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HDTV vs LCD Display as external monitor for Macbook Pro

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danistyping

macrumors regular
Original poster
Dec 8, 2009
183
171
Boston, MA
Hey guys,

I'm looking to have a display hookup in my room for my Macbook Pro 15". I can't decide if i should get a 26" 720p HDTV with a pc input or a large lcd desktop display with a cable input to watch tv.

What are the pros/cons? Has anyone tried/preferred either? Any recommended monitors or hdtvs?


Thanks for your time! Any help is greatly appreciated.
 
danistyping said:
Hey guys,

I'm looking to have a display hookup in my room for my Macbook Pro 15". I can't decide if i should get a 26" 720p HDTV with a pc input or a large lcd desktop display with a cable input to watch tv.

What are the pros/cons? Has anyone tried/preferred either? Any recommended monitors or hdtvs?


Thanks for your time! Any help is greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...

A computer monitor is better for static images like web surfing, spreadsheets etc. A TV is better for video. If you want to work with files on your big screen get a PC monitor. If you just want to watch videos get a TV.
 
Gabriel GR said:
A computer monitor is better for static images like web surfing, spreadsheets etc. A TV is better for video. If you want to work with files on your big screen get a PC monitor. If you just want to watch videos get a TV.
Click to expand...

Very interesting. Are there any monitors in the 25-30" range that you could recommend @ $400 or less? I know I won't be able to get the same quality as that 27" imac...but anything remotely close would be sweet
 
danistyping said:
Very interesting. Are there any monitors in the 25-30" range that you could recommend @ $400 or less? I know I won't be able to get the same quality as that 27" imac...but anything remotely close would be sweet
Click to expand...

For this money I would try to find a good deal on a Dell Ultrasharp 24. They are great quality monitors.

There are some 27"s under $400 on newegg but I have seen none. http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=2010190020 1309821329&name=27"
 
Watch the prices of the Dell U2410 and HP LP2475W, anything larger will be probably out of your price range, and anything cheaper (but maybe larger) will be a huge downgrade in quality.

The only difference between those two monitors I am suggesting and the 24" Apple Cinema Display are the backlight and the screen finish. And I suppose the aluminum bezel versus plastic.

The Dell and HP are matte vs Glass on the ACD and the ACD has a LED backlight and the Dell and HP use Cold Cathode Fluorescent backlights, otherwise the LCD panels are the same.
 
I have a 26" Samsung 720p LCD tv that I hook up to my 15" uMBP. I only hook it up to watch movies because for some reason I cannot get the color and resolution right. If I were you I would buy a nice monitor. They are higher resolution and are ment for computers.
 
I got a Samsung T260HD it's a 26 inch hybrid, does up to 1080p via HDMI and up to 1920x1200 via DVI. Works perfectly for use on both my PS3 and Mac and it should be available fairly cheaply now, since I've bought mine about a year ago for 400 British pounds.
 
I have two old PowerBook G4's with busted screens so they are now used as desktops. One is primary machine and has been since 2005. The other is a secondary machine I have hooked up to a 42'' 1080p LCD. My primary machine is use a standard 22'' Acer with DVI currently running at 1680 X 1050 resolutions. I got it for $150....given the money, the monitor has been the best monitor I have owned. Granted its no cinema display. My tv displays thing but wouldn't be good for daily computer work...it only serves as recreational browsing. However it's really nice to play guitar and stand 10 feet away from the tv and have all the lyrics nice and big all on one screen to read without scrolling.
 
hmmm very interesting guys. It sounds like what i need it the hybrid that was mentioned. A HDTV/monitor. Aside from the Samsung model mentioned, are there any others that you guys recommend? Can I use the apple 24" display with my cable connection? Do any have built in speakers like apple display?


Thanks!
 
I just picked up the Acer H233H LCD monitor, it's 23" it comes with an HDMI input, DVI, and VGA, heck they even give you an hdmi, dvi and vga cabe, so I have it connected to my iMac as an extended desktop, but I also have my DirecTV box or PS3 going into it via HDMI... I just need to pick up an HDMI switcher so I don't have to swap the HDMI on the directv box or the ps3..

The monitor/tv is 1080p and is AMAZING! it even has built in speakers, but of course they aren't very good.. but for the price you can't go wrong.. the only downfall is that it doesn't have an audio out port, only audio in..
 
both models I mentioned:
Dell U2410 and HP LP2475w
have quite a few inputs: HDMI, DVI, VGA, DisplayPort, Component Video, etc...

They could easily be used as a TV with a cable box, but just know that color space (the range of colors) is different for HDTV/standard TV and desktop computer OSs.
So your video will not look quite as good on a computer as a TV. And using a TV as a monitor will result in reduced color space.
Just minor inconveniences.
 
danistyping said:
Is there any particular store that sells monitors with hdmi inputs, or am I looking at an online purchase?
Click to expand...

I picked up the Acer at Best Buy, they had about 3 different models that had HDMI... the Acer was the only one that actually had speakers, majority of monitors aren't going to have speakers..
 
TigerDirect.com sells many monitors/HDTVs that will do what you want. I would have to recommend the Samsung T220HD, T240HD, or T260HD, because they all have DVI, VGA, 2xHDMI, Component, and ATSC/NTSC/PAL/DVB/ISDB tuner for all your TV needs.

TEG
 
For the money you are spending, there is no way I would buy an Acer. I would not spend $400 on a low end Samsung Monitor either like the Touch of Colors.
If you are spending $400, it should have a better panel than a TN panel. It should have an IPS or PVA display.

http://www.pchardwarehelp.com/guides/lcd-panel-types.php

Read that link to understand the differences in panel technologies.
 
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