22" Widescreen Monitor Advice

Marcao · Post by **Marcao** » 2007-10-24 11:47am

Heya Guys:

It is becoming more readily apparent to me that my old Viewsonic CRT is on its last legs. As a result of this, I am contemplating getting my hands on a new monitor and I am currently leaning towards a widescreen LCD. Unfortunately, while I am usually fairly decent about hardware knowledge monitors are one of those peripherals I know very little about. I have been doing some research on my own visiting sites such as tomshardware and behardware. Currently, there are two potential candidates for my monitor upgrade.

1. Samsung 226CW

http://www.samsung.com/ca/products/moni ... sfvxaa.asp

2. Viewsonic VX2240W

http://www.viewsonic.com/products/lcddi ... s/VX2240w/

According to this article in Behardware, Viewsonic's policy pertaining to dead pixels seems to be more customer friendly than the one from Samsung.

http://www.behardware.com/articles/666- ... -2007.html

As such, I am currently leaning towards the Viewsonic. Any thoughts or comments on these aforementioned monitors?

thanks in advance!

InnocentBystander · Post by **InnocentBystander** » 2007-10-24 04:21pm

My roommate has an Acer AL2223Wd; I can't find any fault with it, and its very cheap (~$250).

phongn · Post by **phongn** » 2007-10-24 04:44pm

The AnandTech LCD Thread is an excellent resource on LCDs.

Ace Pace · Post by **Ace Pace** » 2007-10-24 04:44pm

Xbit labs did a check of seven 22 inch models[/url].

The conclusion to my today’s tests is not an encouraging one. There is none among the half a dozen 22” monitors I have tested that does not have this or that serious drawback.

First of all, monitors with this screen diagonal are currently produced with TN matrixes only. It means that if you want a monitor with really large viewing angles you’ll have to consider 20-21” or 23-24” models.

Secondly, all the manufacturers released 22” monitors without response time compensation at first (monitors with this screen diagonal have appeared but recently, so the tested monitors mostly belong to the first wave of such products). They have a specified response time of 5 milliseconds as measured according to the ISO 13406-2 standard, i.e. on a black-white transition. Such matrixes are actually not very fast and have an average response of 15-17 milliseconds with a maximum of over 30 milliseconds. This makes them less suitable for dynamic games.

And finally, all the tested models have gross problems with color reproduction setup. TN matrixes are not actually meant for professional work with images, yet I think a home monitor must deliver true-to-life colors instead of queerly shaped gamma curves and a color temperature dispersion of 2000-3000K.

These drawbacks may be corrected in later revisions of the reviewed models and there’ll be leaders and outsiders then, but so far I have to confess that none of them is free from defects.

Choosing from the available products, the Dell E228WFP and Samsung SyncMaster 225BW look best among RTC-less models (such models are limited to text processing tasks and suit but poorly for games). They are neat and nice-looking, with convenient ergonomics and acceptable setup quality.

If you want to have a home monitor capable of handling dynamic games, you may want to consider the two models on fast matrixes, LG Flatron L226WTQ and Samsung SyncMaster 226BW. The former might be called the leader among the two if it were not for its high level of RTC errors. Its excellent speed is accompanied with strong visual artifacts you can easily see not only in games but also at everyday work. The SyncMaster 226BW has a worse color reproduction setup but it can be corrected more or less successfully by tweaking the settings of the monitor and graphics card whereas the problem with strong RTC artifacts cannot be solved. That’s why the model from Samsung is preferable to the Flatron.

Uraniun235 · Post by **Uraniun235** » 2007-10-24 04:55pm

Yeah, when I looked into getting my LCD monitor I thought at first I'd want a 22", but I decided to go with a 20" and I've been really happy with it.

Arthur_Tuxedo · Post by **Arthur_Tuxedo** » 2007-10-24 04:56pm

InnocentBystander wrote:My roommate has an Acer AL2223Wd; I can't find any fault with it, and its very cheap (~$250).

I'm reading this on that exact model, and it's a fantastic monitor.

Stark · Post by **Stark** » 2007-10-24 05:06pm

I have the AU version of the Samsung 226CW, and it's great. Not as good as my awesome Samsung 19" I used to have, but I don't notice the difference.

