Recommended monitors displays 1900x1200

[qveda]

I've seen some prices coming down in the 24 - 26" displays. I'd really like to upgrade my Dell 20" to a larger 1900x1200 in a 24-26" display.

I saw a Dell 24" on sale for about $300. Seemed like a real value. But not sure how well it will be suited for digital photography. Planar's highly rated 26" has come down very slightly in price to just under $800 - but that's at the very high end of my budget.

Looking for recommendations for best displays under $800

 

[ThunderRobot]

I love the BenQ FP241W 24in Widescreen Monitor. The colour callibration is excellent.

Truly magnificent monitor for the money.

Review here.

Not sure how available in the US it is.

 

[rogersmj]

Which Dell? If it was around $300, I doubt it was the Ultrasharp. Don't buy the non-Ultrasharp Dells. They suck hard -- color reproduction and banding are awful. I had one briefly and hated it. The 24" Ultrasharps, on the other hand, are pretty good. I currently have a 2407wfp and it's quite nice. The newer 2408wfp is out now, but I think they're around $600. If you look on eBay though, you can pick up a 2407 for a little over $400, which is what I did.

 

[qveda]

I love the BenQ FP241W 24in Widescreen Monitor. The colour callibration is excellent.

Truly magnificent monitor for the money.

Review here.

Not sure how available in the US it is.

Thanks for the pointer to the BenQ. Apparently this model has been discontinued. I'll look for a more current one.

Also will consider the Dell Ultrasharp. I'm sure there are other good possibilities out there.

 

[TK2K]

Which Dell? If it was around $300, I doubt it was the Ultrasharp. Don't buy the non-Ultrasharp Dells. They suck hard -- color reproduction and banding are awful. I had one briefly and hated it. The 24" Ultrasharps, on the other hand, are pretty good. I currently have a 2407wfp and it's quite nice. The newer 2408wfp is out now, but I think they're around $600. If you look on eBay though, you can pick up a 2407 for a little over $400, which is what I did.

I got the dell E248WFP due to the 92% gamut and it's got a bit of backlight bleed on a pure black screen, but other than that it's very good for photography.

 

[vga4life]

http://outlet.us.dell.com/ARBOnline...=22&l=en&lob=PDA&MODEL_DESC= 3007WFP-HC&s=dfh

Why not a refurbished Dell 30" 3007WFP-HC? 92% NTSC gamut, S-IPS panel, $749 from Dell?

If you have a mac with a dual-link DVI connector (PowerMac G5, Mac Pro, Macbook Pro, late G4 Powerbook) or with a mini-DisplayPort connector (new Macbook/Pro/Air) and adapter, look into a 30" panel. Once you go big you never go back.

 

[PCMacUser]

Which Dell? If it was around $300, I doubt it was the Ultrasharp. Don't buy the non-Ultrasharp Dells. They suck hard -- color reproduction and banding are awful. I had one briefly and hated it. The 24" Ultrasharps, on the other hand, are pretty good. I currently have a 2407wfp and it's quite nice. The newer 2408wfp is out now, but I think they're around $600. If you look on eBay though, you can pick up a 2407 for a little over $400, which is what I did.

I'm another happy 2407wfp user. I bought mine new in 2007 for NZ$1100 (that's roughly US$600), and it died about 6 months later. Dell replaced it the next day with a brand new, updated version which hasn't missed a beat. Great monitor and great service.

Supposedly the best monitor on the market for digital photography is an NEC, but I can't remember the model. And I think it's more than US$800.

 

[qveda]

http://outlet.us.dell.com/ARBOnline...=22&l=en&lob=PDA&MODEL_DESC= 3007WFP-HC&s=dfh

Why not a refurbished Dell 30" 3007WFP-HC? 92% NTSC gamut, S-IPS panel, $749 from Dell?

If you have a mac with a dual-link DVI connector (PowerMac G5, Mac Pro, Macbook Pro, late G4 Powerbook) or with a mini-DisplayPort connector (new Macbook/Pro/Air) and adapter, look into a 30" panel. Once you go big you never go back.

That Dell 30" seems like an excellent suggestion! Thanks! I assume the color calibration , S-IPS technology etc makes it work very well for photography. In this price range, there is the Planar 26" 1900x1200 which is also S-IPS, and gets super reviews, but 30" is awfully tempting !

 

[qveda]

I'm also curious about the LED displays, like the apple 24". How well does LED work for photography ? can it be made to work with Mac Pro?

 

[rogersmj]

LED screens are great because they're so uniformly lit. But no, the new ACD only connects to the new MacBooks for right now. There aren't any adapters for connecting a mini-DP monitor to a DVI computer yet.

 

[CmdrLaForge]

I really love my 23" Cinema Display. Unfortunately it is discontinued but maybe you can still get one.

