CRT vs. LCD

[Smartazz]

I've heard that LCDs are better for your eyes than CRTS are. How true is this statement? Thanks.

 

[dBTelos]

I think that LCDs are supposed to be better on your eyes too. But then again, they're brighter also (most of the time).

 

[Rommel44]

My experience is that LCDs are better for my eyes than CRT.

 

[pkme2]

I spend at least 4hrs to 8hrs on a LCD per day at times. It doesn't hurt my eyes like my old CRTs used to.

I remember in the past when I tried to use a CRT and the refresh rate was lower than 80, my eyes used to tear and strain at looking at the monitor after a few hours of work. Yes, the LCD is a definite improvement.

 

[dBTelos]

I've never had any problems with tear or straining from hours on a CRT.

 

[Smartazz]

Originally posted by: dBTelos
I've never had any problems with tear or straining from hours on a CRT.

I guess it depends on the CRT then.

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

This topic has been beatten to death on this board.

A true high-end CRT is still a worthy display. Flat panels are much better then a cheap/mid-range CRT.
I run the refresh rate at 100+ and suffer no eye strain during an eight hour shift.

My 22" Mitsubishi uses more current and produces more waste heat than a LCD but the Mit has truer blacks and richer colors. I will be sad when it dies.


...Galvanized

 

[potato28]

Originally posted by: GalvanizedYankee
This topic has been beatten to death on this board.

A true high-end CRT is still a worthy display. Flat panels are much better then a cheap/mid-range CRT.
I run the refresh rate at 100+ and suffer no eye strain during an eight hour shift.

My 22" Mitsubishi uses more current and produces more waste heat than a LCD but the Mit has truer blacks and richer colors. I will be sad when it dies.


...Galvanized

True. I used to play lots of CS 1.6 on a crappy Samsung CRT from 2000 and I had to stop playing for an hour sometimes because my eyes hurt so much. Then my friend has a Triniton that is quite amazing. It was like a LCD.

 

[0roo0roo]

run dual monitor one crt one lcd and you'll see the difference. problems with crt just aren't worth bothering with.

 

[krotchy]

CRT's will display things with a better color space, and dont have deal with things like contrast ratios and response times, however LCD's are better on the eyes.

I remember sitting in front of a CRT for 8 hours and at the end of the day my eyes would be exhausted and strained, and I never have that issue with LCD's, because of persistence. persistence is better on the eyes, but makes motion more blurry among other things.

 

[lobbyone]

My old HP 17" CRT would have my eyes tearing in a couple of hours of playing Doom 3, since it died and replaced by a 17" LCD, my eyes are now tearless! LOL

 

[brikis98]

i use two LCD's at work (laptop screen + 19" LCD) and after a long day, my eyes hurt. i use two CRT's at home (24" fw900, 21" trinitron) and after the rare weekend of gaming, my eyes hurt.

conclusion: in my experience, high quality CRTs and mid-high quality LCDs hurt your eyes equally
suggestion: keep the text as big as possible, take frequent breaks (every 30-60 min) and turn the brightness down.

 

[w00t]

It's true

you really should use the search function i've seen threads like this alot I think I even made one :-D It's a widely talked about subject for people converting from CRT's to LCD's. I made the switch and I'am very happy buying my 2005FPW is probably one of the best choices i've made on my computer displays will last awile unlike other things you buy for a computer.

 

[corkyg]

I know its true. I have glaucoma, nascient cataracts, and have had a detached retina followed by surgery. If it weren't for my 19-in LCD, I would not be able to spend much time on the computer at all. There are very excellent CRTs, but they are radiation emitters, and you should stay about 15 to 18 inches away from them, especially the larger ones. They also produce a lot of heat.

 

[Griffinhart]

As far as I know there are no health risks to using CRT over LCD. Both produce electromagnetic radiation, but not enough to harm you, even through longterm use.

As long as you don't use the windows default refresh rate of 60hz, you will not get any more eye strain using a CRT over a LCD. The usual cause of eyestrain isn't caused by your screen, but by the way you use it. Some people have the tendancy to stay focused on the screen and only the screen rarely looking away. This definately causes eyestrain. periodically refocusing to places other than your screen reduces the probability of eyestrain.

So, if you're looking to justify buying a new LCD over your CRT, eyestrain really isn't a valid reason and you'll need to look elsewhere. There are plenty of compelling reasons to go LCD over CRT. Power usage, Deskspace, Widescreen displays.

IMHO the only real advantage CRT has over LCD is that it displays color better, especially blacks and is still cheaper than LCD.

 

[0roo0roo]

sorry, even at 100+hz refresh is noticable for some, i can certainly tell. it doesn't matter how fast it refreshes, its still being drawn one line at a time. the crisp and persistent image of lcd is just superior in terms of eye strain. eyestrain is definetly a valid reason to choose lcd over crt.

 

[ForumMaster]

LCD's are better cause there's no flickering. the pixels don't scan. but as long as you use a high enough refresh rate, a high end CRT is just as good.

