to plug in properly, but you still lose the benefits of DVI (DVI is digital, VGA is analog), and thus don't have the nicer picture quality. It's like recording a vinyl record album to mp3. Sure, it's playing as a digital mp3, but that doesn't improve the audio quality beyond the original vinyl record.
-Deozaan (November 05, 2007, 10:31 PM)

so that means i'll be better off buying a DVI cable separately.. since i'm still finding my feet here, i'm going to google some pics on both type of cables..
-lanux128 (November 05, 2007, 10:55 PM)

Typically VGA (D-Sub) is blue and DVI is white on the connectors. Also DVI has some prongs and then a "+" (plus sign) shaped prong separated a ways from the others in the connector. No way to mix them up.

(http://www.microsoft.com/library/media/1033/windowsxp/images/using/setup/hwandprograms/67360-video-card-annotated.jpg)
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: lanux128 on November 06, 2007, 12:11 AM
thanks to Deozaan & Google image, now i know that D-Sub is VGA.. ;D in that case, there's no way to mix them up. but i'm still wondering about Samsung's reasoning behind NOT shipping a DVI cable when the model supports it.. :-\

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Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Deozaan on November 06, 2007, 12:33 AM
but i'm still wondering about Samsung's reasoning behind NOT shipping a DVI cable when the model supports it.. :-\
-lanux128 (November 06, 2007, 12:11 AM)

Not sure. I didn't get one with mine either. But get this: My brother's laptop came with one. I ended up borrowing his until I bought another monitor that actually came with both DVI and VGA AND a DVI-VGA.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: lanux128 on November 06, 2007, 01:16 AM
i froogled for dvi cables (http://www.google.com/products?q=samsung+DVI+cable&btnG=Search&hl=en&show=dd) and it doesn't seem that expensive.. maybe i should get one for better viewing quality..
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: tomos on November 06, 2007, 02:45 AM
I have a friend that bought a 21.4" Samsung with 3000:1 contrast ratio. I'm not sure why he needed it (suspect he doesn't) but I'm gathering from people's choices here that 800:1 (which is a lot cheaper where I am) would be just fine for normal usage?
-Darwin (November 05, 2007, 07:25 PM)

I was looking at a catalogue & some advertising/junk mail yesterday.
I was suprised even in the catalogue for some screens they were saying
Kontrast (dyn.) 3000:1
others then were listed without the dynamic bit - (are they using the same word in english - I think so)

Read somewhere here lately someone saying dynamic contrast wasnt worth much...?
& that the actual contrast much more important

Unfortunately they often dont say what the actual contrast is
which means you've got to go research

There was a thread lately (name?) where (nudone, I think) was saying go for 1000:1 if you can  :-\
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: f0dder on November 06, 2007, 04:53 AM
Also keep in mind that a DVI output can be converted to VGA/D-SUB, but not the other way around (well, perhaps with some expensive peripheral, but...).
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Ralf Maximus on November 06, 2007, 06:06 AM
i froogled for dvi cables (http://www.google.com/products?q=samsung+DVI+cable&btnG=Search&hl=en&show=dd) and it doesn't seem that expensive.. maybe i should get one for better viewing quality..
-lanux128 (November 06, 2007, 01:16 AM)

If both your video card and monitor support DVI -- YES.  It makes a tremendous difference.  Go for it.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Tekzel on November 06, 2007, 08:27 AM
I am in the pro-widescreen camp, firmly.  I replaced my CRTs a while back with a couple of Mag 19" widescreen LCDs and have never looked back. I have yet to find a scenario where I would prefer a 4:3 display, I dont really play older games and the games I have played to date all support the native 1440x900 resolution of my screen.  I will never use a 4:3 again.  I also like the Mag because it has 3 inputs, 1 DVI that goes to my computer and 2x VGA that one of which goes to my Xbox 360.  I plan on trying to find a VGA adapter for my PS2 and hooking it up to my third input! :)

F0dder, I am curious about the comment you made where you felt the 4:3 display is better for coding.  I couldn't disagree more, and I am curious what your reasoning is.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: f0dder on November 06, 2007, 08:32 AM
F0dder, I am curious about the comment you made where you felt the 4:3 display is better for coding.  I couldn't disagree more, and I am curious what your reasoning is.
-Tekzel (November 06, 2007, 08:27 AM)
I tend to maximize my apps, it's faster than manually resizing... a text editor (notepad++) becomes way too wide this way, and even visual studio with solution explorer, toolbox etc. open is quite wide enough. On a widescreen, there's simply too much wasted space if you maximize, in my opinion, and I'm afraid that might encourage having way too long source lines.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Lashiec on November 06, 2007, 08:42 AM
Companies tend to not include DVI cables to cut costs. They don't even give you DVI-VGA converters, those are provided by graphic cards manufacturers. That reminds me that my DVI cable is purchase pending ;D

