flat screen monitors

Are you talking about a flatscreen or a LCD? LCD is the thin kind and flatscreen is a CRT but the front of the screen is flat instead of being rounded like a normal CRT.
The LCD's are coming down in price which means that the higher quality ones will be more affordable.

My next monitor will be a flat screen, but my monitor works so I'll just wait till it breaks.

ok...I guess I'm meaning the thin kind(LCD). Do you know anything about the so-called 'big jump in quality' that the 'in-the-knows' are claiming? True, or just sales-pitching? I know that I should be surfing and reading tons about it (here we go again) but I thought that maybe some of you had already done that! ... Or could give me some links or pointers that could reduce my 'research' time a wee bit maybe??

I have a 18.1" Iiyama AS 4637UT at home and I really began to hate my Sony 21" (CRT flat)at work. It was quite expensive at that time, don't know how much it is now. I never have regret spending the money.

I've heard that LCD flat screen can't go above 1024 resolution. Is it true?

NEC has an 18" that will go 1280x1024, but most you see are 1024x768. Also most have a fairly high DPI like .26 -.28

LCD's are nice

 

The Iiyama runs flawless here at 1280x1024. Games and DVD viewing run really nice, too.
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CRT monitors are best if you do graphics, play games, or watch movies on your computer. LCD monitors are only good for office use right now. The problems are low resolution, poor dot pitch, and horrible refresh times. Of course, there are come LCD monitors that are good at the above, but they're still MEGA $$$.

I am happy with my "19 monitor:d ... it is being repaired now, should have it back soon... >

I have my desk like a L shape, and it is pointed into a corner, it should be wasted space if I would buy a flat screen, so don't see the point.

About a month ago my CRT monitor bought the farm. And I told myself if it ever went, my next monitor would be a flat panel LCD. I purchased 17" Compag LCD monitor withe capability of resolutuion up to 1280 x1024 24 bit color resolution 120 DPI. It cost a whopping $589 when all was said and done, and it took some getting used to (the transition between CRT and LCD), but I love it! I get crisp, clear resolution weather it be graphics or games . And yes, it DOES take up much less space.

Aqua:Mmm...that's what I've been hearing, so I wondered. Yet Ms. Crissy, you say yours is ok for graphics, games, etc.? I DO need the desk space because I had to take my monitor OUT of the corner, but back to Aqua's comments, I HAVE heard those things you've pointed out before which sparked my original request here (now again from you) and I don't want to sacrifice quality for the space, and I REALLY don't want to pay the mega bucks!I hear you, Aqua. Mmmm again...

Oh ya' Ms Crissy:: what WAS the transition to get used to, exactly? Thnx!

Another aspect often overseen is that Computer-LCD''s use far less energy than CRT''s.



Aqua : That might have been the case 1 year ago, but not now. You can get (at least here) some very good ones for less money. Of course CRT''s are still less expensive.



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c242:: now THAT'S good news!(re: more efficient energy consumption)...

When I bought my new computer about a year and a half ago, I made getting an LCD monitor a must. I got the Samsung SyncMaster 760V TFT monitor, big ol' puppy . It was expensive...can't recall the exact amount, but I think it was around $700, but there was a rebate on it at Best Buy, plus I'd gotten some money for Christmas and my birthday, so that's what I bought for myself.

I love it. It was well worth the money, as far as I'm concerned. And there definitely is the extra added attraction that it sucks up a lot less energy than the traditional CRT monitors.

Hmmmm...

Well--I love the contempory sleek, space-saving, modern appeal of the LCD. However for Graphical use...I don't know.

