Why widescreen in monitors

[Geri]

I’m looking for a new LCD monitor something around 19 or 20 inches. My
question is why widescreen? If my needs are viewing the internet and
word processing or spreadsheet I can’t see an advantage. Since the
screen size is measured diagonally from corner to corner a 20 inch
widescreen monitor is about the same as a 17 inch monitor vertically.
Please tell me why widescreen is so popular. BTW, I don’t watch TV on
my PC.

Thanks, Geri

 

[Rayn]

Damn them all! I feel your pain m8.. I recently also switched to LCD
from my 22" CRT and I had no choice but to buy widescreen. There simply
aren't any more 4:3 screens where I live. They're forcing the widescreen
"standars" and, as you already noticed, one of the reasons my be the
illusion of a bigger screen format when, in fact, they're smaller. One
of the most redicilous thins i've seen as a "seeling point" was the
ability to view 2 pages horizontaly at the same time in, say, word.
which is borderline idiotic as trying this with a 22" monitor (which I
have) results microscopic text. not to mention it's pointless in the
first place. So why take widescreen?.. Only advantage i've seen so far
was in watching movies as this is just about the only other thing that
forces widescreen..
Also.. if you're into games keep in mind that many pc games still lack
good widescreen support so you'll probably end up with 1-2 resolutions
to choose from. Even worse, some games "support widescreen" but mess up
the textures and gui. So also bad for games (for now at least).

 

[DonC]

Probably because the LCD plants are geared up for the early 2009 switch to
DTV and HDTV which has a 16:9 format. Not saying it's logical to exclude
4:3 screens in their line -- but it is understandable.

Here's a 1280 x 1024 19". Not a great brand but it's not a widescreen and
cheap after MIR.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824254009

Hey, 45% of newegg's LCD are NOT widescreen!

 

[Bob Fry]

You're preaching to the choir. I shopped for an LCD monitor a few
months ago and managed to get a 20" 4:3 ViewSonic. 20" in widescreen
is a joke, you have to go up to 24" at least. I'd rather have two 4:3
monitors.

 

[Rory Deol]

You're preaching to the choir. I shopped for an LCD monitor a few
months ago and managed to get a 20" 4:3 ViewSonic. 20" in widescreen
is a joke, you have to go up to 24" at least. I'd rather have two 4:3
monitors.

In a nutshell, widescreen is the future. Of course, thats not to say
that 4:3 is antiquated by any means. For average computer use a 4:3
may be an equal or better choice for at least the next 4-5 years.
However, most corporations are expecting the majority of users to have
16:9 access by that point. This is nearly the case in Europe already.
Meaning they will begin making programs designed for best use on a
widescreen display. Look forward to webpages to become more and more
16:9 friendly in the future as well. If you are looking to play video
games the advantage of greater peripheral vision is quite nice, but
not necessary. For watching movies, I think widescreen is essential
for experiencing the true vision of the director. Pan and Scan
absolutely destroys a movie. Then again if you enjoy watching 98% of
television shows made prior to 2003, 4:3 takes the upper hand. Despite
all of these differences I would have to suggest going for the 16:9
screen and using the extra peripheral real estate for multitasking.
For instance, you can use a word document of to one side and a small
YouTube video on the other. Essentially for most people widescreen is
either a matter of future proofing or an aesthetic trend. If you end
up getting a 4:3 screen for documents you should have no problems,
that is until you try to watch a widescreen film!

 

[Michael Cecil]

You're preaching to the choir. I shopped for an LCD monitor a few
months ago and managed to get a 20" 4:3 ViewSonic. 20" in widescreen
is a joke, you have to go up to 24" at least. I'd rather have two 4:3
monitors.

Why not get two 24" widescreens?

Man, I remember 4:3 monitors. They remind me of the old black and white
TV we had in the 70s.

 

[Mac Cool]

I was hell bent on buying a widescreen LCD for so long, but now that the
time to buy is approaching I'm wondering what advantage I would gain. I
rarely watch movies on my computer. So I'm on the fence.

 

[Fergus]

I’m looking for a new LCD monitor something around 19 or 20 inches. My
question is why widescreen? If my needs are viewing the internet and word
processing or spreadsheet I can’t see an advantage. Since the screen size
is measured diagonally from corner to corner a 20 inch widescreen monitor
is about the same as a 17 inch monitor vertically. Please tell me why
widescreen is so popular. BTW, I don’t watch TV on my PC.

Thanks, Geri

widescreens are good for applications that have control panels down the
sides, ie CAD and CAM work.

 

[Fred]

I’m looking for a new LCD monitor something around 19 or 20 inches. My
question is why widescreen? If my needs are viewing the internet
and word processing or spreadsheet I can’t see an advantage. Since
the screen size is measured diagonally from corner to corner a 20 inch
widescreen monitor is about the same as a 17 inch monitor vertically.
Please tell me why widescreen is so popular.

I'd say Wide Screen video is better on a Widescreen monitor. Also there is
not much side scrolling needed on certain apps when using my 24" widescreen
compared to my 22" CRT.
Apart from that I believe a widescreen monitor is better value from the
manufacturers because they can cut the Flat Panels from the glass substrate
using widescreen dimensions with less wastage.

 

[bealoid]

widescreens are good for applications that have control panels down
the sides, ie CAD and CAM work.

