Using 55" 4K TV as a monitor bad for your eyes?

[LadyCore]

They say this is a myth and isn't true anymore, especially with new 4K TV's which are meant for being closer so you can appreciate the sharpness and clarity. I have been using this setup as my main display for my computer setup for years now and would like to know if it's bad for your eyes? The TV is about 2.5 - 3ft away from my eyes.

[The_russian]

Afaik, it isn't bad for your eyes. Your eyes might get tired because they will be focused on one general spot rather than moving around constantly, but it isn't bad for you. 

[Enderman]

Nah dude it works great.

Been using TVs for almost a decade now, people really need to realize this is way better than multi-monitor 

[LadyCore]

Wow nice setup you have! What are the specs on your tv? I was debating on whether or not I should replace my TV with a 49" (32:10) super ultrawide, but I don't like how much it cuts off your view vertically. It's basically a 4k TV squashed.

[Enderman]

7 minutes ago, LadyCore said:

Wow nice setup you have! What are the specs on your tv? I was debating on whether or not I should replace my TV with a 49" (32:10) super ultrawide, but I don't like how much it cuts off your view vertically. It's basically a 4k TV squashed.

I have a 58" NU7100 from samsung, previously I used a 1080p one and althought you could easily see the pixels and it sucked for text it worked fine for gaming, very immersive.

 

The only down side of using a TV like this is that you're limited to 60Hz.

Only very few high end TVs support 4k 120Hz, and even fewer do that have displayport (cause we have no HDMI 2.1 GPUs yet sadly)

But the price tag is way too high, like $5000+

A 4k TV is like $500, cheaper than many high end monitors.

Maybe in like 5 years we will see them become affordable, but for now nope.

 

The main benefit of a screen like this is having basically four 27" monitors with no bezels so you can use separate windows for productivity if you want but also watch movies at full size, or basically any content, since 99.99% of stuff is 16:9 anyway...

 

Some games give you extra horizontal FOV only if you have ultrawide, and you can find ways to still do that on a TV so you basically have a 49"ultrawide but when you do anything else you get extra vertical realestate (for coding, video editing, other games, etc)

 

[LadyCore]

Yes that's what I like about a 16:9 4k screen is you can have basically 4 1080p screens on it, and also set it up to use ultrawide format as well. I basically have the same TV as you but the RU7100 model and it's amazing for gaming. 4k/60Hz is more than enough for me since I'm not a hardcore or competitive gamer. And like you said, it's great overall for everything from gaming, to watching videos, etc.

[Enderman]

Just now, LadyCore said:

Yes that's what I like about a 16:9 4k screen is you can have basically 4 1080p screens on it, and also set it up to use ultrawide format as well. I basically have the same TV as you but the RU7100 model and it's amazing for gaming. 4k/60Hz is more than enough for me since I'm not a hardcore or competitive gamer. And like you said, it's great overall for everything from gaming, to watching videos, etc.

Ya I love it, I can see like 6 pages of my word document at the same time, all full size.

Or like 20 video or audio tracks when editing with a full 1080p preview.

Or a ton of controls and features when using CAD.

 

 

[Kilrah]

Nope, no problem. Been using TVs as displays for more than 10 years as well, 4K since 2014 when the first HDMI2 GPUs arrived. Currently on 49" curved.

 

[Tommyn1979]

I have an Acer EB490QK monitor. It's a 48.5" 4K HDR LED-backlit IPS monitor that is seriously affordable. I paid a measly £500 ($600) for it new.

Apart from the minor issue of some manufacturing corner-cutting ( small amounts of backlight leak through along the bottom edge that is only visible when that area of the screen is black), it is a fantastic screen for the money. The HDR is fantastic, despite being unlisted and unverified, but I've tested it and think it comes in somewhere around the HDR1000 spec - it looks beautiful anyway.

I don't actually think you could get a better large format 4K HDR monitor for the price.

Btw I also use the 43" version in my office and I think they also do a 55" version.

