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9200 Screen choice driving me crazy

post #1 of 30
11/27/04 at 3:11pm
Thread Starter 
I've read every thread I can find that discusses how people feel about reading small text on UXGA screens and I still can't decide if it would be right for me. I generally like high res screens, but I spend 8 or more hours daily at my computer and I don't want to be straining to read small text. On the other hand I love the idea of 1920x1200 real estate. The machine will be used mostly for software development, but also photo editing (I'm an amateur photographer). And the other usual stuff - email, web browsing, etc. And of course games!

After going back and forth a bazillion times between XGA+ and UXGA I finally wussed out and erred on the side of caution, ordering the WXGA+. My eyes are excellent, but I'm 44 and reading tiny print up close is not as easy as it once was. While I know I'd be able to read WUXGA with no problem, I'm concerned that hours upon hours of it could cause some eye strain, and neck and shoulder strain from leaning forward a lot. So I finally decided to save the cash and go XGA+. I figure I could always get a big external display for higher resolution work if I want. As for gaming, I'm not convinced the 9200 has enough horsepower to play fps games (my favorite) at WUXGA anyway.

Two questions:

1. I know for sure that WSXGA+ on a 17" screen would be perfect - why is this resolution not available for the 9200???

2. Does the 9200 with MR9700 support dual-displays? That would certainly be a good way to get a lot more real estate (on the desktop anyway).
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post #2 of 30
11/27/04 at 3:15pm
sxga+ isnt an option for the 9200.. because sxga+ on a 15.4" screen is almost the same as a uxga screen on a 17" .. im getting mine on tuseday so ill write up a review on the screen ect
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post #3 of 30
11/27/04 at 3:20pm
also the rad9700 should support multi displays.. i mean it has vga port, dvi port, and svideo.. and im sure if it can only do 1 at a tiem u can split a sigle port out to 2 i think but it would just be same screen mirrored.. err yeah it does support multi-display im liek 99.9% sure of it
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post #4 of 30
11/27/04 at 3:44pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Deviant25
sxga+ isnt an option for the 9200.. because sxga+ on a 15.4" screen is almost the same as a uxga screen on a 17"
Deviant, thanks for the response, but no matter how I parse that statement I can't quite follow your logic . I would love SXGA+ on a 17" screen - it would be perfect.

Anyway, please do write a review when you get yours. I'm interested to know if you think it would be fine for hours at a time. Find a web page with small fonts - say 8 pt. - and tell us if you can read it comfortably without leaning forward and straining.

Anyway, I'm in South Africa - the machines we get here are built in Ireland and I don't believe I have the luxury of a return policy like you guys in the US. So having ordered the XGA+ I'm probably stuck with it - not the end of the world, I'm sure. It's a safer gamble than ordering the UXGA and finding it difficult to live with.

Glad to hear it will support dual displays.
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post #5 of 30
11/27/04 at 3:50pm
I think Deviant means that the ratio of pixels to area on the WSXGA 15.4 in screen is roughly the same as the ratio on the WUXGA 17 in screen. In other words, if you like WSXGA on 15.4, then you will like WUXGA on 17.

The WUXGA on the 17 won't be as small as the WUXGA on the 15.4 because there are the same number of total pixels, but the 17 has more area, so the pixel pitch will be larger.

If you prefer smaller fonts, go with the WUXGA.
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post #6 of 30
11/27/04 at 3:50pm
Just get the high-res screen. You can always lower the resolution if it's too small, and the WUXGA pixel pitch will minimize blur.
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post #7 of 30
11/27/04 at 4:17pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by kwest2
I think Deviant means that the ratio of pixels to area on the WSXGA 15.4 in screen is roughly the same as the ratio on the WUXGA 17 in screen. In other words, if you like WSXGA on 15.4, then you will like WUXGA on 17.

The WUXGA on the 17 won't be as small as the WUXGA on the 15.4 because there are the same number of total pixels, but the 17 has more area, so the pixel pitch will be larger.
Kwest, I understand that of course. But it would only be meaningful if a 15.4" screen was an option on the 9200, which it's not. On a 17" screen, the jump from XGA+ to WUXGA is too big. SXGA+ would split the difference perfectly.

Anyway, I hate you guys because you're telling me I should have gone with the UXGA. And I fear you may be right. Oh well.

Thanks for all the input.
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post #8 of 30
11/27/04 at 4:19pm
I agree with Malone on WUXGA. You won't be paying too much of a penalty for lowering the res.