Also, another good reason for not going 16:9 is desktop space. Currently, I have the printer at one side, and it would be difficult to fit a wide screen panel, at least with enough space for the speakers to be separated from the screen.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Darwin on November 06, 2007, 08:55 AM
More food for thought. I don't game and I don't watch movies on my computer (very often, anyway). Seems there may be compelling reasons to avoid widescreen given that I, too, like to maximize my apps (Word, Excel, Access) when working?
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Ralf Maximus on November 06, 2007, 09:14 AM
More food for thought. I don't game and I don't watch movies on my computer (very often, anyway). Seems there may be compelling reasons to avoid widescreen given that I, too, like to maximize my apps (Word, Excel, Access) when working?
-Darwin (November 06, 2007, 08:55 AM)

Unless you're buying a panel that HONESTLY shows (say) 2560x1024 pixels, and your video card can support that resolution, there will be horizontal stretching by the drivers and hardware.  Fugly, fugly, fugly.

In most cases it's better and cheaper to go with a pair of 4:3 panels and let Windows "expand your desktop".
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Darwin on November 06, 2007, 09:21 AM
OK - thanks for confirming that, Ralf. I guess the final "step" in considering this should be to hook my notebook up to my friend's monitor and see if the anaemic Centrino video card is up to the task. I'd hate to spend the money only to find that the secondary monitor flickers on me...
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Tekzel on November 06, 2007, 01:39 PM
F0dder, I am curious about the comment you made where you felt the 4:3 display is better for coding.  I couldn't disagree more, and I am curious what your reasoning is.
-Tekzel (November 06, 2007, 08:27 AM)
I tend to maximize my apps, it's faster than manually resizing... a text editor (notepad++) becomes way too wide this way, and even visual studio with solution explorer, toolbox etc. open is quite wide enough. On a widescreen, there's simply too much wasted space if you maximize, in my opinion, and I'm afraid that might encourage having way too long source lines.

-f0dder (November 06, 2007, 08:32 AM)

Ah ok, I understand where you are coming from.  For me, personally, I still disagree.  :)  I also maximize windows most of the time and I find the extra width to be more help than hinderance.  I personally find the widescreen format to be, in all ways, better than the old 4:3.  I like it wide, so much so that I have two wide screen displays side by side.  Guess its different strokes and all that.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: TPReal on November 06, 2007, 03:01 PM
Hello.

I've recently bought a new laptop, and it is wide-screen. I didn't want it to be but they produce mostly wide-screen laptops now. At the beginning I was skeptical about this, but now I got used to and I can say it isn't any worse than a normal 4:3 screen (those screens now seem for me to be almost square ;D). I tested a number of games, and most of them can be switched to match the monitor's real resolution, so they are not stretched, and the rest of them are stretched by default, but in my graphic card's (nVIDIA) driver I found an option to lock the ratio so that the view just doesn't use the whole width of the screen. Or you can disable resizing completely, and then the image doesn't touch any side of the screen.

On the other hand, when viewing a text file, or writing code, I sometimes miss some height, while there's a lot of unused place on the right side. But you can put there the Start bar if you wish, or in IDEs like BDS you can use this place for Object Inspector or Project Manager, which I wouldnt put there on 3:4 because they would make the code less readable for me (I don't like narrow code editing fields).

So to sum up, if you already badly miss height, consider buying 4:3. Otherwise, I'd recomment wide-screen.

TPR.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: nontroppo on November 06, 2007, 03:16 PM
Though partially off-topic (buying LCDs in general), this article was the best intro to LCD purchasing I've sen in a while:

http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/archives/000991.html

We have a widescreen Dell at work which is a TN, and boy is its colour response horrible! The differences between it and our NECs (VA) and CinemaDisplay (IPS) is astounding. On topic the widescreen is nice for app management (horizontal document comparison, text diffing is amazing on widescreen!), but I'd rather take two IPS monitors over a widescreen TN any day.

Jeff links to this nice LCD buying guide:

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/other/display/lcd-guide-f2007.html
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: David A on November 06, 2007, 03:52 PM
About wide-screen:

I have a normal 4:3 displays at work and home. On the display I usually have two windows side by side, be it web-browsers, terminals, pdf-readers or text-editors. I have instructed firefox not to allow sites to change its width. (And I hate apps that starts in full screen mode.) With 1600x1200 there is plenty of width.

