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Apple Vs. Sceptre Displays... Price??

S

SRSound

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 7, 2005
489
0
I'm sure there's "no comparison" hands-down, but I'm curious as to why Sceptre can manufacture a 20" display @ 1680x1050 (same as Apple's 20") but for only $250?? I'm in the market for a back-up display for a mobile recording rig, and would like the same resolution as console display, but I'm weary about why this is so cheap. See these:

Sceptre
vs.
Apple
 
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well is it really THAT risky if I'm only using it for a secondary display?
 
apple displays are not the ultimate geez. the reason that monitor cost so much less is b/c 1) the company isnt really among the top tier for displays 2) its the PC market. apple displays are wonderful but you have to realize you are paying the extra amount just for that apple name. purely about looks here, i found a great samsung display 20" on newegg for like 280. good deal, take a look
 
http://www.anandtech.com/displays/showdoc.aspx?i=2400

Anandtech did a disassembly of the 20" Apple and Dell LCD's. Worth a read.

Cliff Notes: Same panel manufacturer, roughly same image quality (slight differences here and there). They said if Apple and Dell were the same price, it'd be a tossup leaning slightly towards Apple. Dell being so much cheaper made it the more viable option.
 
NewSc2 said:
http://www.anandtech.com/displays/showdoc.aspx?i=2400

Anandtech did a disassembly of the 20" Apple and Dell LCD's. Worth a read.

Cliff Notes: Same panel manufacturer, roughly same image quality (slight differences here and there). They said if Apple and Dell were the same price, it'd be a tossup leaning slightly towards Apple. Dell being so much cheaper made it the more viable option.
Click to expand...

if they were the same price, i'd probably lean toward the apple as well; but that has more to do with looks and me wanting to support apple... but @ the price they are; your getting virtually the same thing for a lot cheaper PLUS 2 extra years of warranty :)

Spelling Errors Corrected since Suneohair was in distress due to my lack of editing skills
 
i4k20c said:
if they were the same price, i'd prob lean toward the apple as well; but that has more to do with looks and me wanting to support apple... but @ the price they are; your getting virtually the same thing for alot cheaper PLUS 2 extra years of warrenty! :)
Click to expand...

good luck with that warrenty!
 
suneohair said:
good luck with that warrenty!
Click to expand...

thanks.. dell seems to have done a pretty good job in the past, can't see why they wouldn't now..

hey, maybe dell will come out with a new monitor with new specs, but ship me a old one to screw me over..:rolleyes:

or hey, maybe my brand new sleek looking 13inch dell laptop will make weird processor noises, and discolor, as well as paint-flake; only to take dell up to 2 months to fix it! :rolleyes:

no company is perfect. apple isn't god either..

I give credit where credit is due.. I'd argue to average consumer any day why i believe most apple computers in terms of pricing and whole deal are way better than dells... but in terms of monitors; when it comes to money, dell has really got a good deal going there; aluminum doesn't exactly cost $200...

EDIT: Spelling ERRORS Corrected since it bothers suneohair
 
i4k20c said:
thanks.. dell seems to have done a pretty good job in the past, can't see why they wouldn't now..

hey, maybe dell will come out with a new monitor with new specs, but ship me a old one to screw me over..:rolleyes:

or hey, maybe my brand new sleek looking 13inch dell laptop will make weird processor noises, and discolor, as well as paint-flake; only to take dell up to 2 months to fix it! :rolleyes:

no company is perfect..apple isn't god either..

I give credit where credit is due.. I'd argue to average consumer anyday why i belive most apple computers in terms of pricing and whole deal are way better than dells... but in terms of monitors; when it comes to money, dell has really got a good deal going there; aluminum doesn't exactly cost $200...
Click to expand...

It would seem that you intelligence is worth as much as your spelling. I wasn't critiquing the anybodys practices, just your spelling of "warranty".

