HDTV (from PC)

[Adamski47]

I plan on running my CPU into a new HDTV I am about to purchase. I have everything wired (video, audio, wireless keyboard and mouse) and it does indeed work (thanks to my video and sound card) on my regular TV. The problem is that the resolution sucks. Is it worth my while to pick up a $500 HDTV? The money doesn't really concern me too much but I don't want to buy it if it wont make my picture as clear as it is on my PC monitor (just an old beater).

In summary (for the lazies): Will an HDTV give me the same quality and resolution my PC monitor has when I route my PC to my TV?

[Eaglesfan27]

I've never tried this with a HDTV, but I have routed my computer to the my 27 inch TV (ATI 9600 All-in-Wonder card) and no matter how much I tweak settings, I cannot get the TV image to look as good as my monitor picture. It's bigger on the TV, but not as clear. I don't know if this would change on HDTV or not.

[Adamski47]

Yeah, I've been thinking the TV shouldn't matter as much as the signal/wiring.

I have an S-Video out on my videocard but NOT on my TV (it's about 4 years old).

Will I get the same pictrue, going S-Video Out (from PC) to S-Video In (TV) when using a regular TV versus an HDTV?

Maybe I'm better off NOT buying a new TV and switching TVs with my parents (S-Video IN).

[Adamski47]

Eaglesfan,

Are you going s video to s video?

[gstelmack]

ATI and NVidia both have a variety of packages for hooking up their current crop of cards to HDTV setups. Most of these cards have DVI outputs, but they also sell component cable adapters and the like.

Disclaimer: I've never actually hooked up my computer to an HDTV, I've just seen the products mentioned on their web pages.

[moriarty]

If you can get a television with a DVI input (and a graphics card with a DVI output), you can get a pretty good resolution with the HDTV. I have my 50" hooked up with a VGA connection and older graphics card and it's not bad.

Make sure your card can output in the native resolution of the television set, as it seems to help greatly (no stretching/overscanning involved). For example, my television is 1028x720 (or something similar) so I have my card output at that resolution.

[Eaglesfan27]

Eaglesfan,

Are you going s video to s video?

Yes, I am. It is still a little distorted and not as clear as my monitor.

[moriarty]

Yeah, I've been thinking the TV shouldn't matter as much as the signal/wiring.

Considering the HDTV's have a much higher resolution than standard televisions, the TV will definitely make a difference. Of course the size of the screen and how far away you sit will determine how much you notice the difference.