Recommendations for an LCD monitor

farphel · 2004-06-14 23:15:24

Hi all,

I'm thinking about getting an LCD monitor and need some education/suggestions on what to look for.

Here's my requirements: Minimum 19" with max res 1280x1024. I'm not really a PC gamer, so that's not really an issue. I primarily like the screen size for coding where I can have many gvim's running and still see them all.

I've been looking on newegg and am curious what all the specs mean. Specifically, what should I be looking for in terms of pixel pitch, brightness, contrast ratio, response time, and display type (SXGA/UXGA/TFT/IPS/MVA).

Here's an example:
Native Resolution: SXGA (1280 x 1024)
Pixel Pitch: 0.294 mm
Brightness: 250 cd/m2
Contrast Ratio: 500:1
Response Time: 25 ms

Your input is greatly appreciated!

Cheers,
farphel

xerxes2 · 2004-06-14 23:45:38

check out a test in a pc magazine. There can be differences between them, cheap ones can be a good buy too, e g Hansol. If you will be using DVI don't miss to check it. I got a real old(>5 years) 15 inch that sucks, but new tft monitors are relly good.
BTW, there seems to be a bug in your sigg "Eric".

dp · 2004-06-14 23:48:05

farphel wrote:

I've been looking on newegg and am curious what all the specs mean. Specifically, what should I be looking for in terms of pixel pitch, brightness, contrast ratio, response time, and display type (SXGA/UXGA/TFT/IPS/MVA).
Here's an example:
Native Resolution: SXGA (1280 x 1024)
Pixel Pitch: 0.294 mm
Brightness: 250 cd/m2
Contrast Ratio: 500:1
Response Time: 25 ms

Native Resolution: the one you want to use always

Pixel Pitch: the smaller the better

Brightness: min. 220cd/m^2 i would suggest

Contrast Ratio: 500:1
>500:1 is good

Response Time: 25 ms
watching TV over a tvcard is better the faster the TFT responds

and also important: the view-angle:
160°/160° is minimum for nice picture!!!

i have a 15" UXGA Flexiview screen with 240cd 500:1 and 170°va --- the response time i do not care as i'm not an extrem gamer, but tuxracer works fine :-) ... i need it mainly for fotography and daily work and i like it

for configuration: make sure your resolution (dpi) is set ok in /etc/fonts/local.conf, becase else you can get too small or too big fonts

SyncMaster from samsung is one of the best series, but not the cheapest one
http://www.samsung.com/at/products/moni … ifications
or alternative:
http://en.toppreise.ch/desc_29372.html

Zephirias · 2004-06-15 01:59:52

Get one of those huge ass Apple Monitors...

http://www.apple.com/displays/acd23/

Yum...and it's only $1999!

Dusty · 2004-06-15 03:11:16

farphel wrote:

Here's my requirements: Minimum 19" with max res 1280x1024. I'm not really a PC gamer, so that's not really an issue. I primarily like the screen size for coding where I can have many gvim's running and still see them all.

19" LCD? That's gonna cost you, isn't it.

I want more gvims too. Most I can fit on this 15" is 4. But they fit nicely into ion's tiling scheme. its a developer's dream.

Dusty

farphel · 2004-06-15 10:47:11

Dusty wrote:

19" LCD? That's gonna cost you, isn't it.

Yeah, but not too unreasonable for a 19", imo. Seems like the higher end ones are around $600 USD, with lower end ones around $400. There's a bit of a jump in price when going to a 20" or higher.

My last monitor, 19" CRT died after about 3 years. At the time, I paid about $600 for it. I'm currently using a 15" LCD and I just feel too claustraphobic after my 19"

Thanks for the info guys. I pretty much understand most of the specs with the exception of "contrast ratio". What is it? Is 500:1 better than 700:1?

TIA,
farphel

dpb · 2004-06-15 11:04:28

Why does people want LCD screens?? :?
(well, other stuff than the size..)

I like CRT screens much better...

Egil.B · 2004-06-15 12:07:54

After using a lcd-monitor, you just don't feel comforttable with crt. Earlier, when i had an old shitty 17" crt, my eyes used to get tired after a couple of hours. lcd is so much better to look at.

