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CompTIA A+ 1001 > Display Technologies > Flashcards

Display Technologies Flashcards

1
Q

CRT

A

Cathode Ray Tube:
An old type of display used by PC/Mac a while back.
Had toxic materials inside; required licensed recycling services to dispose.

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2
Q

LCD

A

Liquid Crystal Display:
Primary visual output component today.

Uses liquid crystals that take advantage of polarization.

Tiny liquid crystal molecules arranged in rows and columns between polarizing filters.

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3
Q

Liquid Crystals

A

Composed of specially formulated liquid full of long, thin crystals that always want to orient themselves in the same direction. Acts as a polarized filter.

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4
Q

Sub-Pixels

A

Any of the units that make up a pixel. Each pixel usually has one red, green, and blue subpixel.

In LCD: Translucent sheet above the subpixels is colored red, green, blue.

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5
Q

Pixel

A

Tiny distinct group of RGB subpixels.

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6
Q

Static Charging (Older LCDs)

A

Didn’t use rectangular pixels.

Images were composed of different-shaped elements, each electrically separate from the others.

To create an image, each area was charged at the same time.

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7
Q

Earlier LCDs (Functionality)

A

Matrix of wires on an X & Y axis running along rows & columns of subpixels.

Needed a charge on both wires to light a subpixel.

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8
Q

Passive Matrix

A

Three matrices intersected very close together.

Above intersections: glass coated RGB dots.

Varying voltage on wires made different RGB levels to create colors.

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9
Q

TFT

A

Thin Film Transistor (Active Matrix - Modern LCDs):
One or more tiny transistors control each color dot, providing a faster display, crisp definition, and much tighter color control.

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10
Q

LCD Components (List)

A

LCD Panel: Creates the image
Backlight: Illuminates the image
Inverters (older): Send power to backlights that need AC

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11
Q

TN (LCD Panel Tech)

A

Twisted Nematic: Fastest, but inadequate color

Main tech breakthrough that made LCDs practical.

Takes advantage of nematic substance ability to rotate the polarization of light beams.

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12
Q

IPS (LCD Panel Tech)

A

In-Plane Switching: Beautiful color, best viewing angle

Designed to resolve limitations of TN (color, angle)

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13
Q

VA (LCD Panel Tech)

A

Vertical Alignment: In between TN & IPS

Characterized by vertically aligned pixels. Liquid pixels run vertically to glass substrate on which they are used.

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14
Q

LED (Backlight)

A 
Light-Emitting Diode (Modern):
DC electricity; consumes less energy than CCFL.
Gives off no heat
Enables super thin screens
Does not need inverter
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15
Q

CCFL (Backlight)

A 
Cold Cathode Fluorescent Lamp (Older):
Low power use
Even brightness
Long life
Required high-frequency AC
Needed inverter to convert to AC from DC in monitor PSU
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16
Q

Edge LED Backlighting

A

Two backlights: One at top, one at bottom

Drawback: can sometimes notice brighter edges

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17
Q

Direct LED Backlighting

A

Puts a bank of LEDs behind the panel providing better uniformity.

More expensive & more energy than Edge backlighting.

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18
Q

Resolution

A

Describes the number of pixels on display.

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19
Q

Native Resolution

A

Specified resolution for a monitor. One should not use any other resolution than the native. (Cannot run higher, shouldn’t run lower)

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20
Q

Interpolation

A

Softening the jagged corners of pixels when running at a lower resolution than the native.

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21
Q

Video Modes (3 Names & Resolutions)

A 
VGA = 640 x 480
WXGA = 1366 x 768
FHD = 1920 x 1080
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22
Q

Aspect Ratio

A

Number of pixels arranged on the screen.

16: 9 = 1080p
21: 9 = 3440 x 1440 (on some laptops/phones)

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23
Q

PPI

A

Pixels Per Inch:
Combination of physical size & resolution.

Higher res + smaller screen = Greater PPI
(Why phones and small screens can look so amazing)

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24
Q

Brightness (LCD Backlight Measurement)

A

The strength of an LCD monitor’s backlights.

