[Retired] The LCD Thread

[Fugifighter]

Thanks for the awesome Thread XTKnight. I recently received my Benq G2400WD and it looks amazing. A bunch of my friends are using this thread as a reference as well for their upcoming purchases. Tonite I'll be doing some more settings for color and to lower the brightness but from the brief TF2 run last night I know it was worth the money. Keep up the good work!

 

[BDawg]

What are thoughts on buying a 1080p HDTV for use as a monitor instead of a 1920x1200 monitor? Just about all TVs are MVA / IPS, right?

 

[MRIM]

Originally posted by: xtknight

....

Hopefully this gives you a better idea what to expect. I'm sorry if it seems harsh but the rest of us have been swimming in pools of problems like this for years (or worse like bad viewing angle, flickering panels, burn-in, dithering, dead pixels, backlight bleeding, poor response time control) and are just used to it. Especially for consumer monitors. Count your blessings and do understand a refurb (which is most likely the monitor with which they would exchange your current) could have worse problems. I'm most disappointed in the NECs' lack of 1080i support, but I love the 90 series LCDs for the most part. Give it some time just through your normal PC routine, but do take some photos and see if the pincushion is a serious problem. If it is then your LCD qualifies as defective and you can probably get a new one and start afresh.

Thanks for the response. I considered taking some pictures but then I just decided to RMA it since I have a two-week window to do so. I should be getting a replacement sometime next week. I think you are right about the bad panel assembly. The monitor was manufactured last month in China; I wonder if some are manufactured in Japan and so maybe have better quality control?

 

[Veramocor]

I'm trying to decide how much of a problem input lag is on PVA monitors such as the Dell UltraSharp 2408WF. I realize that PVA monitors have the worst input lag and the dell is pretty bad in this regard. Is there a noticeable effect for non-hardcore FPS gamers, or do you need to really be elite to notice? Also how about click fest games like diablo or RTS games, how does input lag effect these?

I really use games less than 5% of the time, most of my use will be work,internet, and TV/video. But I don't want gaming so degraded I can't enjoy it the little amount of time I use it.

The whole tradeoffs between PVA and TN almost make me want to keep my CRT monitor (Samsung SyncMaster 955df still going strong). Too bad IPS displays aren't more affordable.

 

[HorseFace]

If you don't game, input lag is pretty irrelevant.

 

[joeythecat]

Howdy, just want to say thanks to all for the great info on this thread. I ended up getting the BenQ G2400WD. Excellent value for a 24". Quick comments on prospective buyers: Its a good buy. Picture is razor sharp, colors look great. Very fast response times. I play all sorts of FPS games, TF2, Crysis, Q4, CoD4, they all run perfectly fine with no lagg or ghosting or what not. Note that this is my FIRST lcd monitor (well I use one at work, but that doesn't count). I've been playing on a nice reliable high end 19" CRT until now, and honestly I didn't notice any major difference in performance going to the LCD. I think the CRT had better color, but then again I haven't yet touched any of the LCD's osd settings. Out of the box, the mfg settings still look great. I tried dynamic contrast, but only briefly and I didn't really notice a big difference, so I turned it off. The different modes for pictures and movies are nice, and they do make a difference, but then again I find myself rarely reaching under to switch modes.

On to the cons. Stand is weak, any decent nudge to my desk and the monitor wobblys. OSD controls are a pain to get to (probably why I don't bother switching modes often), because the buttons are on the underside of the panel, and the button labels are etches to the bottom grill making is really hard to read in low light conditions. My final complaint is the viewing angle, its not great. I know its a TN, but being a huge 24" exacerbates the fact. I can see a difference in color/brightness just by sitting up or slouching in my chair. I guess I shouldn't slouch so much.

Still I love this monitor, its a far far superior upgrade to my trusty old CRT. Moving to 1920x1200 is great for the extra screen real estate. And playing games on high res is amazing (except for Crysis). No regrets with this purchase.

 

[toadeater]

Originally posted by: gamephile
I might be beating a dead horse here but as of 7/24/2008 the Doublesight 263N is a deactivated item at newegg.com. Seeing as how it's recommended all over the place on the main article I thought it would be good to mention.

