Vizio - E420VO - How to Use as a Monitor
I finally purchased an HDTV. I went with a Vizio for a few reasons:
I had a 37 inch Vizio as part of my previous setup that was perfect. The Samsung that replaced it left much to be desired. The greatest concern with HDTV’s as part of MCPC setups goes down to the display properties.
It is not uncommon for a TV to advertise 1920×1080 (also known as 1080p) as native resolution only to not allow the HDTV to act as a primary PC display. Or it may be the case that the native resolution only works with certain video card manufacturers or not at all! As the name implies, native resolution will yield the best results. It is within the best interests of the user to buy a TV that has the highest level of compatibility.
The Samsung mentioned before refused to act as primary display. This was problematic as I was forced to keep a second monitor connected at all times. Only then would the Samsung display RGB video (through a VGA cable). I’ve worked with Sharp plasma displays that will not go to native resolution with a VGA connection. These demand a DVI or HDMI connection to achive the results.
This Vizio E420VO allows for a few resolutions: 1024*768, 800*600, 640*480, and 1920*1080. Depending on what video card you use, you may have to create a custom resolution for the higher one. I had to do this so that my Geforce 8600 GS would display correctly. Here are the settings:
In my case, I had to load NVIDIA Control Panel and use their interface.