Monitor Shopping

[LucyDuke]

So I need a new monitor 'cause this one's got some really weird dead zones that are unbearable. I don't really know what all the different things mean, all the abbreviations in the descriptions and stuff. I don't need anything fancy. Just a flat-screen, something that does justice to my not-totally-crappy video card. Where should I be looking? Are bigger screens really worth paying extra? What the heck is the benefit of widescreen? Is it possible to get higher screen resolutions crammed into screens that aren't giant? Also how can I be sure of longevity, are there particular companies that make monitors that are known to hold up for a long time? I don't want to be buying another one in two years.

 

[Cutlass]

Hit the Circuit City going out of business sale. Do it soon. Samsung and Sony are generally considered the most reliable and of them Samsung is usually cheaper. How big of a monitor you get depends on what you are willing to afford. I wouldn't go below a 19". And monitor will handle any screen resolution you are likely to use. So your limiting factor is how small you want the stuff on the screen to be. As you set Windows to higher resolutions, text and icons become smaller. Wide screen is just presentation. More stuff on the screen.

If CC doesn't have anything, Newegg.com or check prices at pricewatch.com Shipping usually costs less than sales tax.

 

[Fifty]

Bigger monitors are awesome! I moved up from a 13in laptop monitor to a 20in widescreen monitor recently and i LOVE IT and I already crave an even bigger monitor!!

 

[Turner]

Tiger direct has a monitor on sale for $160. I think it's a 22" widescreen.

 

[Cutlass]

http://www.legendmicro.com/store/more_info.asp?product_ID=5872

Samsung 932B Black 19" LCD Monitor $123.99 delivered to your door in a couple of days.

 

[Genocidicbunny]

If you're a casual user, look for 22" monitors. You can find some excellent Asus ones that are actually full HD ( they have the same resolution as a 1080p TV -- 1920x1080) and they cost 200$ or so. I personally have a Viewsonic VA2226w, which, while not high-end, is plenty good for gaming and some graphical work. You can find them for under 200$ now.

My brand recommendations are Viewsonic and Samsung. I trust Viewsonic's longetivity ( Still have a Viewsonic CRT from 1992 thats alive and kicking ) but I have heard many good things about Samsung.

Find a brick and mortar store near you, go look at LCD's they have, decide which specs you want and then shop online.

EDIT -- Benefit of widescreen? Well, if you code, a widescreen is very useful, you can also have more windows side-by-side and still readable. I regularly have mIRC next to Firefox and both remain very usable. Watching video is also a bit easier since most video nowadays is made for widescreen.

 

[Mr. Keith]

My monitor is at least 12 years old.

 

[Zelig]

So I need a new monitor 'cause this one's got some really weird dead zones that are unbearable. I don't really know what all the different things mean, all the abbreviations in the descriptions and stuff. I don't need anything fancy. Just a flat-screen, something that does justice to my not-totally-crappy video card. Where should I be looking? Are bigger screens really worth paying extra? What the heck is the benefit of widescreen? Is it possible to get higher screen resolutions crammed into screens that aren't giant? Also how can I be sure of longevity, are there particular companies that make monitors that are known to hold up for a long time? I don't want to be buying another one in two years.

Answering everything in order:

If you don't mind ordering online, one of the standard etailers (newegg, zipzoomfly, etc.) will do you fine.

Bigger screens are completely worth the price. For that matter, I'd say dual monitors are also worth the price.

Widescreen is better for movies, for other stuff, it somewhat a matter of preference. At my last job, I had dual 24" monitors, kept one of them in landscape mode, and flipped the other one over to portait mode; that worked well for what I was doing.

It is possible to get higher resolutions on smaller screens, but generally isn't really worth the cost and loss of screen-size, unless you have some kind of space restrictions. (ie. high-res laptop screens)

Most of the brands you see on monitors do not actually make the panels on the monitors, and pretty much every brand has monitors ranging from bargain-bin to high-end. As such, brand is not a good metric of monitor quality.


