24" HD monitor below 550 EUR

[ChinaMark]

Yeah I probably wouldn't even notice if there was anything out of the oridnary unless I'd read that article in the first place so I'll just have to wait and see what it is when it's delivered. Any problems or returns won't be a problem as it's a friend of a friend and cash payment after delivery and after everything's been checked.
Should be here in the next day or two so I'll let you know how it all works out.

[ChinaMark]

Well I'm going to assume I got an "S" panel because straight out of the box the colours were stunning, in my eyes anyway...certainly no expert! There was no sticker on the back and when I called up the hidden menu, the line below where it says Genesis was blank so I can only assume that there isn't a "3 different panel" issue anymore and no need to specify.

I may be wrong, but at the end of the day I am thrilled with it Going from a 15in to 22in is amazing and everytime I look at it, I'm like "WOW!!" Photoshop is like a whole new program now....so much space on the screen and no more continually zooming in and out all the time. Aside from how they look, with the faster processor and the extra ram, they run like a dream. I was doing some HDRs the other day using 3 raw images and doing the aligning and tone mapping, everything in Photomatix and it was taking 12 minutes from start to finish. Yesterday it took me less than 2 minutes!! Incredible!

As I still don't have a proper broadband internet connection in the house yet, I'm going between a laptop with a 14in screen with a wireless internet connection and then going back to my new setup and it blows me away! My main job involves editing English documents translated from Chinese and having them blown up huge on my new screen makes it a sheer joy to work

Dug out some old games that would never run properly on my old PC, even with all the special effects deselected. Installed Tomb Raider Legend yesterday on the new one and with everything cranked up it runs seamlessly and looks stunning. It's going to be hard to tear myself away from the PC now

[zorro]

Congratulations mate, glad you're happy. Wait until you watch a movie.

Zorro

[Kenneth Skou]

The discussion about monitors is eerily similar to many discussions people might have about photos.

I've heard the panel-story elsewhere as well, but have no clue whether there's anything of substance to it.

I try to buy monitors that my eyes enjoy looking at, because I know that my eyes and the lights in the room I'm working on it, are all different from the test-lab and their scientific eyes.

A similar approach governs my lens purchases. My eyes put it all in proportion and perspective, so to speak.

Imagine if prescriptions for eye wear/glasses weren't individualized?

Cheers

[raymo]

The different panel types really are a big deal, particularly for us photographers.

Cheaper panel technologies can have very poor colour reproduction and or colour shifting (where the colours change as you look from an angle). The vast, vast majority of LCDs purchased today have bottom end panels; most are TN. If you want good colour accuracy, steer clear of these panels. Unfortunately, this means spending close to double as much.. but the difference really is night and day.

Look for IPS and VA (incl. MVA, PVA) panels. The high quality panels are mainly VA, and the premium quality panels are often IPS I think.

I have a Dell 2408WFP and am extremely happy with it. It has an S-PVA panel, giving excellent colour accuracy (and true 8 bit colour).
Unfortunately, this panel has a terrible input lag (not response time; input lag is lag caused by the image processor, and not the panel cells) of ~60ms, making it a poor choice for gaming (alternative brand offerings are half that, at ~30ms). Apart from that, it's a gem.

tftcentral.co.uk FAQ - good FAQ
LCD24-7.info - great site for looking up specs of 24 inch monitors

[Kenneth Skou]

Just picked up the Samsung SyncMaster 245BW - a 24" wide.

Cost 350$ (CDN) and I thought that was very decent. Has a swivel-stand that's easy to rotate.

In a purely un-scientific fashion I deem that it shows images quite nicely @ 1900X1200.

Certainly fast enough to game with too and a 3000:1 contrast rate which is almost too much for my eyes..had to dial back the settings....but would work well in a brightly lit area.

I've no reservations about recommending that monitor to anyone...

Cheers

[Displaced]

there is a lot of truth behind the 226BW panel "debate".

I bought 2 226BW's at the same time for my dual monitor setup.

one has an A panel, the other has an S panel.
Colors are completely different, the S panel does not bleed, and the A panel gtg time is significantly longer.

i.e. playing games or watching movies on the S panel is fine, on the A panel you have significant ghosting.

needless to say, the A panel went back a few days later.

[Paukl]

Sorry to open up an old topic again, but it seems to be the right place.
I found these 2 very cheap on the internet:

Samsung Syncmaster 2343BW for 200 euros
Samsung Syncmaster 2343NW for 161

both are 23 inch and have a resolution of 2048x1152
I don't know the difference between them but this sounds like a very good price.
Any ideas?

[raymo]

I just looked those monitors up on TFT central (see my earlier post). I found the BW but not the NW. The BW seems to have a TN panel. Photographers should spend more to get a quality panel. TN sucks for colour accuracy.

2048x1152 is a strange resolution and ratio. 3x2 (DSLR) photos would have lots of wasted space on the left and right.

I recommend a 24" premium panel running 1920x1200. Have you considered the Dell 2408WFP? It's not that new anymore and will probably be superceded with a 2409WFP soon, but it's still a fantastic monitor.

[grahamnp]

2048x1152 is 16:9 which is quickly becoming the new standard (unfortunately) for computer monitors. Probably not the best ratio but it's quite common now although they rarely exceed 1920x1080.

[DD_nVidia]

I'd buy a 16:10 only. I fit a 3:2 photo perfectly and my lightroom develop tab at the right. Shoot MF and I can fit my left and right tabs in.