What size monitor has the largest pixels?

[clickynext]

Getting one for my grandmother, and pixel size is the greatest priority, not resolution.

Thanks!

 

[masteryoda34]

You want to look for pixel pitch on monitors. This is a measurement of how far apart the pixels are. However, most modern LCD monitors are going to be in the .26-.29 range I believe. Your only two options are likely to turn down the resolution or to get a CRT.

 

[Zepper]

Why does large pixel size matter? Do you really want all her images to look pixellated and all her text to have the jaggies? LCD pixel size depends on the physical measurements of the screen and the res to which you have set it. You set the screen res and/or screen font size so she can read comfortably, end of story. The smaller the picture unit (used to call 'em "triads" on CRT monitors), the smoother your text and images can look at any res. That's why CRT can still give smoother images than LCD at any res it's capable of displaying (they didn't really have defined pixels until the slot-mask models which introduced the word "jaggies" into the monitor lexicon) and it has always been the smaller the dot (triad) pitch the better. Generally, LCD only looks reasonably smooth at native res or perhaps at even fractions of it.
. I just got my first LCD and sometimes its images look really awful relative to the CRT I just closeted... Text has generally looked good.
. Perhaps "pixel pitch" is the term you were looking for. In any case, smaller is generally better. Picture units at lower res are just made up of more screen "pixel pitches".

.bh.

PS: Jeff, below, is basically saying what I'm saying here. You want a screen size that will display at least 1024x768 res (as most web pages are designed for it), but at a size it's easy for her to read. I found that 1024x768 was too small for me to read comfortably on my 17" CRT, so I generally ran it at 800x600. My new LCD is a 19", wide screen, and is just at the edge of comfort at 1024x768. But I'm probably a youngster (at only 61 y.o.) relative to your granny. OTOH, 60 can be great-granny territory in some locales... .bh.

 

[Jeff7181]

I think you're confused, clickynext. I can't think of a reason anybody would want large pixels. What you want is low resolution, so that text appears larger and is easier to see, correct? The physical pixels that make up the LCD panel are not what you need to be concerned about. If you want her to have something easy to read, I'd suggest a 19 inch LCD and set the resolution to 1024x768. If that's even too small for her to read, use 800x600.

 

[disports]

Originally posted by: Jeff7181
I think you're confused, clickynext. I can't think of a reason anybody would want large pixels. What you want is low resolution, so that text appears larger and is easier to see, correct? The physical pixels that make up the LCD panel are not what you need to be concerned about. If you want her to have something easy to read, I'd suggest a 19 inch LCD and set the resolution to 1024x768. If that's even too small for her to read, use 800x600.

This. You could also increase the font size via appearances in display properties.

 

[Viper GTS]

A 20" 1600x1200 would be much better suited for this kind of thing. I haven't seen a non 5:4 19" monitor in a long, long time (ever?), and the extra pixels of a 1600x1200 panel would help with scaling those lower 4:3 resolutions.

I recently found a nice 20" (Samsung 204T) on Craigslist for $150, which shouldn't be too hard on the budget.

If you'd rather go new there are a few 22" monitors with 1440x900 native resolutions. These are substantially lower res than a 19" 1280x1024 as you can see here. That is probably going to be your best bet for new monitors unless you want to venture into 720P HDTV's. If you do that you can get 1280x720 (or thereabouts) in desktop sizes.

22" 1440x900
23" 1366x768

Viper GTS

 

[mpilchfamily]

I take it font size is an issue. That can be increased by Windows. But if the overall size of things is what matters then look at the size monitor you want and choose the one with the lowest resolution.

 

[Koharski]

how about one of those 42" 720 HDTVs?

 

[Spicedaddy]

720p projector and 110" screen