120Hz TV as a Monitor?

djsprinkle

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I've decided I'd like to upgrade monitors to something bigger. I'm currently using a 25.5" Asus monitor at 1920x1200 and find it a little too small sometimes. I do a lot of multi page web browsing, Photoshop and gaming. I was considering the Dell U3011 or HP ZR30W but these are priced more than I'd like to pay, plus I don't think my single GTX 570 could handle the 2650x1600 resolution for some games.

I'm confused why (as far as I know) there are no 1080p monitors in the 30" range, it seems the closest I can get is a 32" TV. I thought I might as well go for a 120Hz one since this option is still drastically cheaper than the U3011 or ZR30W options.

I'm wondering, is there a downside to using a TV as my main monitor? Is there a reason why there are no 30"-32" monitors, let alone one that is 120Hz. Will I be able to play games PC games at 120Hz with a TV? Is input lag and/or ghosting worse on a TV than a monitor?

These are a few models I was looking at, I would love more suggestions as well. Or if anyone knows of a 32" 1080p monitor, I could not care less about the TV tuner.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16889102534

http://www.amazon.com/LG-32LD550-32-Inch-Internet-Applications/dp/B0039RRCFM



Edit: For some reason I was forced to specify a sub category and there is no such category for monitors, so I chose video cards.
 
Solution


Probably because the larger the monitor, the larger the pixels will be when the resolution is the same. This can cause things to appear grainy and not very sharp since you generally sit close to a monitor. 120Hz options are not available for 30" monitors since they all basically use either H-IPS, S-IPS or P-IPS panels. They are great for color accuracy and viewing angles, but cannot be pushed to operate at 120Hz. At least for PC monitor technology.


djsprinkle

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Actually I did see those but all but one are only 720p. I definetly want at least 1080p.

The Viewsonic is 1080p and looks promising but is sold out on Newegg and the cheapest I can find it is over $700 which is significantly more than the TVs.
 
oops, you wanted 1920 by 1080 (1080p). sry.

I got a 27in 1920 X 1200 recently for around $300. Hanns-G HZ281HPB 27.5'' 3ms Full HD 1080P. Is OK, not great. But this is smaller than you want.

I'm pretty sure 120hz monitors will sync to 60 hertz like most devices send over HDMI, DVI so the Samsung 32" will work for you. (Now maybe I understand your original question, you want some alternatives to compare the samsung, etc to). Aside: you may getting a lower price by having the TV tuner for teh same quality display -- it up the sales volumes.



 

benski

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The only issue with using a 120hz tv is that 120hz TVs don't actually have a 120hz input, they use software to interpolate frames inbetween the standard 60hz frames being broadcast, which causes input lag, so make sure the TV has a "game mode" or a PC input that turns off the image processing or response time will be very poor and it will annoy you to no end trying to play video games.
 

djsprinkle

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It sounds like you are saying 120Hz is bad for gaming, is this true? Would PC mode or game mode effectively just change it to standard 60Hz then?
 

benski

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120Hz isn't bad for gaming, but a TV that is using built in software to draw alternate frames to make a 60hz signal look like a 120hz signal is bad for gaming, unless you can shut off that feature. It's not that game mode "changes it to standard 60Hz", it was standard 60Hz to begin with, game mode just shuts off the feature that inserts the interpolated frames and makes it a standard 60Hz TV. So if you are thinking of paying extra for a TV that says it's 120Hz then don't because the 120hz mode won't be useful to you as a monitor, but if it's the same price as the 60hz screen and it has a game mode or PC/Game input then there is no disadvantage to it being 120hz.
 


Probably because the larger the monitor, the larger the pixels will be when the resolution is the same. This can cause things to appear grainy and not very sharp since you generally sit close to a monitor. 120Hz options are not available for 30" monitors since they all basically use either H-IPS, S-IPS or P-IPS panels. They are great for color accuracy and viewing angles, but cannot be pushed to operate at 120Hz. At least for PC monitor technology.




Text is generally not as sharp on a HDTV compared to a PC monitor. The larger the HDTV the less sharp it will appear unless you sit further back.

HDTVs do not use exactly the same LCD technology as a PC monitor. For example, my 47" LG 47LH90 is 120Hz and it does use some derivative of an IPS panel technology. Can't go into it much deeper since it seems harder to find info about LCD panels used in HDTVs than it is for LCD panels used in PC monitors.

