Looking for a gaming and movie monitor.

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truepurple

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I want a monitor for both gaming and movies, so good quality picture plus minimal lag, I am willing to pay decent money for one. Some brand-model names and review links too maybe.

Wish list:

Native resolution:
I think 1920 x 1200 is best, but I suppose I can live with 1920x1080. Though if someone thinks a different resolution would be better, please tell me.

Size:
Most of the time it will be pretty close to my face, like a keyboard or a keyboard and a half width away. Something just big enough to take up my main field of vision so I don't have to move my eyes around too much to see the whole screen. Not sure what size that would be. Though sometimes I might wish to bring it with and use it to watch something on it with other people. I guess something 19-27inches perhaps?

Decent viewing angles.

Low power consumption.

Decent adjustable stand.

Good image scaling.

A number of different inputs:
Composite RCA would be especially nice, you know the ol red, white, and yellow video inputs, but I know its hard to find these and if it has a AVG input on it, I can get a composite to AVG converter box for $30 (though beyond the additional cost, I'd hate to have to deal with another box) A HDMI and/or component input would be nice. DVI-D and/or a display port is probably a must.

A good warranty would be nice, especially if it is rather pricey.

Anything else you guys might think of that I might appreciate in a monitor.
 
Your best bet is probably a Dell or HP IPS like the U2311. If you want the best performance for movies, I recommend the Eizo EV2333W or FS2331. The main issue for these two is that they need a fair viewing distance of say, 50 cm because of their PVA viewing angle effect. See review here.
 
Flatpanelshd.com does a lot of reviews of monitors with the resolutions you are looking at. And they test how well suited the monitors are for gaming and movies. For example, a review of the ASUS VG236H
http://www.flatpanelshd.com/review.php?subaction=showfull&id=1282205217

They've also got a review of the Eizo Foris FS2331. Good picture quality but the stand is not as flexible as some of their other models.

One more thing - TN panels consume less energy than IPS or VA but of course their viewing angles are inferior so you'll have to decide which is more important to you.
 
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The Dell U2410 ticks the majority of your wishlist
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Yes, I was looking at that earlier. Except that there are people who have talked about a red-pink/green-blue left right tint problem. It seems if you get unlucky, and get one of these, then you are stuck with it, as Dell has refused to accept returns based on this reason. Check amazon and a few other customer review places for further information/proof. If I could find some way around this playing the monitor lottery issue, I would give the U2410 a hard look.

There is IPS screens that don't consume as much power, but I haven't found one that fit the bill yet. The closest I have found is the NEC EA231WMI-BK, but that is not 1920x1200, well I could live with 1080, but it also has a slow reported response time 14-16, which seems too slow to me.

A eIPS is probably the best bet for me, I hear they consume less power then other IPS's, but get close to the same quality, and for less price. If I can only find one in my specifications. I am probably willing to pay up to a thousand USD, anything more is getting notably above the cost of all the other parts in my computer I am putting together combined. But with high end monitors, you can sometimes find em for much less refurbished for much less, so please don't let a k+ retail price stop the suggestion. I of course want a bargain too if I can (I want it all! :p) The Eizo Foris FS233 might be a bit too expensive, at $1300+ but I can consider it.

@Whoisthisreally
Eh, that is a bit far away, the further I put a monitor away, the bigger it needs to be to compensate.

I will check those other monitors you guys suggested closer and tell you what I think.
But more suggestions are welcome of course.
 
You probably know already, but the only other current e-IPS with a 1920x1200 resolution that I know of is the HP ZR24w, but it's scaling isn't great.

You could try to get one of the older HP models, I think they're meant to be better than the current line.
 
Two more things, I'd prefer not wide gamut. I am not sure what real use or benefit I'd receive from such, and I avoid the issues and costs involved with such. Apparently even with the U2410's sRGB mode, that is still a issue.

And I would like LED.
 
All of the current e-ips and h-ips panels have tinting issues by the way. So unless you spend something around 900+ for a higher quality cherry picked NEC monitor (which will probably suck for gaming) then its something you may end up dealing with regardless of IPS display you choose.