Enigma · Post by **Enigma** » 2007-10-24 05:59pm

Arthur_Tuxedo wrote:
InnocentBystander wrote:My roommate has an Acer AL2223Wd; I can't find any fault with it, and its very cheap (~$250).
I'm reading this on that exact model, and it's a fantastic monitor.

Same here but I have a question. Is it HD compatible?

Stark · Post by **Stark** » 2007-10-24 06:07pm

I worry about you sometimes.

That Acer looks kind of naff statwise: 5ms response, 300cd, 800:1 contrast. Sure it's cheap, but it has BUILT IN SPEAKERS, urgh. Is it an older model?

Lonestar · Post by **Lonestar** » 2007-10-24 06:09pm

Uraniun235 wrote:Yeah, when I looked into getting my LCD monitor I thought at first I'd want a 22", but I decided to go with a 20" and I've been really happy with it.

I got a 21.6" Samsung, myself. Saved a bundle and since I went from a 17" it's still a huge leap for me.

Enigma · Post by **Enigma** » 2007-10-24 06:26pm

Stark wrote:I worry about you sometimes.

That Acer looks kind of naff statwise: 5ms response, 300cd, 800:1 contrast. Sure it's cheap, but it has BUILT IN SPEAKERS, urgh. Is it an older model?

I worry about myself too.

(well kinda joking).

All I know that my monitor is an Acer AL2223W. I bought it almost a year ago.

Stark · Post by **Stark** » 2007-10-24 06:28pm

Really? I found plenty of info on the 'AL2223Wd', so maybe it's a submodel or something.

Laughing Mechanicus · Post by **Laughing Mechanicus** » 2007-10-24 07:02pm

I'm planning on ordering this when I get paid, I've got a cheap Samsung 19" at the moment so it should be a nice upgrade. Luckily the place I'm buying from has no problem replacing monitors that have even single dead pixels, so I don't need to worry about Samsung themselves being twats about it.

It really staggers me that companies are trying to get away with forcing consumers to 'just live with' dead pixels. I suppose many people won't notice them until it's too late to do anything about it, but the first thing I do whenever I get anything with an LCD screen is load up a full screen white image, followed by some other colours and an LCD 'stress test' animation to try and force out any problems immediately.

I guess I'm just unlucky with dead pixels as I've had a DS, a PSP and two different monitors with them.

Stark · Post by **Stark** » 2007-10-24 07:10pm

Why would Samsung be 'twats' when they have a ZERO-DEAD PIXEL WARRANTY?

Even Nintendo lets you return DS's with dead pixels: my sister went through three before she got one she liked. Try reading warranties, eh?

That monitor looks like the same 226C/BW 22", with slightly worse contrast. Is it just the UK version, or is it a newer model?

Arthur_Tuxedo · Post by **Arthur_Tuxedo** » 2007-10-24 10:27pm

Enigma wrote:
Arthur_Tuxedo wrote:
InnocentBystander wrote:My roommate has an Acer AL2223Wd; I can't find any fault with it, and its very cheap (~$250).
I'm reading this on that exact model, and it's a fantastic monitor.
Same here but I have a question. Is it HD compatible?

It has 1 DVI and 1 VGA connector, so it's not really setup to be used as a PC monitor and HDTV simultaneously unless you're using your PC as your TV like me, or you hook up the PC via VGA and use an HDMI->DVI converter for your calbe box / DVD player / whatever.

Enigma · Post by **Enigma** » 2007-10-24 11:21pm

Arthur_Tuxedo wrote:It has 1 DVI and 1 VGA connector, so it's not really setup to be used as a PC monitor and HDTV simultaneously unless you're using your PC as your TV like me, or you hook up the PC via VGA and use an HDMI->DVI converter for your calbe box / DVD player / whatever.

I was thinking more of the way of watching HD movies, whether this monitor is capable of utilizing HD because according to the monitor setup, if the monitor isn't HD compatible and I play a HD movie I could screw it up. But I do not know whether this monitor is HD compatible.

EDIT: Nevermind, the monitor is HD compatible(HDCP).

Laughing Mechanicus · Post by **Laughing Mechanicus** » 2007-10-25 02:10am

Stark wrote:Why would Samsung be 'twats' when they have a ZERO-DEAD PIXEL WARRANTY? Even Nintendo lets you return DS's with dead pixels: my sister went through three before she got one she liked. Try reading warranties, eh?

That monitor looks like the same 226C/BW 22", with slightly worse contrast. Is it just the UK version, or is it a newer model?

