Anyone use a big telly as their monitor?

PTR

Striker
I'm getting a bigger/deeper desk soon, so instead of sitting 60cm away, I'll be 80cm away (33% more), so I can increase my screen size by 33% without it making me move my head around anymore & would stop things being smaller due to the distance (my eyesight isn't great).

Its a 29" 21:9 ultrawide 2560*1080 - so I snap 2 windows side by side with 1280*1080 resolution, which is just about wide enough to feel like a pair of monitors without the bezels.
I could do with more, though. Basically going 4k would give me 4 sets of 1080p monitors, which would be ideal for the work I do.

Going 40" would be in line with that 33% increase side to side, but it would be a big change on the vertical.
Has anyone tried this before?
 


I don't but I used have a colleague in the states who sat in front of a 60" tv the same distance you would a normal monitor. I remember showing a photo of his setup to our occ health nurse and she wouldnt believe me that someone would actually do that :lol:
 
I'm getting a bigger/deeper desk soon, so instead of sitting 60cm away, I'll be 80cm away (33% more), so I can increase my screen size by 33% without it making me move my head around anymore & would stop things being smaller due to the distance (my eyesight isn't great).

Its a 29" 21:9 ultrawide 2560*1080 - so I snap 2 windows side by side with 1280*1080 resolution, which is just about wide enough to feel like a pair of monitors without the bezels.
I could do with more, though. Basically going 4k would give me 4 sets of 1080p monitors, which would be ideal for the work I do.

Going 40" would be in line with that 33% increase side to side, but it would be a big change on the vertical.
Has anyone tried this before?

Yes, but not for long. Didn't work.

Tried twice:

1) 43 inch Philips LED - it was OK but I was too close and the TV was slow. 60Hz max as well, may not matter for everyone.
2) 48 inch LG OLED - sat further away, but still didn't feel right, other than for gaming.

As you say, the height is the issue IMO.

Go with a bigger ultrawide.
 
Yes, but not for long. Didn't work.

Tried twice:

1) 43 inch Philips LED - it was OK but I was too close and the TV was slow. 60Hz max as well, may not matter for everyone.
2) 48 inch LG OLED - sat further away, but still didn't feel right, other than for gaming.

As you say, the height is the issue IMO.

Go with a bigger ultrawide.
I was thinking 40" 4k. 60hz is absolutely fine for me, this isn't for gaming. When I do gaming, I use a 1080p window in the middle anyway - my laptop gpu isn't up to more than 60fps anyway.

Bigger 32:9 UW, maybe 32" 1440p might be an option. I'll get 3 windows out of it, not 4. But its still better than current.
 
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I was thinking 40" 4k. 60hz is absolutely fine for me, this isn't for gaming. When I do gaming, I use a 1080p window in the middle anyway - my laptop gpu isn't up to more than 60fps anyway.

Bigger 32:9 UW, maybe 32" 1440p might be an option. I'll get 3 windows out of it, not 4. But its still better than current.

Do you need multiple connections active at once, or just gonna be using multiple windows from the same machine?

What sorta budget you looking at? One of those 49 inch beats could be an option! Got a lot of width to play with there and a 1440p height.
 
Do you need multiple connections active at once, or just gonna be using multiple windows from the same machine?

What sorta budget you looking at? One of those 49 inch beats could be an option! Got a lot of width to play with there and a 1440p height.

Just one connection - although from 2 different laptops, depending on whether I'm working or not.
I do a lot where I need to see 3-4 or even more documents, and minimising/bringing them back up is a royal pain in the arse.

Budget - whatever it needs to be really. Not looking to spend money for the sake of it though.
 
Just one connection - although from 2 different laptops, depending on whether I'm working or not.
I do a lot where I need to see 3-4 or even more documents, and minimising/bringing them back up is a royal pain in the arse.

Budget - whatever it needs to be really. Not looking to spend money for the sake of it though.

I'd be tempted with one of them massive curved ultrawides then mate. Should be ideal for that sorta workflow.

The bigger ones have a res of 5120x1440, that's gonna give you plenty to work on there. Looking at best part of a grand though!

So if you wanted to keep the cost down, 2x 27 inch 1440p displays is gonna give you the same but a lot cheaper.....BUT....not sure how you'd output to both? Maybe 1 via HDMI and the other via some sort of adapter, so venturing into "chew on" teritory!
 
I'd be tempted with one of them massive curved ultrawides then mate. Should be ideal for that sorta workflow.