 

[LTOwnalot]

From my experience LCD is DEFINITELY a lot easier on the eyes. In the lab we have CRTs only and my eyes get red and tired after staring at them for less than an hour. With my LCD I stare at it for more than 4 hours at a time and I don't feel much strain.
And IMHO I don't think it's a matter of resting your eyes. CRTs just strain my eyes more, even though in the lab I'm actually looking away from the monitor more than I stare at it, whereas when I use my LCD (for gaming, watching movie, etc) I'm actually not looking away from the monitor much at all.
And I agree with OrooOroo, even at 100hz I still can't stand CRTs. It is still noticeable and very straining on the eyes.

ALthough, like the other people said, CRTs do display color better because the color won't blur like in LCDs. But that's only matters if u like watching movies and playing games on your computer. Modern LCD's response time is quick enough for most things you would want to use it for.

 

[BadThad]

Must say, I'm LMAO at those gamers with eye strain playing Doom. Most games are notorious for running at 60Hz, Doom being one of them. It's the FIRST thing I check when I fire up a new game, 60Hz is totally unacceptable and there's a lot of methods at running those games at higher rates, i.e. 100Hz.

 

[brikis98]

Originally posted by: Griffinhart
As far as I know there are no health risks to using CRT over LCD. Both produce electromagnetic radiation, but not enough to harm you, even through longterm use.

As long as you don't use the windows default refresh rate of 60hz, you will not get any more eye strain using a CRT over a LCD. The usual cause of eyestrain isn't caused by your screen, but by the way you use it. Some people have the tendancy to stay focused on the screen and only the screen rarely looking away. This definately causes eyestrain. periodically refocusing to places other than your screen reduces the probability of eyestrain.

So, if you're looking to justify buying a new LCD over your CRT, eyestrain really isn't a valid reason and you'll need to look elsewhere. There are plenty of compelling reasons to go LCD over CRT. Power usage, Deskspace, Widescreen displays.

IMHO the only real advantage CRT has over LCD is that it displays color better, especially blacks and is still cheaper than LCD.

i don't know of any specific research, so i could be wrong, but i'm pretty damn sure that CRT's produce far more electromagnetic radiation than LCDs. moreover, they have more glare and look painful (and horrible) at low refresh rates. on a decent CRT, these can all be taken care off to a large extent: a decent screen will absorb much of the electromagnetic radiation, a good glare filter will significantly reduce glare and setting the refresh rate high is an absolute must. however, i don't know of any specific research in this area: everything i've read is anecdotal evidence that seems to say LCDs are better, but who knows.

also, CRT's have other advantages over LCD's: they can change resolutions w/o loss in image quality, there are no dead pixels, no ghosting, no viewing angle issues, etc... I'm started a common hardware questions guide here which includes info on CRTs vs LCDs...

 

[corkyg]

And y'all keep ignoring a major factor, especially for those where air conditioning ($$$) is important - a 19-in CRT produces a heckuva lot more heat than a 19-in LCD. BTW - there are ZERO radiation LCDs available. There are no zero radiation CRTs available. LCD radiation comes from the transformers that run the flourescent backlight.

 

[Oyeve]

If asked a couple of years ago I would have said CRTs, but LCDs have come such a long way now that unless the CRT is UBER I would go LCD over CRT. My eyes are feeling much better which a decent LCD. I will say this though, and many may disagree but thats ok, DVDs still, IMO look better on a GOOD CRT.

 

[grant2]

Originally posted by: corkyg... but they are radiation emitters, and you should stay about 15 to 18 inches away from them, especially the larger ones. They also produce a lot of heat.

LCDs emit radiation too, it's called light! Are you referring to something else... nuclear radiation or..?

LCDs typically have a hotter screen than a CRT, but heat is irrelevant to how it affects a person's eyes i think...

 

[airhendrix13]

The eye strain is due to the lighting reflecting off the charged magnesium strip inside your monitor. When light passes through the strip it bounces up your screen causing light to scatter, therefore scattering the light throughout your eye. You know when you are walking down a side walk on a sunny day, how the light reflecting off the sidewalk seems brighter than the sun itself? (of course you are looking straight ahead....hopefully...) Well this is because the lower part of the eye, also known as the ciliary body, is more sensitive to light than the upper part of your eye, or the sclera. Now seeing LCD monitors are basically electrically charged liquid crystals and light doesn't reflect around in the monitor, light will travel straighter causing less light to go into the ciliary body, making for a more comfortable experience.

Hope this helped!

 

[grant2]

I have never heard of a magnesium strip in a CRT. Even if they exist, the light is emitted from the phosphor coating on the inside of the glass tube.

Certainly there's no "scattering" going on or else it would be a blur and useless as a display.

Regardless of the technology, people are mostly going to mostly look directly at their display. Your idea about light sensitivity might make sense if people spent all their time looking at their CRTs on the peripherary of their vision... but as you are surely aware, it's impossible to disern much detail on the periphary so people look at them straight-on.

I believe your theory is untrue.