I don't think of "wide screen" as more width, but rather less height.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Nod5 on November 06, 2007, 04:35 PM
A somewhat related questions: does anyone of you with LCD monitors use some suspension or wall fitting or "skycrane-like" arm to hold it or do you use the reglar plastic base that it came with? Whas it expensive? Any drawbacks? I'm planning to get some such alternative to the plastic base for my computer monitor at home. I want to use the entire table area, slide slide papers in under the (suspended) monitor and so on.

BTW I also prefer the 4:3 format. Though if I were to buy a new LCD screen today I might get one that can be (physically) rotated 90 degrees. Very useful for those of us that read a lot of pdf files on the screen.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Curt on November 06, 2007, 05:37 PM
I think of wide screen as ten thousand old wallpapers that will no more fit the screen.

And as letters and documents looking different on the recievers screen, from what I intended them to.

Edit: BTW:
My LCD is from before LCD was invented, I guess; it is from the previous century. 786,432 pixels.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: cranioscopical on November 06, 2007, 05:44 PM
BTW I also prefer the 4:3 format. Though if I were to buy a new LCD screen today I might get one that can be (physically) rotated 90 degrees. Very useful for those of us that read a lot of pdf files on the screen.
-Nod5 (November 06, 2007, 04:35 PM)
To your first point, stands or mounts probably depends on the hardware supplied. I use the stands supplied with my two Samsung 214Ts (1600x1200). They provide a lot of adjustment: height, tilt, rotation. Were I to refit my study I might build the computer section around wall mounts but, for now, I have a bunch of stuff I'd rather not see lurking behind the panels so I'm content.

FWIW, I thought when I bought these monitors that it'd be as useful as all get out to rotate them to 'portrait' mode, especially for dtp etc. In fact I tried it once and never bothered to do so again. I find 1200 vertical resolution gives me all that I need for full-page 8x11" documents (reading or layout).

The way I'm set up now, I haven't room for more horizontal screens without some prior upheaval (there's a little Ralf Maximus envy here, though) but I'd sure like to have a grid of 4. That arrangement would surely need wall mounts, eh?

Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Ralf Maximus on November 06, 2007, 06:41 PM
The way I'm set up now, I haven't room for more horizontal screens without some prior upheaval (there's a little Ralf Maximus envy here, though) but I'd sure like to have a grid of 4. That arrangement would surely need wall mounts, eh?

Nah.  You just need a standard-size desk with nothing else on the back half, and accept the loss of physical real-estate.

I *used* to have three 19" glass monitors, and that was retarded.  I barely had room for my keyboard and had to sit back in my chair to avoid bumping my nose into Windows.  The pic below is a bit out of date -- I now have four identical Acer 19" panels instead of the mix-and-mash... but it serves to illustrate.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: cranioscopical on November 06, 2007, 07:54 PM
Nah.  You just need a standard-size desk with nothing else on the back half, and accept the loss of physical real-estate.
I *used* to have three 19" glass monitors, and that was retarded.  I barely had room for my keyboard and had to sit back in my chair to avoid bumping my nose into Windows.
-Ralf Maximus (November 06, 2007, 06:41 PM)

You're right but...

My computer desk is 63".  The two monitors I now have take up 37".  So, I could have 3 without changing built-in furniture but I'm thinking of four.
Some of the new, larger Acer monitors look interesting and have been reasonably well reviewed (and are going for a song compared to the amount I paid for mine not so long ago -- always true that).  Perhaps 3 of those would work well. 

I find buying monitors to be a bit problematic.  The only real way to tell if a particular model is right is to run it in situ and then with the kinds of applications one uses regularly.  So few places are set up to allow even the latter.  Also, it gets a bit expensive to upgrade 2 or 3 at a time and I don't want mismatched panels (though reduced prices probably mean that buying three, now, would cost less than my current two did when new).

I know what you mean about sitting back from large CRTs.  I have a few 22" Philips still in my basement.  You can't give them away these days ;D
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: lanux128 on November 06, 2007, 08:30 PM
Jeff links to this nice LCD buying guide:

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/other/display/lcd-guide-f2007.html
-nontroppo (November 06, 2007, 03:16 PM)

thanks nontroppo, via this link i found a review on Samsung 931BW (http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/other/display/19inch-6_8.html).
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: tomos on November 07, 2007, 03:37 AM
Jeff links to this nice LCD buying guide:

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/other/display/lcd-guide-f2007.html
-nontroppo (November 06, 2007, 03:16 PM)

thanks nontroppo, via this link i found a review on Samsung 931BW (http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/other/display/19inch-6_8.html).
-lanux128 (November 06, 2007, 08:30 PM)

it gets a good review there!