I second this. Try Word and then move allthe toolbars and stuff to the
edge. You get a taller page and you get all the buttons.

 

[bealoid]

I’m looking for a new LCD monitor something around 19 or 20 inches. My
question is why widescreen? If my needs are viewing the internet and
word processing or spreadsheet I can’t see an advantage. Since the
screen size is measured diagonally from corner to corner a 20 inch
widescreen monitor is about the same as a 17 inch monitor vertically.
Please tell me why widescreen is so popular. BTW, I don’t watch TV on
my PC.

Some graphics cards allow you to rotate the display. So you can buy a
widescreen, tip it on its side, and software rotate the display. You end
up with a nice -but unstable- portrait monitor.

I dunno what hapens with mice pointers - you might have to hold the mouse
sideways.

Personally, I like widescreen because I use RS feeds, so i have them open
on one side and a browser open on the other.

 

[Phisherman]

I'd say Wide Screen video is better on a Widescreen monitor. Also there is
not much side scrolling needed on certain apps when using my 24" widescreen
compared to my 22" CRT.
Apart from that I believe a widescreen monitor is better value from the
manufacturers because they can cut the Flat Panels from the glass substrate
using widescreen dimensions with less wastage.

It's personal preference. I have used both and prefer the widescreen
as this greatly reduces side-to-side scrolling, allows vertical menu
bars, and comparing two documents easier (than using two monitors).
After you have used both formats, chances are good you'll favor the
widescreen. Great for spreadsheets.

 

[John Weiss]

You're preaching to the choir. I shopped for an LCD monitor a few
months ago and managed to get a 20" 4:3 ViewSonic. 20" in widescreen
is a joke, you have to go up to 24" at least. I'd rather have two 4:3
monitors.

When shopping for a monitor for my new build, I decided on a 24" wide screen,
mainly because of the lack of good 4:3 monitors and the lack of vertical size on
anything smaller.

I am VERY happy with my Samsung 244T. I suspect that it would be equivalent to
a pair of 17-19" 4:3 monitors, but it is hard to find those of similar
quality/specs any more. I am getting used to re-arranging my open windows to
make better use of the real estate.

FWIW, the Samsung T series is WAY different than the B series -- wider/better
view; must be different TFT!

 

[Franc Zabkar]

I’m looking for a new LCD monitor something around 19 or 20 inches. My
question is why widescreen? If my needs are viewing the internet and
word processing or spreadsheet I can’t see an advantage. Since the
screen size is measured diagonally from corner to corner a 20 inch
widescreen monitor is about the same as a 17 inch monitor vertically.
Please tell me why widescreen is so popular. BTW, I don’t watch TV on
my PC.

Thanks, Geri

As someone else stated, widescreen would be good for spreadsheets, but
a 4:3 screen would be better for letters and A4 documents. IMO the
best aspect ratio for word processors would be 210:297 (A4 size).
That's about 7:10. During the late 80s Wang word processors had paper
white, "portrait", full-sheet-of-paper monitors. More recently there
were 4:3 LCD panels that you could rotate 90 degrees, but I haven't
come across any lately.

- Franc Zabkar

 

[John Weiss]

IMO the
best aspect ratio for word processors would be 210:297 (A4 size).
That's about 7:10. During the late 80s Wang word processors had paper
white, "portrait", full-sheet-of-paper monitors. More recently there
were 4:3 LCD panels that you could rotate 90 degrees, but I haven't
come across any lately.

So, pivot the wide screen and come as close as you can feasibly get!

 

[Bill]

As someone else stated, widescreen would be good for spreadsheets, but
a 4:3 screen would be better for letters and A4 documents. IMO the
best aspect ratio for word processors would be 210:297 (A4 size).
That's about 7:10. During the late 80s Wang word processors had paper
white, "portrait", full-sheet-of-paper monitors. More recently there
were 4:3 LCD panels that you could rotate 90 degrees, but I haven't
come across any lately.

- Franc Zabkar

There's a couple of them out there.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?
Submit=Property&Subcategory=20&Description=&Type=&N=2010190020
&srchInDesc=&MinPrice=&MaxPrice=&PropertyCodeValue=3019%3A19996
&PropertyCodeValue=2970%3A19608&PropertyCodeValue=2970%3A28603
&PropertyCodeValue=2970%3A19522&PropertyCodeValue=2970%3A19613
&PropertyCodeValue=2970%3A19525

http://preview.tinyurl.com/yujzyg

Bill

 

[Chris Darwin]

I’m looking for a new LCD monitor something around 19 or 20 inches. My
question is why widescreen? If my needs are viewing the internet and word
processing or spreadsheet I can’t see an advantage. Since the screen size
is measured diagonally from corner to corner a 20 inch widescreen monitor
is about the same as a 17 inch monitor vertically. Please tell me why
widescreen is so popular. BTW, I don’t watch TV on my PC.

Thanks, Geri

I finally went to widescreen and would never go back.

Now when looking over at the regular monitor on the desk it just doesn't
look right. I think it has something to do with the fact that if you look at
the shape and extents of human vision it's closer to the shape of a
widescreen than a conventional one.

More screen space in any direction is always an advantage. You have to
adjust some of your habits to make better use of the space on the side, but
after awhile it becomes normal.