Hey BWD users! Question: Does anyone have any suggestions for the following situation?

We are currently using our computer and monitor for our video entertainment needs, which boils down to mostly watching a movie or two a week during the dark months. The speakers for the computer are great, and the monitor size I have is great for computing (22inch) but we want the full theatre experience for watching movies.

Given that we don't need a "TV" per se (don't have and don't want cable), I am wondering if it is realistic to think we can get a 1080p flat screen and use if for both computing and watching from 8 feet back.

And even if it is, is this a silly compromise or a good option? Has anyone else done this?

We do not have cable either in fact we have not had it for 16 years. I have set up our theatre room with a 47" flat screen with speakers the whole kit. I have also set it up with the ability to hook our computer up to the TV with an HDMI cable which lets us use the computer on the TV. We live stream off the internet and watch the Olympics etc. It is great, another bonus is our computer has blue ray therefore can use it to play the dvds. I also have a wireless mouse and keyboard so the cord to the computer does not have to be long.

You can do the same with an S video cable or monitor cable and an RCA cable that connects to your headphone jack on the computer then splits to left and right on the TV. Then you turn up the sound on the computer and use the TV's sound. Basically, the TV becomes a giant monitor. If it is a laptop you are using you will need to switch the screen to the TV by right clicking the desktop and choosing output and TV Hope this helps

This may help: http://www.pcworld.com/article/183099/h ... tions.html

Yeah, I am thinking of getting 'small' flat panel, about 32-37 inches since the room is pretty small and it's almost always just the two of us watching.

That said, HP makes a 30 inch monitor that has much higher res than 1080p, which might be nice for computing purposes.

Thanks for the responses. I hope to get a new system set up for the new year!

Cheers,

Paul

We haven't had cable in 10 years. We rent DVDs, get TV series from the library and internet for our news.

Our solution has been a projector and screen. We use our living room and the screen is tucked up under a window valence so you cannot see it when it is not being used. Same as OWW we hook up our computer with a bluetooth mouse and keyboard (better range than the std wireless k&m). We usually use an upscaling DVD/VCR player for DVDs as it is a lttle simpler to start and run.

The projector is a Panasonic 720p unit that we bought about seven years ago. It has lens shift (much easier to place the projector) and has been an excellent solution. I would highly recommend looking at the current version of their PT-AE series. Our screen is a 9 foot (108") diagonal screen so it will be a long time before I need to worry about catching up with the Jones as far as size goes.

This has been an excellent solution that is flexible and can be used in a big room or a small one. Easy to move too. We don't have any light control for the windows in the room so we just do not watch movies when it is daylight out. This is a good thing.

Hope this helps. If you have any more questions PM me.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/157127/h ... en_tv.html