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Looking for new display..

P

Patch^

macrumors regular
Original poster
Mar 11, 2005
240
0
Great Britain
Hi guys, I need some advice on what to look for in a new monitor, I would like an Apple Cinema Display, but for the spec and price I don't think they are currently worth it.

I'm looking for a display with a resolution with at least 1680x1050 or bigger (preferably 16:10).

What should I be looking for in contrast ratio? higher the better? i.e. 800:1 or 1400:1 etc.

Response time? 8ms, 14ms or 16ms. This is the bit I'm confused about is it better if the response time is higher or lower?

Other things such as pixel pitch?

Also how do I know if it is HD ready? (this isn't too important, but it would be nice :) )

I do a lot of web and graphic design so it should have good colour something like 16.7m

Any advice or recommendations would be appreciated.

Thanks.
 
i don't know much about displays but i know apple charges too much. i can't answer your questions specifically but i know a lot of people here (on MR) like dell displays because they are cheaper and better (quality, features). look around in the forums for display topics and check out people's sigs to get some model numbers.

sorry i can't offer much help but i thought this might be of some use.
 
I have a little advise since I was recently in your situation. It basically all comes down to how much money you are willing to spend and what features you feel that you need most. So first off, if you are looking in the 20.1" range then you can expect specs to be something like:

Res: 1680X1050
Colours: 16.7 million (they will ALL have this)
Pixel pitch: 0.258 (they will all have this, if they have the res and size above)
Brightness: Typical for this size is 300cd/m^2 (this is fine... more is better I guess...)
Contrast: Typically higher the better (800:1) is typical of this size screen)
Connectors: DVI, VGA (make sure that it comes with DVI for a nice signal, anything else is bonus if you only want it for your comp. Some will have tv-tuners and s-video, HDMI, composite, etc which can be awesome if you want to use it as a TV or with your Xbox etc. This is where the dells are really good... they have tons of inputs and also have powered USB ports). Also you can get screens that rotate 90 degrees (I have seen a Gateway lately that does this))
Response: This is funny because it depends on how they define it... if it is grey-grey it will be shorter (the shorter the better) and if it is white-black-white then it will typically be longer. I think that if you shoot for 8-16 ms then you will be good.

So anyways, considering all this I bought a Viewsonic Vx2025wm because it was about 100$ less than the dell 2007WFP (at the time, there are some sweet deals on dells stuff if you get it at the right time) and I did not really need the extra connectivity and I prefer the look (goes nicer with apple pro products IMHO) I wish that I could have had the 20ACD but I just don't have that kind of cash. Also, the viewsonic has a pretty big bevel (not huge but not tiny) so it is not the absolute best for a dual setup (although I don't find it too out of place in my dual setup). So anyways I hope that this helps... sorry for the post being so incoherent!
 
get the dell 2007fpw, cheap, best lcd, nice base, nice black, professional, beautiful, and oh yeah, its cheap
 
A) if PRICE DOES NOT MATTER, get any APPLE LCD all the way man!

B) if PRICE DOES matter, get a DELL, very very nice. BUT BLACK! bllah! eww

either way, the screens are perfecto!
 
Thanks for you replies guys, but I think I might go for an LG Monitor, it has a 1400:1 contrast ratio and a 8ms response rate (I found out that the lower it is the better!). It's the LG203WT and its around £280, I'm trying to look for the LG204WT it has a 5ms and 2000:1, but I think they only sell it in Canada :(.

Thanks again.
 
Hi again,

I was looking at the LG that you mentioned (5ms response) and it looks like it has nice picture quality but it does not come with a DVI cable (extra 50$) so you might want to consider that. Also, I would go and look at it at the store because the actual case feels cheap IMHO.
 
As a 2005FPW owner, I can tell you it's ideal for web design work. It's solid and reliable, and meets all your requirements on paper.

A word of warning about specs manufacturers list - different companies measure respons rates in different ways to get different results. Dell's figures are conservative - like RMS in audio, whereas LG figures seem faster like PMPO in audio. PMPO may be four times higher than RMS, but what does that have to do with volume? Or quality?

Also, the Dell 2005FPW or 2007FPW have really good bases, which are far more adjustable than the LG or Viewsonic bases.
 
godbout said:
Hi again,

I was looking at the LG that you mentioned (5ms response) and it looks like it has nice picture quality but it does not come with a DVI cable (extra 50$) so you might want to consider that. Also, I would go and look at it at the store because the actual case feels cheap IMHO.
Click to expand...

Yea I've heard that it has a really bad base and has problems with backilight bleeding. So I think I am going to go for its brother lol the L203WT it has a slightly lower spec, but the enclosure is better and I've been told is pretty good overall. Plus it has DVI/VGA and supports HDCP.

dex22 said:
As a 2005FPW owner, I can tell you it's ideal for web design work. It's solid and reliable, and meets all your requirements on paper.

