[beerguy0]

My 2nd monitor is dying. (Something let go Saturday - my attic smelled like the engineering lab at work after something blows up.

It's still sort of usable, but I need to replace it. My primary monitor is a 21" Viewsonic CRT that I just bought in July. (Running at 1600x1200) I want the 2nd monitor to be an LCD. I'm hoping to keep it under $300. It doesn't necessarily need to be photo editing quality, but I do want a something that has good image quality. No speakers would also be preferable, as I already have decent speakers and don't want to spend money on a feature that I don't need.

I've been looking at 22" widescreens, but I would love to be able to have the 2nd monitor have the same 1200 pixel height as my CRT. That means 23"-24", at a much higher cost. Not sure if that's realistic for my budget, though.

Any suggestions?

 

[WhatMACHI]

Asus 222 seems to be decent bang for buck at about $330 AUD (i would probably get one of these if i decided for a second monitor), or a Samsung 226 which goes for about $380-440 AUD (my current primary and loving it).

 

[tennisets]

I like my HP w2207 a lot. It has a glossy screen though so take that into consideration. The Samsung 226 reportedly has slightly more accurate colors, but I think the HP looks more lifelike and vivid (not vivid in the bad way with too much contrast/sharpening/brightness). I believe I got it for $330 on sale at Best Buy.

Also, keep in mind that with there are a couple of versions of the 226. With the 226BW there are three different panels, S, A, and C. S is Samsung's own panel, A is from AOC, and C is from Chimei. The S panel is the best. Unfortunately you don't know what you have until you open the box. They also have the 226CW now, which Samsung says they are the only company producing panels for. Some people say it's better than the BW and some don't. I have seen people complain about the vertical viewing angle of both Samsung monitors.

 

[jilgiljongiljing]

Quote:

Also, keep in mind that with there are a couple of versions of the 226. With the 226BW there are three different panels, S, A, and C. S is Samsung's own panel, A is from AOC, and C is from Chimei. The S panel is the best. Unfortunately you don't know what you have until you open the box. They also have the 226CW now, which Samsung says they are the only company producing panels for. Some people say it's better than the BW and some don't. I have seen people complain about the vertical viewing angle of both Samsung monitors.

Someone I know was telling me the exact same thing recently and I find the whole thing quite atrocious. Samsung shouldnt have mutliple quality products of the same model and not let the consumer be able to find out before splurging money on one.

 

[soul05]

What about a samsung 204?
Newegg.com - SAMSUNG 204B-BK Black 20.1" 5ms DVI LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 800:1 - Retail

its only a 20 inch and its not widescreen, but you can run X x 1200. and its...around 300 bucks

 

[yuckymucky]

I have a Samsung 226BW with the S panel and I love it. It is a no gloss screen which is also really nice, for me. Supposedly Samsung is only producing the S panel now after all the crap that went down from them having the other 2. I would check into more detail about that first though.

At work I have dual Acer 24" and they have a really awesome picture on them. (AL2416W) I believe that they are around $350 though so that might be out of the range you are looking for. 1920x1200 is an awesome resolution though.

 

[beerguy0]

Quote:

Originally Posted by yuckymucky /img/forum/go_quote.gif I have a Samsung 226BW with the S panel and I love it. It is a no gloss screen which is also really nice, for me. Supposedly Samsung is only producing the S panel now after all the crap that went down from them having the other 2. I would check into more detail about that first though. At work I have dual Acer 24" and they have a really awesome picture on them. (AL2416W) I believe that they are around $350 though so that might be out of the range you are looking for. 1920x1200 is an awesome resolution though.

I know a couple people who have the Samsung 226 and love it. The reviews on Amazon are pretty mixed, though. (Seems to be a number of people who got multiple bad copies, but maybe that's been corrected.)

The Acer sounds interesting. I would love to have the 1920x1200 resolution, since that would match the height of my CRT and make it easier to stretch windows across both monitors. I could probably stretch the budget that far. I'll take a look at that one as well.

 

[tennisets]

Quote:

Originally Posted by beerguy0 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I know a couple people who have the Samsung 226 and love it. The reviews on Amazon are pretty mixed, though. (Seems to be a number of people who got multiple bad copies, but maybe that's been corrected.) The Acer sounds interesting. I would love to have the 1920x1200 resolution, since that would match the height of my CRT and make it easier to stretch windows across both monitors. I could probably stretch the budget that far. I'll take a look at that one as well.

Don't forget that your real budget is at least 25% more than what you tell people

.

 

[leftnose]

Quote:

Originally Posted by soul05 /img/forum/go_quote.gif What about a samsung 204? Newegg.com - SAMSUNG 204B-BK Black 20.1" 5ms DVI LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 800:1 - Retail its only a 20 inch and its not widescreen, but you can run X x 1200. and its...around 300 bucks

x2. I have two of these and they're great for the price.

 

[beerguy0]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tennisets /img/forum/go_quote.gif Don't forget that your real budget is at least 25% more than what you tell people .

 

[beerguy0]

I finally wound up ordering a Samsung 215TX. They're hard to find now, as Samsung has stopped production of this model, but all the reviews I've seen indicate it's an excellent LCD monitor. I wound up spending more than I planned, but what's a budget for if you can't bust it?

It turns out that a friend of mine that I shoot with also bought this same LCD a couple months ago and loves it. It should be here Friday. My old CRT is getting sicker by the day, but it's still hanging in there, albeit with a faint aroma of burning electronics from time to time.

 

[1911]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tennisets /img/forum/go_quote.gif I like my HP w2207 a lot. It has a glossy screen though so take that into consideration. The Samsung 226 reportedly has slightly more accurate colors, but I think the HP looks more lifelike and vivid (not vivid in the bad way with too much contrast/sharpening/brightness). I believe I got it for $330 on sale at Best Buy. Also, keep in mind that with there are a couple of versions of the 226. With the 226BW there are three different panels, S, A, and C. S is Samsung's own panel, A is from AOC, and C is from Chimei. The S panel is the best. Unfortunately you don't know what you have until you open the box. They also have the 226CW now, which Samsung says they are the only company producing panels for. Some people say it's better than the BW and some don't. I have seen people complain about the vertical viewing angle of both Samsung monitors.

yeah my wife has the hp w2207 in her home office. she and i both like it. the panel i believe is made by LG.
edit..congrats on the samsung. its always fun getting a new monitor.