LCD Monitors for Not-So-Dumb Dummies

As mentioned earlier, I am looking to make a few more changes to my PC setup. One of which is to upgrade my current Samsung SyncMaster 793DF CRT monitor to a 19” LCD monitor. I’m going to share a summary of the advice I picked up on the Internet on how to pick an LCD monitor. Let’s get right down to it!

Just like many decisions for change in life, first ask yourself “why”? My reason for changing my monitor is that the current 17” CRT monitor eats up a third of the available space on my 4-foot desk. Aesthetic value is also a common reason for people to change their monitors because LCD monitors these days can make even an old junk PC look state-of-the-art.

Budget is always a concern when making a good purchase decision. “You get what you pay for" comes to mind. Don’t expect anything too fancy if you’re trying to save every penny. At the same time, spending a bomb isn’t always best either if you have no use for the features which come with your break-budget LCD monitor. So, first things first, why have we decided to buy an LCD monitor?

Your choice of LCD should be very much based on your reason for change and/or purpose of use. Take for instance gamers/graphic designers will prefer a monitor with sharp, clear, vivid colors, and smooth imaging – something high-end per se. The average PC user running simple office programs or internet browsers or chat programs will not require anything fancy from their monitor. You probably wouldn’t even notice the difference in quality without somebody pointing it out.

Let’s get technical. Here are some of the lingo you might come across when speaking to a sales person, or while browsing the specifications.

Monitor size
The most common variations in size at the moment are 17”, 19”, 20” and 22”. This is a measure of the viewable area calculated diagonally across the screen. Of course the bigger they get, the more you pay.

Widescreen or not
This is really up to you. From what I gather, widescreen improves the experience of watching movies – you don’t get the horizontal black stripes across the top and bottom of the screen. Also, you get a much better view when you open 2 programs/documents to view side by side (if you ever have to). Widescreen monitors generally cost more than normal monitors of the same size & features, although I have no idea why.

Pitch
The distance between the centers of two adjacent pixels. The smaller the pitch, the sharper the image. They’re all below 0.3mm these days.

Resolution & aspect ratio
LCD monitors come with the option of setting your display to different resolutions. What you should be more concerned with, when making the purchase, is “native resolution”, which is the optimum resolution of the LCD monitor. “1,600 X 1,200”, “1,280 X 1,024”, “1,280 X 960”, “1,024 X 768” describes the resolution. The aspect ratio is simply a ratio of the width to height of the screen, expressed as “4:3”, or “5:4”. A detailed explanation on this may not mean much and might just confuse you further. So to keep it simple, just make sure the monitor’s native resolution and aspect ratio match. I.e. monitors with a native resolution of 1,280 X 1,024 should have an aspect ratio of 5:4. And monitors with a native resolution of 1,280 X 960 must have a corresponding aspect ratio of 4:3.

Curious to know what happens if you pick one with a native resolution which does not correspond to the aspect ratio? Try to picture this - perfect circles you draw on screen will print out oval-shaped. Perfect squares will appear rectangular on paper. Pictures of people may look taller/fatter (stretched) on screen than they are in real life. If you still don’t get the picture, don’t stretch yourself out (pun intended).

Response time
Lately most LCD monitors come with response times of 5ms or 2ms. That’s the time it takes for a pixel to change from color to color. Let’s face it - technology is so advanced now that the difference in speed is minimal. In case you didn’t notice, ms = milliseconds… how many of us are able to tell the absolute difference between 2ms and 5ms? Get my point? Let’s skip the technicalities of this. But it’s still good to know that in theory, 2ms is faster than 5ms, therefore, 2ms is better than 5ms. *eye-rolling* Whatever!

Input Type
You’ll come to find LCDs available on the market come with analog or digital (DVI) inputs. There are also those which come with both. It’s better to do a check before making your purchase. What you first need to know is whether or not your current PC graphics card supports DVI. If it does not, make sure your LCD monitor is analog capable. My advice though, is to pick a monitor which supports both analog and DVI because DVI quality is much better. Even if you don’t want to upgrade your graphics card now, you might decide to upgrade later. And when the time comes, at least your gorgeous LCD monitor is already DVI compatible with your awesome new graphics card.

Brightness
Measured in cd/m2, a.k.a. nits, most monitors average 250nits. I’ve seen a few go up to 300nits. In this case, more is better.

Contrast
500:1, 750:1, 800:1, 1000:1, 2000:1, 3000:1... Higher is supposedly better because it shows the intensity difference between the brightest bright and darkest dark. It seems the methods of this measure are not standard across the board among the manufacturers. Therefore comparing figures on spec sheets aren’t very reliable. My advice, if contrast is really that important to you, is to check out the demo units on display at the shops.

Viewing angle
You’ll see measurements like these (horizontal/vertical): 140˚/140˚, 160˚/160˚, 178˚/178˚. I cannot imagine how you’ll be looking at your screen from an angle of 178˚, but if higher is better, then go for it! No… seriously, unless you’re having your family and your extended family and all their friends too trying to see the screen from all around you, you’re not going to need viewing angles of 178˚/178˚. But do try to keep it to at least 160˚/160˚... you never know.

Warranty
3 years… no less! Manufacturers who offer more years in warranty generally only do so because of their confidence in the quality and durability of their product. As I mentioned at the beginning, “you get what you pay for”. 3 months to 1 year only? Don’t even go there!

Do ask for more details on the warranty. Some warranties, although for 3 years, only cover certain aspects of your monitor and exclude some things like the backlight which tends to have a relatively high failure rate. There are also more comprehensive warranties which cover everything for the entire duration of the warranty. I was told Samsung offers 3-year full warranty on some of their monitors, if not all. Other more reputable LCD monitor manufacturers – ViewSonic & LG (I haven’t studied their warranties yet).

After making your purchase, do a quick check for stuck pixels on the screen. Load up a blank white page and check the screen inch by inch to see if there are any black dots (pixels which don’t light up). Then repeat with a blank black screen and see if any pixels stay lit. If it’s just a couple scattered in the far corners, don’t worry about it. But if it’s an entire cluster, send it right back to the dealer and complain their ears off.

Other features
Height and tilt adjustable LCD monitors are also available on the market. You can even find some widescreen monitors which swivel 90˚. I.e. change from landscape to portrait view. Some even come with built in speakers, although not very good quality speakers.

Aesthetics
To be very frank with you, after looking at so many different models from different manufactures, I’ve found that while their specifications do vary, they’re not so bold and obvious that you can easily decide on one over the other. So when it comes down to this, I’ll just come right out and say go for the one which looks more eye-pleasing to you. Seriously, when using a computer, your eyes should be looking at the monitor, not your fingers as you tap away on the keyboard. If you’re going to spend so much time looking at your monitor, it might as well be a very pretty one!

Pricing
I shall refrain from commenting on this due to the ever-changing prices at stores. But you can expect to spend anywhere around RM600-RM800 for a decent LCD monitor.

Postscript: Please try to remember that I am not an expert in this field. Everything said above is just a matter of my personal opinion based on information I dug up on the Internet. Feel free to leave a comment calling me an idiot for putting up anything which is not true and I will have it amended.