I get confused when they talk about 100nit White:
By default, the monitor has 100% brightness and 75% contrast. When the contrast setting is increased above its default, details get lost in lightest color tones. To achieve a 100nit brightness of white I reduced the brightness and contrast settings to 31% and 33%, respectively.
if 100nit white is "ideal" (?) does that mean youre losing out on lots of contrast - he reduces it to 33%
had a look a a few reviews there & this seems typical - he's not complaining about it so I guess it's okay
But I'm still curious..

When i look it up in google I just get the xbitlabs site,
when i look it up in wikipedia I get a list of articles about basketball teams :tellme:
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Dirhael on November 07, 2007, 07:42 AM
I wonder how many of the resident "widescreen-haters" here uses applications that has sidebars/panels, like oh I don't know, just about every IDE available? Because if you do, I don't understand how you can stand using such programs on a 4:3, or even worse, 5:4 monitor. A dual-monitor setup can't help you with such things either, so a widescreen is the only reasonable solution.

At my previous job they used 1280x1024 (5:4) monitors, and software that always had a sidebar open...and I absolutely hated using it.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Darwin on November 07, 2007, 08:14 AM
I'll probably be joining you in widescreen nirvana, Dirhael. I live in a small town and AFAICT widescreen is about the only choice I'll have. I'm agnostic on the issue of the merits of 4:3/5:5/16:9 from a user's perspective. Mostly because I've never used a widescreen monitor in computing. Only one in the house is on my wife's personal notebook and I haven't really tried to use it "prodcutively" (just poke around on it updating security apps and troubleshooting the odd problem for her). So we'll see... I can tell you that I always disable sidebars in software because of the real estate it takes up on my computer, so 16:9 might be a refreshing change for me and allow me to utilize features of varous apps' GUI that I've not been able to use fully in the past.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Ralf Maximus on November 07, 2007, 09:51 AM
A dual-monitor setup can't help you with such things either, so a widescreen is the only
-Dirhael (November 07, 2007, 07:42 AM)

Explain this, please.  I'm simply drawing a blank.  My auxillary monitors are *crammed* with sidebars and toolbars and whatnot.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: tomos on November 07, 2007, 10:10 AM
A dual-monitor setup can't help you with such things either, so a widescreen is the only
-Dirhael (November 07, 2007, 07:42 AM)

Explain this, please.  I'm simply drawing a blank.  My auxillary monitors are *crammed* with sidebars and toolbars and whatnot.
-Ralf Maximus (November 07, 2007, 09:51 AM)

I had been thinking along Dirhaels lines but then I keep generally keep a lot of toolbars hidden.
Of course it depends on what programmes, but,
I guess with "auxillary" monitors you can feel free to open loads of toolbars & wouldnt even have to have toolbars from diff apps overlying each other..
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Dirhael on November 07, 2007, 10:37 AM
A dual-monitor setup can't help you with such things either, so a widescreen is the only
-Dirhael (November 07, 2007, 07:42 AM)

Explain this, please.  I'm simply drawing a blank.  My auxillary monitors are *crammed* with sidebars and toolbars and whatnot.
-Ralf Maximus (November 07, 2007, 09:51 AM)

Ok, consider the attached screenshot. How would I get *just* the "projects" and "toolbox" panels on a secondary monitor? I don't want any other part of the window moved off my primary screen. Yes, some programs will let you use floating toolbars/panels but a whole lot of them don't and in such cases a dual/triple/whatever monitor setup won't help you.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Ralf Maximus on November 07, 2007, 10:40 AM
Ah.  MDI.  Boo, hiss. :-)

Everything I use has floating and/or tear-off dockable toolbars which can be dragged wherever.  So I've not encountered this particular issue.

You're right: if the app doesn't support floating toolbars, a wide-screen solution would be best.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: f0dder on November 08, 2007, 08:24 AM
I wonder how many of the resident "widescreen-haters" here uses applications that has sidebars/panels, like oh I don't know, just about every IDE available? Because if you do, I don't understand how you can stand using such programs on a 4:3, or even worse, 5:4 monitor. A dual-monitor setup can't help you with such things either, so a widescreen is the only reasonable solution.
-Dirhael (November 07, 2007, 07:42 AM)
Tear-off boxes, perhaps? But okay, not every piece of software supports that.

Even without tearing off toolboxes, and having a bar on each side, I have quite enough space on 1280x1024 with visual studio... but I don't believe in extremely long source lines.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Tekzel on November 08, 2007, 12:47 PM
Ah.  MDI.  Boo, hiss. :-)

Everything I use has floating and/or tear-off dockable toolbars which can be dragged wherever.  So I've not encountered this particular issue.