Obviously it depends on what you are using it for, but monitors are better than TV's mainly for response rate. Not many TV's have a response rate below 7-8ms, whereas monitors tend to be in the 1-2ms range, meaning snappier response on-screen and less lag. Also they tend not to be crammed full of useless extra crap that TV manufacturers feel they need to include so they can claim it's got 'lots of features'...

I used to use a TV as my monitor, but since moving back to a proper monitor, I'm not using a TV again..

 

I realise that's got nothing to do with the original post, so here's my response to that:

I actually find gaming on a larger screen results in less eye strain as you actually have to move you head around to take everything in properly, meaning you're actually using your muscles.

The whole 'bad for your eyes' thing from years ago was from the days of CRT TV's where the screens used to leak electrons around the screen, which could cause damage to any organic matter that's close for a seriously extended period of time. LCD's do not have this problem, so sit as close as you want!

[Mihle]

For me, that large would just be uncomfortable large and the pixel density/clarity would be too bad for monitor distance.

 

I have a 32" 4k and I wouldnt go any larger on normal monitor distance

[SolarNova]

4 hours ago, LadyCore said:

They say this is a myth and isn't true anymore, especially with new 4K TV's which are meant for being closer so you can appreciate the sharpness and clarity. I have been using this setup as my main display for my computer setup for years now and would like to know if it's bad for your eyes? The TV is about 2.5 - 3ft away from my eyes.

 

I still use an old 42" 1080p 60hz Plasma. Plasma is ofc completely different to LCD, but none the less i dont have issue with it. Been using it for many years and my eyes are fine. View distance form screen surface to eyes is somewhere around 4 to 5 feet.

 

One way or the other however ill be getting a LG 48" CX OLED, ether this year or very early next year once the release prices has dropped to a more realistic price. £1500 MSRP on release for a 48" is a bit of a kick in the teeth, however we all know how quickly OLED prices drop after release so it should end up more around the £1000 mark relatively quickly.

That display will have 4k with 120hz, variable refresh, and BFI. And ofc if i buy it from one of our big retailers here in the UK it comes with 5 years warranty which is easily enough time to cover possible 'burn-in' issues, which for the most part can be avoided with a few habitual use changes. I will ofc have to get a new 2020 GPU with HDMI 2.1 to use 120hz and 4k at the same time, but until then 60hz 4k, or 120hz 1440/1080p is fine with me.

[Kilrah]

30 minutes ago, Mihle said:

For me, that large would just be uncomfortable large and the pixel density/clarity would be too bad for monitor distance.

 

I have a 32" 4k and I wouldnt go any larger on normal monitor distance

I precisely use the bigger size to be able to put it a bit further away and have room for stuff on the desk inbetween  

[Mihle]

2 hours ago, Kilrah said:

I precisely use the bigger size to be able to put it a bit further away and have room for stuff on the desk inbetween  

There must be more than a desk in between for what I said to not be true.

[Kilrah]

I'm about 70cm from the screen. No font scaling, just right not to see the pixels.

[jones177]

2 hours ago, Mihle said:

For me, that large would just be uncomfortable large and the pixel density/clarity would be too bad for monitor distance.

 

I have a 32" 4k and I wouldnt go any larger on normal monitor distance

I went from a 32" 4k monitor to a 55" OLED TV. 

It was not planned to be a replacement. I only replaced my old 1080p 55" TV on a stand, in front of a sofa with a 4k TV on a 30" deep table for TV watching and casual gaming. No one was using the old setup and watched TV on their monitors in the bedrooms.  

 

I am a 4k snob that does not like 1440p at all but the LG OLED is incredible and even 1440p that I rejected(too fuzzy) on a 32" 1440p 144hz LG monitor looks fantastic. 

 

Now after 6 months of using the OLED my 38" LG ultrawide feels too small and I hate the idea of replacing it since it costs as much as an OLED but I have only been using that system for VR.   

 

I still use my 32" 4k monitor with one of my older systems but it will be eventually replaced with an OLED TV.