Doublesight 263N product page.

It is deactivated because it is being replaced by the DS-265W.

New features: HDMI and composite inputs, better-looking housing, and a new stand. It's going to look sort of like this (2700DW):

http://www.doublesight.co.kr/a...ct/zoom/1853819395.jpg

ETA: September.

 

[Mr. Lennon]

Hey I'm looking for a 24..maybe 26 inch LCD with a glossy screen for games/movies. Which one would you guys recommend? Must have HDMI. My limit is $600.

 

[geokilla]

Great information xtknight. Even though I don't understand 90% of the stuff, I'm gonna go through it a couple of times before I buy a monitor.

I'm going to be getting a new computer soon. Whether it's for me or for my sister will determine whether I should buy a new LCD monitor or not.

In the second post, I saw that the Acer AL2216Wbd was listed as a good multimedia LCD monitor, which is exactly what I do. I game sometimes, watch movies, just surf the web, do homework. This LCD should last me say, 5+ years assuming all I do is multimedia stuff right?

Plus, for $189.99, is it worth it? I buy lots of stuff from CC, so I don't have to worry about the store having a bad reputation and stuff.

Thanks in advance.

 

[zod96]

Is their a 24 inch glossy screen monitor?

 

[BDawg]

Originally posted by: zod96
Is their a 24 inch glossy screen monitor?

Gateway FHD2400 is a recommended glossy.

 

[CurseTheSky]

I was advised to post here; this is the original thread.

I'm looking for a 24" LCD in the ~$400 range. I will go up to $450ish if it'll make a huge difference in quality, but I'd prefer not to. I will also consider a 22" if the quality difference is day and night, but again, I'd prefer not to. It will be used primarily for gaming with some movies and photoshop (color accuracy not a giant concern) on the side. I hate my current monitor's (TN panel) viewing angles, but I'll deal with it if that's all there is in this price range.

I heard good things about most of the Dell monitors, as well as this Westinghouse. Other than that, I'm clueless. Suggestions are much appreciated.

Thanks.

Edit: After reading through the LCD thread some more, I see the Westinghouse L2410NM I linked coming up a bit, as well as the BenQ G2400WD. For my needs, which would be the better option, OR is there something else I should consider?

 

[Stormer]

I just ordered the Dell SP2009W (a glossy) and the Acer F-20, so I can compare the TN and P-MVA panels. My work is not color or image sensitive -- hours of word processing. So I'm just looking at which unit will display text better. I think at one point early in this long thread, xtknight offered that TN's might be better for WP because they offered better contrast (correction welcomed). Anyway, I prefer glossy. The HP2007 does not, repeat, does not have a "sharpness" adjustment. It's listed in the manual but disabled in the unit. Both the F-20 and 2009W do have this adjustment. The F-20 with its thick bezel is going to be difficult to twin on a desk, but I'm going to decide first on quality of the image (text). I'm happy to run some tests on the 2009W if someone wants and can tell me what tests to run and how to run them. (For what it's worth, the NEC 20WMGX2, as I wrote in another thread, is available in England -- for roughly $850. Can't even find refurbished models in US.)

 

[zod96]

That Dell Sp2009w looks nice. Is that a P-MVA panel in their? And is this a new LCD by Dell? How are the reviews on it..

 

[Stormer]

Originally posted by: zod96
That Dell Sp2009w looks nice. Is that a P-MVA panel in their? And is this a new LCD by Dell? How are the reviews on it..

It's a TN. I haven't seen any reviews save the comments on the Dell site. Specs match the Acer F-20, HPW2007, most 20-inchers wide. Price is competitive. Dells can be hit or miss.

 

[zod96]

Is this NEC http://accessories.us.dell.com...dhs&cs=19&sku=A1478820 a 8 bit panel? I'm looking for a 20-24 inch glossy screen that is 8 bit and in stock somewhere. Is their such an LCD?

 

[zod96]

I found this http://www.newegg.com/Product/...001&CMP=AFC-C8Junction it is glossy and I think its an 8 bit panel?