You're right: if the app doesn't support floating toolbars, a wide-screen solution would be best.
-Ralf Maximus (November 07, 2007, 10:40 AM)

I disagree.  The ultimate best is dual wide screens :)   Best of both worlds for me!
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: lanux128 on November 08, 2007, 08:20 PM
when i encounter all those toolbars & sidebars, i normally hide them or set it to appear on-demand but with Dirhael's idea, i'm thinking that maybe it's worth the width of a wide-screen.. :)
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: mouser on November 10, 2007, 07:45 AM
I wonder how many of the resident "widescreen-haters" here uses applications that has sidebars/panels, like oh I don't know, just about every IDE available? Because if you do, I don't understand how you can stand using such programs on a 4:3, or even worse, 5:4 monitor. A dual-monitor setup can't help you with such things either, so a widescreen is the only reasonable solution.

really good point.. one of the reasons i dislike these new sidebar widgets is because of the screen real estate they use.. but i can see how using a widescreen monitor could basically eliminate that problem.  food for thought and good point.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: f0dder on November 10, 2007, 09:00 AM
I wonder how many of the resident "widescreen-haters" here uses applications that has sidebars/panels, like oh I don't know, just about every IDE available? Because if you do, I don't understand how you can stand using such programs on a 4:3, or even worse, 5:4 monitor. A dual-monitor setup can't help you with such things either, so a widescreen is the only reasonable solution.

really good point.. one of the reasons i dislike these new sidebar widgets is because of the screen real estate they use.. but i can see how using a widescreen monitor could basically eliminate that problem.  food for thought and good point.
-mouser (November 10, 2007, 07:45 AM)
If they're detachable, as they should be, you can simply move them to a secondary monitor - presto, no need for widescreen :)
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: mouser on November 10, 2007, 09:39 AM
i think the point is valid though.

normally i think to myself: "the only thing i would want widescreen for is to watch movies, which i hardly ever do, so i don't need a widescreen display"

but now i see i should consider also the possibility that docked sidebars could be put in that extra space (whether they are ide sidebars or desktop sidebars, etc.).

id still rather have 2 monitors than one big widescreen any day of the week.  you have to actually use two monitors to see why maximizing apps on a single monitor is so important etc.  its not just about the extra screen real estate, it's also about having two independent desktop areas.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: f0dder on November 10, 2007, 10:06 AM
mouser: sure, widescreen would be nice for sidedocking stuff (although for something like vs.net with a dock on both left and right size, I find the code window to be quite wide enough on 1280x1024 non-widescreen) - the problem is all those apps that do not have sidedocks, and become ridiculously wide when maximizing.

I'd rather have two normal monitors over a single (or even two) widescreens, any day. But okay, choice between a single normal or single widescreen... I'd probably take the widescreen and jgpaiva's gridmove.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Ralf Maximus on November 10, 2007, 11:16 AM
Another consideration (and a point in favor of multiple standard monitors): if you play games, then full-screen games won't look stretched.  In a multiple-monitor setup DirectX simply deactivates the auxillary monitors and uses the primary one in full-screen mode.

Not a big deal, but to a gamer it might be.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Dirhael on November 10, 2007, 12:54 PM
Another consideration (and a point in favor of multiple standard monitors): if you play games, then full-screen games won't look stretched.  In a multiple-monitor setup DirectX simply deactivates the auxillary monitors and uses the primary one in full-screen mode.

Not a big deal, but to a gamer it might be.
-Ralf Maximus (November 10, 2007, 11:16 AM)

I use a widescreen monitor, and desite this not a single game out of all that I own are streched. How? Nvidia graphics cards scales non-widescreen resolutions while respecting the aspect ratio so you'll just get black borders on the left/right if you prefer that. The games that does do WS natively on the other hand, looks great and feels much better than what a 4:3 monitor can offer.

The argument that f0dder presents I can understand much better though, but it's all a matter of what you get used to. Besides, I can't really think of any application that I use except for notepad (which I never maximize anyway) that doesn't either offer something to fill the sides width (sidebars etc), or the possibility to adjust how wide you want the readable area to be in some way or another.

Widescreen monitors might not be for everyone, but I would never even consider going back to 4:3 or 5:4, because for me and my use the advantages are far to many to ignore.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: lanux128 on November 11, 2007, 06:50 PM
I use a widescreen monitor, and desite this not a single game out of all that I own are streched. How? Nvidia graphics cards scales non-widescreen resolutions while respecting the aspect ratio so you'll just get black borders on the left/right if you prefer that. The games that does do WS natively on the other hand, looks great and feels much better than what a 4:3 monitor can offer.
-Dirhael (November 10, 2007, 12:54 PM)

and if nVidia fails, check out the excellent link to wide-screen gaming that nudone posted further up in the thread.. they even have Gothic3 (http://www.widescreengamingforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=8807) in their database!.. :)

but there is help at this website that is all about widescreen gaming http://www.widescreengamingforum.com/ they have a list of games and also talk about methods to force games to be widescreen. many times someone will have wrote a little util to induce the correct aspect ratio.
-nudone (November 05, 2007, 02:19 AM)
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Ralf Maximus on November 11, 2007, 06:56 PM
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]