You first point about the specs had nothing to do with a warranty. The second one did, but I don't have a Macbook so I can't comment.

Never said any company was perfect. Whats really bugging you that you feel the need to defend Dell?

In terms of monitors, to a average consumer yes the pricing is not worth it. Personally I feel that the 20" is a rip. The 23" has better color reproduction than the Dell. And yes I owned the 2407 and it was a piece. Not because of the lack of aluminum, but lack of performance. Besides, just as you can deal hunt for a Dell you can do the same with Apple. Albeit it takes creativity but with your highly creative spellings of words like "warrenty", I am sure you could pull something off.
 
suneohair said:
It would seem that you intelligence is worth as much as your spelling. I wasn't critiquing the anybodys practices, just your spelling of "warranty".

You first point about the specs had nothing to do with a warranty. The second one did, but I don't have a Macbook so I can't comment.

Never said any company was perfect. Whats really bugging you that you feel the need to defend Dell?

In terms of monitors, to a average consumer yes the pricing is not worth it. Personally I feel that the 20" is a rip. The 23" has better color reproduction than the Dell. And yes I owned the 2407 and it was a piece. Not because of the lack of aluminum, but lack of performance. Besides, just as you can deal hunt for a Dell you can do the same with Apple. Albeit it takes creativity but with your highly creative spellings of words like "warrenty", I am sure you could pull something off.
Click to expand...

Oh-oh, here comes Mr. Spell-check. Can you please make sure I’ve spelled everything correctly Mr. Spell-check in my previous posts as well as this one? I know my grammatical errors are extremely high, but please excuse it as I am still taking grammar classes. I just passed spelling 101, so hopefully i did okay!!!! Thank you for your superior level of intelligence, it is so complex and i am glad you can use your intelligence to correct spelling errors on a internet message board, since a internet message board is as formal as a black/white dinner. :rolleyes:

The point of my first post was that you can get a
Dell 30inch for $1,279 plus a 3 year warrenty :eek: (warranty), and the same exact specs in terms of response time/contrast ratio/etc...

OR

You can get a
Apple 30 inch for $1999 with a one year warranty or if you would like a 3 year warranty it can be purchased for $100 more.

That's a $700 price difference (with the Applecare included) and I assure you the aluminum does not cost that much.

If the lack of performance was the problem with your Dell, I'm not sure what to exactly tell you since they are near identical in every specification from the "detailed Specs" list on their websites.

I feel the need to defend Dell when they should be defended. If anyone tries to argue that a Dell XPS M1210 is better than a Macbook, i'd argue for apple, because I truly feel the Macbook is better.

I truly do believe that apple's cinema display does cost a bit more to manufacture, i also understand apple needs to make a profit, so i'd understand if the display was say $150-300 more than the dell; but $700 is a big premium.

I didn't even bring the Dell Coupons in mention, because your argument for apple's display having deals is a joke. Yes, apple has the student discount, maybe the ADC discount, but in general, apple doesn't wave around 30% off coupons every couple of months for their monitors making the price difference even more substantial (since EDU and ADC discounts are no more than 10-20% if memory serves me correct). So i'll let my argument stand for what the Dell Monitor and Apple Monitor cost from visiting their website right now.
 
i4k20c said:
Oh-oh, here comes Mr. Spell-check. Can you please make sure I’ve spelled everything correctly Mr. Spell-check in my previous posts as well as this one? I know my grammatical errors are extremely high, but please excuse it as I am still taking grammar classes. I just passed spelling 101, so hopefully i did okay!!!! Thank you for your superior level of intelligence, it is so complex and i am glad you can use your intelligence to correct spelling errors on a internet message board, since a internet message board is as formal as a black/white dinner. :rolleyes:

The point of my first post was that you can get a
Dell 30inch for $1,279 plus a 3 year warrenty :eek: (warranty), and the same exact specs in terms of response time/contrast ratio/etc...