Also, the MR9700 supports 2 simultaneous displays. However I read a review, perhaps it was tomshardware.com or anandtech.com where they tried that and concluded it really taxes the GPU and causes heat to skyrocket. I'll try and find the article for you.

edit:
the article was http://graphics.tomshardware.com/gra...216/index.html
and describes the appearance of artifacts and graphics corruption after trying dual display gaming with Flight Simulator 9 on the ATI Radeon 9800 XT and NVidia GeForce FX 5950 Ultra (http://graphics.tomshardware.com/gra...isplya-13.html). The temp of the NVidia card hit 85 degrees celsius after FS9.

However I don't think this would apply to dual display for things like photo editing or normal usage outside of gaming.

D
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post #9 of 30
11/27/04 at 4:46pm
SpeedGeek: I was in the same dilema when I ordered my 9200. I currently use a 14.1" Inspiron 4100 with 1400x1050 res. which should have very similar pixel pitch as the 9200 at 1920x1200. I also have a desktop with a 20" 1680x1050 screen. I use mine for software development, and I also am a very serious amatuer photographer.

I almost went for the WXGA+ screen, but can't bear the thought of having less pixel density on a 17" screen than my current 14.1" screen. I was fortunate enough to be able to walk down to the BestBuy near my house and check out the 17" Sony which has the same resolution to see if I can view that screen comfortably. Here are my thought: Normal font (96 dpi) is a bit small, but large font (120 dpi) is perfect. The drawback with using large font is that some GUI elements may not scale correctly, resulting in dialog boxes that got chopped off. If an app. is written with this in mind (most are), then this is not a problem. In addition, some websites are not designed with this in mind and their font would look too small. I like Firefox browser because I can hit ctrl + or ctrl - to change the font size if needed. I think I can live with that. And if you wait long enough, Longhorn, the next version of Windows, is designed to support high density display so your pixel density doesn't dictate screen font size. But for now, I think I am willing to trade a little bit of inconvenience (hitting ctrl +/- in browser if needed, dealing with apps (if any) that don't take into account of large font) to get a high resolution display which is fabulous for programming and photography.

Another thing I discover is that greatly improves my comfort when using my laptop for extended period are (1) a Kensington Laptop Desktop http://kensington.com/html/5558.html, and (2) a Laptop desk http://laptoptravel.com/Product.aspx?ID=1580. The first gizmo positions the screen in an ergonomic position and also bring it closer to you at your desk, and the second one offers similar benefit when you sit at a couch or in bed.
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post #10 of 30
11/27/04 at 5:43pm
i would love to see a photograph comparison between the 9100 WUXGA vs 9100 WXGA vs the 8600 WSXGA+
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post #11 of 30
11/27/04 at 8:20pm
Speedgeek, I think you made the right choice. I am looking at the wxga+ right now and I am telling you it is great. Very bright illumination and very clear. I would not have the wuxga, the fonts are just to small, if they get any smaller than the way they are on the wxga+, I can't see how people can read them without strain on their eyes.
Believe me you, stick with the wxga+ you will be more than satisfied. The screen is so big everything fits on it. My wifes new 8600 has the wsxga and it is very nice and clear but I find it a liitle hard to read. Print is just a little small but still very readible. But the 9200 is perfect at the wxga+ resolution at 17".
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post #12 of 30
11/27/04 at 10:13pm
Melons, can you take a picture of the two laptops side by side at a same webpage so we can judge the difference?
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post #13 of 30
11/27/04 at 10:29pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by SpeedGeek
I've read every thread I can find that discusses how people feel about reading small text on UXGA screens and I still can't decide if it would be right for me.
Hi SpeedGeek,

I wasn't sure about getting the small 12.1 screen with the 700m so I went to a Dell shop to check it out. Maybe you can do that too.

Spending that sort of money, I'd rather look at it and feel it before buying it!

