New Monitor Advice

[Rennn]

 

It's not fine for games, imo, unless you're several feet away. From 1-2 feet away the DPI should be near 100 or it's easy to see pixels, which ruins the image quality, even with antialiasing.

DPI is a meaningless metric with regard to computer screens. DPI only has meaning for paper. Games aren't really designed with any sort of dpi or ppi in mind.

 

 

You can say that it's meaningless all day, it won't change the fact that it is incredibly easy to see jaggies at a low DPI while sitting at a typical PC distance (given that keyboards and monitors are usually on the same desk).

 

Either way, isn't this sort of a pointless argument since he can't afford a good 32" screen?

Edited March 20, 2014 by Rennn

[FMod]

You can say that it's meaningless all day, it won't change the fact that it is incredibly easy to see jaggies at a low DPI.

It's easier to see jaggies at 200 ppi on a phone 4" away from your eyes than on a 50 ppi plasma 40" away from your eyes.

 

So is 200 ppi not enough, but 50 ppi enough?

 

It's only angular resolution that is meaningful, not ppi. And you can control it by placing the display where it needs to be.

[Rennn]

 

You can say that it's meaningless all day, it won't change the fact that it is incredibly easy to see jaggies at a low DPI.

It's easier to see jaggies at 200 ppi on a phone 4" away from your eyes than on a 50 ppi plasma 40" away from your eyes.

 

So is 200 ppi not enough, but 50 ppi enough?

 

It's only angular resolution that is meaningful, not ppi. And you can control it by placing the display where it needs to be.

 

 

As I already pointed out several times, people typically sit 1-3 feet back from the monitor, if it's on the same desk as their keyboard. Sitting across the room from a low DPI screen isn't practical for many people; that would require a whole room dedicated to entertainment media.

 

Your analogy is somewhat flawed, I suspect anyone who holds a phone 4" from their eyes wouldn't even be able to focus on it. 8-12" would be more practical.

Edited March 20, 2014 by Rennn

[FMod]

As I already pointed out several times, people typically sit 1-3 feet back from the monitor, if it's on the same desk as their keyboard.

Which is a wide range, and 3 feet is perfectly fine even for a large TV.

 

Hiding pixels by buying a small screen is basically throwing the baby out with the bath water.

[wismas]

From reading all this it would seem I need to look for a little better quality monitor. I have $300 to spend on the whole monitor/keyboard/mouse. For my part I don't want a very large screen, anything over 27" is overkill, 24" seems about right to me. My set-up is as Rennn suggests, 2-3ft. from the screen.

 

FMod, I am concerned about whatever you mean by lag, I don't know what it is but I don't like the sound of it. For another reference, I was playing Skyrim on a 50" 720P LCD with my Xbox 360 and aside from annoying pop-ins and a few stutters the image streamed quite nicely. That's sort of the standard that I'm used to.

 

If I hadn't mentioned it before and if I'm not being too unrealistic, I would like the keyboard to have different colored keys for the WASD and arrow keys. I'm not really picky about anything else.

[Rennn]

These are possible keyboards with different colored WASD/arrow keys, for not a lot of money.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823126327 (this one has blue LED backlighting, idk if you'd want that or not)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823816019 (this has programmable LED backlighting, so you could set it to any color)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823201048 (cheaper option without as many extra features)

Edited March 20, 2014 by Rennn

[wismas]

Big thanks, Rennn. That is exactly what I've been looking for. I'll take a closer look at all three but I favor that first one right now.

[FMod]

FMod, I am concerned about whatever you mean by lag, I don't know what it is but I don't like the sound of it.

Input lag.

 

Most TVs have between 15 and 70 ms of input lag (compared to a CRT), versus 5 to 25 ms for LCD monitors. High-end models from Sony can have as little as 5ms, same as gaming monitors, but at the same time they'll have 50 and even 100ms unless PC mode is on.

 

You won't really notice it in a lagfest like Skyrim, only in fast shooters. More specifically input lag affects the ability to aim at moving targets in games without aim assist.

A good TV's input lag is no problem, but you don't know what it will be in a random no-name TV.

 

At 24"-27" look at monitors. Good TVs start at 32", and even then from select makes.

So I would suggest that you get a monitor. First of all make sure it's a PVA/MVA/PLS or IPS panel (former tends to be better in this price range), 27" preferable.

 

Unfortunately I'm not sure which models are good and which are not today. A few years ago I'd be.

This or this might be good: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009588 or http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236337

 

Also, just above the $300 range you can find Korean/Chinese/whatever brands with 2560x1440 resolution, solving the question. E.g. this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA2RY1B70062

They work, some people swear by them, others complain, I can't advise you for or against them. Keep in mind that these may lack features otherwise considered normal, like certain controls, inputs, etc, they're bare-bone.

[wismas]

Thanks, Fmod! Always appreciate the education you provide. I've already marked those monitors to my favorites, I'll take a closer look later tonight.

 

One other item in regards to gaming keyboards, is wired or wireless typically preferred? I have a wireless mouse and keyboard on my iMac and I've never had an issue, even while playing games on it. Of course, for my old Xbox, the controller is wireless and it is more convenient. Just wondering if there is a general rule to follow on wired vs wireless.

[Rennn]

Thanks, Fmod! Always appreciate the education you provide. I've already marked those monitors to my favorites, I'll take a closer look later tonight.

 

One other item in regards to gaming keyboards, is wired or wireless typically preferred? I have a wireless mouse and keyboard on my iMac and I've never had an issue, even while playing games on it. Of course, for my old Xbox, the controller is wireless and it is more convenient. Just wondering if there is a general rule to follow on wired vs wireless.

 

Gaming keyboards tend to be better wired. Unlike a controller, a keyboard doesn't need to be moved, so it seems pointless to get a wireless keyboard for a desktop rig. It'd just be more work replacing batteries.

 

I don't know about mice. :s