Any reason for LED though? It offers only lower power consumption but thats about it (however if thats what you want then it makes sense just don't expect any kind of picture quality improvements as far as PC monitors are concerned).
 
Lower power consumption, AND thinner/lighter weight, both are good reasons on their own. I think LED also might have a longer life span, but its tough to determine those numbers through SE
 
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Well if the FlatPanelsHD article is correct, the NEC EA232WMi (successor to the EA231WMi which used the same e-IPS panel in the Dell U2311H) will use 31W. The EA232WMi uses 43W and U2311H uses 33W during normal operation, both of which use the conventional CCFL backlighting. So really, there isn't a massive saving at all. At the end of a year, you're only going to save a few pennys, if the cost of your energy bill is a concern.

Also, whilst the screens on LED monitors are generally thinner, the stand itself is still the same size, which makes it being so thin somewhat pointless - unless you're wall mounting the screen or something.

I'd suggest you read this article about LED backlighting to dispel some of the myths surrounding the technology.
 
NEC EA232WMi is a LED eIPS, a "NEC EA232WMi LED" search will quickly tell you this. On the other hand, Dell doesn't sell any LED IPS. A ~25% less power, ~31% more power is a significant different, even more significant with a more draining class of monitors. Like the U2410 uses like 50-75w, a ~25% drop in power usage is pretty significant.

Thinner usually means lighter and that does make it more portable. Also the monitor being lighter compared to the stand means a monitor is less top heavy, which means more stable.

I wonder when OLED will become commercially available for PC monitors (in PC monitor sizes)
 
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truepurple said:
NEC EA232WMi is a LED eIPS, a "NEC EA232WMi LED" search will quickly tell you this. On the other hand, Dell doesn't sell any LED IPS.
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I'm aware of that and is the point I was making. The 23" EA232WMi uses LED backlighting and apparently uses 31W. The 23" Dell U2311H uses CCFL backlighting and uses 33W, minimal saving.

truepurple said:
Thinner usually means lighter and that does make it more portable. Also the monitor being lighter compared to the stand means a monitor is less top heavy, which means more stable.
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I own a U2311H and it's not particularly heavy to lift at all. Unless the monitor stand is made poorly in the first place (i.e. the vast majority of cheap TN monitors), the monitor won't have any issues with stability. In fact, there is practically no way my Dell would fall over and I'm trying quite hard right now.

truepurple said:
I wonder when OLED will become commercially available for PC monitors (in PC monitor sizes)
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Probably in about 3-5 years time. QLED seems to be better and potentially cheaper to manufacture anyway.
 
As I edited into my post, 25% energy savings is pretty significant, and gets more so with larger more energy using monitors.

Bear, from what do you draw those numbers for years for QLED etc.?

Is 90% for viewing, totally front viewing and the worst you can get? (and 180 being the best, right?)

Would you guys say the U2410 is fast enough for most games? Would you say it provides sharp enough picture for easy reading? I have read a review or two that suggests it doesn't. Anyone here actually seen a U2410?

What do you guys think of the alienware OptX AW231 for viewing movies and reading text? A dell rep suggested it.
 
truepurple said:
As I edited into my post, 25% energy savings is pretty significant, and gets more so with larger more energy using monitors.
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In actual monetary terms, I don't think it amounts to much of a saving, however if it is that big a of a deal for you then I can't really argue it.

truepurple said:
Bear, from what do you draw those numbers for years for QLED etc.?
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My estimate wasn't for QLED, they were for OLED. I have absolutely no idea when or if QLED will come to consumers in the form of monitors. The way I see it, seeing as how you can get 15" OLED screens now, it'd take at least another 2-3 years for them to make bigger screens and then another few years for the prices to drop low enough so that conventional people can buy them.

truepurple said:
Is 90% for viewing, totally front viewing and the worst you can get? (and 180 being the best, right?)
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http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/speccontent.htm#viewing angles

Viewing angles are quoted in horizontal and vertical fields and often look like this in listed specifications: 170/160 (170° in horizontal viewing field, 160° in vertical). The angles are related to how the image looks as you move away from the central point of view, as it can become darker or lighter, and colours can become distorted as you move away from your central field of view. Because of the pixel orientation, the screen may not be viewable as clearly when looking at the screen from an angle, but viewing angles of TFT’s vary depending on the panel technology used.