120Hz HDTVs are not the same as 120Hz PC monitors. A 120Hz HDTV only accepts 60Hz input signals, not 120Hz input signals. Basically it takes a 60Hz video input and outputs a 120Hz video picture by creating an interpolated frame between every two actual frames. This takes a little bit of time and for games it will cause input lag. Therefore, it is always suggested that you set the HDTV to "Game Mode" or 60Hz.
 
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mdrejhon

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New information:
This information shows up as the #2 search result (June 9th, 2013) in Google USA, when searching "120Hz from PC to TV".
So people still visit this thread from Google. There are now many televisions that can accept 120Hz from a computer (in an undocumented way). This is done via ToastyX Custom Resolution Utility, or EVGA PIXEL OC utility, or other utilities -- to force 120Hz from a PC to TV. True native 120Hz, not interpolated 120Hz. Includes confirmations via Refresh Rate Multitool!

HDTV Refresh Rate Overclocking HOWTO - 120Hz from PC to TV

Several success reports include:
-- Vizio M420SL and e3d420vx (1080p at 120Hz from PC to TV)
-- Panasonic VT50 plasma (1080p@120Hz)
-- SEIKI 4K HDTV (1080p@120Hz).
-- Etc.

Successful: Vizio e3d420vx
Resolution: 1920×1080 at 120 Hz
Source: http://120hz.net/showthread.php?852-Managed-to-force-120Hz-on-a-Vizio-e3d420vx
Success: Panasonic VT50 plasma
Resolution: 1920×1080 at 120 Hz
Caveat: More heat output
Source: http://www.avsforum.com/t/1438092/l...z-via-dvi-or-hdmi-from-computer#post_22576928
Confirmed: Seiki 4K HDTV
Resolution: 1920×1080 at 120 Hz
The brand new SEIKI 50″ HDTV with 4K resolution supports 1080p @ 120Hz natively (Multitool confirmed).
seiki4k_720p@133Hz-300x224.jpg
Successful: Vizio M420SL not a 3d TV
Resolution: 1920×1080 at 120 Hz

Using a Asus 3D tv driver I was able to force a 120hz output with windows 7 and my Vizio M420SL system info screen displays 120hz vertical frequency as well as my Catalyst control center. This TV is not a 3D but does have a native LCD refresh rate of 120hz.

Thank you blurbusters for your very helpful information. It took all day to find the right question to ask the great google search engine but when I finally asked “force 120hz pc” I found this page and now I am in 120hz, 42 inch, goodness. Next trick is getting passive 3d working. Thanks again.
Successful: Panasonic 50ST30 plasma
Resolution: 1280×720 @ 120hz.
Source: HardForum post (by sadbuttrue)

The OSD reports 60hz and 3D mode detected. Colours are slightly different but there is no 3D being applied. I have verified that it does show 120 unique frames. So, when you try outputting 120hz to your TV don’t assume the OSD is giving an accurate report. It may say 60hz yet actually be showing 120hz.
Successful: Skyworth 39E780U UHD tv (china market model)
Resolution: 1080p @ 140Hz without frame skipping
Source: Overclock.net review by maarten12100

The overclock results:
UHD 3840×2160 was 30Hz max now 38Hz (up to 40Hz by reducing the extra pixels/blanking in the stream but with minor artifacting)
QFHD 2560×1440 was not there now 82Hz
HD 1920×1080 was 60Hz max now 140Hz (I checked with RRMT Refresh Rate Multi Tool and it actually did it without dropping)
QHD 1280×720 was 60Hz max now 254Hz (checked again with RRMT but it was too fast for my eyes then I took pictures and video)
(NOTE: Cost only $600 in China! Not available outside of China yet at this time.)
Successful:
- Sony KDL-50R550A 50″
- Sony KDL-60R550A 60″
- Sony KDL-70R550A 70″
Resolution: 1080p @ 120Hz
Source: AVSFORUM post by bobbitybob

“720p@120hz confirmed working. Kinda funny, before on 1080 I didn't notice a difference figuring I'm just getting too old for this stuff, having never used a 120hz monitor before, but I knew instantly with the real 120hz that it's working. What a huge difference in smoothness and reduction in blur. Just nuts. Tested with RRM (Refresh Rate Multitool) as well to verify.”
(NOTE: 720p was good; 1080p was frameskipping, but may be DVI adaptor (limitation). Best to test using direct HDMI-to-HDMI connection from PC-to-TV.)

(Cited from Comments section of HDTV Refresh Rate HOWTO: True 120Hz from PC to TV)