That's what I thought too - but the article in the OP states differently on this page.

And that monitor is a newer model, it was only released a few weeks ago here as far as I can tell.

Arthur_Tuxedo · Post by **Arthur_Tuxedo** » 2007-10-25 10:51pm

Enigma wrote:
Arthur_Tuxedo wrote:It has 1 DVI and 1 VGA connector, so it's not really setup to be used as a PC monitor and HDTV simultaneously unless you're using your PC as your TV like me, or you hook up the PC via VGA and use an HDMI->DVI converter for your calbe box / DVD player / whatever.
I was thinking more of the way of watching HD movies, whether this monitor is capable of utilizing HD because according to the monitor setup, if the monitor isn't HD compatible and I play a HD movie I could screw it up. But I do not know whether this monitor is HD compatible.

EDIT: Nevermind, the monitor is HD compatible(HDCP).

HDCP stands for High Definition Content Protection, not HD compatible. Anything that can display an HD image is "HD compatible", so I assumed you were talking about having the right inputs to hook up an HD player.

Enigma · Post by **Enigma** » 2007-10-25 11:18pm

Arthur_Tuxedo wrote:<snip>HDCP stands for High Definition Content Protection, not HD compatible. Anything that can display an HD image is "HD compatible", so I assumed you were talking about having the right inputs to hook up an HD player.

More like will it display HD content in HD or will it mess up the monitor.

Arthur_Tuxedo · Post by **Arthur_Tuxedo** » 2007-10-25 11:36pm

Enigma wrote:
Arthur_Tuxedo wrote:<snip>HDCP stands for High Definition Content Protection, not HD compatible. Anything that can display an HD image is "HD compatible", so I assumed you were talking about having the right inputs to hook up an HD player.
More like will it display HD content in HD or will it mess up the monitor.

Its native res is 1680 x 1050, and I'm not sure whether or not it will downscale a 1080P signal or just give a blank screen since I've never tried it, but it will definitely display a 720P or 480P signal. Not 480i, though, so don't try feeding it a regular TV signal. Anyway, it doesn't keep aspect ratios and doesn't have a lot of inputs, so I wouldn't really try to use it as an HDTV. It's more or less strictly a PC monitor.

Enigma · Post by **Enigma** » 2007-10-27 09:03pm

I've got another question about my monitor. Is it necessary to have both DVI and VGA plugged into the computer or is DVI good enough?

phongn · Post by **phongn** » 2007-10-27 09:04pm

Enigma wrote:I've got another question about my monitor. Is it necessary to have both DVI and VGA plugged into the computer or is DVI good enough?

Just DVI.

Enigma · Post by **Enigma** » 2007-10-27 09:24pm

phongn wrote:
Enigma wrote:I've got another question about my monitor. Is it necessary to have both DVI and VGA plugged into the computer or is DVI good enough?
Just DVI.

Ahh. Another question, I bought a PS3 from ebay and should be getting it next week so I was wondering can I hook it up to the monitor? Is there a way to share the monitor with the pc?

Stark · Post by **Stark** » 2007-10-27 10:18pm

Since people just told you it will accept 720p and maybe 1080p, why do you even have to ask? You'll need a VGA cable which will look like poo, though. Some monitors (usually 24"+) come with a full set of inputs (VGA, HDMI, YbPr, etc) rather than just the two traditional computer inputs so they'd be easier.

And 'share'? You mean use on both at once? *WHY*?

Glocksman · Post by **Glocksman** » 2007-10-27 11:15pm

Stark wrote:Since people just told you it will accept 720p and maybe 1080p, why do you even have to ask? You'll need a VGA cable which will look like poo, though. Some monitors (usually 24"+) come with a full set of inputs (VGA, HDMI, YbPr, etc) rather than just the two traditional computer inputs so they'd be easier.

And 'share'? You mean use on both at once? *WHY*?

Hopefully he means just connect the PS3 to one input and the PC to the other input and avoid the hassle of switching cables.

I do the same thing on my Dell 2007.
I have the DVI input connected to my desktop PC, while the VGA is connected to the docking station for my D820 Laptop.
It's nice to be able to pop the laptop into the docking station, press the source select button on the monitor, and switch my USB hub (the keyboard and mouse are plugged into it) to the docking station's USB port, and be able to run my laptop as a desktop machine.