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Best 24" or 25" LCD Computer Monitor (sub-$400)

post #1 of 39
9/5/09 at 6:37pm
Thread Starter 
Any recommendations? Thanks!
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post #2 of 39
9/5/09 at 6:50pm
If you can stretch your budget a bit, get the HP LP2475. It uses an IPS panel and is the best you could do short of an NEC for $900. If you're really stuck to the $400 budget, look into the Westinghouse L2410NM and the HP LP2465. Both use VA panels and perform very well for the price. Since they're VA panels though, they do suffer slightly from gamma shift, they are also a little harder to find new since they have both been discontinued. I'd stay away from any TN panel monitor in this size category.
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post #3 of 39
9/5/09 at 7:05pm
Benq E2400HD
I absolutely love mine. Viewing angle isn't great, but from straight on(or near to) it looks friggin AWESOME! Great colors when calibrated.
Newegg.com - BenQ E2400HD Glossy Black 24" 5ms/2ms(GTG) HDMI 16:9 Full 1080P Widescreen LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 1000:1(DCR 10000:1) Built in Speakers - LCD Monitors
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post #4 of 39
9/5/09 at 7:07pm
Thread Starter 
Hi skyline889,
Thanks. I did some quick searches on these, and they do seem to be older discontinued models. That's OK, but the specs seem to be not up to what is available now, specifically contrast ratios and response time.

I'm not an expert on these things at all (don't know the difference between IPS and VA panels I'm afraid), and I recognize how these specs can get stretched and strained and aren't the be-all and end-all indication of picture quality.

I'm very much open to being educated and I'd still like to hear from some others with ideas...
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post #5 of 39
9/5/09 at 7:11pm
Gaming, video or photoshop?
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post #6 of 39
9/5/09 at 7:12pm
Dell 24" Widescreen Flat Panel Monitor

This one is great, I'm using it right now. The IPS HP recommended earlier is also an excellent choice. I believe these two are direct competitors.


If you only plan on using it to surf the web/check email/simple stuff like that... a TN panel will work just fine..

You can get a 24" ASUS for under $200, it's a great choice (for a TN panel).

Newegg.com - ASUS VH242H Black 23.6" 5ms HDMI Full 1080P Widescreen LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 1000:1 (ASCR 20000:1) Built in Speakers - LCD Monitors


But if you actually plan to play games, watch movies, image/video editing, etc - it's worth an upgrade to an IPS panel.
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post #7 of 39
9/5/09 at 7:13pm
Don't put too much stock in that information. Contrast ratio and response time aren't exactly hard-and-fast benchmarks for quality.

I wouldn't recommend buying anything other than monitor with an IPS panel myself. The old Apple Cinema Displays use IPS panels, as well as several older Dell models. Having owned both, I can speak to the quality of that kind of panel. As mentioned above, there's also a smattering of displays from other companies.

I'd recommend going to the HardOCP forums and doing some research. That's a good place to start.
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post #8 of 39
9/5/09 at 7:19pm
Quote:
But if you actually plan to play games, watch movies, image/video editing, etc - it's worth an upgrade to an IPS panel.
Apparently TN is better for gaming, it doesn't ghost as much, or how it does isn't so distracting as IPS.
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post #9 of 39
9/5/09 at 7:24pm
True, TN has faster response time but I have no issues w/ ghosting on my UltraSharp. I play (or used to, not so much anymore) COD4 and CS:S, have ran Crysis and Far Cry 2 just fine as well.
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post #10 of 39
9/5/09 at 7:31pm
If you game, you might want to avoid the Dell Ultrasharp VA panel. It's got pretty notorious input lag, meaning the screen takes an extra 2 frames or so (50ish ms) to display what it was asked to. I have the HP 2475, great monitor but it is wide gamut so a lot of things look a little over saturated. I don't mind it in games but using a non-color managed browser like Chrome, IE8, etc. bother me to no end. Luckily, FF 3.0 and above support color profiles.

Specs don't mean much since manufacturers all use different methods so they aren't comparable. Measurements like brightness aren't useful either. Using a display at max brightness is like staring at the sun. Yet, manufacturers tout a higher brightness to show off specs and which also directly inflates contrast numbers.
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post #11 of 39
9/5/09 at 7:39pm
Thread Starter 
Excellent, keep it going, thanks.

Not a gamer, but someone extremely sensitive to picture quality. Back in the mid-80's as a teenager I owned medium format gear because mere 35mm looked poor and primitive to me.
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post #12 of 39
9/5/09 at 7:41pm
So picture/video editting, or just usual windows stuff browsing etc for the latter any will do.
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post #13 of 39
9/5/09 at 7:44pm
Thread Starter 
Yes, picture editing. High resolution and deep dark blacks are necessary. Fast gaming response not as critical.
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post #14 of 39
9/5/09 at 7:46pm
Quote:
deep dark blacks are necessary


Can't beat CRT for blacks, LCD can be good but because of the near black-dark greys, it washes out all other colours.
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post #15 of 39
9/5/09 at 8:00pm
Thread Starter 
Yeah, I know that CRT's have a lot to offer but I am living in the present tense.
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