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Low resolution video on high res monitors?

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Hi,

I'm searching for a 24" monitor and I have a basic question. While I'm sure that HD content will play very well on a 1920x1200 monitor, I wonder how standard definition or even divx/xvid content will play on such a monitor?

For example, I have loads of content which are ripped, divxed, xvided to resolutions such as 624 x 352, 560 x 416, 720 x 576, 720 x 480 etc.

For viewing this content, should I buy a 24" HD resolution monitor or will it be displayed better in a 22" 1680 x 1050 monitor? I'm concerned about picture quality, grains, noise etc.

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I will assume you want to view things in full screen mode.

It is best to view videos in it's original resolution; shrinking or enlarging it will lower video quality. Enlarging the video to fit the resolution of the monitor will be worse than shrinking it down to fit the resolution of the monitor. Enlarging video creates pixelation (blocks), the more the video needs to stretch, the more pixelation there will be. Thus to view your lower resolution video, you should buy a lower resolution for better results. They will look better on a 1680 x 1050 monitor vs. a 1920 x 1200 monitor. But the videos will also look better on a 1280 x 1024 monitor vs. a 1680 x 1050 monitor.

On the other hand were you to watch HD content on anything less than a 1920 x 1200 or 1920 x 1080 monitor, you will not get the full benefits of HD content since it must be shrunk down to fit the resolution of the monitor. Different model monitors handles interpolation differently. It is impossible to know how well a monitor can handle interpolation without having to test it.

The video card also plays a role when displaying interpolated video on the screen as well. This has not been commented or reviewed on extensively.

Basically when it comes to LCDs, you have to make compromises. I would simply buy a 1920 x 1200 monitor because of the amount of work space available (I actually have a dual 1920 x 1200 setup) and because HD content quality will not be compromised.

See below resource links to help you out:

LCD specifications:
http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/specs.htm

LCD Reviews:
http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews.htm
http://www.prad.de/en/monitore/reviews.html

Video card playback quality:
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/v [...] html#sect0

Message edited by jaguarskx on 11-07-2009 at 09:51:21 AM

Thanks for your reply. Your assumption is correct in that I would be watching videos in full screen, but in their native resolution. I hate zooming up videos to suit the screen size.

My monitor requirements are multi-purpose: a lot of gaming (fps and rts), lots of tv show watching, movies, browsing the net etc.

I'm planning to build a new system and the size of the monitor will determine the video card I'm going to buy. And the size of the monitor will in turn be determined by whether I can watch SD and HD resolution videos comfortably, and whether I can play my games comfortably.

From what you say, 1680 x 1050 should be a sweet spot in terms of playing games smoothly, watching SD content, reading text comfortably (due to lower resolution).

All said and done, there's a lot more SD content and xvids out there than there is HD content.

Reply to contentedbloke

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