Help buying a new monitor

[ColMofed]

Hi, I am currently using an old 17" CRT monitor that is, I think, on it's way out. I can't use a resolution above 1024*768 without it making a horrible high-pitched noise, and even at the above resolution it will sometimes squeal. Also, when callibrating, I can't see the difference in the dark tones.

What I really need to know is, what is the minimum spec for a fairly decent LCD monitor for digital photography processing?

I've just been on Kelkoo and compared two cheap 20" (LG & Phillips). Most of the specs were the same except:

Contrast ratio 2000:1 (LG) & 800:1 (Phillips)
Max refresh rate 75Hz (LG) & 65Hz (Phillips)
And the viewing angle was slightly more on the LG.

What are the important areas I should be looking at?

Thanks for any advice,
Rod.

[SloYerRoll]

How critical is the work you are doing? i.e. I just want shots to look good or I have clients that will fire me if I don't get the colors correct.

Is price an object? *if so, how much are you willing to spend?

Do you (or will you) do this professionally?

[ColMofed]

Thanks for replying, SloYerRoll.

I am on a pretty tight budget - unfortunately :) Probably no more than £150 ($300 ish), but if it means I'm going to get a monitor that will last a good few years then I may be able to go to £200 ($400).

The work I do is not critical (I have no one to fire me for this), but I do want the shots to look as good (accurate) as possible. I'd also like to be able to use a higher res than 1024*768 without the items on the screen being too small to see, as on my current 17".

Oh, and I don't intend to turn pro anytime soon.

Thanks again,
Rod.

[Newsy]

You're in a tough spot with a budget limiting your choice.

I suggest you try to get into one of the new Samsung 22"" TN paneled monitors that have just come to market as I suspect that they have full 8 bit colour.

Also, I've seen 24" PVA paneled BenQ's and others going for under $400USD recently.


---------------

In terms of image quality for editing, these are the panel types from best to worst:

IPS (newer variants are S-IPS, AS-IPS, H-IPS, etc)
PVA (newer variants are S-PVA)
MVA (newer variants are A-MVA, P-MVA, S-MVA, etc)
TN


My standard suggested reading....

The Anand LCD Thread
http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.aspx?catid=31&threadid=2049206&enterthread=y
- this thread is a must read


XBit LCD Testing Methodology
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/other/display/lcd-testmethods_7.html#sect0


Use to discover panel types (type in IPS, etc)
http://www.flatpanels.dk/panels.php
http://tftcentral.co.uk/search.php?query=ips&select=panel
(these two sites are typically accurate but sometimes mfg's change panels in mid-model run - aka panel lotteries)


Use to see & compare monitor screens from various angles:
http://www.digitalversus.com/duels.php?ty=6&ma1=36&mo1=104&p1=1040&ma2=52&ph=8
(and the link should show two monitors that while not the best, are good)


Review sites that shows images of the monitors viewed from various angles:
http://www.behardware.com/html/cat/22/
http://www.anandtech.com/displays/
http://www.prad.de/en/monitore/reviews.html


Some review sites that get technical:
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/other/
http://www.extremetech.com/category2/0,1695,23466,00.asp


A European review sites that covers a lot of displays:
http://www.trustedreviews.com/displays/

[ColMofed]

Thanks, Newsy. Looks like I have quite a bit of reading to look forward to. :D

I've looked up the panel types (as above) and can see that better is obviously better.

Think I'll stick with my current monitor until I have a better understanding of what I'm looking for, better budget, or this one finally breaks. :)

Thanks for all the links and info, it's helped a lot.

Rod.