 

[Schadenfroh]

Originally posted by: zod96
I found this http://www.newegg.com/Product/...001&CMP=AFC-C8Junction it is glossy and I think its an 8 bit panel?

see this thread

Originally posted by: festus
I finally got an update from Westinghouse about the panel on this Monitor.

Here it is:
----------------------------------------
The L2410NM uses a TN type panel at 1000:1 contrast ratio. The carton
and manual may indicate it was a MVA type panel, but that is not the
case. We changed the panel type and did not reprint the boxes and
manuals to reflect that, but the information on our website is correct.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

[10e]

These were never TN panels as far as I know.

I paid $369.99 Canadian for it and it was 100% an S-MVA panel. Westinghouse doesn't know their respective cracks from the cracks in the pavement, because they don't even manufacture this monitor. It's made by CMO in China and a Westy name is slapped on it.

Same with their TVs.

That response was from before (also on HardForum) and it turned out it was wrong. Sorry if I come off sounding nasty, but this screen was never a TN to start with.

My only concern with this screen is the 1 year warranty from Westinghouse. It's best to reinforce it with an extended store warranty.

Originally posted by: zod96
I found this http://www.newegg.com/Product/...001&CMP=AFC-C8Junction it is glossy and I think its an 8 bit panel?

 

[rxblitzrx]

remove post please

 

[joeythecat]

Take my biased answer with a grain of salt. But I suggest the BenQ G2400WD. Mainly for the price. Its actually on sale right now at Newegg for $350. You'd be hard pressed to find 24" LCDs, let alone a decent one, for that price. I hadn't looked at the Westinghouse, so I can't give a fair comparison. I did consider the samsung 245bw when making my purchase, and while I think the samsung is slight higher quality in terms of the outside, i.e. frame, bezel, stand, buttons, the BenQ has better brightness and contrast, just slightly, imho.

 

[Stormer]

Originally posted by: zod96
Is this NEC http://accessories.us.dell.com...dhs&cs=19&sku=A1478820 a 8 bit panel? I'm looking for a 20-24 inch glossy screen that is 8 bit and in stock somewhere. Is their such an LCD?

NEC website does not indicate it's a glossy. Can find nothing tht does.

 

[Stormer]

Originally posted by: zod96
Is this NEC http://accessories.us.dell.com...dhs&cs=19&sku=A1478820 a 8 bit panel? I'm looking for a 20-24 inch glossy screen that is 8 bit and in stock somewhere. Is their such an LCD?

Here's a 20-inch 8-bit. http://us.acer.com/public/page...+States&crc=2033676845

 

[Xponential]

I have talked to 2 different Samsung support ppl. and they both claim the new T240 and T260 are S-PVA panels, not TN like everyone has been saying.

Does anyone have this monitor and can confirm/deny this?? It's on sale at BB this week and $500 for a 25.5" S-PVA panel is a pretty hot deal if this is in fact not a TN panel.

 

[Schadenfroh]

Good news, it looks like the new revision of the Dell 2408 that fixes (or reduces) the input lag issue is out.
http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/ne...ive/13.htm#2408wfp_a01

Jimmy P of the Dell Community Forums has said: "I have news, as of yesterday [22 July 2008] all 2408's shipping as refurbished have the new firmware, as of Monday new monitors started coming off the production line with it. If you are ordering a new monitor you should wait about two weeks to make sure that they have a chance to get through the distribution network.

Due to a Dell internal process change many of the 2408's that will ship new with the revised firmware will have a different part number and not a different revision number. The only way you will be able to tell if it's the revised firmware is to check the sharpness setting, if the setting is in multiples of 10 then it is the revised firmware if it's in multiples of 25 then it's not. The part number has nothing to do with the revision but someone decided since we are changing the part number anyway the firmware will be A00 on that part number."

He went on later to explain that: "You can not upgrade the frimware yourself. We do not send out replacements just because of a revision, you have to actually have a technical problem. This firmware update features greater control over sharpness settings, improved power save recovery, and less input lag."