Hi all,

I'm looking for a 24" or larger widescreen LCD which I will use mainly for gaming, coding, web browsing and some movie watching on my PC and I also would like to use the display for my Xbox 360 preferably in 1080p (although I hear 1080i apparently is pretty damn similar quality the majority of the time).

My first choice was the Dell 2407WFP-HC which seemed perfect until I found out about the inverse ghosting which from all accounts sounds like it would annoy the hell out of me so I canceled my order.

I then (and this is still my choice at the moment) changed the previous order to the 27" 2707WFP Dell monitor. It costs a bit more but I am willing to pay extra if its going to suit my needs well. The one negative thing I have heard about this monitor is that it does not display a 1080i signal in 1:1 aspect ratio properly (in VGA or Component). Apparently it compresses the image and adds black bars down the sides as well as above and below. This of course would only affect my Xbox 360 usage but I would still like to know the extent of this problem and if other users find it annoying enough to suggest not purchasing the monitor.

I am planing on using DVI for the PC and VGA or Component (which ever works/looks better) for the 360. I am not worried too much about the large pixel pitch of the 27" either since I use a 19" monitor which has only slightly smaller pitch at the moment and I have no problem with it.

If anyone can confirm the 2707WFP is a good choice for my needs or if not recommend a better alternative that would be great (I live in New Zealand though so my choices are slightly limited, no LGs for instance). If you don't think the 27" would suit could you please say in which ways it would not be a good choice.

I do have full access to all the Samsung monitors and have heard good things about all of the 245bw, the 244t and the 275t so if any of these would serve my needs better please explain why.

Thanks a lot to anyone who answers, I have been trying to decide on this for ages so if I could come to a decision that would be great.

For 24" monitors, I would probably recommend the BenQ FP241W or the FP241WZ (which supports 1:1 pixel mapping).

The NEC 2490WUXi would be at the top of my list, but it costs in excess of $1,000.

As for something bigger than 24", I would recommend the NEC 2690WUXi (what I got), and is in excess of $1,200 the last time I checked. I am quite satisfied, but there have been reports that consumers generally have less issues with the NEC 2490WUXi.

I'm kinda tempted to buy another NEC 2690WUXi for dual display setup.

it's so worth it... although its hard to imagine the real estate you'll have with 2 26"'s heh. post a pic if u do!

How do you know which monitors support 1:1?

I was playing with a Gateway FHD2400 at BB and dropped it down from 1920 x 1200 to 1920×1080 and the screen stayed full size but text sort of got blurry. I think it was connected via DVI but I forgot to check. I assume connected via HDMI that the screen wouldn't be blurry.

Here is a review on the monitor:
http://www.extremetech.com/article [...] 613,00.asp

Only way to tell is by doing research or testing the actual monitor. I would suspect the Gateway FHD2400 does not support 1:1 pixel mapping.

You will need to go into the monitors OSD menu and see if you can find a sub-menu that allows you to adjust the displayed image. It might be under "Advanced Options", or something similar.

My NEC has the aspect ratio control under "Expansion" with Full Screen (FUL), aspect ratio (ASP), and off (OFF) options.

Actually, there is a firmware update for the FP241W that supports 1:1 pixel mapping. All new ones ship with the update.

I've read that people are still recieving the BenQ FP241W with the original firmware of November 2006.

1:1 pixel mapping is supported by the introduction firmware date of January 2007. In case people are wondering, the only to update the firmware is to send the monitor to BenQ; they may or may not charge an upgrade fee and you will most likely have to pay shipping charges both ways.

When searching Newegg and researching monitors - what's the quickest way to know if an lcd monitor is using TN technology or not? I'm a noob but we are recommended to avoid TN right - if we are willing to pay?
I'm looking for a couple of 24" for web design/gaming etc.
Cheers.

24" monitors using TN panels will have a response time of 5ms (or less). Their viewing angles will also be 160 degrees.

24" monitors using P-MVA, S-PVA, H-IPS have response time of 6ms or slower, and viewing angels of 178 degrees.

Based on Newegg's current stock of 24" monitors, the least expensive 24" non-TN panel you can buy is the Westinghouse L2410NM for $350 after a mail-in rebate.

This monitor does not have a DVI-D connection; something that would be a requirement for me.

This is pure speculation on my part, but I think Westinghouse purchases batches of S-PVA panels that fails certain quality control tests done by more established name brands like Samsung, HP, Dell, etc. Instead of simply trashing those below average S-PVA panels, they are sold at a lower price point.

The next cheapest non-TN panel 24" LCD monitor is the Planar PX2411W which is priced at $590.

Thanks jaguarskx.

I've read a few posts and you seem to know what you are talking about so cheers.

I do like games but I study web design too. So I would like a decent enough mix of both requirements. I am prepared to save for a decent monitor (I'll have to try just 1 first) but wouldn't go past $1000 at this stage per monitor.

So if any other suggestions spring to mind, I'll check them out. Unfortunately, I'm in Japan so I use newegg for research and reasonable prices but then have to get my mind and wallet around sites like these http://shop.tsukumo.co.jp/ / http://www.sofmap.com/ and I can't read them almost at all. (Things are more expensive here compared to Newegg)

For the past 3.5 years I've used this http://www.hyundaiq.com/pro_L90D.asp which has been ok and even seemed good enough for gaming most times. I just want something bigger for more real estate. 2 monitors for me seems good also for watching video tutorials on one and the app in the other.

Thanks. Grant

ps. Not wishing to hijack the thread but it's all 24" related.

Bit of a Noob question here, but the post before the one quoted said if you can afford it you would stay clear of TN panels, but your post here seems to list TN panels as having faster response and only a slightly worse viewing angle. If a gamer were after a panel then based on this wouldn't you recommend the TN panel?

I have to ask, cause I've just decided to buy a 24" monitor for my rig, and so now I have a keen interest in understanding which will give me the most benefit.

Off the back of that, this is what I'm looking at, any thoughts?
Hyundai W240D 24" Full HD TFT Widescreen 1920x1200 3000:1 400cd/m2 2ms VGA/DVI/HDMI FullHD 1080p Speakers
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/133517

TN panels have less color accuracy than other panel techs because they use 6-bit color rather than 8-bit color so they must use a process call dithering to guess the missing colors.

Poor black levels. LCDs cannot actually produce black, but TN panel perform the worst.

TN panels tend to have less color uniformity than other techs, so colors can be more washed at the top and/or bottom of the screen.

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If gaming is your top priority and you don't really care about color accuracy and possible color uniformity issues then just get a monitor using a TN panel.

Thanks for the reply, clears up the difference on the panel types. As I said before I consider myself a noob on the issue. Gaming is my main priority, but black levels are very important so I will check to make sure I'm not looking at a TN panel based monitor.
life in IT is always so complex. :-)