Macbook 13 sufficient for 20" + external monitor?

[Trabert]

I just bought the entry level Macbook Pro 13" for its portability as I already have an Imac for home use.

I also want to use the MBP at work in conjunction with a 20" or larger external monitor. My question is: Does the 13" have a limitation when used with a larger external monitor (as opposed to the 15 and 17")?

I've read through the forums and found some people having issues with images not being crisp on the external monitors. My ideal setup would be to keep the MBP open for the tool palettes and use the external monitor for the graphics.

Does anyone have recommendations on a good setup? I will mostly be using CS5 for print and web graphics. So far, I have been leaning toward a used Apple Cinema display or one of the Dells.

Thanks a lot for any advice!

 

[sammich]

You can use any display up to 2560x1600.

Dual display and video mirroring: Simultaneously supports full native resolution on the built-in display and up to 2560 by 1600 pixels on an external display, both at millions of colors

 

[Trabert]

You can use any display up to 2560x1600.

Thanks for the quick response!

 

[Trabert]

Any recommendations on good displays?

Still leaning toward the Apple Cinema 20", but appreciate any other ideas on good graphics monitors. Would love to just spend $100-200 for something used.

 

[sup3r1or]

My Friend bought HP 24" HD monitor the one with webcam and USB Looks awesome mate. You can also rotate it, the monitor itself.

 

[Trabert]

My Friend bought HP 24" HD monitor the one with webcam and USB Looks awesome mate. You can also rotate it, the monitor itself.

Cheers, might have to save up for that bad boy!

 

[kny3twalker]

Still leaning toward the Apple Cinema 20", but appreciate any other ideas on good graphics monitors. Would love to just spend $100-200 for something used.

If you want something comparable to the Cinema Displays, look for an eIPS monitor, NOT some cheap big consumer monitor.

Monitors such as the Dell UltraSharps 22" and larger, HP Small Business LP and ZR series, and NEC has a 23", cannot remember the model, but a quick google search of NEC 23" eIPS will find it.

The latest Dell UltraSharp 23" and 22" are often on sale, if you ever browse slickdeals.net, for under $250 and ~$200, respectively.
The more expensive monitors from the series I listed above, usually have a better panel than eIPS such as H-IPS, S-IPS, or S-PVA. Nonetheless there are many entry level color accurate monitors available for considerably less than in the past, and this is reason enough to pass up the old technology consumer monitors where only size and response rate matter.