LCD info needed!! Need ideas in a price range...

[Psychosylph]

I'm looking to buy an LCD. I know a little bit about them, such as dot pitch, rise and fall, etc., but I want some ideas on what to do in my situation. I am looking to buy a quality LCD - hopefully 17" - in about the $300-350 range. Here's the deal, though; the computer it will be attached to is not really used for gaming and has an old 8MB ATI card in it - no DVI. So, staying within the $300-350 range (less is alright, more is not) I need a good video card with DVI and good 2D qualities and an LCD. Any ideas?

 

[kylebisme]

i have not seen anything in that price range i would want to spend my money on, i recommend you either bump up your budget to 400-500$ or buy yourself a nice 19" crt.

 

[TechMasterChen]

SnowMan is right, you'll have to catch a really good deal for a 17 inch model. You might also want to pay attention to their return policy, some manufacturers will only accept LCD's a high number of dead pixels. I think NewEgg.Com policy is 8? I could be wrong though...

You might want to lurk around in the HOT DEALS section here, sometimes people post some good buys on Dell's website for LCD's. I think Dell LCD's are rebadged Planer or Samsung LCD's, someone please correct me if I'm wrong. Both make pretty good LCD's.

 

[Psychosylph]

So, you're thinking I should go 15", maybe? (I'm doing LCD for space-saving reasons) What are good brands/models? All ideas are welcome, and those I already have are appreciated...

 

[Schadenfroh]

my local Office depot had a 17 incher LCD for 288, looked like a good screen too.

 

[Huntress]

You might want to note that the lower priced LCD monitors do NOT come with DVI hookups. If you require DVI you will pay more. Just make sure you pay attention to this in the specs of the monitor you finally do choose.

 

[Psychosylph]

Do y'all think I should worry about DVI?

 

[glugglug]

You can't get a 17" LCD AND a DVI video card in that price range.

You can however get a much better 21" CRT and a decent video card.

 

[Huntress]

Does your current video card meet your current needs?

If so, then I would say you do not NEED DVI, then the lower end LCDs would also meet your needs.

Now... all that said, the next question would be what you except to be doing in the next year, would your needs grow to include Digital versus Analog video?

 

[Psychosylph]

The current card meets my current needs, yes. I'm just wondering if I hook it up to an LCD will I go blind? I'm trying to determine what would get me the best 2D quality at this particular price level...

 

[Huntress]

Check out the ViewSonic LCD's in the Graphics series over at Newegg... I just got a 17" VG700 that I love... it is a little above your price range, but they do have others that are in your price range.

LOL and no, you will not go blind... at least not from the LCD

Seriously though, LCD monitors cause less eye strain than regular CRTs. However these look best in their NATIVE resolution, which is 1280x1024. This is tighter than most people are used to, and maybe THAT will make you blind or crazy or both.