OR

You can get a
Apple 30 inch for $1999 with a one year warranty or if you would like a 3 year warranty it can be purchased for $100 more.

That's a $700 price difference (with the Applecare included) and I assure you the aluminum does not cost that much.

If the lack of performance was the problem with your Dell, I'm not sure what to exactly tell you since they are near identical in every specification from the "detailed Specs" list on their websites.

I feel the need to defend Dell when they should be defended. If anyone tries to argue that a Dell XPS M1210 is better than a Macbook, i'd argue for apple, because I truly feel the Macbook is better.

I truly do believe that apple's cinema display does cost a bit more to manufacture, i also understand apple needs to make a profit, so i'd understand if the display was say $150-300 more than the dell; but $700 is a big premium.

I didn't even bring the Dell Coupons in mention, because your argument for apple's display having deals is a joke. Yes, apple has the student discount, maybe the ADC discount, but in general, apple doesn't wave around 30% off coupons every couple of months for their monitors making the price difference even more substantial (since EDU and ADC discounts are no more than 10-20% if memory serves me correct). So i'll let my argument stand for what the Dell Monitor and Apple Monitor cost from visiting their website right now.
Click to expand...

I didnt say anything about deals from Apple. Just as you can save more cash on the Dell by using coupons you can employ some thriftiness with the Apple as well.

Besides we arent even talking about the 30". It was about the 20" which already said I feel is a rip considering they use the same panel. Although the Apple still offers SWOP certification. Take a look on the right of this page http://www.apple.com/displays/technology.html, that is what makes PROFESSIONALS buy the Apple. But this seems to be unimportant to you, so I say buy the Dell.

If you aren't doing anything that requires spot on color reproduction, get anything you want that isnt the Apple. It is really very simple. Personally I need the accuracy the ACD gives in relation to the 24" Dell, which I compared and it was no contest.

I personally don't care about pricing, because I don't pay retail, ever. Plus the extra money I make from giving customers what they need in an accurate manner more than makes up for the "aluminum premium" I pay :rolleyes:

I don't even know why this a discussion continually on these forums. I will sum it up for everyone.

If you know why you need the Apple (other than the look) then you know why it costs more and why you are willing to pay it.

If you think all the Apple offers is an aluminum housing and the Apple logo, walk away and buy something cheaper and you will be happy.
 
FWIW, a longer warranty on an LCD screen is worth something. Parts are quite expensive.

Bought a Sharp 19" LCD in 2004, the inverter blew on it last month, so no backlight. I was pricing replacement parts ($80 - $150 plus freight and labour) and called Sharp - surprisingly, they said "that serial # is still under warranty, we'll fix it free" and had FedEx at the door 9:00 the next morning to pick it up.

Bonus! I had forgotten the warranty on it and assumed it was 1 year.
 
I have the 20 inch wide screen Sceptre I got from Costco last year for $379:(

I have had no problems with it. I like that I am able to hook my Windoze (when it's on... barely never) to the extra VGA port. Sure it would be nice to have a pretty 20 inch apple display but for the price (price was not a factor) at the time I didn't think it was worth it.

... and no USB/Firewire hub built it, but I really don't need one. Like it was said above, the name and resale value is what your paying for.
 
macnvrbck said:
I have the 20 inch wide screen Sceptre I got from Costco last year for $379:(

I have had no problems with it. I like that I am able to hook my Windoze (when it's on... barely never) to the extra VGA port. Sure it would be nice to have a pretty 20 inch apple display but for the price (price was not a factor) at the time I didn't think it was worth it.

... and no USB/Firewire hub built it, but I really don't need one. Like it was said above, the name and resale value is what your paying for.
Click to expand...

I just bought a 19" Widescreen Sceptre from Costco for $179. I have a 12" PB so the increase in real estate is great. It's a very bright screen so it took awhile to adjust to it but overall I'm very happy with it.

I couldn't see spending 3x as much.
 
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