 

[CarlsonCustoms]

I'll never buy cheap monitors again.. I bought a few cheaper 20" monitors becuase i just HAD to have dual displays and now that I bought a 24" imac I can't believe I used crappy monitors.

Also with the IMac isn't there a resolution limit to the second display? I thought I saw a post earlier that said it could only do 1280x768 or something on the dual monitor.

Zack

 

[PCMacUser]

I'll never buy cheap monitors again.. I bought a few cheaper 20" monitors becuase i just HAD to have dual displays and now that I bought a 24" imac I can't believe I used crappy monitors.

Also with the IMac isn't there a resolution limit to the second display? I thought I saw a post earlier that said it could only do 1280x768 or something on the dual monitor.

I hope I haven't misunderstood your post, but this thread isn't about second displays or iMacs. The OP is looking for recommended monitor models to replace his primary display. Any suggestions?

 

[CarlsonCustoms]

Ah crap.. you are right.. I think I mixed his post up with another one I thought about replying to..

sorry

but my statement about not buying cheap monitors still stands

 

[PCMacUser]

but my statement about not buying cheap monitors still stands

Yep, totally true!

 

[qveda]

contrast ratio

Which is better for digital photography? higher contrast ratio, like 3000:1 ? or 800-1000:1 ? and why?

 

[vga4life]

Which is better for digital photography? higher contrast ratio, like 3000:1 ? or 800-1000:1 ? and why?

Panel type (TN, PVA, IPS, S-IPS, H-IPS), color gamut, and viewing angles are all more important than contrast ratio, especially on a big monitor.

Contrast ratio, like megapixels, is 90% marketing hype - not a good way to pick your display.

 

[toxic]

Which is better for digital photography? higher contrast ratio, like 3000:1 ? or 800-1000:1 ? and why?

contrast measurements are regularly fudged to get the best figure. same thing with response time, for that matter. forget about all the numbers and don't settle for anything less than a PVA panel. Samsung is a good place to start.

 

[qveda]

contrast measurements are regularly fudged to get the best figure. same thing with response time, for that matter. forget about all the numbers and don't settle for anything less than a PVA panel. Samsung is a good place to start.

I'm not that familiar with panel technology, but my impression is that most panels (laptops, etc) that consumers buy are TFT. I assume cost jumps way up with some of the better technologies. As a serious amateur photographer, I might be able to afford the next step up, but not the top of the line.

Where do you feel the 'sweet spot' is? best quality for the money ? in a 1900x1200 display?

 

[Chokladkakan]

Consumer monitors are TN-panels, which frankly sucks when it comes to serious color management. As far as I know, what vga4life wrote (TN, PVA, IPS, S-IPS, H-IPS) is the correct order of panel quality.

 

[qveda]

Here is a nice article that address my original question, and describes the technologies.

http://photo.alysta.com/buying-a-computer-monitor-for-photography/

 

[vga4life]

One tricky thing with panel types is that some manufacturers - Dell, especially - are known for switching panel types across production runs without changing the model numbers.

That's one of the reasons I recommend a 30" display - nobody has yet made a TN or PVA 30" panel. You're guaranteed to get an S-IPS panel in a 3007WFP-HC (or HP LP3065, or Apple 30" Cinema Display) because they all use the same 30" LG S-IPS panel and backlight assembly.

 

[toxic]

I'm not that familiar with panel technology, but my impression is that most panels (laptops, etc) that consumers buy are TFT. I assume cost jumps way up with some of the better technologies. As a serious amateur photographer, I might be able to afford the next step up, but not the top of the line.

Where do you feel the 'sweet spot' is? best quality for the money ? in a 1900x1200 display?

i dunno where the "sweet spot" is, but i'm pretty sure Samsungs use PVA panels. Dell likes putting in random panels, and i don't like Dell much in general, so i don't buy their stuff. as far as IPS panels go, Cinema displays actually aren't all that expensive. maybe look around and see how much 23" Cinemas are going for now?

 

[PCMacUser]

i dunno where the "sweet spot" is, but i'm pretty sure Samsungs use PVA panels. Dell likes putting in random panels, and i don't like Dell much in general, so i don't buy their stuff. as far as IPS panels go, Cinema displays actually aren't all that expensive. maybe look around and see how much 23" Cinemas are going for now?

The Dell 2407WFP and 2407WFP-HC both use Samsung S-PVA panels. Samsung S-PVA (LTM240M2) and Samsung S-PVA (LTM240CS01) respectively. The Dell 2408WFP uses the Samsung S-PVA (LTM240CS05) panel.

Source.

 

[Ryan1524]

I just got a Samsung Syncmaster 2343bw. It's 2048x1152. Gorgeous display. The colours were perfect for lightroom out of the box. Cad$279