Monitor madness

[inverseSquare]

Hi all

I’m looking to replace my long-serving 17” crt screen, so I have been looking at the variety of LCD screens that are available and have reached a bit of an impasse.

I generally use my machine for graphics work (photo editing, 3D graphics, etc), but would also want to run games. So decent colour rendition would be important to me (but not £1200-pro-spec-monitor important)

I had been looking through the reviews of the Samsung SM226BW, it seems to be well regarded, offering fast response times and respectable colour display.
So I went to have a quick look at them in the local computer store to check before ordering online The screen looked ok, not as ‘bright’ as the LG screens next to it, but the colour looked ok.

This was before I looked at the whole ‘panel lottery’ issue - http://www.behardware.com/articles/667-1/samsung-226bw-a-and-s-series-the-verdict.html
So I cannot find out what ‘type’ of SM226BW I will be getting before it arrives ? That does seem slightly crazy
Even a high-street store would not be exactly understanding of you asking to connect up a bunch of their stock while you sift through the serial numbers

So, I guess im asking if its worth it ?
Would a different manufacturer offer a better chance of a decent screen ?
I’m seeing good things about the Dell Ultrasharp 2007WFP, but at 20”-widescreen would that not have a smaller screen height than my old 17”crt ? (and that also has a 16ms response time)

Finally, I overheard a store employee mention a replacement to the SM226BW, im guessing that is the SM226CW ?
So what are my chances of getting a ‘samsung’ Samsung SM226CW ? better than the 226BW ? Seems like a crazy question to have to ask

Any input is cheerfully appreciated.
My Budget is £200-300.

Thanks.

 

[inverseSquare]

So all 22" screens will be using the TN type pannel ? I see.


The Dell 2007WFP is 'fairly respectable' for games ? I've only ever played games on a 17" CRT screen, would it be immediately noticeable to me ?

From wikipedia, the entry for the 2007WFP says:
"Serial Number ending with "L" = S-IPS panel. Serial Number ending with "S" = S-PVA panel."
Is there a preferred model ?

What would the height of the panel be on a 20" widescreen ?
I can find numbers for the physical hight of the monitor, but not the screen.


Thanks for your help

 

[inverseSquare]

Many thanks for all the replies

One other question now surfaces
If im looking at the 2007WFP, should i also consider the 2007FP ? Is it basically a non-widecreen version of the same pannel ? Older tech ? poorer performance ?
Just that it would deliver a bit higher res and no possible wide-screen compatibility issues


Thanks again.

 

[inverseSquare]

Also consider the Samsung 215TW

This is a beaut of a 21" screen with a S-PVA samsung panel (no panel lottery)

IMO you won't miss the 1" compared to the 22" TN film panels and I would much rather have the better quality screen.

And can be had for a bargain £170 on the net at the moment.

Thanks, i'll look at the 215TW as well Would you choose it over the 2007WFP / 2007FP ?
Its spec seems very similar to the 2007WFP (the same resolution on a slightly larger panel ?), but the contrast ratio is higher at 1000:1 to the dell's 800:1. Would this be noticeable ?
I see some comments about the dell's lacking a bit of blackpoint detail, would the 215TW fair better ?

On the price, i looked at the 'usual suspects' and found Overclockers to be about the lowest Others were £300+

Thanks.

 

[inverseSquare]

3. You go for a decent 20" panel like the 2007wfp that has no viewing angle issues and has good colour reproduction, yes it's only 20" but it's the same res as a 22" and considering your used to using a 17" crt it will still be a MASSIVE upgrade, you won't be disappointed.

I think thats the one for me, i want quality colour rendition
I'm not totally sold on the whole wide-screen feature though. Surely the 2007FP will provide a higher total res than the 2007WFP ?


Just out of interest, how bad a picture would a 2007FP produce with a 1024x768 input ? Bad, or very bad ?


Is there a reason why the 2007WFP gets all the attention over the 2007FP ? Just the fashion to have a widescreen monitor at the moment ?


There seems to be an old firmware issue with the 2007FP as well. Would i be correct in thinking that monitors bought now would be equipped with the latest firmware (A05 i believe). If not, can it be updated manually ?

Thanks once again.

 

[inverseSquare]

I think the bad news or good if you are loaded,is that the spva 24" screens are the only safe bet.
I have been sold on the dell 2407-hc but won't pay a penny over £400 delivered lol.

Really ? Hmm. Not sure if i really want to spend £400
Are there any smaller panels using the same technology ?