As a general rule, the viewing angles are IPS > VA > TN Film. The viewing angles are often over exaggerated in manufacturers specs, especially with TN Film panels where quoted specs of 160 / 160 and now even 170 / 170 are based on overly loose measuring techniques. Be wary of 176/176 figures as these are often over exagerated specs for a TN Film panel and are based on more lapse measurement techniques.

In reality, IPS and VA panels are the only technologies which can truly offer wide viewing fields and are commonly quoted as 178/178. VA panels can sometimes show a colour / contrast distortion as you move slightly away from a central point. While most people do not notice this anomaly, others find it distracting. IPS panels do not suffer from this.
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178/178 is probably the best you'll get as any further (i.e. 180/180) and you wouldn't be able to see the screen at all as you're looking at it completely sideways.

truepurple said:
Would you guys say the U2410 is fast enough for most games? Would you say it provides sharp enough picture for easy reading? I have read a review or two that suggests it doesn't. Anyone here actually seen a U2410?

What do you guys think of the alienware OptX AW231 for viewing movies and reading text? A dell rep suggested it.
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I'm fairly sure the U2410, under Game mode, is fine with the majority of games. It's no 120Hz TN panel for sure, but a fair number of people play games on them fine. I'd sujject you comb through the U2410 thread on this forum for more user opinions.
 
I asked if 90% is dead center, your links does not answer that question. If 90% is not dead center, then I am still confused by the angle numbers.

Some say that LED last longer, you don't think so? Plus since LED runs cooler, won't the rest of the screen last longer too?

The 2410 has a relatively short warranty, how long might it really last? How long might other monitors last? Is there a difference in lifespan between the TN screens and the IPS ones? How repairable are they when they fail?
 
truepurple said:
I asked if 90% is dead center, your links does not answer that question. If 90% is not dead center, then I am still confused by the angle numbers.

Some say that LED last longer, you don't think so? Plus since LED runs cooler, won't the rest of the screen last longer too?

The 2410 has a relatively short warranty, how long might it really last? How long might other monitors last? Is there a difference in lifespan between the TN screens and the IPS ones? How repairable are they when they fail?
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There is nothing to really compel me in LED backlighting. Monitor performance is the key to making a good choice. With backlight on 50% or less, five years of daily use is the expectation for a quality monitor. There is no technological basis for TN or IPS to have a longer lifetime than the other. In practice, I would expect that an IPS or PVA monitor would be less likely to fail, considering the production values of the average TN monitor.

As for repairs, should the monitor fail, I would just buy a new model unless your existing model is 30" or is historically noteworthy for raising the bar for performance.

Also for viewing angle, consider dead-on to be zero degrees, and the maximum viewing angle to be 89 degrees. This is a measurement of contrast ratio. So for a total horizontal or vertical viewing angle rating we would add 89+89 degrees for a total of 178 degrees in either H or V for an IPS or PVA panel.
 
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I don't really understand what you mean by "90%". If you mean 90°, then that would be straight on, i.e. you're perpendicular to the screen.

prolz.png


Maybe that image above can help explain viewing angles.

As quoted previously, IPS and VA monitors tend to have 178° viewing angles horizontal and vertical. If you think of the straight line along the bottom of the protractor as being the screen, and draw out 178° from both sides (the 2 red lines), then the area in between them would be how far you can view the screen.

About LED longevity, who knows, some people have had some of their CCFL backlit monitors for over 5 years and they're still going strong. I have a 6 year old iMac that uses a S-IPS panel and CCFL backlight and it's still perfectly usable.

Dell's warranty is one of the best you can get. They offer a standard of 3 years, some places only give you 1. You can pay for a longer warranty at Dell if it's a concern.

As for your other questions, I don't know, maybe someone else does.
 
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