Cheers Chook
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post #14 of 30
11/27/04 at 10:48pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by unclejung
And if you wait long enough, Longhorn, the next version of Windows, is designed to support high density display so your pixel density doesn't dictate screen font size. But for now, I think I am willing to trade a little bit of inconvenience (hitting ctrl +/- in browser if needed, dealing with apps (if any) that don't take into account of large font) to get a high resolution display whidh is fabulous for programming and photography.
I ditto that. If you are a hard-core gamer, the WXGA is probably the better choice because of potential scaling issues (though casual gamers might not notice any difference). For any serious graphics or programming work the WUXGA should be unbeatable. If you plan on keeping your laptop at most 2-3 years, once Longhorn is out (sometimes during 2006) you'll probably get a WUXGA laptop anyway, however if you plan on keeping it 4-5 years then you would have to consider that by not choosing the WUXGA screen you would lose out on one of the main features of Longhorn (high DPI support)...
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post #15 of 30
11/28/04 at 3:18am
I say the WUXGA over the WXGA. And the reason I say that is because of two main things. [1] You can always set the resolution lower if you want it lower. You loose just a bit of quality but nothing I can notice. [2] The WUXGA is more future-proof. Like BGD stated above, when newer games, longhorn, and even newer copies of Photoshop come out, you will really want that WUXGA. The WXGA is fine, but to be on the safe side, go with the WUXGA.

To be honest, I never even gave it a second thought. When I priced my i9200 notebook, I didn’t even think about leaving it at the WXGA. I just checked WUXGA.

Now I understand those of you that don’t like small text, but you must not forget that you can change the text size and you can always lower the resolution.

So if it’s not a money issues, in my humble opinion, the WUXGA would be better.

But don’t get upset with your choice. The standard screen should be fine. And you must not forgot the 21 day satisfaction policy.
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post #16 of 30
11/28/04 at 3:49am
Except that SpeedGeek lives in South Africa, so I don't know how easy it is for him to take advantage of the 21 day satisfaction policy

D
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post #17 of 30
11/28/04 at 11:22am
Thread Starter 
Thanks everyone for your input. I'm sure WUXGA is awesome but I'm thinking I will stick with WXGA+ because:

Nobody has said that reading WUXGA text is easy - legible yes, but with some strain. I think that any amount of strain might become bothersome if I'm spending 8-10 hours per day at the screen. Even though a 17" screen has 10% bigger print than a 15.4", I still get the feeling that small fonts will be tough to read.

Having tons of real estate is awesome, but it only makes sense if text is comfortable and natural to read. I think that WUXGA requires a 19" screen for that. A 17" would be perfect with WSXGA+ which is why I'm so pissed that it's not offered.

I live in South Africa where I don't believe I have the 21 day return option (our Dells are built in Ireland). Therefore it makes sense to err on the side of caution. The XGA+ will be great even if the WUXGA would be better. But if I opt for WUXGA and I have a hard time with it, I'm really stuck.

The machine will remain on my desktop 95% of the time. So I can get a large external display and have the best of both worlds.

I'm saving $400 getting WXGA+ rather than WUXGA - the prices here are insane. If I told you guys what I was paying for my 9200, you would be in sudden need of a defibrillator. This is not a financial decision, but let's face it - $400 is real money!

So, having said all that, why is it that I still want the WUXGA??
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post #18 of 30
11/28/04 at 11:49am
I was just wondering ....I have my 19" desktop monitor set at 1280 x 1024 and I have only had it set to this for about 3 days now. I changed it from 1024 x 768 because I wanted to see if I would like to get a higher resolution display for my laptop and thought this would be a good way to test it out. Does anyone know how 1280x1024 compares to the WSXGA+ on the 8600? BTW, I got used to the display setting already and tried to switch it back but I can't now.
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post #19 of 30
11/28/04 at 12:05pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mepwolv
I was just wondering ....I have my 19" desktop monitor set at 1280 x 1024 and I have onbly had it set to this for about 3 days now. I changed it from 1024 x 768 because I wanted to see if I would like to get a higher resolution display for my laptop and thought this would be a good way to test it out. Does anyone know how 1280x1024 compares to the WSXGA+ on the 8600? BTW, I got used to the display setting already and tried to switch it back but I can't now.
A 4:3 19" CRT is very close in viewable height to a 19" wide-aspect LCD. So it's a lot bigger than a 15.4" wide-aspect LCD. Seeing as SXGA+ has more than 1024 pixels height, I suspect that WSXGA+ on a 8600 will give much smaller text than your 1024 19" CRT.
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post #20 of 30
11/28/04 at 12:30pm
Do they call you SpeedGeek for your quick replies lol? Thanks for the input, now I am glad that I decided to go with WSXGA+ instead of my originally configured laptop that had WXUGA. Although I am sure I could get used to the higer resolution, I don't think I will be disappointed with the 1680 x 1050.
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