Cheap 15" HD monitor looks pretty good

Bill Koehler · September 26th, 2009, 01:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Richie Edquid

A 10inch lcd4video is $300! Is the cost high because it's self powered or because it's made for video?

Yes, because it's made for video.

It's also why some of us are using portable DVD players as monitors. It's self powered AND it's relatively cheap, as in roughly half your $300.

John Peterson · September 28th, 2009, 06:45 AM

Native resolution is 1368x768 - does a great job for focus with my ex1.
-----------
Boyd,

With the component video interface that you are using:

1. How sharp is the television monitor compared to the LCD on the EX1 camera?

2. Is there a setting in the service menu of the Dynex to sharpen it more if necessary?

3. Are you using the Dynex for adjusting exposure on the camera as well?

Some of the user comments about the product at the Best Buy site are a little scary:

Example:

"Looks and feels cheap. Picture quality is grainy, colors are faded, and the viewing angle is extremely limited. This is the worst product I have ever purchased at Best Buy."

----

For anyone interested, there is a "Laptop Stand" in the Walmart store for $20 in the section with the "furniture" as part of their back to college items. It is portable and works as a monitor stand. It has a quick-release/tilt for the table as well. Height is 36 inches. Top is 14" x 18". Although not as tall as a tripod, it works for me on shoots where I have to sit and also serves as a portable projector table.

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...ct_id=11062628

John

Boyd Ostroff · September 28th, 2009, 08:43 AM

Hi John,

Well, it cost $160 so I would keep that in mind when evaluating the quality. Yes, the viewing angle is pretty narrow. For the price, I think it's quite good but obviously everyone has their own ideas of cost/value.

1. It is certainly sharper than the camera's LCD screen, but the small size of the built-in LCD tends to give it more apparent sharpness since the pixels are so tiny. The Dynex monitor makes it quite easy to judge focus IMO. It has almost 4x as many pixels as the built-in LCD.

2. Yes, there are shapness settings. I don't have the monitor here at the moment, but I think you can set them using the regular menu's without even needing to dig into the service menus.

3. I think it would be hard to use this kind of consumer monitor to adjust exposure, especially outdoors with a lot of ambient light. You can try calibrating it using color bars, which seems to help. But I think zebra's and the histogram are a better way to judge exposure.

I have not used this monitor a lot since it's just one more thing to lug around and setup, but find it a useful addition to my kit for those times when I want something better than the camera's LCD screen. This monitor can give you a much better idea of picture profile settings in the field than the camera's LCD screen.

Richie: You could power this monitor with anything that provides regular 120v AC. There are a number of possibilities, but I have not looked for anything specific beyond the unit that I mentioned. I have a larger Xantrex unit which would probably run that screen for a whole day, but it's pretty heavy to lug around.

Boyd Ostroff · October 5th, 2009, 11:40 AM

Note to Marcello - I have moved your question to a new thread since it really didn't belong here. See: http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/sdtv-hdt...-solution.html

Chris Barcellos · October 5th, 2009, 12:22 PM

I have been using a 19 inch Dynex for about a year now, first with my HV20, and the FX1, and now with my Canon 5D. While you won't confuse the image with that of a high end Monitor, it certainly fills the bill for the purposes Boyd recommend, and I will be checking ou the 15 for a bit more portability. Thanks for the recommendation.

Marcello Mazzilli · October 5th, 2009, 12:44 PM

Can somebody suggest a solution for me? I live in a PAL country and I'm looking for a portable (15-17") complete solution (monitor + battery + stand). My needs are for outdoor and really I think that brightness is important. It should be usable in full sun situations without consistent reflections. Any ideas?

Boyd Ostroff · October 5th, 2009, 03:04 PM

Marcello: as I said above, I have moved your question to a new thread here: http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/sdtv-hdt...-solution.html

Please use this new thread since it's really a separate topic - your needs will not be met by a cheap unit like this.