My husband has a really nice one (1400.00?) something like that. I don't remember--I had been trying to steal his away for sometime. Well one day my Sony Trinitron monitor wouldn't turn on. I wanted to use my pc, and well...without a monitor it's a lil dark?
Anyway, I begged to use his for a couple of days until we get me a new one. He used the backup monitor while I used his for about a week. Well, I was inlove! I LOVED the amount of space it saved on my desk. My dungeon (that's what Akasha's pc room is called)looked sweet with that monitor. The Sony trinitrons have a back to that is too big and annoying. So this was heavensent. Vibrant,beautiful colors, clear, crisp. I was having a blast on my video games and everything. Then I whipped out my graphics programs and got to work, and suddenly I wanted my Trinitron!!! I don't know--maybe I'm just stuck in the old ways, but for graphics use, it wasn't the same. No matter how great his was.

Hubby ended up fixing my monitor (See how quick a man will fix somethin' for ya when he wants his expensive toys back???? ) and in all honesty, I was so happy to have my Trini back. I got back to making something straightaway!

I'm now looking for a really big monitor--and we went pricing, looked at those again... the sleekness and size is still so appealing, but in the end I still keep pricing the large crt's.

I even asked a couple of my computer guru buddies, and they too said, "for you I don't recommend it, you spend all your time making some kind of graphics... stay CRT."

I have a Samsung SyncMaster 900NF, perfect flat CRT, 19 inch. It is incredibly good with games, hi-res pics, videos, etc. Supports very high resolutions, and is very highly rated everywhere I researched. It is supposed to be very good if you do CAD programs and such, also. But the key is that it is much cheaper than any LCD I looked at, I paid less than $450 for it over a year ago, with free shipping, from Gateway. Money well spent, believe me!

Yes, in the end, I think it's a matter or preference.  For the about same price of a 15 inch LCD, you can get a huge 21 inch CRT. So, do you prefer a sleek crips LCD or a very big monitor for the same money?

Currently a 17" Hyundai 7770 CRT but the next will be a Sony 21" CRT.....the LCDs are for trendies lost in the concept of 'less is more'...

One thing to keep in mind with Flat Panel monitors is the "Native Resolution". Most 15" panels have a native resolution of 1024x768. 17" panels are 1280x1024, 19" panels are 1600x1200.

Graphics and anything else for that matter look great at the "NATIVE" resolution. These monitors do support other resolutions, but will NOT look as nice at a non-native resolution.

I wonder if people that have commented about the quality of graphics on a flat panel, were running at a non-native resolution for their particular monitor.

Sorry to sound all businessy, but one thing no one seems to have mentioned explicitly is Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). The lower energy consumption of LCDs is part of this, but also the life expectancy and cost of disposal (you shouldn''t just throw a CRT in the skip/dump of course...and it''s expected that they''ll be catagorised as toxic waste in the EU soon)



We''ve just been looking at desktop replacement recomendations at work, and it seems clear that the TCO for LCDs is significantly less than for CRTs based on numerous studies.



However, my experience is that for video games, LCDs refresh rates are too slow...but they''re getting just about good enough for this not to be an issue now.



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c242 My main experience with LCD monitors is with those under $300 (since those are the ones that are bought by non-techs). I use them every day, and they are extremely poor for anything other than your generic cubicle-monkey office tasks.

aqua : Okay, when going that low end You are right. A friend of mine purchased the Samsung Syncmaster 171S (regular price 449 Euro) for 399 Euro and that one is alright.

Well...I sure appreciate all the input here. Gives me much to chew on. A friend of mine is offering me a great deal on a Samsung 172B (17"), and I've been 'testing' it out. So far, I'm impressed. Just the recovered space on my desktop makes it almost TOTALLY worthwhile inspite of 'anything else'! I'm quite liking it. It's one of the better 17" ones out there that I've seen so far. I spent 2 full days off looking everywhere (physically in the stores) and comparing in the stores AND on the net,too)... This one had one of the best specs and picture for the 17" LCD's that I've seen so far. A couple of NEC's and a weird Swiss brand were good, as well as (surprise) a 'ViewSonic" made by EMachine?? Of course, the whiz-kid that made my computer is totally for the CRT's right now. He says to wait another couple of years for the LCD! I need a monitor NOW, though, and if the price is right...??? Here we go yet again with the 'Mmmmm'...