Mini refresh rates

[riddick]

Hi

I have a friend who is wanting a mini, but i dont know the refresh rates on them. Can someone tell me the max refresh rates at all resolutions? Thanks

 

[Patch^]

I'm not 100% sure what you mean. The refresh rate normally applies to the monitor i.e. 75Hz for a TFT. The Mac Mini Graphics card i think can support a maximum screen size of 23" or 24" i think, if thats what you mean.

 

[CanadaRAM]

I am looking for it but the Mini is unaccountably missing from the Apple: Support: Specifications web page.

THe Mini supports up to 1920 x 1200 pixels (23") and refresh rates up to 135 Hz.

BUT: If your friend is planning to use a LCD monitor, the refresh rate is immaterial -- it should be set to 60 Hz for any LCD.

 

[riddick]

Thanks. I saw that the resolutions can go quite high, but i would like to know how high the refresh rates can go on a crt. My friend has funny eyes, and has to have high refresh rates. I also did not know that lcd should be left at 60hz..why is that?

 

[CanadaRAM]

Thanks. I saw that the resolutions can go quite high, but i would like to know how high the refresh rates can go on a crt. My friend has funny eyes, and has to have high refresh rates. I also did not know that lcd should be left at 60hz..why is that?

Because an LCD's pixels don't turn off: they stay on until the picture changes. Each pixel is controlled by a transistor that 'holds' the colour value. Therefore they never 'refresh' in that sense of the term. Cranking up the refresh rate on an LCD isn't productive and can lead to glitching on the screen.

Each of a CRT's phosphor dots, however, are fired by the electron gun, they glow and immediately start to fade. So the gun has to come back and re-fire the dot before it has faded to black. The frequency at which the gun re-visits each dot is the refresh frequency, or scanning frequency. Frequencies near 60 Hz are a problem for people whose AC power is at 60 Hz: the flickering of the room lighting at 60 Hz interferes with the screen refresh frequency, creating the illusion that the CRT screen is jumping or flickering. Raising the refresh rate of a CRT above 70 Hz will minimize this, although some interference will be reintroduced again at 120 Hz. 85 Hz is the max. that you are likely to need to go, and I believe the Mini can handle that fine.

Thanks
Trevor
CanadaRAM.com