Ok, this post turned out bigger than I expected, skip the first 3 paragraphs if you just want to see some monitor models and what is it that I'm specifically asking. That said... Hi there, I'm new around these parts. I'll be ordering parts for a new computer in about 2 weeks, but there's one question still bothering me. I've got next to no clue what monitor to buy. Where I live, shops don't usually have good computer monitors demoing in a decent way. At most, they're just displaying a still image that consists of bright letters on a bright color background stating all of the monitor's specifications. They're not displaying pictures or games or any moving objects, so I've got no idea if they ghost, blur, not to mention the quality of colors... Well, here in Portugal, I'd say that I'm reluctant to pay more than 400 Eur for a monitor. I'll pay a bit more if it's justifiable. That's around 300£, hence the title. Hell, maybe I'll pay 500 Eur, or close to 400£, ghaah!
A couple days ago, I wasn't very familiarized with LCD monitors and panels. My previous monitor was a Samsung Syncmaster 940BW. I bought it because it was very cheap then, and then when I tried it with games it looked awesome compared to my 10-year old CRTs. Meanwhile I bought a 46" TV for my living room and started to notice differences in quality between the different LCD monitors, and so I turned to research a lot before making my next buy. I spent the last couple of days doing almost nothing short of reading reviews and articles about monitors and panels, and I'm concerned that many of them weren't unbiased...
Now here's what I'm looking for: A monitor that displays 1920x1200, and also decent blacks and whites, and colors, because I'll be watching HD movies and anime. Most of the time, I'll be writing works, programming code, playing both new and old games of all sorts, from FPS to RTS, browsing the internet and chatting. Day-time and night-time use, in a room with 2 windows, one being behind me.
Basically, I believe this translates into a 24" (16:10) 1920x1200 monitor with a response time of 5ms or better (for gaming), 1000:1 contrast or better, and if possible, 400 brightness, since I'll be using this in a very illuminated room. Minimum input-lag (again, gaming)... Glossy monitors like HP's BrightView stuff is out of the question because I'll see both windows reflected on the screen, myself, tables and closets and even paintings. Specially in dark images, common in movies and games. So I'm going for a Matte style monitor, where the ambient light is diffused, resulting in a slightly worse level of black if it's day-time, but no reflections. I've got a very ugly face, and I don't want to see myself mirrored on the monitor.
Last but not least, I'm picky with the stand. I study a lot in the computer, reading e-books, pdfs, that sort of stuff. So I very much prefer a model that can rotate to a portrait position, as well as height and tilt (positive and negative, if possible) adjustment.
Well, thanks for reading so far... Here's some models that I saw on a few reviews that I found interesting:
- HP w2408h (The stand looked awesome, the pictures looked great on websites, until I found out that it was glossy and would mirror the whole room during the day)
- Samsung T240 (I don't know much about this model, it was one of the first few that I read about, the reviews were probably biased because they almost won me over before I saw it in a shop and found that I don't like the stand having no adjustments, and then, I saw this thread and I don't think I'll consider buying it anymore.)
- Samsung 2493HM (The specs look great, the stand is just like I want, but I've only read biased reviews about it: Like this one. I think it's biased, that, or there's nothing wrong with the monitor. But I'm yet to know about how gaming looks, how's the input lag, ghosting/blur... And I've heard that Samsung has different stands for the same monitor model, does this apply to this monitor model too?)
- ...err, well, now you've got an idea of what I'm looking for. My problem here is I don't have an idea of what brands or models are good. So when I look around and see so many monitors included in the range, I don't know where else to begin looking! There's Asus, LG, Philips, Pioneer, Acer, Viewsonic...
I need some advice... Which models should I look for next? Is Samsung 2493HM great for what I want? Or Samsung T240? Or are other models that are better for what I want, in the same price ranges? 150-300£ or maybe a bit more if justified... My mind hurts with so many LCD monitor articles right now... Maybe there are even more recent models of the families that I rad about and I'm unaware of them?...
