Widescreen LCD versus Normal size

Discussion in 'Graphics Cards & Displays' started by Wurn, Jul 10, 2006.

  1. Wurn

    Wurn Newbie

    Hope someone have done this. I am thinking of getting a 19" widescreen LCD but will it be a wise choice seeing as i watch dvd's, play games and do web design work on my pc.

    I know some games have the widescreen option, like Oblivion and Tomb Raider latest one.

    Should i just rather get a normal 19" LCD and have no problems or will a widescreen do.

    I am shure years from now widescreens will be pretty common.
     
  2. PsYkHoTiK

    PsYkHoTiK Admin nerd

    Actually quite a lot of games supports widescreen. If they don't, you can still force the game to run at a wide screen resolution.

    This site has all the info you need to make games run in widescreen. I love my wide screen LCD. I watch a lot of movies, run my PS2 and stuff.
     
  3. fyire

    fyire Newbie

    Let's just say, once hooked, there's no going back. Don't think I can ever touch another notebook again with a normal sized screen now that I'm on a widescreen one :p
     
  4. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    I can never accept wide screen. Probably not until I'm forced to change. If there's such thing as a 1:1 screen, I would probably love it even more. 4:3 19" is bigger than 16:10 19". :mrgreen:

    Seriously, this is subjective. I'm one of a few nutters who's willing to pay a lot more for a 4:3 screen than a equivalent widescreen. Yes, I hate widescreen A LOT.
     
  5. Max_87

    Max_87 huehuehue

    If you are doing photoshop, web design etc. I still recommend normal aspect screens because widescreen isn't exactly that wide like you imagine and you can still enjoy widescreen movies on normal aspect monitors. The widescreen movie is only slightly smaller on 4:3 monitor compared to 16:10 monitor, which isn't a big deal. As for 4:3 movies, it will be noticeably larger on 4:3 compared to 16:10.

    I have two DELL 20" monitors now, both 4:3 and 16:10. Too bad I can't take a picture now to show it to you. Widescreen isn't exactly very wide, really.

    but if the monitor size is very big, let's say 24" or 30" and I'm using them more on desktop, I will prefer widescreen. Because I don't think it is comfortable to look up and down and it will be a lot better to look sideways, because the monitor is so BIG! :shock:

    One more reason to buywidescreen by my friend who REALLY likes widescreen: get widescreen lah! It is new and it looks so cool! :shifty: :haha:
    That's what he told me when I ask him what would he choose if he were to buy 2007FP or 2007WFP :haha:
     
    Last edited: Jul 11, 2006
  6. PsYkHoTiK

    PsYkHoTiK Admin nerd

    Yea it really does depend on your usage. I watch HDTV and movies. HD signals are widescreen and I only buy wide screen movies. You can watch widescreen movies on a 4:3 but you get those little black bars which makes the overall image smaller... :p

    The native 1440x900 resolution won't kill me in game either. :p
     
  7. Max_87

    Max_87 huehuehue

    hehe.... It isn't the little black bars making the image smaller :p These little black bars gives you the illusion that the image is a lot smaller than you actually think :mrgreen: You will see what I mean if you compare two 4:3 and 16:10 monitors side by side.

    Some facts about 4:3 and 16:10: :haha:
    -16:10 have less pixels than 4:3 monitors of the same inch. Which means 4:3 will be always bigger than 16:10 monitors. In 16:10 screenies, you won't be able to view as much as 4:3 in desktop. If you compare 20" ones, the 4:3 will be able to view 2 extra rows of icons approximately, while the 16:10 only has about 1 extra column of icons.

    -Widescreen videos fits a lot more nicely on 16:10 of course :thumb: However, widescreen videos are 16:9, so they don't 100% fill up the screen. Sure, you can stretch the video to 16:10, but it doesn't look so nice. So, you will still be getting two little black bars, up and down.

    -If you actually compare 4:3 and 16:10 monitors side by side, playing 16:9 videos, you will find out that the video is not as small as you think on 4:3 monitor and it is not as big as you think when playing on a 16:10 monitors! The black bars are giving you the illusion that the video is very small.

    -As for 4:3 videos, it will be significantly larger on 4:3 compared to 16:10 monitors. 4:3 monitors is cheating a bit here, because the video totally fills up the whole screen, while 16:9 videos doesn't fill up every pixels in 16:10 monitor.

    -Widescreen is not exactly as wide as you think it is!

    Above are the reasons why I choose the 2007FP over 2007WFP :p




    However, I do have some of my own reasons to choose 4:3.
    -To me, 4:3 is better for desktop usage compared to 16:10 monitors. Surfing, photoshop etc. feels better on 4:3 and you can view more compared to 16:10. This is of course, my personal preference. Some probably don't mind thouhg

    -4:3 is better for games, to me at least :lol: and the screen is bigger.

