Heya.

I never owned a laptop and I do plan to buy one.

My question is, if the laptop has a 15.4" and WXGA, 1360x768, if I plug it into a normal CRT/LCD, can I set a new resolution to the spec of that monitor/LCD?

For example if I have a 22" LCD 1680x1050, can I use that resolution if I plug that LCD in my laptop?

The wannabe laptop would have a nVidia 8600M GS.

Also will the laptop remember the display resolution each time it's being plugged into an external LCD/CRT?

What happens if I set the resolution of the external monitor and then shut it down, remove the monitor, and boot it again, will it automaticaly switch to it's native laptop display resolution? Is 1360x768 a wired resolution for games and movies?

The laptop in question.

the external display WILL work correctly, it can be set to whatever resolution you want to be set. i do not beleive that windows remembers the previous settings for that monitor tho, so you will have to manually change it each time you plugged it in.

games may look a little different, but oh well. you want it to stay at its native resolution, it will look better that way. you just hope that the game supports it.

With the video card you mentioned, yes - it should work.

Now - you have a few options on how you want to use the external monitor. You can either use it to clone your main desktop - meaning the two screens show the same information, or you can extend your desktop onto the secondary monitor, giving you more screen space from the added monitor.

In most cases I've seen, Windows will automatically set the resolution of the external monitor to the maximum resolution that it reports. With most projectors, it automatically switches to 1024x768, while when I plug in my LCD at home, it goes to 1280x1024.

Regarding your question about shutdown-restart, yes, things should work just fine with that arrangement. I've even used my laptop and gone into hibernation and removed or added an external display. Things happened somewhat as you'd want them to - monitor #2 was either enabled or disabled.

@ripken - You've got a one track mind when it comes to games, eh?

@ripken - You've got a one track mind when it comes to games, eh?

haha, making them look good