Marcello Mazzilli · October 5th, 2009, 04:40 PM

Sorry.. I didn't understand.. seemed quite on the subject to me.

October 5th, 2009, 12:22 PM	#20
Chris Barcellos Inner Circle Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Elk Grove CA Posts: 6,838	I have been using a 19 inch Dynex for about a year now, first with my HV20, and the FX1, and now with my Canon 5D. While you won't confuse the image with that of a high end Monitor, it certainly fills the bill for the purposes Boyd recommend, and I will be checking ou the 15 for a bit more portability. Thanks for the recommendation. __________________ Chris J. Barcellos

September 28th, 2009, 06:45 AM	#17
John Peterson Major Player Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Monroe, NY Posts: 703	Native resolution is 1368x768 - does a great job for focus with my ex1. ----------- Boyd, With the component video interface that you are using: 1. How sharp is the television monitor compared to the LCD on the EX1 camera? 2. Is there a setting in the service menu of the Dynex to sharpen it more if necessary? 3. Are you using the Dynex for adjusting exposure on the camera as well? Some of the user comments about the product at the Best Buy site are a little scary: Example: "Looks and feels cheap. Picture quality is grainy, colors are faded, and the viewing angle is extremely limited. This is the worst product I have ever purchased at Best Buy." ---- For anyone interested, there is a "Laptop Stand" in the Walmart store for $20 in the section with the "furniture" as part of their back to college items. It is portable and works as a monitor stand. It has a quick-release/tilt for the table as well. Height is 36 inches. Top is 14" x 18". Although not as tall as a tripod, it works for me on shoots where I have to sit and also serves as a portable projector table. http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...ct_id=11062628 John

September 28th, 2009, 08:43 AM	#18
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,802	Hi John, Well, it cost $160 so I would keep that in mind when evaluating the quality. Yes, the viewing angle is pretty narrow. For the price, I think it's quite good but obviously everyone has their own ideas of cost/value. 1. It is certainly sharper than the camera's LCD screen, but the small size of the built-in LCD tends to give it more apparent sharpness since the pixels are so tiny. The Dynex monitor makes it quite easy to judge focus IMO. It has almost 4x as many pixels as the built-in LCD. 2. Yes, there are shapness settings. I don't have the monitor here at the moment, but I think you can set them using the regular menu's without even needing to dig into the service menus. 3. I think it would be hard to use this kind of consumer monitor to adjust exposure, especially outdoors with a lot of ambient light. You can try calibrating it using color bars, which seems to help. But I think zebra's and the histogram are a better way to judge exposure. I have not used this monitor a lot since it's just one more thing to lug around and setup, but find it a useful addition to my kit for those times when I want something better than the camera's LCD screen. This monitor can give you a much better idea of picture profile settings in the field than the camera's LCD screen. Richie: You could power this monitor with anything that provides regular 120v AC. There are a number of possibilities, but I have not looked for anything specific beyond the unit that I mentioned. I have a larger Xantrex unit which would probably run that screen for a whole day, but it's pretty heavy to lug around.

October 5th, 2009, 11:40 AM	#19
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,802	Note to Marcello - I have moved your question to a new thread since it really didn't belong here. See: http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/sdtv-hdt...-solution.html

October 5th, 2009, 12:44 PM	#21
Marcello Mazzilli Major Player Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: ITALIA Posts: 416	Can somebody suggest a solution for me? I live in a PAL country and I'm looking for a portable (15-17") complete solution (monitor + battery + stand). My needs are for outdoor and really I think that brightness is important. It should be usable in full sun situations without consistent reflections. Any ideas?

October 5th, 2009, 03:04 PM	#22
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,802	Marcello: as I said above, I have moved your question to a new thread here: http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/sdtv-hdt...-solution.html Please use this new thread since it's really a separate topic - your needs will not be met by a cheap unit like this.

October 5th, 2009, 04:40 PM	#23
Marcello Mazzilli Major Player Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: ITALIA Posts: 416	Sorry.. I didn't understand.. seemed quite on the subject to me.