Measured in nits
100 = low end
300 = average
1000+ = high end

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25
Viewing Angle (Viewing Cone) TN Viewing Angle IPS Viewing Angle
LCD panels have a limited viewing angle. The screen will fade when viewed from the side. ``` TN = 70 degree viewing cone IPS = 178 degree viewing cone ```
26
Response Rate
The amount of time it takes for all of the subpixels on the panel to change from one state to another (measured in ms).
27
BtW
Black-to-White (Response Rate Measurement): | How long it takes for the pixels to go from pure black to pure white and back to black again.
28
GtG
Gray-to-Gray (Response Rate Measurement): How long it takes for pixels to go from one gray state to another (always faster than BtW time) Manufacturers usually advertise GtG over BtW Avg modern time: 5ms
29
Refresh Rate
How often the screen can change or update completely. "Metronome/timer" Regular standard: 60Hz Gaming Monitors: 120Hz, 144Hz, 165Hz, 240Hz
30
Contrast Ratio Lower Level Ratio Good Ratio High Level Ratio
The difference between the darkest and lightest spots that the monitor can display. Lower Level: 250:1 Good: 450:1 High Level: 1000:1
31
Why old CRTs lingered in a few professions in 2000s
Early LCDs could not match the color saturation & contrast of CRT.
32
Dynamic Contrast Ratio
Difference between full-on (all white) vs. full-off (all black) Doesn't affect viewing on computer monitors Focus on regular contrast ratio Manufacturers like to advertise this number.
33
Color Depth
The amount of colors that can be displayed. Old TN: 6-bit panel (64 variations per color channel) Modern Monitors: 8-bit panel (256 variations per channel) AKA: 24-bit color High-End: 10-bit panel (1024 variations per channel) = 1 billion + variations
34
Projectors (Function)
Generate an image in one device and use light to throw (project) it onto a screen.
35
Front-View Projectors
Shoot an image out the front and count on you to place a screen at the proper distance.
36
CRT (Projector)
Cathode Ray Tube Projector: Beautiful images Very expensive, large, and heavy (abandoned now)
37
LCD (Projector)
Much lighter and inexpensive compared to CRT.
38
DLP (Projector)
Digital Light Processing (Texas Instruments): Uses a single processor and an array of tiny mirrors to project a front-view image. Differs substantially from LCD: Softer image, more electricity, and not as heavy
39
Lumens
Brightness measurement for projectors The amount of energy given off by a light source form a certain angle that is perceived by the human eye. Best rating depends on room size and lighting.
40
Small, Dark Room (Lumens Recommendation)
1000-1500 Lumens
41
Mid-sized, Typical Lighting (Lumens Recommendation)
2000+ Lumens
42
Large Rooms (Lumens Recommendation)
10,000+ Lumens (very expensive)
43
Throw
The size of an image at a certain distance from a screen. Always in terms of distance required to project 100 inch diagonal screen.
44
Standard Throw
11-12 feet from projection surface.
45
Short-Throw
4 feet from projection surface.
46
Ultra-Short-Throw
15 inches from projection surface. Lens prices go way up.
47
Lamps
The bane of every projector. Generate tremendous amounts of light. Generate lots of heat (fan needed to prevent overheating) Fan runs until lamp is fully cooled (even after turned off) Expensive to replace (at least a few hundred dollars)
48
Metal Halide (Lamp Technology)
Produce a tremendous amount of lumens with a small form factor. Excessive heat & fan noise Average life: ~3000 hours
49
LED (Lamp Technology)
Use red, green, and blue LEDs to provide light. Don't heat up; quieter/smaller fans. Not nearly as many lumens as metal halide. Requires a darker room. Average life: 20,000+ hours
50
Lasers (Lamp Technology)
White lasers hitting color wheels. OR Colored lasers doing all the work. Vibrant, high-contrast images Very little heat Average life: 30,000+ hours Most expensive lamp tech
51
VR Headsets
Immersive 360-degree experience created by mounting two high-resolution screens into a headset that blocks external visual sensory input. Use OLED technology.
