What problems can be with Dell Flat Screen Monitor?

External monitor and Dell XPS15 - will not display high resolution?

• I have a Dell ST2310 24 Inch monitor hooked up to my Dell XPS15 laptop via HDMI. The external will not output at anything higher that 1024x768, although it is capable of higher as I can connect my macbook and blu-ray player with no problems. I know the cable works because I use the same one for the blu-ray player. I noticed the screen is picked up as a generic nonPnP or something like that? I tried to re-install the drivers but nothing has helped. Another problem I have now, is that After Effects CS5 which worked perfectly prior to plugging in the screen, now crashes within a few seconds of opening unless the external screen is connected. I've tried only displaying on the external and extending between the laptop screen and the external - no change. I tried connecting with a DVI cable (using a DVI to HDMI converter) and it worked until I reset the computer. The DVI works on and off. I'm completely clueless? Any ideas would be great - and be gentle - I'm a mac user so I'm not used to the PC interface/lingo. Thanks

• Answer:

  Make sure you have an appropriate graphics driver installed on the laptop, [update] Carefully check the monitor resolution, refresh rate, etc settings for the external monitor, preferably under the Nvidia control settings. Also check that the laptop actually recognizes the monitor type that is plugged in or if it just reports it as a generic type.