iMac sizes & LCD panel types

[betterdays]

Hi all

OK so I saw on a post here that the 20" Intel iMac has the same panel as the Dell 2007WFP (wouldn't this be the 207WFP at 300 bucks or so??).

I visited a store yesterday and was seriously disappointed to see that the 20" iMac screen turns dark when viewed from below, and turns white from above, the behaviour I've come to hate on LCDs.

At home I have a Viewsonic VP930 and its P-MVA panel just slightly loses the blacks when not viewed from straight-on, but the shift is similar for all angles.

I saw a similar behaviour on the gorgeous 24" iMac, therefore the panel must be different (more recent). One weird thing on the 24 is that the edges/corners were darker than the rest, on a white background. And that s*cks big time... Is this normal, or was it just that demo unit?

The panel in the 17" was similar to the 20", shifting to black from below. A 20" CinemaDisplay right next to the 20" iMac in the store did not exhibit (apparently) the dark shift.

So, what are the definitive specs on those 3 iMac panels? are there (OMG) different series/generations with different panels inside?

I was hot for an iMac until yesterday, I'm telling you! it'll be the secondary screen next to a CRT anyway, but still, if the panel is so bad that I have to buy the 24" iMac or wait for a newer 17/20" generation with decent panels, it s*cks.

Thanks!

 

[micvog]

I visited a store yesterday and was seriously disappointed to see that the 20" iMac screen turns dark when viewed from below, and turns white from above, the behaviour I've come to hate on LCDs.

Was this a C2D iMac? I am not sure if the panels changed between the Core Duo and Core 2 Duo 20" iMacs, but on my C2D the panel is fantastic. Minimal color shift, uniform brightness and no dead/stuck pixels.

 

[Jasonbot]

Was this a C2D iMac? I am not sure if the panels changed between the Core Duo and Core 2 Duo 20" iMacs, but on my C2D the panel is fantastic. Minimal color shift, uniform brightness and no dead/stuck pixels.

Agreed, and why would someone look at a screen from an angle anyways? Unless you're squint.

 

[Maxwell Smart]

Yeah, sorry but I just don't get the whole angle viewing thing. I have a 13" macbook screen and a 20" widescreen dell and they look just fine, nice and bright and clear.

 

[betterdays]

Agreed, and why would someone look at a screen from an angle anyways? Unless you're squint.

Do you always face the screen? do you *really* always face the screen?
And in dual display setup, do you always sit at the center of both screens with each one slightly swivelled to face you?
When friends come to your place (I believe you don't live in a cave and have friends), is it cool for them to see a weird image when they sit beside you? Do the taller ones have to stand on their knees not to see the screen going white?

That's why the dark/inverted shift is a pain (more so than the bright shift from above. I told you, on the 24" it's much less of a nuisance also because the uniform shift to "brighter" occurs further from "straight-on".

Oh well. Maybe I'm a photographer, which explains why I'm demanding on displays.