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posted by Fnord666 on Friday April 07 2017, @06:42AM   Printer-friendly
from the neck-pain dept.

Samsung has two upcoming ultra-wide displays on its roadmap:

For readers on the leading-edge of monitor configurations, ultra-wide displays in the 21:9 aspect ratio have been on the radar for about two years. These are monitors that have a 2560x1080 display, stretching the horizontal dimension of a standard 1920x1080 Full-HD monitor and make it easier to display modern cinema widescreen format content with less black bars. They are also claimed to assist with peripheral vision when gaming beyond a standard 1920x1080 display, or when curved, help with immersive content.

So chalk up some surprise when we hear that Samsung has an even wider format panel in the works. 3840x1080 represents a 32:9 aspect ratio, and the report states that this will be a VA panel with 1800R curvature and a 3-side frameless design. Putting that many pixels in a large display gives a relatively low 81.41 PPI. This panel will be part of Samsung's 'Grand Circle' format, and by supporting up to 144 Hz it is expected that variants of this panel will be included with FreeSync/GSYNC technologies. One figure to note would be the contrast ratio – 5000:1 (static), which TFTCentral states is higher than current Samsung VA panels.

The 3840×1080 display is 49 inches. Samsung is also planning to launch a 44-inch 3840×1200 display.

Is this aspect ratio a good idea or a step backwards? It is like two 1920×1080 displays without the bezels in the middle. What about the "1800R curvature"?

[1800R curvature] means that the circle that defines the curvature of the panel has a radius of 1800 mm (70.866 inches), which is much tighter than other panels on the market (2700R or 3000R typical).


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  • (Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 07 2017, @05:41PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 07 2017, @05:41PM (#490375)

    For any sort of normal work, the advantage of lots of monitor space is allowing you to see multiple windows simultaneously. For this, multiple monitors are better, because windows snap naturally to the monitors.

    In other words, your window manager sucks, and you can't imagine one that doesn't suck? Tiling window managers are a thing, you know, and they're more attractive the more screen space you have. I use them, and really like the idea of one big monitor, precisely because it doesn't have screen edges -- that means I have the flexibility to choose, say, 5 columns of windows, instead of having to choose between 4 and 6 on the equivalent dual-monitor setup.

    (I'm only comparing 3840x1080/1200 to 2x 1920x1080/1200; of course it's better still to have a single, uninterrupted 4k display (>38"), or two 2560x1440/1600 displays -- more space is more space. But given the same amount of space with or without seams in the middle, I'll pick the single display every time.)

    "Snapping" windows to edges/corners is just a way to bolt a bit of tiling onto a floating window manager, so users can enjoy some of the benefits by learning one "new trick" instead of learning a whole different way of working. That's not bad in itself, but if you've got this much screen space in the first place, it's probably worth investing some time learning a better way to use it.

    For anyone interested in trying a tiling wm, I'd recommend awesome -- like many, but not all, tiling wms, it can manage floating windows at the same time as tiled windows, which can be good for apps that use floating palettes and toolbars, and it's much easier to learn than some of the other options. Once you've gotten familiar with the idea of how to manage windows with tags (analogous to the "virtual desktops" or "workspaces" in some floating wms, but more powerful), you'll be in a better position to comparison shop with other tiling wms.

    So: what's the use case for this? Bragging rights at trade shows?

    Well, the real reason is partly economic and partly marketing. You can make a 4k display (3840x2160, 54" diagonal), or you can split that glass in half and make 2 of these (3840x1080, 49" diagonal); economically, this boosts process yield. Whereas a single defect would scrap the whole 4k panel, it would only be on one of the 32:9 panels; even two randomly placed defects still have a 50% chance of only scrapping one panel. Of course not only is yield better, but you're making twice as many displays, which are marketed as almost the same size (thanks to diagonal measurement) and thus command much better than half the 4k panel's price.

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  • (Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday April 07 2017, @07:21PM

    by bob_super (1357) on Friday April 07 2017, @07:21PM (#490464)

    There are two uses for your monitor, which call for different answers...

    If you want to work, vertical lines are your friend. I work on a 4K monitor (40"), because 1080p doesn't display enough information without scrolling.

    BUT if you want immersive entertainment, what's your visual range, again? essentially 180 degrees wide, but not so tall.
    THAT is why those extra-wide monitors can make sense to people. The corner of your eye is pretty good at seeing motion, even if you're focused ahead.
    I ain't buying one of those, I hate anything below 1200 lines. But I don't deny they make sense for some uses...

    Two types of monitors, two potential uses... Why is it so darn hard for everyone to understand?