Are DVI TFT monitors any clearer?

George_Bray

A friend of mine says his DVI connection gives significantly clearer results than the analogue connection, as found on most TFT flat panel monitors. If he's correct, then I suggest nobody should buy a TFT monitor unless it has a DVI connector. It could be false economy.

Would you agree? I'd appreciate some additional viewpoints here, if you have seen any such difference in clarity of display with your own eyes. And does any such difference in clarity apply to 'static' things on the screen (like this web page or a photo) as well as to moving images, like if you play a DVD?

Monitors with a DVI socket seem to be in the minority and do cost a bit more. Is it worth it? If you take the same computer, same video card (with DVI and analogue output options) and same monitor (with DVI and analogue input options) would you notice a difference if you connected it firstly with an analogue cable, and then switched over to a DVI cable?

I'm sorry if this subject has been covered before. I tried a search on DVI but the MSE search facility never works for me, no matter how long I wait. Another story...

Note: "analogue" in this context is also known as "VGA (HD-15)" or perhaps "RGB".

Apologies, in advance, if my friend is correct, to anyone who has recently purchased an analogue TFT monitor without knowing about DVI.

Regards
George

wolfman

Personally I don't find it too much clearer (but there is a slight difference with my monitor), but the colours are definitely much more accurate.

DVI is the future, and slowly becoming the norm. I personally think it'd be worth investing in.

What kind of budget do you have?

George_Bray

wolfman

I recently bought a Samsung 17" TFT monitor on behalf of a relative. It cost only £100 (including VAT) and the image quality is superb. It only has analogue input, though. I wanted to be sure about DVI before buying a TFT monitor for myself. I would ideally like a 19" model and a fast response time, which pushes the price up a bit, e.g.

Samsung 19"SM913N 8ms Angle Pivot Height Adjust LCD TFT Silver. £220 incl VAT at dabs.com

But a DVI model is only £30 extra so it must be a better bet: Samsung 19"SM930BF 4ms Display TFT. £250 incl VAT

Or the even faster ViewSonic VX924 19" BLK/SIL DVI 3ms for £270 incl VAT

I trust these fast response DVI monitors will be the ideal vehicle for watching high definition movies when HD-DVD or Blue Ray discs and drives come our for PCs.

I just did a search for comments on DVI vs analogue monitors on the Internet. A few people say there's not much difference but the vast majority seem highly impressed with DVI, with comments like:

"Responsive, good crisp blacks and very very sharp when used on the DVI input"

"Just be warned, although image quality is better with a DVI cable, only a D-Sub cable is supplied, so you'll have to get a DVI seperate."

“The DVI (digital) connection is better quality, especially whilst playing games.”

“Try viewing a recent DVD-movie (not a re-mastering). You won't believe your eyes.”

“I have an Iiyama with both inputs and the DVI is much clearer than the
analogue input.”

“you will se a somewhat sharper, clearer picture due to the lack of
digital to analog to digital conversions required to send the signal.”

“For the price of a cable you will get a lasting improvement in picture
quality. You will not go back toVGA.”

“When using DVI from analogue i noticed the image quality difference
straight away! much sharper and clearer image”

I think I've talked myself into getting DVI!

Regards
George

wolfman

Some monitors include both cables. My Sharp came with both, I think it just depends upon the manufacturer.

The Samsung SM913N is ok, more of a gaming tft as it has a TN panel. These type of panels basically offer a low response time, but a very narrow viewing angle.

If you do want such a monitor, the Benq FP91V is very good (4ms response time). It costs around £220 I think.

Personally, I'd take a look at the new P-MVA screens. The Belinea 10 19 20 is said to set the standards. It offers an 8ms response time and has a great viewing angle. Much more suitable for general use.

The Belinea uses the same panel as the more expensive ViewSonic VP930. The Belinea is around £250 (from Pixmania) and the ViewSonic is about £50-75 more.

You could go for something cheaper, but with the Belinea you'd have one of the best screens available, and it'd certainly be a decent spec for quite a while to come.

John_Gray

We've just bought a Dell Optiplex DX620USFF for work, and the system unit doesn't have the usual VGA socket, only a DVI socket! (Is this where I say, "Way To Go"?!)

However, the Dell 19" flat-panel monitor has both VGA and DVI cables, ironically...

John

PS I also tried the monitor on the VGA socket of a completely different PC's system unit, and couldn't really see much difference. The quality was excellent for both the VGA and DVI connections.

squirrelz

I've got a monitor with both DVI and analogue, and when you use the analogue connection, theres some very slight ghosting. The image generally looks crisper on the DVI connection (small fonts are a bit clearer), but it certainly doesnt look bad on the analogue one.

£$&*"($£&(

I have no experience with digital inputs but from what I've heard there is very little difference - certainly not enough to worry anyone. A few years ago TFTs didn't always look that great but they have come on a lot, especially in terms of sharpness, so the difference may have been more noticeable a couple of years ago.