For casual users, I generally start looking at 22" monitors (1680x1050 res), but check out deals available at the time, and let them know what it would cost them for a step up or down in size/price/quality.

Monitors to look at:
26", 1920x1200, $320 after MIR:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...AFC-hardOCP&cm_mmc=AFC-hardOCP-_-NA-_-NA-_-NA

23", 1920x1080, $200:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009163

22", 1680x1050, $150:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236055

20", 1600x900, $130:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009158

As you set Windows to higher resolutions, text and icons become smaller.

And it's trivial to make them larger again. My grandparents are happily using a monitor at 1920x1200, because it's big, and they can easily make text and icons large and readable.

 

[LucyDuke]

Thanks all dudes. I don't really want to spend more than about $200, 'cause like I said I don't really want anything fancy and I really don't even have enough desk space for a gigantic screen, so it's hard for me to justify spending a very much on something I don't really care about.

It looks like most monitors are just monitors but some have built-in speakers and cameras. Are those typically worth paying attention to? If I got one with speakers, would I have to get a bunch of new cables to hook up both those ones and my old speakers?

And I don't really care about having everything super tiny either, I just want to be able to fit a lot of crap side by side. It's okay if that means everything's gonna be super tiny. I just don't know what the hardware limits are, like what the biggest possible screen resolutions are gonna be and whether they're substantially different based on screen size.

Hit the Circuit City going out of business sale. Do it soon.

I read that they were doing a crap job actually lowering prices, and that there weren't really any good deals. Not the case? Maybe I'll go look around anyway 'cause there's one only about two miles from me.

Widescreen is better for movies, for other stuff, it somewhat a matter of preference. At my last job, I had dual 24" monitors, kept one of them in landscape mode, and flipped the other one over to portait mode; that worked well for what I was doing.

Okay, cool, I don't really watch movies and I don't really care whether all the crap I have open on the screen is side-by-side or stacked vertically so I'm not gonna worry about widescreen.

As such, brand is not a good metric of monitor quality.

What is?

Thanks for the links. I think with those numbers in mind I'll take a look at the Circuit City and see whether they're making any crazy good deals in comparison.

All these reviews talk about dead pixels, is that a common problem? Mine's crapped out by chemistry, not age, so I don't really understand why that would happen.

 

[Genocidicbunny]

Built-in speakers are, as a rule of thumb, crappy.

 

[Fifty]

How do dual monitor systems work anyways? Like do you have to have two OS's installed or something?

 

[Genocidicbunny]

Two monitors connect to the same video card. Most video cards nowadays have dual outputs (Integrated ones such as your may not). You simple connect the DVI ( or the VGA if you're still using monitors that old) cable from each of the monitors and tell Windows ( or your OS of choice ) to extend your desktop onto the second monitor.

 

[Cutlass]

I read that they were doing a crap job actually lowering prices, and that there weren't really any good deals. Not the case? Maybe I'll go look around anyway 'cause there's one only about two miles from me.

Generally speaking, yes, you are right. However we are now a month or so into it. So at some point they do have to just get what they can. So grab a couple prices off the net, pick up a Best Buy flier, and wander on down there just for a look-see. You might not find a deal, but you might. It's worth the trip.

If it doesn't work out, that's why I gave the online retailers.

 

[GoodGame]

I'd check out Circuit City if they have something ridiculously cheap, but I understand most of their deals are 'no returns' caveat emptor.

I've had great experiences with Samsung flat screens over the past 5 years, and they're usually a good deal for the money.

If you're willing to go up to $200-250, I recommend this 22": http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001268

or

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001254

Oddly the second one is cheaper, heavier, smaller external dimensions, and has USB slots. The only difference I can tell is the more expensive one is slightly faster under some conditions. Probably won't make a difference if you get the cheaper one. I have the more expensive one.

