Older LCD monitors any good?

[riker1384]

I'm looking for a cheap monitor. I was thinking of getting a 17-19 inch CRT on Craigslist, but there are some LCDs that aren't too expensive, usually about $50 for a 17". If I get an LCD that's a few years old, will it be decent compared to current ones? LCDs are relatively new, so I'm wondering if they rapidly become obsolete and inferior, like other things in computing. For instance, I see a Samsung 710N for $50, which hit the market 4 years ago. They now sell the 740N which seems to have almost identical specs, for $200 new. Both have good reviews. Would it be a wise choice?

It's just for general personal computing. I've looked at new LCDs in stores and they almost all look nice, but the Dell ones in the public library (don't know what model or how old they are) don't look as good as my Emac CRT. I'm wondering if I can get something close to what's in stores now.

 

[viggen61]

I think the biggest thing to worry about would be the backlight. As it ages, the colors may go off somewhat (you might not notice...).

But for the cheap price, if it's got all the pixels, it's hard to go wrong.

I have 4 Apple LCD displays:

a 15" Bondi Blue Apple Studio Display (VGA)
a 15" Graphite Apple Studio Display (DVI)
a 15" Apple Studio Display (ADC) - hooked to my G4
and a 20" Apple Cinema Display - hooked to my MBP.

The Bondi & Graphite displays have lower light output than either of the other two, and that's BEFORE accounting for aging. But they work fine when I need to drag them out. I used to have the ADC & DVI 15" displays hooked up to my G4.

 

[aross99]

I think the biggest thing to worry about would be the backlight. As it ages, the colors may go off somewhat (you might not notice...).

I agree. I have a number of older LCD's and they work fine. THey have been used for 8 hours a day M-F for years.

If you get a chance to see it before you buy it, you can check this out for yourself...

 

[riker1384]

I have a chance to get what was apparently a professional-grade LCD, but it was released way back in 2001. There even seems to be one place that is still selling it, for 20 times what I'm being asked for. It looks like a steal. It costs less than any others I see used at the same size and resolution. Brightness spec (at least for a new one) is within the normal range for monitors today. 16.7 million colors. Should I go for it?

The only spec I see that isn't great is the 25ms response time.

 

[riker1384]

Well, I was tempted to get a good one in order to make sure it wasn't a downgrade from my CRT, and ended up getting a widescreen 20" Dell 2007WFP for $150 on Craigslist, about a couple years old at most. It uses the same panel as the Cinema Display. Unfortunately I also got a speeding ticket on the way to pick it up, so it really cost me about $300. Still not bad for what I got, but much more than I wanted to spend.