VarTech Systems VT201CM User Manual - page 11
20.1” PowerVue User Guide 150-055
The monitor can be adjusted to display a wide range of video formats, depending on the capabilities
of the video source (typically a PC graphics card) and the requirements of the application. Once
adjustments have been made for a given format, they are remembered, and readjustment is
automatic when switching between remembered formats.
However, most video sources can themselves support multiple formats, and some thought should
be given to the setup of the video source to take maximum advantage of the monitor’s capabilities.
Every VT201 Series monitor is equipped with a state-of-the-art scaling engine that allows it to
display images formatted at various resolutions in such a way as to take optimum advantage of the
display area while minimizing scaling artifacts. However, like all LCD monitors, the units provide the
best possible imagery when operated at their native resolutions.
Likewise, the VT201 Series monitors provide the best possible imagery when the video source is
set up to support a color depth of 24 bits/pixel, because this color depth corresponds to the
capabilities of all these monitors, allowing them to display over 16 million distinct colors at once.
In order to support a resolution of 1280x1024 or 1600x1200 and a color depth of 24 bits/pixel, a
video source must have a large frame buffer (RAM). In cases where the video card has limited
memory, color depth might have to be sacrificed to obtain high resolution, or vice versa, depending
on the requirements of the application.
For example, a video card with 2.25MB of RAM can support a 1024 x 768 display resolution at a
color depth of 24 bits/pixel. However, for 1280x 1024 resolution, the color depth must be reduced
to 8 bits/pixel. (16 bpp would require 2.5MB RAM, while 24 bpp would require 3.75MB.)
A general rule for determining the video memory requirements (in megabytes) for a given
resolution and color depth is given here:
Frame buffer memory (MB) = horz_resolution * vert_resolution * bpp / 8388608
9
Setting up the Video Source
3.2