|
Here are the key specs to look at on an LCD monitor beyond the size and price....
--Brightness. You want no less than 200 cd/m2, and 250 or higher looks *much* better.
--Contrast. Look for 350:1 or better.
And if you're serious about video games, also look for a response time of 25 ms or less. On really fast games, especially with a good video card, you'll get ghosting if it's too slow.
Beyond that, name brand reliability is something to consider if you expect to get at least a couple of years of service out of it. Also ask yourself how many bad pixels you can stand.
In my experience, the no-names are definitely more prone to develop bad pixels. When this happens, you have a little dot somewhere on the screen that always stays the same color. Depending on where it is it can range from a minor annoyance to something that'll drive you batshit.
Samsung is producing arguably the best LCDs right now. Although for what their best 17" costs, you can pickup an extra inch and get an 18" NEC. You give up some performance, but you gain an extra inch.
And who couldn't use an extra inch?
|