Looking for a 24" LCD (requirements inside)

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ohlmsjm

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I've been inundating myself with reviews, comments, images, etc. for a good solid month now since my Dell 2001 FP bit the big one. I've actually got myself all twisted up in a fear of committment on the purchase of a new 24" LCD to replace my Dell as the choice is certainly not an easy one based upon my requirements.

BenQ FP241 vs LG L246/245 vs NEC2490WUXi vs Gateway FHD2400 vs HP w2408h, and the list goes on.

First and foremost, I use my pc for MMO/FPS/RTS gaming and surfing/browsing the internet which includes lots of movie trailer viewing. My pc is a Core 2 Duo 6600 with a GeForce 8800 GTX where I run most of my games with maxed detail and a resolution of 1600 x 1200 but I am ready to move towards 1920 x 1200 at the same or better level of detail.

My price range is pretty flexible but I'd really like to steer clear of dropping $1000+ on a new monitor so under that would be ideal but I also understand that you get what you pay for. I guess in some way I feel spoiled as my Dell was a rare breed being a 20" S-IPS panel monitor and the quality was excellent, shame it died after 3 years.

Based upon the above, what would you recommend in the way of 24" LCD's?
 
If you can stomach spending on another IPS, then the NEC 2490WUXi with the H-IPS panel is the way to go. It is excellent, the best 24" LCD I have ever used. That said, price is a premium at $1100, so it is at your discretion. I stalled on buying it for months but now I couldn't be happier. For working with images, playing fast action games like Team Fortress 2 or Quake 3, regular desktop usage, it is the best.

You should give this a read: http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.aspx?catid=31&threadid=2049206

The only thing I disagree with is not listing the 2490WUXi under gaming, because with Overdrive enabled it is, as far as I can tell, as good as my old CRT in terms of responsiveness.
 
I've read mixed reviews of about 40 different 24" monitors and the NEC reviews were by and large positive across the board. I have no doubt that the monitor is top notch, my concern is, that when I bought the Dell monitor I shelled out around $600 at the time (back in 2005) which yielded 3 years of lifespan on the monitor (just outside the warranty window).

One would hope that an $1100 monitor would last far beyond 3 years.
 
For your needs, 2nd best might be either the DoubleSight DS-263N or Planar PX2611W. Both use the same 26" H-IPS panel as the NEC 2690uxi, but less lag. And much less $$$.

Compared to the 2490 you will be getting a wide gamut monitor, which may or may not be a good thing. And a bigger pixel pitch, which may or may not be a yada yada.

And you will forgo the 12 bit LUT for H/W calibration and 'glow' suppression coating used exclusively by NEC.
 
I personally cannot recommend the L246WP enough. I was extremely nervous about the purchase of a 24" LCD myself, but after finally biting the bullet and taking this home and trying it out, I have fallen in love. Even with an advertised response time of 8ms, in gaming (I'm currently playing CS:S/TF2/UT3 mainly) response time has not been an issue at all. Videos online have been very fluid, etc. The viewing angles are absolutely stunning and, well, I really have no complaints. I scoured this screen for dead/stuck pixels after getting it and not a one, and the backlight is completely even (from what I can tell, I suppose a slow exposure picture could tell the tale better, but I'm no camera wizard). And for the price (got mine for $540) it's hard to pass up with the IPS screens are fetching well over a grand. They might be 'better', but I'd be hard pressed to tell the difference to be perfectly honest. But if you want to know you have 'the best' and can drop over a thousand, then the IPS screens mentioned above are the way to go (but I'd still recommend seeing/using them in person).

I really can't comment on the rest, but I can say I love this LCD. No buyers remorse at all (more like buyers surprise), and I'm fairly critical on such an important purchase. It's still new and I could easily return it if I had problems, but it's most definitely staying with me. :)

Best of luck in your search for an LCD.
 
Thanks for the input thus far. I may hold out for that NEC as it really is head and shoulders above the competition, but the LG has intrigued me enough that I'd like to at least take a look at it. The other half of this dilema is that for $100 more I can get the NEC 26" or the Dell 30" which is pretty enticing as well.

