The smart TV is a most flexible option

I’m going to say right out the gate that a Television is the most flexible option. It will likely be able to handle all the above uses with relative ease. If you buy a smart TV it will have a bunch of apps preloaded that will allow you to access your favourite streaming and video services. All you need to do is connect to your Wi-Fi network, log in to your accounts and you are up and running—no cable guy required!

Input ports let you attach peripherals

Monitors are great for web browsing

Where monitors really come into their own is web browsing and text editing. This is their wheelhouse, what they were designed for. I’ve heard complaints in the past about text displaying poorly on TVs and this can be a real headache if you’re going to spend a lot of time writing papers. Despite your best intentions, I guarantee you you will spend many a late night racing to meet a deadline and trust me you do not need to throw eye strain into the mix!

So much of the research students do nowadays is web based, and aside from the eyestrain factor there is the ergonomic factor of screen placement. Working on a laptop can be really tough on your back and neck, so having a separate monitor mounted at eye-level can save you a lot of aches and pains.

Bigger screen for the same price

Gamers need high refresh rates

If you are a serious PC gamer then you probably know about the importance of refresh rates, but for the uninitiated here’s my take. The effect of motion on any screen is achieved by showing a serious of frames in rapid succession, like a hi-tech flip book. The more frames per second the smoother the motion appears to be, and in gaming smoother motion means a better, more immersive gaming experience. This is achieved with TVs and monitors through higher refresh rates. The refresh rate is measured in Hz (hertz) which is analogous to frames per second, and you’ll find that monitors often have higher refresh rates than TVs, which is why they are the default choice for serious gamers. Monitors are also often equipped with G-Sync or FreeSync technology which further improves the motion characteristics of the monitor.

TVs have better sound

One final point worth mentioning is the difference between TVs and monitors when it comes to sound. Monitors don’t often come with integrated speakers, and if they do the sound quality is usually not up to much, whereas every TV will come with a built-in audio solution. This usually means speakers, but not always. The Sony Bravia A8F OLED TV actually produces sound by vibrating the entire surface of the screen, which creates a pretty amazing experience. That said it’s probably not in the budget for most students!

I hope I’ve given you some useful info to help make what can be a tricky choice between a TV and a monitor. While the balance probably falls in favour of a TV due to price and flexibilty, there are still situations where you can’t beat a good monitor!

Check out all the TVs and all the monitors available at BestBuy.ca.