17” or 19” LCD monitor? (1 Viewer)

[MarkHastings]

Resolution and monitor sizes don't really make things sharper or blurrier. It's not like HD video where more resolution means a clearer/sharper picture. Even at 640x480, the 19" monitor will just look less defined than blurry.

 

[BruceD]

Maybe I'm incorrect, but I thought with LCD screens the only spec that really mattered for sharpness/clarity in viewing was the total number of pixels (i.e. the native resolution of the LCD). For instance, on my 19" LCD that native resolution is 1280 x 1024 pixels (1,310,720 pixels). Other resolutions are possible, but the best viewing is at the native resolution. That's where the text is the sharpest.

 

[MarkHastings]

Well, it's sharper in the sense that it's smaller because the pixels are smaller. The text isn't comprised of more pixels, just smaller ones. It's not like video where increase in resolution adds more clarity to the image...as computer screen resolution increases, the text just gets smaller, rather than adding resolution to the text.

Is it really sharper? I guess it would be according to it's definition, but (IMHO) it's just smaller.

All that aside, there probably isn't a whole lot of difference between a 17" and a 19" monitor (at 1280x1024) to consider the 17" 'sharper'.

 

[Paul_Sjordal]

Yeah, that's the downside of LCDs: when you try to display something in anything other than the native resolution, it looks like regurgitated polaroids.

 

[BruceD]

Mark,

IMO, 1280 x 1024 on a 19" is a lot easier to read than on my 17" LCD, and I'm a member of the over the hill gang whose eyes aren't like they were 20 years ago.

 

[MarkHastings]

Yes, this is true that it's easier to read, but that's because the images and text are smaller on the 17" rather than less blurry.

 

[Brian Perry]

Of the three following monitor sizes/native resolutions, which would have the "largest" pixels?

19" 1280x1024
24" 1920x1200
30" 2560x1600

I'm trying to decide between keeping my Dell 24" or switching to either dual/quad 19" monitors or the Dell 30". I never use the computer for watching movies. It's 90% web browsing and 10% business apps.

 

[JeremyErwin]

19 inch panel is 11.4*15.2
11.4/1280=0.011133
24 inch panel is 12.7*20.4
12.7/1200=0.010583
30 inch panel is 15.9*25.4
15.9/1600=0.0099375

The pixels are all about the same size...

 

[Colin Davidson]

So, which brand/model would be the best 19 or 20 inch monitor for gaming?

I have tried for a week to figure out resolutions/contrasts/timings that would be best and just get a huge headache. So much to choose from it is hard to get to one or two specific monitors that would be best for gaming.

 

[JeremyErwin]

Look for a figure called "response time." It should be expressed in milliseconds. The lower the better. When I was shopping for an lcd, all the gamer panels had, iirc, a response time of 6ms or so. That was some time ago, and some panels are now down in the 2 ms range.

(actually, there are two different schemes for measuring pixel response. "Black to White" and "Grey to Grey." Grey to Grey tends to be faster)

 

[Paul_Sjordal]

Jeremy is right. For gaming, the only number you really care about is the response time, which should be as low as possible.

If you also watch movies or just generally care about image quality, you can also pay attention to the brightness and contrast ratio listed for each monitor you look at. I'm really happy with my BenQ 19 incher. It has an 8 millisecond response time, decent brightness and contrast, and it even came with a free DVI cable (most make you buy that separately, so figure that into your price comparisons).

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

Funky server - double post deleted

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

Well, I heeded the unanimous advice and sprung for a 19” LG - just came in today. All I can say is, “OH – MY - GOSH!” It’s everything everyone said it would be! I’m amazed at what a difference 2 inches makes! All I gotta do now is find a buyer for my 17" LG (doubt there’ll be any takers on this Forum!).

The only thing that concerns me is a tiny bright spot bottom right side of the screen. It’s not even pin-head size, more like the size of the pointed end of a pin. Is that anything to be worried about? You really only see it on dark fields.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[Andrew Pratt]

That sounds like a stuck pixel and unless you've got quite a few of them it'll be considered normal for the LCD panel.