vb.org Archive - Buying a new monitor.

this is close to the one i just bought
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...0128&CatId=170

its 19" LCD tho, so its a bit more then the ones you linked

one thing you need to be aware of with LCD, well a few things

sometimes pixels go out, and never come back, so you will have a little black dot where the pixel is.
so monitors will have something along the lines of.. if you have 5 or more pixels go out, they'll replace your monitor.
luckily i haven't had any go out, and actually I bought mine at a store near me and had them plug it in b4 i paid for it just to check..

another thing to watch for is frame rate, i think this is the correct term,, but its how fast your picture will refresh, this is very important if you want movies or video on your PC,, a low frame rate, or maybe its frame refresh, or frame speed.. what ever the case.. if its low then your picture will lag..

here is some info from consumer reports on " things to check when buying a LCD monitor"

Quote:

IMPORTANT FEATURES

A monitor's resolution refers to the number of picture elements, or pixels, that make up an image. More pixels mean finer detail. Most monitors can display at several resolutions, generally ranging from 640x480 to 1,600x1,200, depending on the monitor and the graphics card. An LCD usually displays a sharper image than a CRT of comparable size when both are viewed at identical resolutions. But that's only if the LCD is set to its "native" resolution--1,024x768 pixels for a 15-inch screen; 1,280x1,024 or 1,400x1,050 for a 17-, 18-, or 19-inch model. On both types of monitor, the higher the resolution, the smaller the text and images, so more content fits on the screen. Bigger CRT screens can handle larger resolutions and display more information.

Dot pitch, measured in millimeters, refers to the spacing between a CRT's pixels. All else being equal, a smaller dot pitch produces a more detailed image, though that's no guarantee of an excellent picture. In general, avoid models with a dot pitch higher than 0.28 mm.

A CRT requires a high refresh rate (the number of times per second the image is redrawn on the screen) to avoid annoying image flicker. In general, you'll be more comfortable with a 17-inch monitor set at a refresh rate of at least 75 hertz (Hz) at the resolution you want. With a 19-inch monitor, you may need an 85-Hz rate to avoid eyestrain, especially at higher resolutions. Refresh rate isn't an issue with flat-panel displays.

Monitors have controls for brightness and contrast. Most of them also have controls for color balance (usually called color temperature), distortion, and such. Buttons activate onscreen controls and menus.

Bigger CRTs use a considerable amount of juice: about 80 watts for a typical 19-inch model, between 65 and 70 watts for a 17-inch model, and about 20 watts for a 15-inch flat-panel LCD, for example. Most monitors have a sleep mode that uses less than 3 watts when the computer is on but not in use.

Some monitors include a microphone, integrated or separate speakers, or composite-video inputs for viewing the output of a VCR or camcorder.

Plug-and-play capability makes it fairly simple to add a new monitor to an existing computer.

and here is a little more info, this delt with CRT monitors too, so you may see more info then you need

Quote:

HOW TO CHOOSE

Decide between LCD and CRT monitors. If your computer's monitor is hogging the top of your desk, you can reclaim much of that space by replacing it with an LCD. But doing so will cost you about $200 to $300 more than if you bought a new CRT monitor. And LCD screens have an inherent shortcoming: The image appears to fade as you move left, right, up, or down. However, most LCD monitors in our recent tests had a wider viewing angle than we've seen in the past. If space isn't an issue but budget is, a CRT monitor is a good choice.

Settle on size. For most people, a 15-inch LCD monitor or a 17-inch CRT is big enough. Larger monitors are best suited for people who need to show photo enlargements or who regularly display multiple windows on the screen.

Consider helpful features. A monitor you can raise or lower can compensate for a desk that's too high or low. It's a feature found on some LCD monitors, but not on CRTs because they're so heavy. Some monitors can be rotated 90 degrees, from a landscape to portrait orientation, with the image automatically adjusting itself. That can be handy for viewing photos and Web pages. Also, look for a long warranty. Many monitors, both LCDs and CRTs, come with a three-year warranty on parts and labor. A warranty that long is worth looking for, especially when purchasing a more expensive model.

hope this helps you out some :)

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