110 PCWorld JUNE 2020HERE’S HOW 1080P VS 4K
dlmn) or insane multi-monitor setup (go.
pcworld.com/mtmn). Then save your
pennies and upgrade to a far more
expensive 4K display later. Because
everyone’s situation is different, we’ll help
you decide your best path forward.WHO SHOULD BUY ONE
(OR TWO) 1080P DISPLAYS
The biggest reason to buy 1080p first is
bang for your buck. Because 1080p displays
are a lot cheaper than 4K displays, you can
get more monitors for your money; and
more monitors are better than more
resolution.
While a 4K (3840x2160) display
translates into four times as many pixels as
1080p (1920x1080), it certainly doesn’t
equate to four times the screen space.Scaling text and images can
increase the usable screen
space somewhat by
allowing you to cram more
information onto a single
screen, but tiny text and
images aren’t fun to work
with.
Windows 10’s Snap
feature and its spiritual
successor, FancyZones (go.
pcworld.com/fnzn), can
help, as they both allow
you to organize windows to
various corners and zones
on your monitor or monitors. But Snap limits
you to four windows on a screen at one time,
for reasons that should be obvious: The
windows eventually become too small to
use. Adding display space allows you to see
more apps and windows at once, so you can
juggle multiple tasks or add focal points to
your workspace.
Right now, even a pair of 1080p displays
are vastly cheaper than a single 4K monitor.
A decent 1080p display like this Acer
KA220HQ (go.pcworld.com/ka22) 22-inch
display is priced at $100, while the cheapest
standalone 4K display we could find was the
LG 24UD58-B (go.pcworld.com/24ud), a
24-inch display priced at $297. If you’re
interested in a multi-monitor setup, you’re
simply getting more for your money with
1080p.You do not need to go this crazy in creating a home workstation, but
multiple monitors do create a vastly more productive workspace.