Monitor or TV

I will be going to college this fall and i can't decide if i should buy a monitor or a TV, does anyone have any suggestions, i want the screen to be about 26 inches. i will be hooking up my ps3 and laptop to whatever i get if that helps.

thanks in advance

 

I'd go with a monitor... I used a 25.5" Vizio LCD with WUXGA from Sams club that my family bought for about $400... which is great consider I got my WSXGA 22" TV for like $350-$400. The Monitors (in my experience) offer better picture quality when running an operating system on them, or anything from a computer.

I also ran my 360 off both with HDMI, the 25.5" Vizio looked about a bajillion times better. true it had extra pixels, but still, it easily demolished my TV in just it's brightness and crispness. The pixels on my TV look very blurry when using any of my computers connected to it, and will sometimes hold the refresh rate down to 30 Hz.

My vote is easy: Monitor!!!

 

thanks for the advice, i probably will get a monitor, but i have plenty of time to decide

 

Yea if you are going for that size grab a monitor, if you are going bigger however tv's are the only option, my friend plays wow on a 42' 1080p flatscreen and...it sooooo pretty lol

 

im currently at college, in a small double (~160+ sq feet), moving to a single (~120) next year

i would suggest a 26" is ideal... its not too big, requires just the right amount of room in a small college dorm....

check out slickdeals.net ... people posts good deals... i believe theres a samsung 22-24" HDTV on amazon for below $300, which is a good deal

i currently dont have any gaming system with me, and i use a USB TV Tuner on my 13" laptop (dual screened to a 15" monitor) to watch TV.... next year, my friends + i are probably chipping in for an xbox 360 with a decent sized tv...

 

I bought myself a 22'' 1080p BenQ E2200HD monitor to watch HD movies/anime/series and use my X360 on. I paid $250CAD with shipping and taxes. It has HDMI/VGA/DVI-I in and some crappy integrated speakers (but there's a line out to connect speakers) so I don't need an extra cable for my 360. The only drawback compared to a TV (outside the plugs) is that the vision distance is shorter. That's not a problem for movies, but for games, the distance is about 6~8ft. After this, the eyestrain is really intense.

 

do you know of any suggestions for usb tv tuners, because i have decided on getting a monitor.

i think i might be getting this monitor
http://www.vizio.com/product.aspx?id=2730&pid=2608

 

i have AverMedia Volar Max... great product, highlyrecommend it

@for vizio, its a semi-cheap brand... would stay away

go to http://slickdeals.net ... register, put in a deals alert for a monitor... you can definitely get a good 26" monitor under $300

but if you want to watch TV, u need your laptop on.... i'd recommend you wait for a samsung 22-26" deal on amazon.. currently they have a 22" samsung HDTV for $269

 

HD Projector

I use a 37" HD LCD at home and love it, was a very good choice. Infact I consider it the best choice I ever made as far as computer hardware. I love my screen and the fact that its a "tv" it works well with all my consoles and has tons of inputs.

A good quality HD TV is every bit as good as a computer monitor but allows for larger sizes.

For small though (24" or under) I would go with a regular computer monitor as they do not really make good tvs or high resolution in those sizes.

The big screen is great though! Gaming/Movies/Anime infinitely more enjoyable than a small computer screen, and web browsing and stuff is easier on the eyes.

I agree with paper wastage too about Vizio thats walmart brand stuff, its ultra low quality. My friend has one and while it serves him, he is infinitly jealous of my screen when he comes over. Its a huge difference. You can get high end stuff cheap just shop around for deals.

My monitor is a Westinghouse LVM-37W3 its not a mainstream brand but carries the same quality so it was cheap.

 

well i told my parents that i wanted a monitor instead of a tv, now there mad about it. the reason is that my roommate has a wii and is afraid if i dont get a tv he won't be able to play it. i know you can play the wii on a monitor if you get the right one, but would just be easier just to get a tv.

 

If you buy a "TV monitor", you can have test of both world.

TV monitor is a TV without TV tuner thus it's technically monitor.

720P 50" plasma cost less than $800 nowadays. Their resolution is usually 1366x768 which is decent. 1080P Plasma TV cost under $1000 if you're looking for highier resolution.

Also.. some computer monitor have options of RGB, HDMI, Compoent, DVi, Composite input so you can play your roomate's wii on those kind of monitor as well.

 

thanks for all the suggestions i think this monitor will work pretty well
Dell UltraSharp 2408WFP

 

Thats what my Westy is, its a HDTV without the tuner, has computer monitor grade performance but cost less than a tv as those tuners add to the cost.

 

Also.. nowdays.. it's all digital tv in US, so the cable company have their own tv boxes, so there's no need for tv tuners.

 

save money... OTA (over the air)

though u need a tv tuner.... not a cable box.

 

Save money.... internet TV with laptop TV tuner cost too much $$$.

 

I got a combination HDTV LCD monitor. Samsung T220HD. =)

 

monitors have better ms for gaming, so you dont get ghosting or w/e you want to call it

 

todays hdtvs have just as low and even lower, a good quality HDTV is no longer discernible from a computer monitor in any way except generally the tuner, the connections, and the size.

heck the new samsung hdtv has 120hz refresh rate, thats beating computer monitors. While refresh rate and response time are not the same thing, they do go hand in hand to some extent.

 

Yeah, I guess that does make sense. I used to have an hdmi tv (I dont remember the refresh rate on it, but it was prolly 100 or somethin) and when I play fps like CS:S the tv couldnt handle it. I dont know exactly what to call it, but the screen would not refresh quick enough when I would make sudden quick movement looking left or right. You could bearly notice it, but it was there.

Then I just used the tv as a dual box and play movies on it while playing another game.

I was also thinking about getting a new 120hz hd tv. I sold the other one. After Nvidia coming out with the new 3d goggles, I would like to try them out haah. I dont know, I still have a few months til I get back home. cheers

 

Sounds like you had ghosting, thats what happens if an LCD has a response time not fast enough to keep up with the movement on screen. My first LCD monitor had it but I got used to it.

Ironically my HDTV doesnt have it though, as the tech got way better way fast.

Some people are more sensitive to noticing things like ghosting than others, UT2004 was the main game I noticed it on with my old LCD as its a fast twitch shooter, similar to CS

 

i have a 24" monitor, and in my opinion this is huge. A monitor just has more features than a TV.
A TV is, most often, a very simple LCD panel with moderate quality in every aspect, HDMI, Scart, Video-In and a TV tuner.
With a monitor you know what panel is used and thus you know what you'll get, there are many reviews which test the monitor as computer display, which your primary use will be. A better monitor also has much more inputs (HDMI, 2xDVI (analog and digital), display port, Video-In, Composite-In, USB Hub and maybe some others I forgot). It's also optimized to run as a computer display, a TV is optimized to watch movies.
There will be a difference in software and hardware. (not only the TV tuner)

24" is huge, I don't know how some people can work with a 40" TV which also only displays WUXGA while sitting directly in front of this display.

I don't know what connectors the Wii needs, but with the right monitor it should work, too.

 

the wii can use composite cables so i might have to narrow my search to monitors to with composite-in, but i did find this connector for the wii and ps3 that is supposed to work on a monitor with a VGA connection.

http://vpgames.com/p-919-wii-ps3-vg...playstation-3-to-your-pc-monitor-or-hdtv.aspx