Monitor help and Advise

DannyBZR

Hi there all,

I am just looking for some general direction on what to buy in a new monitor, I had the joy of having my dell one go bang on me the other day.

Want to know about response times, Contrast ratio, what to look out for etc...

I was looking at this Acer one at the min but I dont want to rush into anything just yet..

http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=315143

The Monitor will be used for Multimedia, Games, pretty much the Lot.....

Thank in advance..

Daniel

DannyBZR

Anybody Help here???

hopeful

Some idea of size, price, widescreen or not would be handy.

I have a Philips 200w 20" widescreen. Lovely bit of kit for around €550.

DannyBZR

Looking for 17" 19", LCD, not bothered about widescreen.

DannyBZR

Just heard that response time is not all its about when it comes to monitors.....

Surely Someone here has an idea about Monitor and what to look for in them.

andy1249

Response time or refresh time is certainly one of the most important things to look for in a monitor , a slow refresh rate is going to cause screen tear and blurring on a fast moving image , either in a movie or playing a game.

The problem is how different manufacturers report it , some clearly mislead with figures of 4ms base on refreshing a small portion of the screen , some base their figures on a more honest performance basis.

So Refresh rate is important , but so is how the figure is arrived at , you need to get that off the supplier before purchasing.

DannyBZR

What about Contrast ratios and the Likes????

andy1249

For contrast ratios , the higher the better , this is a fairly straightforward measurement and most new monitors with 700-1 or better are fine in this respect.
Low contrast ratios mean the display can be sometimes hard to see and tones are not well defined , you will hear people mostly talking about how black the black is , if you know what I mean , as low contrast monitors tend to show grey rather than black.

DannyBZR

I know what you mean, Well thanks for the bit of advise, it is much appreciated and will be a help when I get around to buying a new Monitor..

Cheers

TommyGun

This Might help

What LCD TVs Don't Do Well


Initially, most consumers in the market for an LCD will be wowed by the screen's imaging, which is smoother and tighter than that of standard interlaced TV tubes. But unlike traditional CRT , LCDs have a history of slow image response times and poor viewing angles despite their flat surfaces.

Slower pixel response (how fast an individual pixel's color can change without blurring) can make action scenes such as car chases and console games look muddied and blurry. Looking closely at scenes with lots of action and shots with more detail can be disappointing for most viewers expecting crystal clear, smooth motion. Current pixel response times range from 20 milliseconds to 30 milliseconds, but as the technology gets better expect that number to fall to an optimal 15 milliseconds to 17 milliseconds. Those response rates are comparable to what CRTs can do. Just ask any serious gamer.

Lousy viewing angles can also make the screen difficult to make out when viewed off center. Most good LCDs will offer viewing angles anywhere from 150 degrees to 170 degrees horizontal and at least 130 degrees vertical. Some of the LCDs in this review fell well below these standards.

DannyBZR

TommyGun wrote:

Some of the LCDs in this review fell well below these standards.

What review??

Any Screens you would recommend?? 17 " 19"

TommyGun

DannyBZR,
Check out the following link for all the reviews for current LCD's.

http://reviews.cnet.com/Monitors/2001-3173_7-0.html?tag=cnetfd.dir

The major thing to look out for are the following:

- Contrast (The blackness for the black's etc.)
- Highest Resolution
- Brightness
- Size (Not less than 19" for gaming)
- Good Manufacturer eg Samsung etc.
- Responce time (for gaming 8ms or less)

DannyBZR

TommyGun wrote:

DannyBZR,
Check out the following link for all the reviews for current LCD's.

http://reviews.cnet.com/Monitors/2001-3173_7-0.html?tag=cnetfd.dir

The major thing to look out for are the following:

- Contrast (The blackness for the black's etc.)
- Highest Resolution
- Brightness
- Size (Not less than 19" for gaming)
- Good Manufacturer eg Samsung etc.
- Responce time (for gaming 8ms or less)

Cheers Tommy, great help..

TommyGun

This is a class LCD, good value. My friend (gamer) got is and he is very happy.

http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=306235

One more thing i forgot to mension, also consider connections.

DVI and/Or VGA.

You may want both for you PC ( most high spec. video cards have the DVI option).