The online racing simulator
That's what I had, an FW900. It lasted for nearly 2 years before it died on me last friday. As far as I'm concerned, it's not worth it trying to get another, they're so old they just don't last. It's really a shame, they don't make them like that anymore. Stupid LCD's taking over...
Both of those Samsungs are TN panels. That means they're fast but have pretty horrible colors that change a lot if you move your head even the slightest bit.

Some manufacturers (like Dell) even have different panel types for the same exact model. So you may buy one thinking you're getting an S-IPS, and you may actually get it. However, there's a chance it could be a PVA.

I think this is the best explanation of LCD's I've seen yet:

http://forums.anandtech.com/me ... 2049206&enterthread=y
Quote from Tinytacohead :I saw that one. Bigger's not always better. Anybody have any other reasoning against their 20"?

True that, but in this case it is - I was only going on the grounds of actually having seen them side-by-side at the offices of a client two days ago and having a whole discussion about how he had actually gotten them for the same price but I digress: they are virtually the same, so if $40 makes a difference to you, then definetely go for the 20".

Quote from Forbin :Both of those Samsungs are TN panels. That means they're fast but have pretty horrible colors that change a lot if you move your head even the slightest bit.

Actually, the last part of your statement is reversed - they change colours a bit if you move your head a lot, as in stand up or walk to their side. As for colours they are pretty okay for TFTs if you calibrate them - not anything like some EIZOs I've worked on though.
Quote from xaotik :True that, but in this case it is - I was only going on the grounds of actually having seen them side-by-side at the offices of a client two days ago and having a whole discussion about how he had actually gotten them for the same price but I digress: they are virtually the same, so if $40 makes a difference to you, then definetely go for the 20".

You saw these monitors in person.. how's the color, in terms of what Forbin said? From watching & reading reviews on this particular line of monitors, it's my understanding that they actually have a pretty wide angle of view without the color going nutzo, but I might be misinterpereting things?
2 inches are 2 inches... the advantage of a 22 " is the vertical space you get compared to a 20 " TFT.
Besides, running at 1680x1050 deserves 22"!

Changing colors on TN panels isn´t such a big deal. Mine (Acer2216W) doesn´t change the colors much. Why should you shift your head from left to right all the time?
Quote from xaotik :Actually, the last part of your statement is reversed - they change colours a bit if you move your head a lot, as in stand up or walk to their side.

nah hes correct ... with tn panels at that size its impossible to have the same colours at the top and bottom of the screen unless you place the monitor at a silly distance from your head (like 2 metres)
Quote from Tinytacohead :You saw these monitors in person.. how's the color, in terms of what Forbin said? From watching & reading reviews on this particular line of monitors, it's my understanding that they actually have a pretty wide angle of view without the color going nutzo, but I might be misinterpereting things?

Their contrast is very impressive - colours if uncalibrated are a bit on the blue tint. Calibration sets it right though. There is no extreme colour shifting - you can view them easily at a normal desk-sitting angle and don't have to swivel/pitch them around much if you change your chair height. In general if it's for games only you are set - if it's for graphics design and calibrating for print then it's a different story.
Quote from NikLaw :...Why should you shift your head from left to right all the time?

Angle of view can mean alot depending on seating posistion and who's watching, and from where..
Quote from xaotik :...There is no extreme colour shifting - you can view them easily at a normal desk-sitting angle and don't have to swivel/pitch them around much if you change your chair height...

So lets say I'm sitting a tad below level and off-center with the monitor, still a good purchase?
Quote from Shotglass :nah hes correct ... with tn panels at that size its impossible to have the same colours at the top and bottom of the screen unless you place the monitor at a silly distance from your head (like 2 metres)

Ah, but he's not referring to that effect. Which IMHO is pretty small in modern panels. Not to mention it won't be noticed in games - unless they entail staring at a solid colour screen for hours on end.

Currently I'm using a budget priced 22" BenQ at work (older and much cheaper than those Samsungs Tinytaco mentions) for my primary monitor and it took a while to calibrate properly despite having the ease of it being on DVI, atleast I didn't have to screw around with white balance. Colours are important as I do alot of design work - and since a good percentage of it goes to print I have to at least get colours on a PANTONE scale okay. Granted I work at 1m distance from my monitors, but that's a personal preference, I did the same when working off of CRTs. I can say that on that one the faux-gradient effect it is greatly reduced, I have to actually look for it to notice it, in comparison to an older Samsung 17" I got as a secondary monitor.

Quote from Tinytacohead :So lets say I'm sitting a tad below level and off-center with the monitor, still a good purchase?

Well compared to the screen I use (as mentioned above) those Samsungs are far superior in contrast, so I'd say yes. As a natural born slacker in a reclining chair with a headrest I am mostly below level and since it's a dual screen setup and I use a digitizer tablet on the one side of the desk I have to look at mine at a >15 degree angle almost always and have no such problems with colours.
Maybe it's just me being a long-time CRT user with higher standards than your average LCD buyer, but I find any kind of color variation/gradient extremely irritating, regardless of what I'm doing.
A tad below and left or right isn´t that good, because of the horizontal and vertical color shifting at the same time.

Just tilt the screen towards you will help
someway.
Quote from NikLaw :A tad below and left or right isn´t that good, because of the horizontal and vertical color shifting at the same time.

