Good choice for cheap monitor or LCD...

[Santilli]

Hi
I'm looking for a cheap monitor or something like a cheap LCD really, that still uses the standard output from video cards, for a pc.

Any ideas?

gs

 

[blakerwry]

i dunno if cheap and LCD go together... $200 at a minimum.. $300-400 for a decent one.

 

[Santilli]

I kind of was afraid that's still the case from looking at Costco.

I've been looking at 21 inch Hitachis, and with ebay prices, that maybe the way to go.

Only problem is I can't find any bay area sellers...

s

 

[Pradeep]

If you are looking at 21" CRTs then I believe Mitsubishi is the way to go. But perhaps not in your price range.

Dell Business has 25% off select LCD panels too:

Dell UltraSharp 1800FP 18" Digital LCD = $449 (320-0469)

Dell UltraSharp 1702FP 17" Digital LCD = $434 (320-4106)

Dell E171FP 17" Analog 1280x1024 LCD = $374 (320-0657)

From bensbargains.net

 

[Santilli]

Thanks

500 bucks is to much for me right now, at least for this project.

Maybe a better switching box is the answer. Noticeable difference after
taking the box out, and going direct to the monitor.

I so hate having good quality 2d cards, and having the box muck up the video quality.

gs

 

[blakerwry]

what resolution do you run?

 

[Santilli]

800 to 1024, or even 1154 once in awhile.

Are the flat panels stuck at one resolution?

s

 

[blakerwry]

wow, I was expecting some ungodly num ber.. maybe 1600x1200...

if you're running 1280x1024 or less then I can guarantee that any belkin omniview KVM should be more than adaquate.

I'm using an older one (it was succeded by the omniview classic 4 port ps/2 KVM) and the quality at 1280x1024 on my Samsung LCD is good.

I am going to get a vid card supporting DVI though, so i don't know how much I'll be using the KVM after that.


I think I got the KVM and 2 sets of cables (belkin pro cables) for under $45 after shipping.

I would recomend something newer though.. like the SOHO omniviews with audio. And something that specifically supports the microsoft intellimouse emulation.

The omniview SE for instance. Supports upto 1600x1200 and is available in 2 or 4 port models.

 

[blakerwry]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3039138566&category=28024

buy it now for $12

 

[blakerwry]

oh.. flat panels run at any resolution up to their max just like a CRT..

However, when the image is having to be resized it often gets a bit blurry or blocky. So running the LCD at its "native" resolution (the one it was designed to run best at) will ensure no resizing and the image should be pixel perfect.

 

[Santilli]

You got me thinking. With reading glasses, 1280 x 1024 is pretty cool.

In quake 3, it's real clear, and fast enough to enjoy, though I'm at the end of the game, and the 3d guy keeps kicking my ass...

s
Plenty of real estate to work with, too.

 

[Santilli]

In other words, Xaero owns me :boom: :bibber: :monky:

 

[Santilli]

Can't see the icons at 1200 have to go to 1154.

gs

 

[Pradeep]

With an LCD panel, there is one native resolution and thats usually 1280*1024 for the 17-18" panels, and 1024*768 for the 15" ones. Keep in mind that native LCD rez looks bloody brilliant, whereas running a CRT at it's max rez will often result in a blurry eye killing mess, simply because it is not physically capable of displaying all the data.

BTW Greg, running 1280*1024 on a CRT monitor is going to cause circles to become ovals (aspect ratio is screwed up slightly). The LCD panels that run 1280*1024 are shaped to fit.

 

[blakerwry]

There's also the point about refresh rate.. running in analog mode you'll notice that running most LCDs at 70Hz is blurry, while running at 60Hz sharpens things up alot. This only applies to analog of course.

 

[CougTek]

There's no point in a refresh rate above 60Hz for a LCD.

 

[Pradeep]

There's no point in a refresh rate above 60Hz for a LCD.

Once quicker response times are wide spread with LCD panels, then an increase from the current 60Hz DVI provides would be handy.

 

[blakerwry]

I was thinking the same thing while writing my post... current response times are quickly passing 60Hz. (isn't 16ms = 62Hz?)