A word of warning about specs manufacturers list - different companies measure respons rates in different ways to get different results. Dell's figures are conservative - like RMS in audio, whereas LG figures seem faster like PMPO in audio. PMPO may be four times higher than RMS, but what does that have to do with volume? Or quality?

Also, the Dell 2005FPW or 2007FPW have really good bases, which are far more adjustable than the LG or Viewsonic bases.
Click to expand...

Yea I was thinking about this, I think they do over estimate it some times. But for the price in comparison and the reviews that I have heard, the LG seems like a good monitor.

I agree that the ability to adjust the Dell monitor is really cool, however I don't think i will need to rotate it 90 degrees lol or turn it horizontally (just turn the monitor lol), tilting will do just fine lol.

I'm going to go into PCWorld to have another look at it and ask some questions and if everything seems ok, I think i'll buy it!

If I do I'll post some info on it for the rest of you :)

Thanks for your responses guys they have been really helpful.
 
Abstract said:
I know you considered it, but the Dells are really great monitors, and pretty much everyone here has recommended Dell's monitors.

Were you just opposed to the Dell?
Click to expand...

Not really, as great as Dell displays are they still have a high response rate and in the UK they are still £437. Plus I can buy other displays with slightly better specs for less. Unless some one has a dell coupon that I can get a discount with lol.

Also I went to PCWorld and that LG Display was sold out!! So I may buy it online or reconsider my options.
 
I'd save up for an Apple.. there very sexy! But i also here good things about Dells, and some can support PS2/Xbox/GameCube/PS3/Wii/xBox 360...which is cool, but they don't(atleast i don't think the have) FireWire, and i need 2 FW ports, when the Mini only gives me 1
 
I'd love an Apple Display! lol I was hoping for some update on them from WWDC such as an iSight etc (I know about the update in contrast ratio etc). I've just been looking on ebay and there are some good deals on Dell displays, so I may have a look around still lol.

cheers.
 
me again lol, that LG display won't be in stock for a few weeks, so I've been looking around for similar displays. I came across the Samsung SyncMaster 205BW (Silver).

It seems quite good and is about £260 and has a lot of the features I want. I did a search on this on MacRumors and some members have it. If you view this thread and have one could you please give me some feedback on it.
 
Patch^ said:
Thanks for you replies guys, but I think I might go for an LG Monitor, it has a 1400:1 contrast ratio and a 8ms response rate (I found out that the lower it is the better!). It's the LG203WT and its around £280, I'm trying to look for the LG204WT it has a 5ms and 2000:1, but I think they only sell it in Canada :(.
Click to expand...

Those fast displays are usually 6-bit per component color with dithering. You can tell this by looking at the number of colors in the spec sheet. They simulate usually 16.2 million colors instead of displaying 16.7.
Last time I looked, all the displays with a response time under 16ms where like this.

The 2007WFP and 2407WFP are 24-bit 16ms panels with 16.7 million colors.
They are also HD-ready as they have HDCP on the DVI.
Although they have several inputs, only one is digital, so if you want to send encrypted content from two sources, you will need a switchbox.
 
You guys have given me a lot to think about, I think I might leave it for a few days before I go and purchase something.

At the moment I am looking at LG, Dell and Samsung models (mentioned in this post). Any other recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

I'm on a bit of a budget at the moment roughly £300 or so, I start my second year at uni soon so I need to save a bit for it :eek:

Thanks.
 
Just to let you guys know I took your advice and decided to buy the Dell 2007WFP. I had a look around the net for reviews and it seemed really good for graphics, which is what I am into and that it has a wide range of features and is apparently great for HD playback.

I'm a little uneasy about the slow 16ms response rate, but I don't think it will matter much.

I should get it some time next week :). I purchased it from overclockers and it only cost me £315.96 including VAT and Delivery! Much cheaper than Dells and it includes their 3 year warranty :D

I'll let you guys know how things get on and I'd just like to thank everyone who contributed to this topic you have been really helpful.

Thanks again :)
 
If you see banding, put the display in Desktop mode to fix (assuming it has current firmware which disables Faroudja in Desktop mode).
 
There are now panels that do 16.7 million colors with dithering. So, if you want to avoid dithering, looking at the number of colors is not enough anymore.
 
Just wanted to let you know, I got my Dell 2007WFP today and it is Great!!! I strongly recommend it :)

For a Dell product it seems really well made and of a high standard. Cool OSD (on screen display) Very adjustable and well worth the money.

Thanks.
 
Result!

I hope it meets all your expectations...

One last note - the 16ms Dell lists in their specs is very conservative - other displays that use the exact same LCD panel usually list it as a 12ms panel.
 
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