Okay, I think I'm sold.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: f0dder on November 11, 2007, 07:01 PM
(see attachment in previous post (https://www.donationcoder.com/forum/index.php?topic=10698.msg85364#msg85364))
Okay, I think I'm sold.
-Ralf Maximus (November 11, 2007, 06:56 PM)
The girl or the monitor? ;)
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Deozaan on November 11, 2007, 07:12 PM
(see attachment in previous post (https://www.donationcoder.com/forum/index.php?topic=10698.msg85364#msg85364))
Okay, I think I'm sold.
-Ralf Maximus (November 11, 2007, 06:56 PM)

That's not a monitor. That's a TV with DVI input, most likely. Sure would be nice...
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: f0dder on November 11, 2007, 07:18 PM
(see attachment in previous post (https://www.donationcoder.com/forum/index.php?topic=10698.msg85364#msg85364))
Okay, I think I'm sold.
-Ralf Maximus (November 11, 2007, 06:56 PM)

That's not a monitor. That's a TV with DVI input, most likely. Sure would be nice...
-Deozaan (November 11, 2007, 07:12 PM)

Not that big a difference these days, although "TVs" tend to be larger, have more inputs, and possibly a couple of tuners as well. But with DVI and HDMI inputs, the lines begin to blur...
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: lanux128 on November 11, 2007, 07:21 PM
Okay, I think I'm sold.
-Ralf Maximus (November 11, 2007, 06:56 PM)
wow, you can spot an evil sprite miles away.. ;D
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: zridling on November 19, 2007, 04:11 AM
Lanux, I'd recommend the widescreen option, if for no other reason, their falling prices. 22" is cool, 24" is great if you can afford it. Just remember to bring a big videocard to the party.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: AndyM on November 19, 2007, 08:51 AM
Just remember to bring a big videocard to the party.
-zridling (November 19, 2007, 04:11 AM)

So will the 4 year old video card that came with my Dell XP Pro machine (NVIDIA GeForce 4 MX 440 with AGP 8 X - Dell), which runs my current 20" monitor at 1600x1200 nicely, run a widescreen 24" monitor at 1920x1200?  Or will I have to buy a new video card?

I tried asking Samsung (I want to replace my 204B with a 245BW), but no answer.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Ralf Maximus on November 19, 2007, 09:16 AM
So will the 4 year old video card that came with my Dell XP Pro machine (NVIDIA GeForce 4 MX 440 with AGP 8 X - Dell), which runs my current 20" monitor at 1600x1200 nicely, run a widescreen 24" monitor at 1920x1200?  Or will I have to buy a new video card?
-AndyM (November 19, 2007, 08:51 AM)

Easy enough to check.

Open your display properties and go to Settings/Advanced.  See how far to the right the little "resolution" slider will go, but don't hit "OK" unless your existing monitor can take it.

:-)
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: AndyM on November 19, 2007, 09:24 AM
Open your display properties and go to Settings/Advanced.  See how far to the right the little "resolution" slider will go, but don't hit "OK" unless your existing monitor can take it.
-Ralf Maximus (November 19, 2007, 09:16 AM)

It maxes out at 1600x1200, but I don't think that's indicative.  When I had my 18" monitor hooked up, the slider maxed out at at that monitor's max res (1280x1024?).  As soon as I hooked up the 20" monitor, the slider's new max became 1600x1200.  I was hoping that hooking up a 24" monitor would make the slider go to 1920x1200, but I'd have to buy the monitor to try that experiment.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Ralf Maximus on November 19, 2007, 09:29 AM
It maxes out at 1600x1200, but I don't think that's indicative.  When I had my 18" monitor hooked up, the slider maxed out at at that monitor's max res (1280x1024?).  As soon as I hooked up the 20" monitor, the slider's new max became 1600x1200.  I was hoping that hooking up a 24" monitor would make the slider go to 1920x1200, but I'd have to buy the monitor to try that experiment.
-AndyM (November 19, 2007, 09:24 AM)

Not necessarily.  On the same tab with the "resolution" slider, click the Advanced button.  Select the Monitor tab.  Under the "Monitor Settings" turn off the little checkbox that says "Hide modes this monitor cannot display".

Then play with the slider again.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: AndyM on November 19, 2007, 10:19 AM
Under the "Monitor Settings" turn off the little checkbox that says "Hide modes this monitor cannot display".

