Need some help with picking out a new monitor...

[drbx19]

So I've just built my first gaming PC.. its my first desktop PC in about... 8 years, and so I'm currently using my old monitor, which is literally... *drumroll* 16 inches LOL so now I'd like something in the 24 inch range.

I think I'll go for an LED screen, but how much difference is there really between LEDs and LCDs?

What contrast ratio should I be looking for? Etc

Thanks!

 

[cmndr_andi]

Hi there, Just to clarify LED is also LCD. "LED" just refers to the backlight type (the older, but still widely used backlight technology is CCFL) installed behind the LCD panel.

In the current monitor edge-lit LED backlighting implementation - there is no real image quality benefits going for LED (unlike in TVs which often use a very different LED backlighting tech) - the benefits are a thinner panel and lower power usage.

Therefore I wouldn't suggest picking a new monitor based on whether it is "LED" or not.

May I ask what your budget for a new monitor is and will you be doing much on it apart from gaming?

Also, may I ask what graphics card you are (or will in the near future be) running.

 

[drbx19]

Hi there, Just to clarify LED is also LCD. "LED" just refers to the backlight type (the older, but still widely used backlight technology is CCFL) installed behind the LCD panel.

In the current monitor edge-lit LED backlighting implementation - there is no real image quality benefits going for LED (unlike in TVs which often use a very different LED backlighting tech) - the benefits are a thinner panel and lower power usage.

Therefore I wouldn't suggest picking a new monitor based on whether it is "LED" or not.

May I ask what your budget for a new monitor is and will you be doing much on it apart from gaming?

Also, may I ask what graphics card you are (or will in the near future be) running.

Hey thanks for the response and for clarifying that for me!

My budget is approx. £100 - £200, I am willing to be a bit more flexible but only for increasing the price, I don't want a monitor too cheap.. Then again I am sure there are perfectly good monitors out there below £200...

Apart from gaming? Watching TV shows, movies, erm, internet surfing, word processing, nothing too specialist.

I have a GeForce GTX 460 graphics card

 

[cmndr_andi]

In that case, I would suggest this monitor. It's really great as an all-round monitor thanks to it's excellent quality E-IPS panel, and it performs great in games. Here is an in-depth review.

If you want a much more gaming-focused monitor then the LG W2363D offers a 120Hz refresh rate and really fast response times. However, this uses a TN panel - so the colour accuracy and viewing angles are not nearly as good as the E-IPS panel Dell above. Here is a review.

Personally, I would go with the Dell U2312HM.

 

[drbx19]

I might up my price range...