Please, please help me! ;_;
--EDIT--
I don't have video-gaming consoles, and I'm not really planning on getting one... Err... So I'm not demanding that the monitor works well for them.
Also, I'm using Vista 64bits on the computer. So, if the monitor has drivers to control color calibration, rotation, that kind of stuff, I'll have to worry about the drivers. That's one thing that reviews never mention, so I'll have to check manufacturer's sites to download the drivers when my choices are narrowed down to just a few, and go for the ones that do have Vista64 support.
A couple days ago, I wasn't very familiarized with LCD monitors and panels. My previous monitor was a Samsung Syncmaster 940BW. I bought it because it was very cheap then, and then when I tried it with games it looked awesome compared to my 10-year old CRTs. Meanwhile I bought a 46" TV for my living room and started to notice differences in quality between the different LCD monitors, and so I turned to research a lot before making my next buy. I spent the last couple of days doing almost nothing short of reading reviews and articles about monitors and panels, and I'm concerned that many of them weren't unbiased...
Now here's what I'm looking for: A monitor that displays 1920x1200, and also decent blacks and whites, and colors, because I'll be watching HD movies and anime. Most of the time, I'll be writing works, programming code, playing both new and old games of all sorts, from FPS to RTS, browsing the internet and chatting. Day-time and night-time use, in a room with 2 windows, one being behind me.
Basically, I believe this translates into a 24" (16:10) 1920x1200 monitor with a response time of 5ms or better (for gaming), 1000:1 contrast or better, and if possible, 400 brightness, since I'll be using this in a very illuminated room. Minimum input-lag (again, gaming)... Glossy monitors like HP's BrightView stuff is out of the question because I'll see both windows reflected on the screen, myself, tables and closets and even paintings. Specially in dark images, common in movies and games. So I'm going for a Matte style monitor, where the ambient light is diffused, resulting in a slightly worse level of black if it's day-time, but no reflections. I've got a very ugly face, and I don't want to see myself mirrored on the monitor.
Last but not least, I'm picky with the stand. I study a lot in the computer, reading e-books, pdfs, that sort of stuff. So I very much prefer a model that can rotate to a portrait position, as well as height and tilt (positive and negative, if possible) adjustment.
Well, thanks for reading so far... Here's some models that I saw on a few reviews that I found interesting:
- HP w2408h (The stand looked awesome, the pictures looked great on websites, until I found out that it was glossy and would mirror the whole room during the day)
- Samsung T240 (I don't know much about this model, it was one of the first few that I read about, the reviews were probably biased because they almost won me over before I saw it in a shop and found that I don't like the stand having no adjustments, and then, I saw this thread and I don't think I'll consider buying it anymore.)
- Samsung 2493HM (The specs look great, the stand is just like I want, but I've only read biased reviews about it: Like this one. I think it's biased, that, or there's nothing wrong with the monitor. But I'm yet to know about how gaming looks, how's the input lag, ghosting/blur... And I've heard that Samsung has different stands for the same monitor model, does this apply to this monitor model too?)
- ...err, well, now you've got an idea of what I'm looking for. My problem here is I don't have an idea of what brands or models are good. So when I look around and see so many monitors included in the range, I don't know where else to begin looking! There's Asus, LG, Philips, Pioneer, Acer, Viewsonic...
I need some advice... Which models should I look for next? Is Samsung 2493HM great for what I want? Or Samsung T240? Or are other models that are better for what I want, in the same price ranges? 150-300£ or maybe a bit more if justified... My mind hurts with so many LCD monitor articles right now... Maybe there are even more recent models of the families that I rad about and I'm unaware of them?...
Please, please help me! ;_;
--EDIT--
I don't have video-gaming consoles, and I'm not really planning on getting one... Err... So I'm not demanding that the monitor works well for them.
Also, I'm using Vista 64bits on the computer. So, if the monitor has drivers to control color calibration, rotation, that kind of stuff, I'll have to worry about the drivers. That's one thing that reviews never mention, so I'll have to check manufacturer's sites to download the drivers when my choices are narrowed down to just a few, and go for the ones that do have Vista64 support.
Last edited: