Alright, everyone. The verdict is in: the HP LP2475w is the clear winner here on my end. I'll include a few photos when I can.
The HP had the brightest display, best gamut and color accuracy (even out of the box). I calibrated all three new monitors, as well as my two existing ones, with a Spyder3Elite. The HP needed very little calibration, while the two Dells were a bit on the green-blue side.
After calibrating several times, the Dell 24" still did not look as true as the HP, and it seemed a little warmer and not quite as clear. The HP's brightness is very even according to the Spyder, whereas the Dell 24" had a slightly bright right top corner. Compared side-by-side, the Dell and HP 24" models were very close. The HP just looked clearer and brighter. In a mirrored display monitor test on lagom.nl, the HP performed only slightly better in two categories: pixel inversion and response time. Otherwise, they passed all other tests exactly. The Dell 24" did have one stuck pixel, but neither had any dead pixels or other problems.
As for the Dell 21.5", it only looked slightly better than my existing 19" LCD but not as good as my 19" LaCie. I was really hoping this would be the winner because of the price we got on the two (about $220 each before tax), but it just couldn't hold a candle to the HP. If I had only gotten the 21.5" to test without the other 24" LCDs on either side, I would have been about 70/30 on keeping them.
We are going to return the smaller Dells, and the Dell 24" went to the Engineering Department (the lead engineer had been thinking about a larger screen already).
Overall, I was disappointed with the quality of the 21.5". The Dell 24" looked pretty nice, but the extra $100-150 is worth it for the HP. Although I didn't get to compare them to an ACD, I would say that the HP is close to, if not the same or better quality and accuracy, as my iMac 21.5" at home.
As for stand quality on the 24" models, I liked the look and feel of the Dell much better than the HP. The HP stand looks and feels cheap. Both have tilt, height, and swivel adjustment, which is nice and works well on both. Both models got pretty warm on top after being on for several hours, but maybe this is typical of these larger displays. I prefer the actual buttons of the HP front panel over the weird hard-touch on the Dell.
I now have my LaCie beside my HP 24" and the LaCie looks TERRIBLE in comparison. I can't believe I haven't had a headache for the past three years looking at the LaCie. The text is not near as clear, and it looks muddy and dim in comparison. Hopefully, I will be getting a second 24" to replace the LaCie soon, and I will be ordering a few more of these screens for the Art Department as replacements for at least the main CRTs for now.
Thanks for all the help. I'll post pics when I can.
The HP had the brightest display, best gamut and color accuracy (even out of the box). I calibrated all three new monitors, as well as my two existing ones, with a Spyder3Elite. The HP needed very little calibration, while the two Dells were a bit on the green-blue side.
After calibrating several times, the Dell 24" still did not look as true as the HP, and it seemed a little warmer and not quite as clear. The HP's brightness is very even according to the Spyder, whereas the Dell 24" had a slightly bright right top corner. Compared side-by-side, the Dell and HP 24" models were very close. The HP just looked clearer and brighter. In a mirrored display monitor test on lagom.nl, the HP performed only slightly better in two categories: pixel inversion and response time. Otherwise, they passed all other tests exactly. The Dell 24" did have one stuck pixel, but neither had any dead pixels or other problems.
As for the Dell 21.5", it only looked slightly better than my existing 19" LCD but not as good as my 19" LaCie. I was really hoping this would be the winner because of the price we got on the two (about $220 each before tax), but it just couldn't hold a candle to the HP. If I had only gotten the 21.5" to test without the other 24" LCDs on either side, I would have been about 70/30 on keeping them.
We are going to return the smaller Dells, and the Dell 24" went to the Engineering Department (the lead engineer had been thinking about a larger screen already).
Overall, I was disappointed with the quality of the 21.5". The Dell 24" looked pretty nice, but the extra $100-150 is worth it for the HP. Although I didn't get to compare them to an ACD, I would say that the HP is close to, if not the same or better quality and accuracy, as my iMac 21.5" at home.
As for stand quality on the 24" models, I liked the look and feel of the Dell much better than the HP. The HP stand looks and feels cheap. Both have tilt, height, and swivel adjustment, which is nice and works well on both. Both models got pretty warm on top after being on for several hours, but maybe this is typical of these larger displays. I prefer the actual buttons of the HP front panel over the weird hard-touch on the Dell.
I now have my LaCie beside my HP 24" and the LaCie looks TERRIBLE in comparison. I can't believe I haven't had a headache for the past three years looking at the LaCie. The text is not near as clear, and it looks muddy and dim in comparison. Hopefully, I will be getting a second 24" to replace the LaCie soon, and I will be ordering a few more of these screens for the Art Department as replacements for at least the main CRTs for now.
Thanks for all the help. I'll post pics when I can.