LCD vs. CRT

[deepred98]

My eyes burn after w while with a lcd no matter what brightness/contrast

but with a crt i'm worried that the flickering of the screen is gonna screw up my vision

which one is better for your eyes and why?

 

[fierydemise]

Its personal preference, my eyes hurt using LCDs but some peoples hurt with CRTs

 

[drum]

this is mostly personal opinion and there have been massive threads concerning it.

 

[oxid]

LCD screens are still.
if you open up a photo, the pixels will stay like they are until you open another photo.
a CRT however, has to refresh the image 60 to eightyfive times per second for most monitors.
that's why I can only stand watching a CRT when refresh rate is higher then 85 Hz

 

[deepred98]

Originally posted by: drum
this is mostly personal opinion and there have been massive threads concerning it.

so there is no tehnical answer. like with big words and stuff about light reaching the eyes and stuff

 

[TheRyuu]

Originally posted by: oxid
LCD screens are still.
if you open up a photo, the pixels will stay like they are until you open another photo.
a CRT however, has to refresh the image 60 to eightyfive times per second for most monitors.
that's why I can only stand watching a CRT when refresh rate is higher then 85 Hz

Higher than 85? Your eyes are that sensitive?
75hz or higher is good enough fore me. But I wouldn't mind 85hz

 

[ArchAngel777]

Once you get used to the brightness (won't take long) the LCD is much better. I suppose just from a technical view point it can be said an LCD is in fact easier on the eyes. The image only changes if it needs too. The CRT is contantly scanning... Anyway, for a CRT I need at the very least 85Hz. If someone showed me a three monitors side by side and said pick which one is 60Hz, 75Hz and 85Hz, I can ace the test without a problem. I may even be able to tell the different between a 85Hz and a 100Hz, but I am doubting that. Others might be able too....

LCD's have SAVED my eyes... I used to drive home cross eyed from work, now after using an LCD I can actually keep my eyes focused without double vision

 

[yhelothar]

I agree that 75Hz and higher is fine. 70Hz is fine too, unless if I open a bright white screen that fills the page.
Flickering won't screw up your eyes.
Go for whatever you're more comfortable with.

 

[CP5670]

I see a little flickering at 85hz in Windows, although it's good enough for games. It goes away at 100hz for me in windows.

And I definitely find CRTs easier on the eyes, mostly because of the high brightness on LCDs (which is much more of a problem in the dark) but also the screen door effect.

 

[xtknight]

LCDs (over DVI/native res) maintain the sharpest text and do not flicker, but the backlight might be too much for some people. In my personal experience, gaming for 3 hours at once on a CRT gave me red eye and neck aches. Gaming for 3 hours on an LCD does not.

 

[ArchAngel777]

I would say almost universally most people think LCD's are easier on their eyes... Of course I haven't done a poll, but everytime I am out in the field talking to people they always comment how much nicer the LCD's are on their eyes... I don't think I would be going out on a limb saying the most people prefer an LCD on their eyes, if given the choice between a CRT or LCD... Could be wrong though.

 

[MJoshi]

I tend to find CRT's set to a frequency above 75Hz (With a screen filter) easier on the eyes as they are not as bright as LCD's.

 

[xtknight]

Originally posted by: ArchAngel777
I would say almost universally most people think LCD's are easier on their eyes... Of course I haven't done a poll, but everytime I am out in the field talking to people they always comment how much nicer the LCD's are on their eyes... I don't think I would be going out on a limb saying the most people prefer an LCD on their eyes, if given the choice between a CRT or LCD... Could be wrong though.

The poll here a while ago supports that:

http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=31&threadid=1785015&enterthread=y

 

[Meuge]

LCDs are definitely better for your eyes... if you have trouble looking at LCD, ensure that ClearType is on, the resolution is native, the text isn't too small, and the brightness is not too high.

 

[fierydemise]

Originally posted by: deepred98
so there is no tehnical answer. like with big words and stuff about light reaching the eyes and stuff

There probably is but above all use what works for you, each person is different and the biggest thing is to test and find out what works best for you. I know I prefer CRTs but alot of others prefer LCDs (as shown in the poll xtknight linked), you can't really go on what other people say because you're not them.

 

[Sunrise089]

CRT for me

 

[BenSkywalker]

Once you get used to the brightness (won't take long) the LCD is much better.

This is a matter of personal preference- and it matters greatly which displays you are comparing. As a general example the Dell 2001 is *significantly* more difficult for my eyes to handle then my NEC 2141- although Dell makes very poor quality LCDs in general so that shouldn't be too much of a surprise(shocking seeing the new Gateway running side by side with a 2005 just how bad Dell's LCD monitors are). Some of the higher end LCDs don't bother my eyes nearly as much, although they still aren't quite up to par with my monitor that really isn't fair as I would need to check out one of the LED backlit LCDs for an even comparison(top tier products for both techs).

I used to drive home cross eyed from work, now after using an LCD I can actually keep my eyes focused without double vision

It doesn't sound like 85Hz was cutting it for you if that is what your office had your monitors set up for. Most businesses run their CRTs at either 60Hz or 75Hz(Windows default depending on the version of Windows). IME if you suffer from eye fatigue using a CRT your eyes are telling you the RR is too low if you can spot it instantly or not. I find 120Hz to be my comfort point on the desktop although I can tollerate 100Hz when I need to for desktop use and 85Hz will carry me for a few hours when I want some real high res gaming(alas my monitor only pushes 85Hz running 2048x1536).

 

[BFG10K]

but with a crt i'm worried that the flickering of the screen is gonna screw up my vision

Keep your refresh rate high (85 Hz+ should be fine) and you shouldn't have a problem.

 

[Crescent13]

Holy crap you guys can stand 75Hz???? I go crazy at 75Hz, and at 85Hz I feel sick after looking at the screen for about 30 minutes.

 

[JRW]

I've never had a problem with eye strain when viewing CRTs even after all day sessions, I always run at least 85hz refresh and its all good. Also when im going to be working with text for extended periods ill just lower the monitor's Contrast which greatly reduces the chance of eye strain. I've only owned one LCD, A dell 2001FP, and it was far to bright for me to the point it cracks me up when people claim LCDs are so much easier on the eyes, Simply not true.

 

[PeterJun21]

just take breaks .. if it hurts my eyes i usually turn the brightness down and that usually helps

 

[xtknight]

Originally posted by: JRW
it cracks me up when people claim LCDs are so much easier on the eyes, Simply not true.

Once again, it depends on the LCD, and more importantly your eyes.

 

[Ackmed]

LCD is far easier on my eyes. Especially after using a CRT in the dark for an hour or more. It always made my eyes bleed. With my LCD's, my eyes have never hurt.

 

[AstroBlue]

My eyes use to hurt with a 17 inch CRT (can't stand any refresh rate under 75mhz) , but now I have a 19 inch LCD and it does go easier on my eyes.
But then again, this does vary between people =)

 

[HamburgerBoy]

60Hz is fine for me on my CRT, as long as I'm not reading something on a pure white background. Even light greys are fine (like this forum) but much brighter and I have to bump it to 75Hz.