Then play with the slider again.
-Ralf Maximus (November 19, 2007, 09:29 AM)

Now it goes to 1920x1200 (until I re-checked the box for safety).

Cool, thanks!!!

Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Gab07x on November 19, 2007, 02:49 PM
One of the biggest rip offs of the season is the price of the DVI Cables. They use less materials in their makeup and I was looking the other day and a 6 foot one was about $35 and a ten foot one was over $55 so since the ends are the same you are paying $5 a foot for the wire. Yeh sure !
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Ralf Maximus on November 19, 2007, 02:56 PM
Yo yo yo, Gab07x in da haus!  Welcome aboard!

One of the biggest rip offs of the season is the price of the DVI Cables. They use less materials in their makeup and I was looking the other day and a 6 foot one was about $35 and a ten foot one was over $55 so since the ends are the same you are paying $5 a foot for the wire. Yeh sure !
-Gab07x (November 19, 2007, 02:49 PM)

Actually, the real cost is due to the genetically engineered super-spiders they use to spin the cables.  Alas, the spinnerettes on these beasts only last for a few dozen cables before the unfortunate spider must be put down -- a dangerous job, given their size and temperment.

I like to avoid the whole spider-drama by dealing with Cables 2 Go (http://www.cablestogo.com/product_list.asp?cat%5Fid=3304).  The best prices, and reliable as heck... I've been dealing with them for more than 20 years.  Their DVI cables still aren't cheap ($22) but I guarantee you the quality is superior.  AND they accept returns.

I guess their spiders are better fed or something.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: lanux128 on November 19, 2007, 06:03 PM
thanks zridling for the word of advice.. :) on another note, i've postponed the decision to buy a new monitor until after new year in anticipation of the *BIG* price drop..
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Darwin on November 19, 2007, 09:05 PM
You and me both, Lanux (waiting for the New Year's sales)! Of course, I might be shooting myself in the foot if the Loonie takes a nosedive, but so be it...
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: tomos on November 20, 2007, 04:21 AM
I might be shooting myself in the foot if the Loonie takes a nosedive
-Darwin (November 19, 2007, 09:05 PM)

Loonie, was thinking- what's that  :-\
till i remembered - it's the bird on the canadian dollar isnt it?
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: cranioscopical on November 20, 2007, 09:27 AM
Tomos, I think it was really just a dummy run for Cody ;)
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Darwin on November 20, 2007, 12:44 PM
Heh, heh - I intentionally didn't clarify what a Loonie (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loonie) is when I posted - well spotted Tomos!

[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: lanux128 on November 20, 2007, 06:55 PM
Heh, heh - I intentionally didn't clarify what a Loonie (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loonie) is when I posted - well spotted Tomos!
-Darwin (November 20, 2007, 12:44 PM)
hehe.. cool name! i thought i was missing something..
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Cecebee on November 21, 2007, 08:08 AM
Wide screen for sure!  Once you use one you will never go back to older models.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: normeus on November 21, 2007, 11:27 AM
LG L1933TR     1280 x 1024  BEAUTIFUL SCREEN
it is a 19'' screen I've had it for 8 months. I dont do gaming but for programming it is the best. Text is sharp and bright.

It does not come with dvi cable.(or maybe It does I dont remember)
Sorry Im not good at reviews but for sure if I had the money I would have two of these and that would be my widescreen.

(really I dont have a single game to try this monitor with but movies look good!)
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: iphigenie on November 22, 2007, 05:19 AM
I recently got a really nice asus 20" widescreen and it is really a pleasure to use. There were 22" quite a bit cheaper but this monitor is just awesome - great screen, every possible connector in the universe (probably not but still...), nice space saving foot... they dont do this model in 22" or 24" yet but i hope they do

I dont think I would want too big a screen, first they get me dizzy in games but also the resolution seems to be the same as you go from 20 to 22 to 24!!! just bigger dots, it looks worse, so what's the point?

I dont understand why they can make 15" monitors with 1900x1620 (or is it 1920x1600? something like that) on laptops but you cannot get a 19" even with 1600x...

Although I have been starting to see more and more people and reviewers say this kind of thing, so thankfully it might happen.

I dont have space for 3 large monitors, but I could have space for several small ones and if the res is high it is a lot of information on screen...
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: dlagesse1992 on November 28, 2007, 02:22 PM
I think it is all in what you like and have tried/are used to. I have used both, and find that both have strong points. for a large monitor, i would probably go widescreen; I watch movies.

As for USB ports, etc... they seem unnecessary. Almost all computers have some ports in the front that are easy to access. Money for little benefit.

