Best panel/monitor for image editing??

guernseydan · 7 Nov 2006 at 09:34

Hi guys

I just wanted to ask what peoples opinions are on the best panel/tft to get if your primary use is photo editing? I also play games but that is less critical to me. My 19" CRT is on it's last legs so the change is needed now.

I was looking at the £300 max (ex VAT) with a 20-22" display, sadly writing off larger 24" models.

At the moment I have pre-ordered the 22" Belinea but I now have some concerns over the panel it uses. I will mainly be the only person viewing the screen so are my worries over the TN-Film viewing angle unnecessary? Is it able to display, without fancy FRC or dithering effects, the true colour depth at 24 bit? Will it be much of a problem if it doesn't?

Any recommendations on any other monitors on here and why??

Any help would be appreciated!

Dan

Baddass · 7 Nov 2006 at 18:34

Well while you don't have to worry too much about viewingg angles from TN Film if it's just you using the screen, I would suggest models using this technology are not really suited to your needs sadly. They don't offer a true 8 bit colour depth, you'd be better looking at MVA/PVA or IPS based models tbh if you can. Sadly your budget doesn't allow much room. If the work is really critical in terms of colour accuracy then a good cRT might be a better option. If you want to look for a TFT models using MVA/PVA or IPS would be better than TN Film due to improved colour depth and black depth. No need for dithering methods in the majority of these either.

Do you have a hardware calibration tool as well to ensure colour accuracy? If not, then all this is much of a muchness really since you won't necessarily get the best out of the screens in terms of colour reproduction.

guernseydan · 7 Nov 2006 at 20:51

Thanks for the response.

I do use a Spyder 2 colour calibrator so yes the colour depth is probably my limiting factor with the tft I choose. Guess the Belinea, although probably a cracking gaming monitor, would be a little bit of a drop in quality for my needs.

Are there any decent, non TN panels at all within my price range? 20" would be more than adequate for my needs as I will probably, in the long run, get a dual monitor setup.

Anyone else got any recommendations?

Ta!

Baddass · 7 Nov 2006 at 22:39

if you have a colorimeter then at least you should be able to get some good performance out of your screen. Interestingly even modern TN Film panels can offer some impressive colour accuracy and gamut space coverage. Take a look at the calibration info in this review for the Samsung SM205BW for instance:

after calibration the deltaE values are very low and impressive for TN Film. Black depth is good, and there's a good coverage of the sRGB gamut space. Modern TN Film panels can produce 16.7 million colours, but are not true 8 bit depth. Seeing as you have a budget which affords you a choice, it would be better to look at some other technologies imo for your use.

The S-IPS panels are good in terms of colour accuracy, and are the choice of most professional colour enthusiast displays (just look at the NEC and LaCie range for instance). You might want to have a look at some of their models to see if any fit in your budget as they are good choices for this use.

From the OcUK range you could consider the Dell 2007WFP perhaps which is in your range and uses an S-IPS panel.

evapor8 · 9 Jan 2007 at 18:47

Whilst I assume that all monitors will be slightly different, can you create an "ideal" ICC for the Samsung SM205BW and make it available?

Whilst not created by calibrating my particular tft, this would still be an improvement on the out-of-the-box settings, yes?

Chris

Baddass · 9 Jan 2007 at 19:18

evapor8 said:
Whilst I assume that all monitors will be slightly different, can you create an "ideal" ICC for the Samsung SM205BW and make it available?

Whilst not created by calibrating my particular tft, this would still be an improvement on the out-of-the-box settings, yes?

Chris

it may be an improvement, but it really can vary a lot. I dont have the Sm205BW any more (it was a review sample only) but I do still have the old profile. Drop me an email (in sig) and I can send it to you to try. Problem is that the profile is only one aspect of it, using a colorimeter helps you set up the screen RGB settings too....feel free to try it though if you want

evapor8 · 11 Jan 2007 at 21:47

Baddass said:
it may be an improvement, but it really can vary a lot. I dont have the Sm205BW any more (it was a review sample only) but I do still have the old profile. Drop me an email (in sig) and I can send it to you to try. Problem is that the profile is only one aspect of it, using a colorimeter helps you set up the screen RGB settings too....feel free to try it though if you want

Tft arrived today mate. Looks great to me.

Email sent though.

Chris

Baddass · 12 Jan 2007 at 08:18

replied

tsinc80697 · 12 Jan 2007 at 19:26

what monitor did you go for in the end?
I'm after a similar priced monitor, maybe stretch to £450 at most, mainly used for photo and video editing and movies.