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General discussion

Monitor, Monitor?Which one is best?

Jan 9, 2006 11:30AM PST

I suggested posting this question to kidpeat.

What does everyone have for a monitor?
Into professional graphics?
How important is having a monitor that shows accurate color and sharpness? Size and cost may be an issue also.

I have a Viewsonic 19" flat screen Graphic Series G90fb at home. The color quality is very, very good. Sharp as a tack. Has color management. Expense was a factor here choosing the Viewsonic also.

At work I have an old 20" Mac that is just junk.
Lousy color, sharpness and really old. Any ideas for replacement?
What does everyone use?
If you had a wish list, what would your choice of a new monitor be?

Thanks,

-Kevin

Discussion is locked

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Samsung SyncMaster 955DF
Jan 29, 2006 1:40PM PST

Samsung SyncMaster 955DF. Has color management, high sync, no flicker and very sharp.

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Samsung
Jan 30, 2006 4:11PM PST

dromel. need more info from you concerning the particulars.
Color management is important. Glad that you have that.
What else?
-Kevin

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Monitor
Feb 1, 2006 12:54PM PST

Got the monitor when I bought the pc, a Dell W2300 23" LCD TV/Monitor. All kinds of hookups, variety of settings and looks good to these old, tired eyes. Res. supposed to go up to 20xx by 15xx and refresh up to 85 hertz. Don't care for the mounted side speakers. Adjusts from 4:3 to 16:9 with it's own remote.

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Thanks
Feb 7, 2006 12:24PM PST

My eyes are weary also. Especially in the evening after a full days work.
Glad to have a better monitor at my home.
I am trying to get an upgrade on my monitor at work. LOL!

A company that my wife works for will be having ninety LCD monitors for sale next month along with ninety PC computers.
The company is moving to new headquarters and will be purchasing all new computers and monitors. The company has their new servers already installed and are running tests at their new site.

Does anyone have expertise with a 17" LCD? Phillips? How good are they? Cost or value?
Should be inexpensive and offered to their employees along with the computer that will have a clean-install done on them. I believe Windows XP.
Think I will replace my old Windows 95 with one of these units to help out my wife who is really a Windows person now. Years back she was a Mac person.
I run a Mac G4 and OSX4.4 at my home base.
Let's face it, the OSX Tiger is completely different from Windows XP.
My wife does not have the expertise to run Tiger platform. She is lost most of the time. Basics she knows.
Nor do I, to run WXP. I am lost also on that one. I am from W95.
Probably take me a few weeks to learn the new OS.

I can have the two computers connected with help from my IT guy. I already have the hardware and software needed.
Wish me luck.

-Kevin

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Luck Kevin
Feb 7, 2006 12:49PM PST

XP is an entirely different world... sort of like mac 8.1 but much more work... Wink

I bought a KDS K-917s 19 inch display for $200.00 after rebates. After calibration for both Apple and XP I am amazed by how much detail it can produce. I think LCD has reached the point where it can function for home use. It doesn't have the saturation of my Sony 17" Trinitron but the detail is very good.

Just to warn you... You can buy E Machine 64 Bit Athlon processors with 15" LCD monitor that have a native 2000 khz bus for around $400.00 after rebates right now. Add $50.00 for an extra 512 of RAM and the performance will amaze you. Unless those work stations are going for next to nothing you might be better off purchasing a new "deal".

XP is amazingly work intensive next to OS 10+ but it will run some fun stuff like Google Earth.

grim

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Used Equipment
Feb 8, 2006 11:34AM PST

Grim, Waiting to hear about the price and what kind of computer.

Three years ago the company decided to sell off all their Macs after only six months. There was a security problem with a former employee.
Hence, the Macs were for sale. The company only had ten Macs. The rest were PCs.
I bought a G4 Quicksilver Server from them that I use presently for $600. The cost of that Mac was originally $2,900.
Cannot beat that purchase at the time.
I think that this group will offer their employees PC's that will be a very, very good value.
The only reason I may be interested is to set up a sharing with the PC and my server with an ASANTE and D-Link connection that I have.
I would also have to purchase all new software for the PC. The units will be sold as a clean-install with Windows XP on them. No software programs at all. That would be a cost factor for me.

I could purchase a Mac mini and do file sharing for a lot less.
My wife has no problem with using MicrosoftX for the Mac.

I will take a wild guess at $100 for the PC unit and a Phillips 17" LCD monitor. Perhaps I will just purchase the 17" LCD monitor. Still early to see what happens.

I will let you know more after I know more what's happening.
Thanks for the info Grim.

-Kevin

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If Pro Graphics....
Feb 13, 2006 8:05AM PST

For starters, I assume that "Old 20" Mac" is a 20" CRT? Yes, it is time to replace it. CRTs are dead!

If color representation is important, you should upgrade to the Apple LCD displays. They have the same actual LCD hardware (the screen itself) as many of the high-end LCD monitors on the market, but they have the added bonus of being SWOP color certified out of the box. So trusted actually, the only adjustment you can make on them (aside from resolution) is brightness. Adjustments can be made digitally with a 3rd party calibrator, but they are great for all but the most elite, high end users (like multi-million-dollar advertising agencies.)

At first glance, they seem very pricey, but if you actually compare, they are quite a value. The key is to not compare the size, but resolution. You can get a very big LCD monitor for a couple hundred bucks, but the resolution is so poor (1280 x 1024 if you're lucky!) that you'll need multiple monitors to get any work done.

Other than those, the Samsung mentioned in another post is a good alternative, but a calibration solution will be necessary to get the color dialed in.

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If Pro Graphics, than my old CRT is dead?
Feb 15, 2006 5:02PM PST

?but still functioning very well.
I do agree with you and a new LCD would be great to have. A new Apple LCD with SWOP color certified would be even better.
However, cost is an issue sometimes for some of us.
What is the actual cost for that 20" monitor from Apple?

A calibration on the monitor is important. X-rite and Pantone have good ones. Any others that you know about?

Samsung. Have to check that monitor out also.
Right now I still like my Viewsonic Graphic Series. Pretty good CRT.
I will check out out the Apple LCDs at my local Apple store. Should be interesting to compare LCDs.
Thanks pepsaholic,

-Kevin