    -I don't mind about getting two big black bars when watching widescreen movies, because the fact is the video is only slightly smaller on 4:3. You still get two black bars even if you use 16:10 :haha:

    -It feels really weird to have two very big black bars vertically when watching 4:3 movies on 16:10 monitors. (I eventually got used to it, thanks to DELL. I wish they don't come to pick up the 2007WFP forever)

    -I still can enjoy widescreen movies on 4:3 :mrgreen:

    -I have more reasons to choose 4:3.

    -I get more pixels on 4:3 at the same price!!!! HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooooooooooo:o:o!!!!! This is the BEST!!!!(ok this is lame :haha: )

    but like I said before, I will choose widescreen if I'm buying bigger monitors, lets say 30" :haha: As if that will happen :haha:
     
    Last edited: Jul 11, 2006
  8. sunsetbay

    sunsetbay Newbie

    if i wanna upgrade.... currently still using 17" Flat CRT, i would go for 20" widescreen. i hate scrolling left & right! :mrgreen: :haha:
     
  9. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    Hahaha... You won't be scrolling left and right with a 20" screen, 1600 is more than enough for literally ALL websites. And even if you get 20" widescreen, you are only getting extra 80 pixels wide. Another optical illusion. :mrgreen:
     
  10. ZuePhok

    ZuePhok Just Started

    i've been using a 20inch wide screens for weeks. I do not want my dell back anymore :mrgreen:

    i appreciate the extra wide space. get to view 2 articles side by side. easier than my previous dual monitor setup cuz dun have to turn my that much now :haha:
     
  11. Max_87

    Max_87 huehuehue

    Exactly! :thumb:

    Which is why I said: Widescreen isn't as wide as you think :mrgreen:

    http://www1.ap.dell.com/content/products/compare.aspx/20lcd_my?c=my&l=en&s=dhs#
    DELL trying to lure customers to believe widescreen is bigger :haha: Look at the size of the images of 2007FP and 2007WFP! :haha: the FP is so much smaller than WFP! :haha:

    DELL please don't come visit..... please.... :pray:
     
  12. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    But honestly, wide screen is the future. :mrgreen:

    Right now, the Dell monitors may not offer true wide screen. But future wide screens should offer a better ratio of 16:9, not only to better display wide screen videos, but also to improve game playability.

    Our vision is mostly horizontal. So, it's easier for us to visually scan horizontally, than vertically. It would be a lot easier and nicer to frag someone on a wide screen, then a 4:3 ratio screen.

    Also, if your monitor allows you to change orientation, a wide screen allows you to convert it into a "tall" screen, which is great for reading long documents. :mrgreen:

    But yeah, for those 20" Dell monitors, it's really not that worth it to get the wide screen model, especially when they are priced higher than the normal 4:3 ratio model.
     
  13. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    I hope they keep making 4:3 monitors in the future...
     
  14. sunsetbay

    sunsetbay Newbie

    widescreen is getting cheaper!! the 19" 4:3 screen can only support 1280 x 1024 while the 20" widescreen can go upto 1680 x 1060! :dance: :dance:

    [​IMG]
     
  15. ZuePhok

    ZuePhok Just Started

    was told yesterday that a viewsonic 20inch wide screen can now be bought for around 450SGD..
     
  16. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    Go widescreen go!! :thumb:
     
  17. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    Huh? Compare 19" and 20"?

    Dell 20" can do 1600x1200 (1.9MP), more pixels than 20" widescreen (1.8MP). :p
     
  18. Max_87

    Max_87 huehuehue

    Not just for Dell moneytors, I think other widescreens are priced higher than their equivalent 4:3 models. Another thing, the widescreens are costing more is probably because they support HDCP.

    For 19" and 20" monitors, I will choose 4:3 no matter what. No point getting just a little bit extra pixels on both sides and you lose much more pixels up and down. I can still enjoy widescreen movies and even better for 4:3 movies. I tried both 4:3 and 16:10 here, and 4:3 is simply better for desktop. There is just not enough reason for me to choose widescreen. I will never recommend anyone to buy 19"/20" widescreen unless 90% of what they do is watching movies/gaming.

    However, for 24" or bigger, I will most probably go for widescreens, because like you said, it's easier for our eyes to scan horizontally than vertically and I don't think I have to worry about space anymore, these monitors are just freaking huge :haha:
     
    Last edited: Jul 12, 2006
  19. Max_87

    Max_87 huehuehue

    Are we the only ones here who won't get widescreen monitors? :haha:

    EDIT: My mistake :haha:
     
    Last edited: Jul 12, 2006
  20. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    He's comparing apple and orange, that's my point. :mrgreen:

    The reason for me to get 4:3 is to get more desktop space.

    Unless you are sure your source supports widescreen format, it's far more logical to get 4:3. Don't forget about your camera too, most of them are still 4:3. :mrgreen:
     

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