Just my 2 cents.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: lanux128 on March 20, 2008, 09:00 AM
just a foot-note: i've finally bought the Samsung 931BW mentioned in the 1st post and i'd like to thank everyone for their input which helped me very much. i am still trying to get used to all that extra width which does look like a plus point. however the anticipated price-drop didn't materialize.

and also nudone had made a wide-screen cody-horizon (https://www.donationcoder.com/forum/index.php?topic=5543.msg106189#msg106189) wallpaper to go with it! :Thmbsup:

[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]

Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: tomos on January 06, 2010, 01:00 PM
well, I've finally gone widescreen (& flatscreen lol) - just yesterday so still adjusting

16:10 as opposed to 4:3 (which is 16:12 :-\)
It's amazing how much difference those two units make to the proportions of the screen. I miss the 4:3 format and would ideally like two 4:3's, I think, but space is limited. Maybe on a 24" (as opposed to 22") the screen wouldnt feel quite so compressed (top to bottom)

Got this one Dell 2209WA (http://www.prad.de/en/monitore/review/2009/review-dell-2209wa.html) - 'only' 22 inch but has an e-IPS panel (as opposed to TN) so has great viewing angles and almost perfect sRGB colour out of the box. Have the option to return it within two weeks but suspect I'll be sticking with it :) 
(It's a great price here but not the best for gamers I think)

all else I can say at the moment is thank João for Gridmove ;)
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: cranioscopical on January 06, 2010, 01:16 PM
well, I've finally gone widescreen (& flatscreen lol) - just yesterday so still adjusting
-tomos (January 06, 2010, 01:00 PM)
Congratulations on the change!
I know that uneasy feeling when switching from 4:3. One does grow accustomed to the change, however, and the extra real-estate is useful. For me it was important not to cede vertical resolution but to add horizontal resolution  -- I didn't want just a change of format.
When one of a pair of 4:3's failed here, and there was no replacement to be found (model no longer available), I changed to a pair of wide screens. Now I'd be reluctant to go back.

Let us know how you get on  :up:
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: tomos on January 06, 2010, 02:14 PM
well, I've finally gone widescreen (& flatscreen lol) - just yesterday so still adjusting
-tomos (January 06, 2010, 01:00 PM)
Congratulations on the change!
-cranioscopical (January 06, 2010, 01:16 PM)

thanks Chris  :D

I've have gotten more vertical resolution over my last monitor, it's just getting used to the proportion that makes the screen *feel* compressed.
So far I find it's great for drawing, working on photos, having two dualscreen filemanager windows open (!),
far too wide for to maximise a browser window though, but yeah it's growing on me all the time, and true - there's very few new 4:3 models being produced (if any)
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: f0dder on January 06, 2010, 06:01 PM
Yeah, pretty hard to find 4:3 monitors nowadays - the ones I've come around have been priced way too high, so I ended up with a 22" 1680x1050 when one of my 1280x1024 17" monitors died (and then one of my friends gave me his old almost-identical 22" monitor as a birthday present - wow I have plenty of screen estate now :-O).

I kinda still prefer non-widerscreen - but at least the space can be used for toolbars in my programming environments :)
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Deozaan on January 07, 2010, 05:29 PM
I still don't really get widescreen. After all, 4:3 is still widescreen. It's just not as wide as widescreen. But most of the time I need more vertical space so I don't have to scroll up and down so much. But having dual monitors sure is great, so I suppose a big widescreen monitor with a large resolution and Windows 7's feature that makes apps fill half the screen (or jgpaiva's GridMove) would be essentially the same thing.
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: f0dder on January 07, 2010, 05:58 PM
But having dual monitors sure is great, so I suppose a big widescreen monitor with a large resolution and Windows 7's feature that makes apps fill half the screen (or jgpaiva's GridMove) would be essentially the same thing.
-Deozaan (January 07, 2010, 05:29 PM)
Far from it! Win7 or GridMove/similarapps have some of the advantages, but doesn't go all the way... one pretty great thing about dual-monitor setups is being able to play a game on one monitor, and have other stuff (like instant messaging and mail) running on the other :)
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: lanux128 on January 07, 2010, 07:00 PM
well, I've finally gone widescreen (& flatscreen lol) - just yesterday so still adjusting
-tomos (January 06, 2010, 01:00 PM)

congrats on the change.. don't worry, after a while you won't miss your 4:3 that much.. :)
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: Lashiec on January 11, 2010, 02:29 PM
Damn widescreen domination! *shakes fist*
Title: Re: To wide-screen or not to wide-screen
Post by: mouser on January 11, 2010, 03:17 PM
I don't really care about widescreen, but i think cranioscopical got it right -- as long as you don't give up vertical resolution, it's fine.  so for me i have 1600x1200 monitors which are non-widescreen, and then i have one 1920x1200 monitor which is widescreeen.