 

[Zelig]

It looks like most monitors are just monitors but some have built-in speakers and cameras. Are those typically worth paying attention to? If I got one with speakers, would I have to get a bunch of new cables to hook up both those ones and my old speakers?

And I don't really care about having everything super tiny either, I just want to be able to fit a lot of crap side by side. It's okay if that means everything's gonna be super tiny. I just don't know what the hardware limits are, like what the biggest possible screen resolutions are gonna be and whether they're substantially different based on screen size.

What is?

All these reviews talk about dead pixels, is that a common problem? Mine's crapped out by chemistry, not age, so I don't really understand why that would happen.

Again, in order:

Built-in speakers tend to suck, probably about on par with a $10 set of computer speakers. You would need some extra wiring for these. (Which might lead to a lack of wiring leading to your real speakers)

I don't have much experience with webcams, but I'd expect built-in cameras would be low-end when comparing to stand-alone ones. So might be a nice feature, but probably not worth paying much extra for.

Biggest screen resolutions you're going to find on anything in your price range is 1920x1200. From personal experience, I wouldn't go any lower than 1680x1050 for a primary monitor.

There isn't really any good measure of monitor quality without looking at the model in question. Any of the big brands (Dell, Samsung, ViewSonic, NEC, Asus, Acer, BenQ, LaCie, LG, etc.) should give you a reasonable chance of the monitor not starting to spew sparks after a week. If you're going with an off-brand, do your research first. (Or you know, post a link here, and get some other people to do your research for you)

Dead pixels are relatively uncommon, but can pretty much ruin a monitor. (ie. red pixel dead centre). I wouldn't pay extra for any dead-pixel guarantee, but if there were any pixels that bothered me, I'd return the monitor and eat the restocking fee.

How do dual monitor systems work anyways? Like do you have to have two OS's installed or something?

You need two monitor outputs, and then it just expands your desktop (in whichever direction you want.) By default, the Windows taskbar stays on your primary monitor, and you can drag Windows between the monitors. Maximizing a window maximizes it on the monitor it's in, not across both of them.

 

[ainwood]

IIRC, a lot of monitors are actually screens from about two manufacturers, assembled by third parties.

Anyway: If you're interested in reviewing before purchasing, this is the guide I used.[/url] They also link to other review sites.

They also have an updated recommendations thread:
http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.aspx?catid=31&threadid=2049206

(Actually, you could just read that second thread: I think they've moved a lot of info over to it).

 

[GVBN]

Dead pixels are relatively uncommon, but can pretty much ruin a monitor. (ie. red pixel dead centre)

That would be a stuck pixel, dead pixels are the ones that are always black

Stuck pixels can be fixed too, by rubbing the area a bit

 

[Zelig]

That would be a stuck pixel, dead pixels are the ones that are always black

Stuck pixels can be fixed too, by rubbing the area a bit

Some stuck pixels can be fixed.

 

[aimeeandbeatles]

I thought stuck pixels could be fixed by flashing the screen different colors quickly.

 

[LucyDuke]

It's worth the trip.

Yeah. It's not much of a trip!

Again, in order:

You're way too good at this, making sense out of my rambling.

Biggest screen resolutions you're going to find on anything in your price range is 1920x1200. From personal experience, I wouldn't go any lower than 1680x1050 for a primary monitor.

I'm at 1280x1024 right now. It's okay. Bigger would definitely be great, but this isn't unbearable. I'll aim for 1680x1050 or up.

(Or you know, post a link here, and get some other people to do your research for you)

That is doing research. Asking people that have a clue.

Dead pixels are relatively uncommon, but can pretty much ruin a monitor. (ie. red pixel dead centre). I wouldn't pay extra for any dead-pixel guarantee, but if there were any pixels that bothered me, I'd return the monitor and eat the restocking fee.

I won't worry then. I mean, I've got about 5% of my screen dead right now, in irregular blotches, and another bit discolored in irregular blotches, even if I had one red pixel smack in the middle it would be a huge improvement.

Again thanks everyone.