The bigger ones have a res of 5120x1440, that's gonna give you plenty to work on there. Looking at best part of a grand though!

So if you wanted to keep the cost down, 2x 27 inch 1440p displays is gonna give you the same but a lot cheaper.....BUT....not sure how you'd output to both? Maybe 1 via HDMI and the other via some sort of adapter, so venturing into "chew on" teritory!
2 x 27" would be way too far side to side. I had 2 x 24" before I got this ultrawide, and I didn't like as nothing was in the middle.
 
40” TCL 4K tv for me, works well. Onto PC mode and it dims the image so it doesn’t knack your eyes from a few feet away all day.
 
40” TCL 4K tv for me, works well. Onto PC mode and it dims the image so it doesn’t knack your eyes from a few feet away all day.

How far back do you sit?
Do you find it tiring - especially with the "up/down" bits?
Have you tried having it split in 4? If so, how well does that work?
 
I’m about 3 feet away, the height takes some getting used to but I’ve got the bottom of the tv sitting about 4” above the desk so that helps and you do get used to it. I tend to treat it as 4*hd monitors and having that size screen estate really makes a difference, normally 2 or 3 browser windows, Teams, and Remote Desktop open at the same time. I stuck a photo on the ‘show your wfh’ thread a while back, will try to find it.

There we go, bog standard cheap 4K TV but it supports the chroma 4:4:4 and 60hz, bargain all in at the £260 it cost at the time.
 
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I’m about 3 feet away, the height takes some getting used to but I’ve got the bottom of the tv sitting about 4” above the desk so that helps and you do get used to it. I tend to treat it as 4*hd monitors and having that size screen estate really makes a difference, normally 2 or 3 browser windows, Teams, and Remote Desktop open at the same time. I stuck a photo on the ‘show your wfh’ thread a while back, will try to find it.

There we go, bog standard cheap 4K TV but it supports the chroma 4:4:4 and 60hz, bargain all in at the £260 it cost at the time.
That looks good to me. I really do need 4 screens like.
I've just set my work laptop screen up beside the UW. So I've got 3 screens' worth now. I'll give it a go for a while, but the laptop is very much "on the side", compared to what a 40" 4k screen would be.
 
That looks good to me. I really do need 4 screens like.
I've just set my work laptop screen up beside the UW. So I've got 3 screens' worth now. I'll give it a go for a while, but the laptop is very much "on the side", compared to what a 40" 4k screen would be.

Just make sure the TV supports the Chroma 4:4:4 and 60hz at least and then it can sync the image properly over HDMI 2 and ideally supports a proper computer mode. When I first set the TV up in normal mode as a monitor it was killing my eyes with the brightness and contrast and virtually unusable as a monitor a few feet away - putting it into computer mode sets the backlight and contrast levels more to a monitor type level and makes a world of difference. The TCL sets seem quite well liked for supporting those at low cost. Even copes well with a bit of gaming.
 
2 x 27" would be way too far side to side. I had 2 x 24" before I got this ultrawide, and I didn't like as nothing was in the middle.

True, but then you need to go with an ultrawide that has more of an arc, that'll help loads.

Something like the Samsung G9 sounds perfect for your use case IMO. The height of the 43 inch Philips and 49 inch LG was the killer for me. Some may be ok, but unless you sit far enough back, it's gonna give you neck strain for sure! Then if you are too far back the resolution could become an issue too, unless you scale, then you lose the real estate.

If you can justify it, whack a couple of options on a credit card and buy from Amazon. Send back what doesn't suite, hassle free and super quick refunds.
 
Been trying to pick up a 4k curved screen TV on ebay for weeks now (because you can't buy them new) and there's just nowt available except those with broken screens (which are essentially useless).

Then stumbled across an LG 43UN7100 and the reviews for "as a PC monitor" all seemed really good for just £350!
Thought I might as well have a pop at that money. If I hate it, I'll swap it out for my bedroom telly, then swap that for the bairn's bedroom tell, then have a spare for when the twins need one in a couple of years time.

Basically 4 21.5" 1080p monitors stuck together, so they should work canny really. Might still need zoom on text a bit though, as I'll have it as far back on the desk as it can go. Maybe even on the windowsill that's right behind the desk if I need a bit less angle.
 
I've got a TV connected to the PC, and use it for certain games, but not as a day to day monitor - the TV is off to the side, so can sit and play like it was a console setup.
 

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