How To Use Computer Monitor

as TV?
Do you have a question regarding using
your Computer Monitor as TV? Find out
how you can convert your old Monitor into
a Television.

By Ravi Teja

6 min. read · View original

We sometimes use our TVs as computer monitors.

The benefit of such setup is that you get a large
screen display with high resolution and relatively
good set of speakers. But some of you might have
wondered the possibility of the other way i.e., can
you use a monitor as TV? In this guide, let us take
a look at some basics of a computer monitor and
a television. We will also see how to convert a
Monitor as TV.

Can You Use Monitor as TV?

As long as you don’t need a cable tuner, yes, you
can technically use a Monitor as TV. In case you
want a cable tuner, then you have to invest in a
decent external tuner module. But why would you
want to use a Computer Monitor as a television?

For instance, you have an old but good monitor

and you don’t want to throw it away. Then you can
use this monitor as TV. Another example is you
don’t have enough room/budget to buy a new TV
and want to use the same monitor for both your
PC and as a TV.

The reason can be anything, if you have a good

monitor at your disposal, you can do anything with
it such as using it to watch TV Shows or stream
movies, with little or no investment.

How To Convert a Monitor into A TV?

The main purpose of TV is to watch TV shows,
movies and news among other things. With this in
mind, let us different way in which you can convert
your monitor in a TV.

Use a TV Tuner

Monitors generally don’t come with tuners. So, if

you want to use your old monitor to watch cable
TV that relies on TV’s tuner, then you have to buy
a TV Tuner Kit/Box. They cost anywhere between
$30 to $200 or more depending on brand,
features, etc.

Look for a tuner that has HDMI Out so that you

can easily connect it to the HDMI port of your
monitor.
Connect with any HDMI Source

Another way to convert a computer monitor as TV

or just as a video output device is using any HDMI
Streaming Devices such as Chromecast, Fire
Stick, IPTV Boxes or Android TV Box.

Some internet service providers even bundle

media boxes with their packages. All you need is a
display unit with HDMI Input.

Using a Set top Box / Satellite Dish

If you have a satellite connection, it usually comes

with a receiver or set top box. These units usually
output using HDMI. So, you can easily hookup a
set top box with HDMI output to your Monitor.

Differences Between Computer Monitor

and TV
In a broad sense, both TV and Computer Monitor
are display units that present us with visual
information. But we often view a TV as TV and a
Monitor as Monitor.

TVs are usually large displays with sizes starting

from 42 – 43 inches (there are smaller TVs but in
case of TVs, bigger the better) and go all the way
to 82 inches or even more.

Coming to computer monitors, earlier in the days

of CRTs and first-generation LCDs, we used to
consider a 15inch to 19inch monitor as a decent
size one. Now-a-days, the 24-inch monitor
became the bare minimum and you can also get
them in 27-inch and 32-inch sizes as well.

Resolution is another important property of any

display, be it a monitor, a television or a mobile
phone’s display. 4K UHD i.e., 3840 pixels × 2160
pixels became the standard resolution for TVs.
You can get lower resolution (usually Full HD i.e.,
1920 × 1080 pixels) TVs but 4K TVs are becoming
so affordable.

In case of monitors, Full HD is still a popular

resolution but you can get monitors with 1440P
(2560 × 1440 pixels) and 4K resolution but the
price jump from 1080P is significant.

Refresh Rate of the display determines how many

times it can draw an image in one second. Some
high-end TVs such as LG C2, Sony A95K,
Samsung S95B etc. come with maximum refresh
rate of 120Hz. But the common value is 60Hz for
majority of TVs.

This is not the case with monitors. You can easily

get monitors with 144Hz, 165Hz and even 240Hz
refresh rates.

Parameter TV Monitor

Screen Size Easily available in

large sizes. Some
Usually,
popular TV Screen computer
Sizes are: 42”, 55”,
65”, and 75”. monitors are
available in
 small screen
sizes such as
24”, 27” and
32”.
Full HD is still
4K UHD (3840 ×
popular but there are
2160) is a very
Resolution common resolution
several monitors with
1440P and 4K
in TVs.
resolutions.

Monitors come
with all types
of aspect
ratios, 16:9,
16:10, 21:9,
wider aspect
Almost all modern
Aspect Ratio TV have 16:9 ratios for wide
aspect ratio.
screen
monitors and
even narrow
aspect ratios
for box shaped
displays.
Even in basic
60Hz is a very monitor, 60Hz
standard refresh refresh is still
rate for TVs. Ther popular. But you can
Refresh Rate are some high-end easily get them with
TVs that come with 144Hz, 165Hz and
120Hz refresh rate. even 240Hz refresh
rates.
Response Time It is the time taken
by the display to
Even entry
change the pixel’s level monitors
color (usually black
to white or vice- have from
versa). TVs
generally have slow reputable
response time, tens
of milliseconds.
brands have
 decent
response time
of 5 – 8ms. You
can easily find
monitors with
even quicker
response
times.
Almost all TVs, Speakers in monitors
irrespective of the are very rare. Even if
Speakers size, come with a some monitors have
decent pair of them, they sound
speakers. mediocre.

VGA, HDMI
and
DisplayPort are
the popular
HDMI is the most ports in case
common port in
TVs. All TVs come of monitors.
with 2 – 4 HDMI
Ports with Coming to
additional features
Ports
such as HDMI ARC
audio,
or HDMI eARC. monitors
Some other ports
are Optical Audio usually have
Out, USB and
Ethernet. audio jacks
(3.5mm) but it
is very rare to
find any other
audio output.
Since all modern Monitors doesn’t
Wireless
TVs are “Smart”, come with wireless
wireless connectivity.
connectivity is
almost a necessity
now-a-days. TVs
usually have
 support for high-
speed wireless
networks.

Monitors are
usually
expensive
when we
From a display size compare to
perspective, TVs
are usually TVs. A 32” 4K
Price cheaper. You can a
decent 4K 55” TV Monitor from a
in the price range
of $350 to $500. good brand will
cost you
anywhere
between $300
to $350.

As we often sit very close to monitors (usually at

an arm’s length), the text should be very clear and
colors should be very accurate. Hence, most
people still prefer a monitor over TV.

Other Important Things to Consider

There are some cases where your monitor is
slightly old and it doesn’t have an HDMI Input
port but rather it has a VGA Port. In situations like
this, you need to invest in additional converters
(HDMI to VGA Converters) to connect modern
streaming, media and set top boxes.

Another major issue with using Monitors as TV is

with respect to audio. Monitors usually don’t come
with speakers and even if they have a pair, the
sound quality will be very bad.

To solve this, you have to buy HDMI Audio

Extractors. They are tiny boxes, that have an HDMI
Input, an HDMI Output, Optical Audio Out, RCA
Audio Out (coaxial audio) and also 3.5mm audio
jack.

You can connect the HDMI Source such as a Fire

Stick or a Set top box to the HDMI input of the
extractor unit and connect the HDMI Out of the
extractor to the monitor. Using any of the audio
ports, you can connect a decent set of speakers or
sound bar.

Also Check: How to Change Primary Monitor on

Windows & MacOS?

Conclusion
Even though monitors and TVs are both display
devices, there are some differences between
them. We often see people using a TV as a
computer monitor but very rarely the other way i.e.,
a monitor as TV. In case you are one of those few
people who want to use an old/spare monitor as a
TV, then this guide is for you. We saw how can we
convert a Monitor as TV using simple methods.
We also saw workarounds on some common
problems.