Can it be done...if so, what leads/connectors do I need and where can I buy them?

Yeah, easy peasy, if you have a TV output on your graphics card then chances are you will have been supplied with the right lead, but you'll probably need an extension. Note that will be very low resolution though, not useful for anything higher than 800x600 usually.

Some TVs have D-sub inputs which allows you to drive them like a normal monitor, my friends 50" TV does that which is very nice. Although it won't pick up widescreen resolutions, so there are enourmous black bars.

You can get the leads anywhere, for cheapo leads try Maplins, for better leads try an AudioVisual store. I'm pretty sure something like www.superfi.co.uk will sell them (though I haven't specifically checked).

If your card has a TV-out then by 99% it already has the required cables in the package.

It should be an S-Video or a composite video cable.

If you can't find one buy one that has S-Video and composite video IN to SCART out.

Also after you hook them up you have to select the TV from the control panel of your graphics card and choose "clone" to have the same picture in the monitor and the TV.

i got a new 40 inch samsung Lcd TV just after christmas and hooking your pc up to it is a must! i went straight out and got a wireless keyboard and mouse for the lounge! On the new lcd Tvs you can connect your pc using ur normal monitor lead (straight in the back of the tv) and on some (like mine) you can even set the tv to display your pc screen in main view with a chanel of your choice in one of the corners! (Picture in picture!)

I am interested in getting a HDTV instead of a new monitor as it will serve two purposes instead of one.

Does anyone around here play LFS on a HDTV? if so what make is it? also is it any good picture wise?

I was looking at getting a Hannspree, specs:

Flat Panel Type:LCD Television
Audio: 2 x 10W
Interface: HDMI, SCART, COMPOSITE, D-SUB
LCD Response Time:8 ms
Brightness: 500 cd/m2
Screen Size:32
Contrast Ratio:750:1
Display Resolution:1366 x 768 pixels

I am thinking a 28in or maybe smaller will look better as the pixels will be smaller as long as I can find one with the 1366res.

i got this badboy a few weeks ago. all i need now is the hd leads

I got my unbranded Samsung-component 37" 720p/1080i TV for about £390 from Aria (www.aria.co.uk) and I believe they now do a 40" version around a similar price. They don't do 28" ones (26" or less, 32" or more, bizarrely) but there's a 32" the same make as ours for £340.
It's a sturdy build and has damn nice picture quality for the TV, Wii and Xbox360.

Never plugged my PC into it, but then I'd hate to go back to such a low resolution after being used to a monitor for so long

Quote from Rish :

i got a new 40 inch samsung Lcd TV just after christmas and hooking your pc up to it is a must! i went straight out and got a wireless keyboard and mouse for the lounge! On the new lcd Tvs you can connect your pc using ur normal monitor lead (straight in the back of the tv) and on some (like mine) you can even set the tv to display your pc screen in main view with a chanel of your choice in one of the corners! (Picture in picture!)

Agreed.... I'm loving my massive Super Wide 32'' magnavox... I've seen an improvment in my racing as well... I tried the s-video cable and i can say it sucked.. So i bought vga and it's amazing... I'll eventually get DVI but I'm happy with 32''.....

Friend of mine is running LFS on a 46' LCD in his living room. The only prob is he sits a little far back. Makes seeing detail in LFS difficult, but aside from that it's amazing!

I'm also thinking of somewhere between a 26 and 32 inch HDTV for a monitor/TV.

Seems like most HDTVs under 50" are 720p and have 8ms refresh rates. Is that really good enough for LFS and occasional normal PC use? (emailing about LFS, for example!)

You'd think my pixels would double in size if I get 2x the monitor size and don't significantly increase the resolution.

Quote from Danke :

I'm also thinking of somewhere between a 26 and 32 inch HDTV for a monitor/TV.

Seems like most HDTVs under 50" are 720p and have 8ms refresh rates. Is that really good enough for LFS and occasional normal PC use? (emailing about LFS, for example!)

You'd think my pixels would double in size if I get 2x the monitor size and don't significantly increase the resolution.

Its a really interesting conundrum:

Big tv makes for nice dual-use and ~pretty good for LFS.

Cons:
-relatively Low resolution makes for pretty low detail on LFS. i.e. small mirrors, can't see very far in front of you down the track.
-General use computing, isn't very good. It's passable, but you have a small window of info.

I think the best compromise would be 1920x1200 - aka 1080p. In TV's this is pretty expensive.

On the PC front, this looks pretty enticing. A 28" 1920x1200 hans-g lcd. For about the price of a 32" 720p tv. Of course, it doesn't have a tv tuner, but it would be a pretty sweet pc setup, and big enough for dvds or hd-dvd to be worthwhile.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ ... aspx?Item=N82E16824254026

In closing:

720p is playable. I found myself wanting more resolution very quickly though. 1080p tv's are nice, but expensive, and sometimes falter as monitors.

Thanks for the confirmation, Stu! I guess I could have just posted in the team forum then...

I'll check out that 28" LCD. I could always add an HD tuner card, but then LFS would get jealous that I'm using its PC for something else.

I just placed an order today for a 37" 1080p LCd from Westinghouse. $699! Sorry to those outside of NA.

It's on special from newegg untill the end of the year (today).

They have another 1080p screen for $799, also. I haven't been able to find known brands for prices like these.

I got a Sharp 26" LCD for my bedroom last month, and can't fault it. Its a regular 1360x768 resolution, but has a 6ms response, and better contrast/viewing angle specs than my pc screen. Hooked it up to my video cards 2nd DVI output a couple of weeks ago, LFS is quite impressive on it. At this size, the resolution is acceptable, the picture is impressive both via PC and Xbox 360

Wanting to hook the PC up to the 42" 1080p telly in the living room, not sure if my video cards powerful enough to run that sort of resolution at a decent frame rate though (7600GT).

Quote from Rtsbasic :

Wanting to hook the PC up to the 42" 1080p telly in the living room, not sure if my video cards powerful enough to run that sort of resolution at a decent frame rate though (7600GT).

Give it a try. I was the goofball at the Best Buy standing in front of a 37" giggling and pretending to drive two feet from the screen. This thing will be awesome coming from a 15" laptop. TBH, the 720p screens didn't look too bad in the store. It would as good as any console system.

i use my sony 46" 1080p and i aboslutely love it. my cockpit is about 6ft away from the tv and still looks good.. i have black bars on the side because i havent figured out how to run it widescreen..if you have a newer laptop or pc they have tv connections built in...some even with hdmi

How good of a graphics card do you need to run 1080p on an nvidia 8600gts? I know the biggest toll would be on AA because the screen is so large but am I able to get a steady 60 fps on something so big (well its not too big of a TV but the resolution would be a lot higher than the one I'm running now).

Also a question to those who use a TV as their main computer monitor, is it hard to read the text on the screen?

Your graphics card should cope fine.
Just set your output resolution to the same as the native res of your TV. 1920x1080 for a full HD TV