Just bought a dell 9200 desktop without a monitor. Now am looking at a 19" LCD with 5:4 aspect ratio (not a big fan of widescreen) here but it has VGA instead of DVI (every other feature looks fine for me).
How much of a drawback is this VGA in your opinion? Will be using PC for photo editing and dvd burning/watching - the usual home entertainment stuff..
Should I keep searching? Any reccommendations?
Again - Thanks.
mulkeen
1
cheersterry
I have to ask... You mention you're going to watch DVDs, so why don't you like widescreen?
Cheers,
Terry
2
lan
The answer is; it depends. Some VGA implementations are very close to DVI quality, some are jittery/blurry and generally unpleasant. The laptop, display and VGA cable all factor into the equation.
4
mulkeen
Montereyjack,
At the risk of exposing my ineptitude in this area - unsure about the video card - think its DVI, its being shipped at the mo, but the spec says -
"VIDEO: ATI X1300 Pro (MRMGA2+)"
which I google to find:
Connectors: Two DVI and one mini-DIN for S-Video output.
CheersTerry,
I watch some DVDs but my usage is more heavily weighted towards photos. Doesn't the widescreen distort the pictures' aspect? I imagine there may be a way to adjust for this...but I am not wise to it.
Cheers again
5
cheersterry
Having a widescreen allows you to watch movies in the same format they were shot, with no letterbox or cropping.
And no, a widescreen doesn't automatically distort your photos - there will be letterboxing on both sides so your photos appear exactly in the format in which they were shot.
Generally, in this day and age, if size/weight/etc. isn't a factor then a widescreen (16:9) format monitor is a good thing.
Cheers,
Terry
6
montereyjack
There you go.
Back to your original question, I hooked my monitor to vga first, then figured out it could go dvi (digital).
I couldn't see a big improvement and I am pretty critical when it comes to resolution and contrast, but it is good to know I'm using the best connection possible.
Most monitors will have dvi these days.
A good monitor with vga would be better than a cheap monitor with dvi however.
It sounds like your video card has dual dvi outs, so it would support two side by side monitors, as video editors like to use.
7
lan
If that spec is correct; then it doesn't sound like the card has a VGA port. Check that the LCD comes with a VGA > DVI adapter, most do, but it would be unfortunate if yours doesn't...
8
rajulkabir
I have a ViewSonic VG2030wm, connected to a MacBook. When I used it at 1600x1080 with the VGA cable, letters in small fonts were sort of fuzzy and seemed to quiver on the screen. I bought a DVI cable and now it is crystal clear. With lower-resolution monitors it may not be as much of a problem.
And to confirm what CheersTerry said, the widescreen does not distort your photos unless you have incorrectly configured your video settings (which could happen with any monitor, widescreen or not). Having switched to widescreen, I wouldn't want to go back. It's great to be able to have two full pages of work side-by-side and still have room for more.
Pro tip
Lonely Planet
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