Well, howabout just a tad below, lol. I have no choice but to sit a smidge under screen heidth and with this old Gateway LCD, darker colors become extreeeemely washed out etc. from it. I fear I'm much like Forbin and just won't be satisfied with any LCD, heh. (short of spending a small fortune I could have just snagged another Trinitron or two for)
Quote from xaotik :Ah, but he's not referring to that effect. Which IMHO is pretty small in modern panels. Not to mention it won't be noticed in games - unless they entail staring at a solid colour screen for hours on end.

granted the monitor i tested is a bit oleder (older ... i wish i had an oled screen) (tn not tn+film iirc) but i did notice it a lot
i prefer to have a solid colour desktop and the grey win95ish theme
regardless of how i sat in front of the thing there wasnt a single second of use in which it wouldnt annoy me that the top of my mirc window had a different gray than the task bar etc
additionally i rarely sit in front of the screen in the exact same way for longer than a few minutes and lull to the sides a lot

tns are just completely rubbish and useless imho ... in fact i do think other than being thin lcds as a whole have nothing against crts
to me crt vs lcd is like showing up to a war wearing boxing gloves
Quote from Forbin :Maybe it's just me being a long-time CRT user with higher standards than your average LCD buyer, but I find any kind of color variation/gradient extremely irritating, regardless of what I'm doing.

Admittedly, the major reason we shifted to LCDs was power consumption, >8 hours per day of multiple CRTs vs multiple LCDs can make a great difference.

Initially I was very very annoyed as well going from an EIZO CRT which used BNC to D15 flat panel which at the time did not impress me in the least - especially considering the VGA->DAC->ADC->LCD redundancy and the hell of calibration. However, after getting to newer panels I can say they are much easier on my eyes* and not as annoying all around - DVI did away with using a usually crappy built-in ADC and made calibration much easier and consistant.

* the office environment is rather well lit and glare was also a problem on CRTs without resorting to curtains - which were timed in a stretegic fashion mind you depending on season.
Here, in this photo you can see just about the angle I am talking about - the tablet is on the right hand, right next to the speaker - there's some brochure on top of it in that pic. I usually just bring it closer and look at the 22" at that angle - the 226bw and 206bw I saw both had a seemingly better viewing angle.
Attached images
desktop.jpg
My NEC 20WMGX2 arrived today. I'm actually quite pleased with it. It's still not a CRT but it'll do until some better technology comes along.
#44 - J.B.
Quote from xaotik :Ah, but he's not referring to that effect. Which IMHO is pretty small in modern panels.

It's not small. I have one of the panels that is praised to death on the review sites (hp w2207) and I have to adjust the monitor height if I lean back in my seat. The problem is vertical, not horizontal.
Quote from Shotglass :...i rarely sit in front of the screen in the exact same way for longer than a few minutes and lull to the sides a lot...

I have some pretty extensive back problems, so I tend to "wander" as well.
Could anyone recommend (from first hand experience) a good quality LCD with a 20 - 24 inch screen? Widescreen is not important but a good resolution and decent colour reproduction are. Mainly for gaming and graphic design work.

Sorry to highjack thread btw... but I'm a tad bewildered by the pros and cons of LCDs- and I'm interested in your opinions.
Long answer:
http://forums.anandtech.com/me ... 2049206&enterthread=y

Short Answer:
NEC 20WMGX2 (or just the 20WGX2, the M just has speakers and other video inputs so you can use it as a TV)

It's probably the most CRT-like LCD I've ever seen. And from what I understand, they're not making it anymore, so whatever is left in the retail channel right now is all that is left, period.
Quote from Forbin :...NEC 20WMGX2 (or just the 20WGX2, the M just has speakers and other video inputs so you can use it as a TV)

It's probably the most CRT-like LCD I've ever seen. And from what I understand, they're not making it anymore, so whatever is left in the retail channel right now is all that is left, period.

Whew, and the first price I came across was $619. For that kinda money I'd rather buy fleet of non wide-screen Trinitrons. Heck, I could have one of those FW900's bought & shipped and still have $200 in my pocket. I'll keep digging, but if that's the general price range, I won't be buying one. Interesting enough, also, all the FW900's I run into for sale seem to be in NJ. I'd be driving over to wherever and picking one up for the prices I've been seeing before shipping. (if I too was in NJ)
Quote from Tinytacohead :I'd rather buy fleet of non wide-screen Trinitrons.

How would you rate Trinitrons (I'm currently bidding on one on ebay for 99p )?

From what I've gathered from my uncle (who's a professional photographer) proper vertical colours are possible on a few LCD screens, only problem is the one he's got set him back (a JVC IIRC) £1200 for a 21" (and he ruled out an Apple screen on grounds of cost :tilt.
Quote from ajp71 :How would you rate Trinitrons (I'm currently bidding on one on ebay for 99p )?

From what I've gathered from my uncle (who's a professional photographer) proper vertical colours are possible on a few LCD screens, only problem is the one he's got set him back (a JVC IIRC) £1200 for a 21" (and he ruled out an Apple screen on grounds of cost :tilt.

IMO there's still nothing better than a flat Trinitron tube. I had a 17" Trinitron monitor for ages that I miss dearly. I've never owned a better monitor. The main TV in my house is a 25" flatscreen Trinitron, and again, it's the best TV I've ever seen. (short of all the new HD etc. stuff that's still completely out of my price range) IMO, you can't go wrong with a Trinitron. Also, the last time I surfed Ebay, there was a FW900 with a Buy It Now of $99 with local pickup only, somewhere in the NJ area. Refurbished, but gauranteed and looked like a steal from my desk.. I also saw one for $149 with $99 shipping, which is what I may eventually go after, since LCD's just seem to pretty well suck, unless you throw gobs of money at them. :sadbanana

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