52
OLED
Organic Light-Emitting Diode: Use organic compounds between glass layers that light up when given an electrical charge. No backlighting required (creates its own light) Pixels can turn off completely, enabling pure black. Results in phenomenal contrast compared to LCD panels.
53
VGA
15-pin, 3 row, D-type connector | d-shell, d-subminiature
54
DVI
Digital Visual Interface DVI-D = Digital DVI-A = Analog DVI-I = Digital/Analog
55
Single-Link DVI
Max bandwidth of 165MHz Limited to 1920 x 1080 at 60Hz or 1280 x 1024 at 85Hz
56
Dual-Link DVI
Uses more pins than Single-Link to double throughput. 2048 x 1536 at 60Hz
57
HDMI
High Definition Multimedia Interface: Carries both HD audio & video Can handle just about any resolution monitor Mini & Micro versions for smaller devices.
58
DisplayPort & Thunderbolt
Support full HD audio & video mDP (miniDisplayPort) = Thunderbolt 1 & 2 connectors
59
HDBaseT
Enables long-range connectivity for uncompressed HD audio/video over a Cat 5a or Cat 6 network cable.
60
Monitor Adjustments
``` Brightness Contrast OSD (on-screen display) Physical screen adjustment Color adjustment (adjust RGB levels) ```
61
Monitor Adapter Types (4) + Alternative to Adapters
DVI-VGA | DVI-HDMI Thunderbolt-DVI | Thunderbolt-HDMI Alternatively: cables with different end connectors
62
VESA Mounts
A standardized bracket option for mounting to a wall or special stand.
63
VESA Standards
FDMI (Flat Display Mounting Interface) MIS (VESA Mounting Interface Standard) Curved panels do not have VESA mount options.
64
Display Adapters (Video Cards)
Processes data from CPU and outputs commands to the display. Needs its own RAM (VRAM) Needs fast connectivity between monitor, CPU, and system RAM
65
PCI
Peripheral Component Interconnect: 32-bit transfers at 33MHz (132MBps max bandwidth) Cannot handle current systems' needs.
66
AGP
Accelerated Graphics Port: Single, special port dedicated to video. Only found on ancient systems. Only 1 motherboard slot.
67
PCIe
Peripheral Component Interconnect Express: Can take advantage of all 16 lanes (8Gbps lanes) Modern GPUs use this.
68
HDCP
High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection: Stops audio & video copying between high-speed connections. Stops playback of HDCP-encrypted content on devices.
69
GPU Manufacturers
NVIDIA, AMD, Intel NVIDIA & AMD sell to third parties (ex: EVGA) Intel mostly does integrated GPUs.
70
Video Memory (VRAM)
Hardest working set of electronics in a PC. Constantly updates to reflect every change on screen. Memory bus on card can be many times wider than 64-bit pathway, so data can be manipulated very quickly. Can read/write data at the same time.
71
VRAM Bottlenecking (Cause & Solution)
Data throughput, access speed, and capacity limits reached. Overcame by increasing the bus width.
72
Video Processor Chip
Handles rendering/processing of graphics.
73
VRAM Types
``` DDR3: Budget cards & laptop video cards GDDR3: Faster speeds & different cooling requirements GDDR4: Upgrade of GDDR3; faster clock GDDR5: Doubles I/O rate of GDDR4 GDDR5X GDDR6 ``` HBM (High Bandwidth memory): Competitor to GDDR5 HBM2: Competitor to GDDR6
74
Onboard Video
Motherboard with built-in GPU
75
Integrated GPU
Separate chip attached to motherboard or built into northbridge chip.
76
APU
AMD Accelerated Processing Unit: Integrates 2-4 CPU cores Memory controller (supports DDR4 for system & cache) GPU Requires far less electricity than competitors
77
GPU Installation 3 Issues
Length of card Proximity of nearest expansion card (Leave room for fan ventilation space) (Some cards are double-wide for air vents) Presence of power connectors
78
Inverter Dangers
Powered by high-voltage electrical circuit Charge remains after unplugged (wait a bit) Gets very hot, can burn you.
79
Cleaning a Monitor
DO NOT use window cleaners (ammonia/liquid) It can get into the monitor. Use a microfiber cloth (anti-static monitor wipe)

CompTIA A+ 1001 (9 decks)

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