Hey everyone, I bought a 42" TV from a friend for $50 (yes don't worry it works fine), she's just moving and she had to get rid of her tv's

Two questions, if I mainly game, is this a bad idea? My alternative is a crummy 17" monitor (I know I can buy a better monitor, but as of right now) and second question is kind of dumb, with a bigger tv means bigger resolution means more power needed right? So for a 42" is that gonna require like top of the line computer, or can I get away with like a 3570k cpu, um... like 460 gtx (I'll be upgrading soon) and 8g ram?

No additional processing power required. TVs output either 1080p or 720p. Same resolution options as a common computer monitor, just stretched out to be larger.

I play games on my 40" constantly. Works great for the most part. The picture on my tv kinda sucks, but other than that.

Unless you buy a 4k Ultra HD TV and want to play in 4K resolution. Then things (requirements) get ugly. But in the normal case your just fine. HD TV has basically the same resolution as any default monitor. I doubt your friend sold you a 4k tv for 50$, so everthing is fine :)

Haha I feel stupid. Still learning the resolution thing. Thanks much, guys :D

Depends on how far away you're sitting and the resolution of the TV.

Nothing really to get - just know that a 42-inch TV and a 24-inch monitor can have the same resolution - the TV's pixels are just hella bigger.

Considering I am typing this while looking at a 42 inch samsung lcd tv I think you know my answer. Just to add to the post above mine, the advantage to a tv is you can sit a lot farther away. A 22 inch monitor you really need to be within a foot maybe 2 at most. I sit 3-5 feet away from my tv depending on what I am doing, which allows for a more comfortable position in general, especially when gaming.

Yeah, I just got a 50-incher and it's basically a transformative experience when gaming on it. Hooked it up via HDMI as a third monitor...looks great!

I got a 46 inch several months ago and it's been great for gaming.

I guess the TV's max render resolution through HDMI is 1080p. Some upgrades and you should be set with rendering it fine. For gaming, what can also matter is input latency. I dunno the model of your TV but if you render it at 1080p, you should encounter the TV's minimal lag but how much is that minimum, I dunno.

Should be fine. My gaming/HTPC is hooked up to a 55".

Should be fine - I've got a custom built pc that autoboots straight into XBMC so it's my media consumption device.

I watch local files, Hulu and Netflix on it. I also added a shortcut to Steam that goes straight into Big Picture mode.

I'm so happy I build this thing and stuck it next to the tv. I do recommend a small keyboard just in case you need to actually do some typing. Theres a Logitech one that has a built in touchpad that's great. I'm not going to play SCII or DOTA on it, but it will help me navigate Windows when XMBC crashes...

if you're sitting across the room from it, it'll probably look fine for the most part. i recommend big picture mode in steam and xbmc if you're intending to use it for a gaming/media center box but i actually prefer a nice 22-24" monitor for pc gaming (especially mouse and keyboard games).

I've got a 40 inch TV hooked up to my computer. It's really nice to use, although I'm not 100% sure what the response time/input delay for the particular model is (I don't know whether I can blame the TV or if I am in fact just awful at Street Fighter 4).

*Edit: Also, I second the recommendation about the Logitech wireless keyboard, assuming he's talking about the same one I'm thinking of. I've got a K400 (http://www.logitech.com/en-us/product/wireless-touch-keyboard-k400r) and it's great for web browsing and menu navigation. Obviously not as precise as using a mouse on a table, but it's a good option for couch/bed use.

Personally got a PC hoocked up to my 42" LED TV and works fine, if you can, use a mini-HDMI to HDMI from your graphics card to your TV, much easier and its as simple as switching to the correct HDMI port on your TV and its done, obviously make sure you have the settings correct, which monitor you want to use via the resolution panel if your using windows 7. If you use 1920 resolution though of course games will run slower then what you're used to but if your upgrading that GTX 460 anyway, that shouldn't be a problem :D

You will only need a mini-hdmi to full hdmi if you stick with the card you have, all graphics cards from nvidia from the 6 series onwards use full sized hdmi cables.

I used to use a 37" on my desk as a monitor, it was kind of cool, except whenever I went on a bright webpage I got blinded. It was a small price to pay for some pretty killer TF2 sessions with that thing.

Now I'm back to a modest 24", but decent monitor and I use my plasma as an external in front of my sofa, I just use clone mode and open videos, full screen then sit back, also use it for when I play games with the pad. Kinda best of both worlds.

@tehjedicake: I use my 60" 1080p Sharp Quattron 3Dtv hooked up to my Alienware X51 with a EVGA GTX 670, of course it works fine, its like having a console on it.

how far are you siting away form it i had a 32 inc tv for my pc for a bit and it hurt my eyes like hell had to go back to my 24 inc montoer

My head is about 6-7 feet away from my 60" it's no different then watching tv for me. You can't stick. A HDTV on a desk and stick your face as close as a computer monitor without eye strain but some people do, but its bad for the eyes. If it was smaller then 42" it Prob be to small to use it at a distance due to windows text being small from a distance thus causing strain to the eyes.