The problem I am running into with the LG, is that I can't find one. Newegg shows that it's a deactivated item, the 4 BB's in my area do not carry it, and the 2 CC's don't have it on the shelf or in clearance and they both claimed they've never had LG in stock.

Amazon has it listed, but they are asking $700 plus for it.
 
ohlmsjm said:
Thanks for the input thus far. I may hold out for that NEC as it really is head and shoulders above the competition, but the LG has intrigued me enough that I'd like to at least take a look at it. The other half of this dilema is that for $100 more I can get the NEC 26" or the Dell 30" which is pretty enticing as well.

The problem I am running into with the LG, is that I can't find one. Newegg shows that it's a deactivated item, the 4 BB's in my area do not carry it, and the 2 CC's don't have it on the shelf or in clearance and they both claimed they've never had LG in stock.

Amazon has it listed, but they are asking $700 plus for it.
Click to expand...

It really sucks that none of the big electronics chains do not carry the mid-range and high-end monitors. There is no way to personally evaluate them, just go by word of mouth and reviews on the internet. Thankfully there are helpful threads like the monster one on Anandtech that is continuously updated, but the overall situation still sucks.
 
If you want to go full on budget, why not go for the NEC LCD2690Wuxi instead of the 24"?

For 2" more screen and only a little bit more money, it might make sense.

Out of this list I'd probably go this way:

1) NEC LCD26Wuxi-BK
2) Doublesight DS-263N
3) Planar PX2611W
4) LG L245/6WP or BenQ FP241W/VW
5) NEC LCD24Wuxi-BK
6) Dell 2407WFP-HC

I would say the Samsung 245T and Dell 2408WFP monitors are nice but INPUT LAG no good for FPS.

I'm also intrigued with the NECs that have built in color calibrators (the WUXI-SV) because you figure you'll pay about $200.00 for a half decent calibrator, and these monitors come with a nice one that doesn't cost $300.00 more than the regular WUXI-BK models.

The NECs have 4 year warranties, and the rest 3.

Regards,

10e
 
10e - Larger dot pitch on the 26" would be my only concern since that and a 24" monitor both have the same maximum resolution of 1920x1200. That said, if you were sitting far enough away from the monitor (we're only talking a difference of inches here compared to a 24") then it really wouldn't matter.
 
Part of the problem is I am not familiar at all with LG, Planar, and Doublesight products so I have no idea what to expect from them.

The other part of the problem is that I am very indecisive when it comes to making technological decisions like this. I think I get too wrapped up in the technology of the product to make a proper decision. When I say proper, I mean one I am comfortable with. :)
 
Well, I pulled the trigger:

Order Detail
Estimated Ship Date: 03/25/2008

Item Number Quantity Item Description
A0950280 1 NEC MultiSync LCD2490WUXi-BK 24" Black Professional Series LCD Display
Order Subtotal: $1,099.99
Shipping and Handling Total: $54.00
Tax Total: $68.07
Total Charges: $1,222.06

...awaiting for my breath to return...
 
ohlmsjm said:
Well, I pulled the trigger:

Order Detail
Estimated Ship Date: 03/25/2008

Item Number Quantity Item Description
A0950280 1 NEC MultiSync LCD2490WUXi-BK 24" Black Professional Series LCD Display
Order Subtotal: $1,099.99
Shipping and Handling Total: $54.00
Tax Total: $68.07
Total Charges: $1,222.06

...awaiting for my breath to return...
Click to expand...

Dude, you will not be disappointed. I just played TF2 on my new rig (in my sig, finally seems to be stable) and it is glorious.
 
Congrats on the fine purchase,

I guarantee that the web page you pay your credit card bill from will look glorious on this monitor! :)

Enjoy it in everything you do. I'm sure you will

10e

ohlmsjm said:
Well, I pulled the trigger:

Order Detail
Estimated Ship Date: 03/25/2008

Item Number Quantity Item Description
A0950280 1 NEC MultiSync LCD2490WUXi-BK 24" Black Professional Series LCD Display
Order Subtotal: $1,099.99
Shipping and Handling Total: $54.00
Tax Total: $68.07
Total Charges: $1,222.06

...awaiting for my breath to return...
Click to expand...
 
I'm starting to get more and more excited about it. I will definitely share my experience with it once I've had the chance to run it through the gauntlet of tests.
 
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