LCD Monitor for Macbook - which one??

[Unlight]

Hi all,

Originally I was going to purchase a 24" iMac, but to be honest I have a brand new macbook sitting here and I have no need for two machines!

Thinking of getting an external LCD Monitor for the macbook. I'm looking for something :

- 22"-24" in size
- Looks stylish / matches macbook in style

No budget in mind, but obviously the cheaper the better!

Am I right in thinking that I just need the mini DVI - VGA adaptor from apple, then simply just plug it in? I've also got a bluetooth keyboard and mouse here, so I'm guessing it will be just as good as a full desktop setup?

Any help much appreciated!

 

[Tenex]

There are a lot of cheap LCDs around in that price bracket but the cheaper tend to have VGA only. That said many people report that depending on the monitor VGA is as good or better than DVI. The Samsungs and Viewsonics look good have a look on eBuyer for your preferred size.

Yes you just need the adaptor specific to the chosen port - about £15.

 

[Unlight]

Thanks for that.

Also thinking of maybe just getting a 23-26" LCD instead, as I need one for the bedroom.

I know the resolution will obviously be slightly lower, but how does these macbooks look on these size of screens, anyone know?

 

[EndlessWaves]

23-26" LCD will have the same resolution as 24" and will be higher than 22". Or did you mean a TV?

Have you got a black macbook or a white macbook?

Only the very cheap LCDs are vga-only.

 

[richard plumb]

I've been through this and had a shortlist

Benq 241W 24" got great reviews, and has is HD ready so you can plug in a sky box or games console. About £450 though

Benq 2400W is cheaper and a TN screen so arguably not as good for colour critical work, but if you can control the angle you watch at it should be fine. doesn't have as many inputs but I think it still has HDMI



BTW, I'm now considering just upgrading my LCDTV to a 1080p model and using that occasionally. Still haven't decided yet

 

[Unlight]

23-26" LCD will have the same resolution as 24" and will be higher than 22". Or did you mean a TV?

Have you got a black macbook or a white macbook?

Only the very cheap LCDs are vga-only.

Hi there, I meant an LCD TV..

 

[Ned Senior]

I had a samsung 26" LCD tv till I gave it to dad (his telly went pop)
Tried using it as a monitor but found the vertical resolution a pain in the Butt as I kept having to scroll on pages as the whole text page or image was not displayed so I went back to my trusty 19" CRT monitor for the time being..
Therefore I would advise against a tv type lcd as it will drive you nuts (it did me twitch twitch)
BTW am in the market for both a laptop and a desktop quite soon so will watch this thread to see how you get on

Cheers

Phil

 

[stuker]

i can highly recommend the Benq 241W 24". Stylish design, great colour reproduction and all the inputs you will ever need.

 

[monkeynuts]

How'd you get on deciding what screen to go for?

I've been running my 17" powerbook with a cheapy Belinea VGA 22" screen and it's great.

Dual desktop is great, especially as i've matched the native resolutions with 1680x1050 on both screens

The Belinea is definitely not as crisp as the powerbook screen and it really notices when you glance from one screen to the other. If i had the budget i'd probably have tried a better quality screen.

 

[leckie]

A fantastic one is the 24 inch dell 2408, you can actually phone up dell and barter it down to £386.