Flat Panels what to buy in the 18-22" size range. (1 Viewer)

[KyleS]

With the Flat Panel prices dropping I am seriously considering selling my 21" Trinitron and moving to an 18-22" LCD so that I can save some serious desktop space. My concerns are that I know on the first few generations of LCD flat panels they had artifact problems especially when playing games which I do a lot of. I dont want to buy a flat panel and not have it be able to keep up with all the games that I play from strategy to action (Unreal Tournament 2003, WarCraft III, Half Life, etc).

What should I be looking at brand/model wise? Dell has a really good deal on a 20" UltraSharp 2000FP 20-inch Flat Panel LCD Monitor for $899 but is this a good unit? Is Sony the best brand? Any information would be greatly appreciated.

KyleS

 

[Chad Ellinger]

The Dell 2000FP is highly regarded especially among gamers, as it has very good response time with minimal ghosting (a side-effect of LCDs that are unable to refresh the screen fast enough for the game). Be aware that most LCDs are very picky about resolution and will only look best at their native resolution. 18"+ LCDs have a native resolution of 1600x1200. Make sure that you have an awesome graphics card if you want to push your games at that resolution.

 

[KyleS]

Thanks for the Info Chad... What no-one else has any opinions or information on the larger flat panels?
KyleS

 

[Masood Ali]

If you want to cash in on the hot deal of the month (probably the hottest in the last 6 months), check this out:
Microtek 18" LCD for $398
We've got a few Walmart's in Oregon and one might have it. I haven't called around yet, but I think I might go for it on Thursday (when I get paid) if they still have some in stock.
And BTW, from the multiple accounts I've read, this is a very good LCD. Extremely bright, ghosting is nearly non-existant, and the build quality is solid. Most rank it on par with 18" LCDs in the $600-$700 price range.
Oh yeah, and one more thing; the optimal resolution for this FP is 1280x1024, so you can run most games at good frame rates with a decent graphics card.

 

[KyleS]

Thanks for the info though from the board you pointed me to this unit only has DVI and is pretty darn hard to find. Might not matter at this price thought that it only has a VGA hookup.

KyleS

 

[Ted Lee]

i'm very seriously considering getting the samsung 191t with my tax return.
all the reviews i've read have been on the positive side. i think tomshardware.com or anandtech.com has it on review. also, the february 2003 issue of pc world gives the samsung it's "best buy" rating.
someone else here as the smaller version...they were very happy with it too.
finally, i think it's the same monitor that either gateway or dell sells under their own log.
[edit] here's the link to the pcworld shootout: click here

 

[Masood Ali]

Yeah, the Microtek unit is VGA only. I think DVI is really a non-issue for me, most people seem to agree. High-end LCDs (those with 1600x1200 resolution) might produce crisper text with DVI, but it's a personal choice whether such a feature is worth the extra $400.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

I own the 20" UltraSharp 2000FP 20-inch Flat Panel LCD Monitor.
Just bought it within the last month when
Dell was offering it for $750-800 shipped
(I forgot the exact price).

You can bet that I had my reservations about buying
an LCD monitor. Having been a devoted CRT user for
years I was afraid that the quality of picture would
be greatly diminished.

All fears were set aside upon first sighting. This
LCD monitor is unbelievable. It's bright, sharp text
looks outstanding. Experts say that LCD monitors are
not able to reproduce the entire color spectrum that
CRT monitors can. I really don't notice the loss on
this monitor.

The best thing about this monitor is that I gained
50% of my desk space back. These monitors really do
make a difference when you have limited desk space
available to you.

I can sit here for hours staring at my LCD monitor
with no eye strain. Picture looks outstanding. In
fact, now that I own this monitor, I would never
consider going back to CRT.

I would call Dell and ask if they still have a
special on the 20" UltraSharp 2000FP 20-inch Flat
Panel LCD Monitor. You would be surprised how you
can talk those people down. You call them and tell
them that if they can offer it to you at the same
price it was offered a month ago, you'll take it.

Very much worth the price!

 

[KyleS]

Thanks guys for the info. Ron I thought I had seen a special that Parker had posted that was for a short period of time thanks for the positive feedback on the Dell 20". I am in the same situation... I WANT SOME DESKTOP SPACE BACK.
KyleS