On Sat, Jun 24, 2017 at 9:30 AM, D. Hugh Redelmeier via talk <talk@gtalug.org> wrote:
tl;dr: if you yearn for monitor resolution, have I got a deal for you!

<http://forums.redflagdeals.com/real-canadian-superstore-rcss-haier-uhd-4k-tv-43-55-298-468-no-tax-june-24th-2096245/>

I use a cheap and nasty 39" UltraHD TV as my desktop monitor.  I am very
happy with the experience.

Real Canadian Superstore is selling 43" UltraHD TVs for $298 + EHF but
with HST already included in that price ($263.72 before taxes).  I expect
that it is a better TV than my 3 year old 39".

I imagine 43" is a good size for a desktop monitor, but I'm not sure.  I'm
happy with 39"

- I can view it at monitor-distance (25"?  I haven't measured) and see
  text on it at normal pixels/character

- I don't get whiplash looking around on my screen (but I do have glasses
  dedicated to this task -- a great investment)

- it fits on my desk

- it has multiple inputs so I can connect several computers at once

There are flaws with my monitor.  At full resolution (the only one I every
use) it only refreshes at 30Hz.  I don't find that bad (I don't game) but
I think that the 43" monitor does not have this limitation.

Many TV sets do "chroma sub-sampling"
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chroma_subsampling>
This means that the colour (not brightness) on adjacent pixels is not
totally independant.  My monitor uses 4:2:2 sampling and that creates
"artifacts" in some cases.  I really dislike this in theory but I have
rarely found it to be a problem.  I have no idea what chroma subsampling,
if any, the 43" TV does.  I would guess 4:2:2.

I expect to replace my TV when a cheap one comes out with HDR (High
Dynamic Range) and no chroma subsampling.

TV sets don't have DisplayPort inputs.  Too bad.  HDMI has struggled to
keep up with the bandwidth of UltraHD.  My TV's 30Hz limitation came from
that (the HDMI standard has since been upgraded).  Not all video cards can
handle this.

Nouveau doesn't drive my monitor properly so I'm using the proprietary
nvidia driver.  Nouveau may have been fixed but I only test every year or
so.  I don't have a powerful enough ATI card to test.  I haven't tried
Intel GPUs.


Sounds like a decent idea if you only want 1 (!) monitor. 
Me - - I went for 4  - - 1900 x 1080 IIRC and for that you MUST use the nvidia 
drivers and that install was a real hoot!
(My system is 3 monitors in a landscape mode and one in a portrait mode.
The vertical one is used a lot when reading pdfs.)

Dee