I would suggest that you go to a local computer-store and try a couple of monitors yourself. My father opted for a 19", but bougth a 17" because an expensive 17" was much better than a cheap 19". As long as the resolution is high, you will be able to fit alot of vims inside anyway. My experience is that a 15" lcd feels like a 17" crt, so maybe a 17" will be good enough.
After all, its quality that matters.

Zephirias · 2004-06-15 14:11:56

I'll might end up buying a new one soon after I save up, though they're really not that expensive anymore. I've seen cheaper consumer models for around $150-200 or so, and they're still not that bad.

i3839 · 2004-06-15 15:26:59

A 17" CRT is actually about 16" effective size, a 17" LCD is just 17". So a 15" LCD isn't much smaller than a 17" CRT. An advantage of not having a tube.

Most stats are important, but unfortunately the provided stats aren't really reliable, so in the end it's better to not look at the monitor specs too much.

Some links with info:
http://anandtech.com/showdoc.html?i=1855
http://graphics.tomshardware.com/displa … index.html

The biggest problems of LCDs are the price and the lower colour depth. Newer CRTs have better image quality and are cheaper than LCDs, so if you have the room I recommend to just buy a very big and nice CRT monitor.

Dusty · 2004-06-15 15:45:07

I hate it when people talk in American dollars. This 15" cost over $600 when I got it two years ago, and they are about $400 locally now, though I'm sure you could get them for less.

Lucky US dollars.

farphel · 2004-06-16 13:05:52

While doing some more research, I came across this link. Nice explanation of all the specs.

http://www.necmitsubishi.com/support/cs … /index.htm

dp · 2004-06-16 18:22:05

farphel wrote:

While doing some more research, I came across this link. Nice explanation of all the specs.
http://www.necmitsubishi.com/support/cs … /index.htm

very usefull source for informations on this subject - great! thx

slackhack · 2004-07-02 02:36:36

the dell 19" LCDs are pretty nice, rebadged samsung or benq, i think. or Samsung if you can afford it.

contrasutra · 2004-07-02 02:47:37

Dusty wrote:

I want more gvims too. Most I can fit on this 15" is 4. But they fit nicely into ion's tiling scheme. its a developer's dream.

Why aren't you people just using :split and :vsplit? VIM can have multiple files open at once, and you can interact between them easier when they're in the same session.

That's like always opening links in New Windows in Mozilla, when tabs are available.

Dusty · 2004-07-02 03:31:50

contrasutra wrote:

Dusty wrote:
I want more gvims too. Most I can fit on this 15" is 4. But they fit nicely into ion's tiling scheme. its a developer's dream.
Why aren't you people just using :split and :vsplit? VIM can have multiple files open at once, and you can interact between them easier when they're in the same session.

I don't like the key commands to switch between windows in vim and I don't know what else to bind them to because they are all taken.

I *usually* only have 1 or two windows open at once. One reason I use vim is that I can edit a file from the xterm, close it, pushd to another directory, edit another file, close it, popd, edit the other file. Vim opens instantly, unlike all the other editors... It's just my method of work. I feel disorganized if there are multiple windows open to sift through.

Dusty

luigi · 2004-07-02 17:21:52

Samsung all the way. I have a SyncMaster 172T and I love it. I would recommend you get one with a DVI port (which would require a video card with a DVI output) for the full benefits. But if you don't game that much, it isn't that big of a deal.

This one looks great if you're willing to pay that much.

slackhack · 2004-07-02 20:20:08

luigi wrote:

Samsung all the way. I have a SyncMaster 172T and I love it. [/url]

that's what i have.

Arch Linux

#1 2004-06-14 23:15:24

Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#2 2004-06-14 23:45:38

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#3 2004-06-14 23:48:05

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#4 2004-06-15 01:59:52

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#5 2004-06-15 03:11:16

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#6 2004-06-15 10:47:11

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#7 2004-06-15 11:04:28

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#8 2004-06-15 12:07:54

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#9 2004-06-15 14:11:56

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#10 2004-06-15 15:26:59

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#11 2004-06-15 15:45:07

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#12 2004-06-16 13:05:52

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#13 2004-06-16 18:22:05

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#14 2004-07-02 02:36:36

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#15 2004-07-02 02:47:37

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#16 2004-07-02 03:31:50

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#17 2004-07-02 17:21:52

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

#18 2004-07-02 20:20:08

Re: Recommendations for an LCD monitor

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