FOR MORE INFORMATION: To learn more about your computer's display screen, see the documentation for your computer. Also see the safety information that shipped with your computer for safety procedures to follow when working with your computer. For additional safety best practices information, see the Regulatory Compliance Homepage at www.dell.com/regulatory_compliance.
Cleaning Your Computer's Display Screen
To clean the display for a desktop computer, wipe the screen with a soft cloth dampened with water.
To clean the display screen for a laptop computer, wipe the screen with a soft cloth dampened with either water or an LCD cleaner.
CAUTION: Do not wipe the computer's display screen with any soap or solution not designed for monitors. These solutions can damage the monitor's anti-glare coating. Do not spray cleaners directly onto the screen.
Adjusting the Resolution of Your Display
The display resolution defines the clarity of images on your display. As you increase the resolution, items appear smaller on the screen. As you decrease resolution, text and images appear larger.
Before you change any of the display settings, make a note of the current settings so you can change back to them if needed.
NOTE: Use only the Dell recommended video drivers, which are designed to offer the best performance with your Dell-installed operating system.
HINT: To display a program at a specific resolution, both the video card and the display must support the resolution, and the necessary video drivers must be installed.
Windows Vista®
Right-click an open area of the desktop.
Click Personalize. The Personalize appearance and sounds window
appears.
Click Display Settings.
In the Display Settings window under Resolution, move the slide bar to
the left or right to decrease/increase the screen resolution.
Click Apply to check if the selected resolution is ok, if not repeat step 4.
Click OK.
Windows® XP
Right-click an open area of the desktop.
Click Properties. The Display Properties window appears.
Select the Setting tab.
Under the Screen resolution section, move the slide bar to the left or right
to decrease/increase the screen resolution.
Click Apply to check if the selected resolution is ok, if not repeat step 4.
Click OK.
Troubleshooting
Blurry text: If you change the display resolution from the current settings to one not supported by your computer and display, the image may appear blurry or text may be hard to read.
Unsupported resolution or color settings: If you choose a resolution or color palette that is higher than the display supported by your computer, the settings adjust automatically to the closest supported values.
Choosing the Best Display Settings
Default display settings are set for your computer based on the monitor or display screen. Access the Display Properties window from the Control Panel to determine the resolution of your monitor and make any changes.
Setting the Display Resolution for External LCD Monitors
Set external LCD monitors to their native resolution, the resolution at which the display performs the best. See the manufacturer's documentation for this information.
If you cannot determine the native resolution, set the monitor to perform at the highest resolution. Although your monitor can probably support lower resolutions, the display quality will be not be as good.
Windows Vista®
Right-click an open area of the desktop.
Click Personalize. The Personalize appearance and sounds window
appears.
Click Display Settings.
Select the external LCD monitor in the drop-down menu.
In the Display Settings window, move the Resolution slider bar to the left
or right to select a screen resolution that matches the native resolution of
the external LCD monitor.
Click OK.
Windows® XP
Right-click an open area of the desktop.
Click Properties. The Display Properties window appears.
Select the Settings tab.
Select theexternal LCD monitorin the Display drop-down menu.
Under the Screen resolution section, move the slide bar to the left or right
to select a screen resolution that matches the native resolution of the
external LCD monitor.
Click OK.
Setting the Display for Multiple Monitors
Multiple monitors can be setup with your computer to improve productivity by expanding the size of your desktop. You can then work on more than one task at a time by moving items from one monitor to another or by stretching them across monitors.
NOTE: Your video card must support multiple monitors. See Windows Help and Support for information on the requirements for setting up multiple monitors.
Windows Vista
Right-click an open area of the desktop.
Click Personalize, and the Personalize appearance and sounds window
appears.
Click Display Settings.
Drag the monitor icons to match the physical arrangement of your
monitors.
Select either or both of the following check boxes depending on your need:
This is my main Monitor — allows you to set the main monitor.
Extend the desktop onto this monitor — allows you to drag items across your screen onto alternate monitors.
Click OK.
Windows XP
Right-click an open area of the desktop.
Click Properties, and the Display Properties window appears.
Select the Settings tab.
Drag the monitor icons to match the physical arrangement of your
monitors.
Select either or both of the following check boxes depending on your need:
Use this device as a primary monitor — allows you to set the primary monitor.
Extend my Windows desktop onto this monitor — allows you to drag items across your screen onto alternate monitors.
Click OK.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: To learn more about accessing the Display Properties window to configure multiple monitors, see Control Panel. For more detailed information about the Control Panel, see "Windows Basic" in Windows Help and Support: click Startor ® Help and Support.
Using the Ambient Light Sensor in Bright or Low-
Light Environments:
NOTE: Your laptop computer may not have an ambient light sensor.
NOTE: The ambient light sensor adjusts the display brightness on your laptop computer only. It does not control the brightness on external monitors or projectors.
The ambient light sensor is located on the front of the computer display. The sensor detects available environmental light and automatically increases or decreases the display backlighting to compensate for low-light and high-light environments.
1
Ambient Light Sensor
You can enable or disable the ambient light sensor feature by pressing the <Fn> and left-arrow key combination.
NOTE: Do not cover the ambient light sensor with any adhesive labels. If covered, the sensor—when enabled—automatically sets the display brightness to the minimum level.
NOTE: The ambient light sensor is disabled when your computer is connected to an electrical outlet.
Using the display brightness key combinations disables the ambient light sensor and the display brightness increases or decreases accordingly.
NOTE: Rebooting the computer returns the ambient light sensor to it's prior setting (either enabled or disabled).
Cables and Connections
Every monitor has at least two cable requirements, power and data. Your Dell monitor may support one or more of the following data connectors:
Connector
Signal Type
Audio Support
Connects to
1
VGA
Analog
No
Monitor or Projector
2
DVI
Digital
No
Monitor or Projector
3
Composite
Analog
No
Home entertainment system
4
Component
Analog
No
Home entertainment system
5
S-Video
Analog
No
Home entertainment system
Monitor
Projector
6
HDMI
Digital
Yes
Home entertainment system
Monitor
Projector
7
DisplayPort
Digital
Yes
Home entertainment system
Monitor
Projector
For pin assignments of the above ports, see Ports.
DisplayPort™ - Features and Benefits
Dell, in collaboration with a group of leading PC, graphics, and semiconductor companies, has developed an open-standards based, royalty-free, and extensible interface, DisplayPort, suited for both external desktop monitors and internal display interfaces.
By consolidating the internal and external signaling methods, DisplayPort enables the introduction of "direct drive" digital monitors, resulting in the most efficient means possible for delivering flat panel display technology to end users.
DisplayPort is also suitable for connectivity between high definition content applications such as optical disc players, mobile devices, personal video recorders, and TVs.
Other features include:
· Higher resolutions such as WQXGA (2048x1536 pixels).
· Variable color depth (up to 30 bits-per-pixel (bpp)).
· Up to 120Hz refresh rate.
· HDCP v1.3 support for viewing Blu-ray disc content.
· Support for cables up to 15m long.
· A single interface and cable that accommodates two-way audio and video for systems with built-in or external speakers, microphone, and camera.
· Better performance than dual link DVI (10.6 Gbps vs. 9.6 Gbps)
· High-bandwidth audio.
For more information, see www.displayport.org.
NVIDIA SLI and ATI Crossfire Technologies
In some graphics configurations, two or more identical graphics cards can be configured to enable NVIDIA SLI (Scalable Link Interface) or ATI Crossfire technologies. Doing so can increase gaming and 3D application performance.
Detailed information about the benefits of using these technologies can be found on the NVIDIA and ATI websites respectively.
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