What's the difference between a computer screen and a tv display?

Question

Is there a general difference or does it depend on the model?

Could I use either one for my computer / tv?

Answer 1

A modern progressive flat-panel display intended to be used as a TV is more likely to:

• Attempt to handle interlaced content, either old SD or current 1080i, by doing some kind of de-interlacing or inverse-telecine. This avoids combing/stuttering in the picture.
• Trim the outer edge of the picture, in order to hide the "ugly pixels" in the overscan area that are sometimes broadcast.

Answer 2

It really depends on the model, but they use similar technologies (assuming they're both LCD) so yes, you can use one as the other (it's quite common to use TV's as monitors, something I'm doing right now).

The difference between them is pixel density. On a TV, the current highest resolution is 1920x1080, while monitors are available up to 2560×1600. This is fine if it's a 24" screen or lower, where it will be the same as a monitor but when you get much larger then that you start getting large pixels, or gaps between pixels on a TV especially if you're as close to the TV as you would be to a monitor because of the much lower pixel density.

Something else to note is that certain displays can display a much larger color gamut, giving you a much better picture quality.