Monitor upgrade decision

Podmonkey

Podmonkey

Podmonkey

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22 Jul 2010
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1,369
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Sheffield
Hey,

I have decided its upgrade time for my monitor. Its ok and does the job but want something new and better.

my current monitor is the BenQ GW2760HM (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MO-083-BQ&groupid=17&catid=1120)

I am torn as to which upgrade path to choose between going either 29" super widescreen or sticking at 27" but going for 1440p. I mainly use it for gaming (FPS (SP + MP), RPG, Racing, FPS... pretty much most genres) and general internet use. No graphic design or work stuff on this PC.

The 2 Monitors that I am looking at that fall into my budget are:

The LG Flatron 29UM65-P (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MO-109-LG&groupid=17&catid=1120)

or

The Samsung S27A850TS (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MO-167-SA&groupid=17&catid=1120)

I would appreciate anyone with some knowledge on the subject or might have done the same thing recently could say which one would be the biggest or most noticeable upgrade for my usage.

I can wait so the fact that the Samsung is only pre-order currently isnt an issue.

(typing bits of this at work in between jobs so apologies if some bits dont make complete sense)
 
One factor, which might instantly rule out the 29" for you will be the vertical height:

http://www.displaywars.com/27-inch-16x9-vs-29-inch-21x9

Unfortunately there aren't any "proper" reviews on either of those "specific" monitors so it will be very hard to say which one is better in certain areas. There are reviews for similar models by the same manufacturer but again, you will need to take them with a pinch of salt:

http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews/samsung_s27a850d.htm

And for the LG 29", these are about as good as you are going to get:


http://www.anandtech.com/show/6741/lg-29ea93-monitor-review-rev-125 (1-2 year older than the 29um65)

And my own brief review on the 29um65:

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showpost.php?p=26626342&postcount=2067
 
Cheers for the very thorough response. After reading through your review, I have to say I am leaning more towards the LG as the images look gorgeous (as in your review).

I know I will be losing around 5cm or something from the height (estimated and not taking in to account the thickness of the bezel). The only worry I have is on compatibility with games and those that dont support that resolution (i.e. dark souls 2 which I couldnt play offline so cant use the widescreen fix), just how noticeable is it and how fequently with games would that be an issue?
 
No problem and thanks! Glad you like my photos :D They really don't do the monitor image quality any justice though. These are probably the best photos I have taken of the monitor:

yJfPxoxh.jpg


4eOXzzZh.jpg
mrk has also done a brief review of the 29EB53 with much better photos:

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/sh...highlight=2560x1080+username_mrk#post26477615


I don't play a huge range of games but there have only been a few games where there hasn't been any support for 21.9, recent ones where I have had to use flawless widescreen or a config file tweak are:

- dead rising 3
- vanishing of ethan carter (iirc this might have been updated though)

If a game doesn't have any support at all then you will have black bars at the side and so it will be like playing on a 23" 1920x1080 monitor

Best to just google the games you play along with "21.9 support" and you will see if it has support or if not done already, install flawless widescreen and have a look at the description for the games to see what they had to change. Some games will have 21.9 support, however, the HUD i.e. health bar might be in the centre of the screen, which flawless widescreen also adjusts.
 
Cheers again for the detailed response. Pretty much made my mind up on the LG I think.

Larger screen, games look amazing with the extra width, compatibility doesnt seem much of an issue and can make do on the games that do crop up an issue. Plus it wont kill performance on my little overclocked 7870 (soon to be upgraded but still...).

Cheers for the help dude.
 
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