How much would a decent ~22" monitor suitable for imaging work cost?

[editor]

I suppose the question is, have low-end LCDs c.2009 yet overtaken high-end CRTs c.2004? (even if my current monitor continues to degrade, I could still buy a later model in the line with less hours use for <£100). This seems to be subject to some debate!

In my experience, yes. I've used expensive and highly rated 22" Sony and Mitsubishi Diamond CRTs and they've all noticeably got worse over a few years. I switched to a pair of (fairly cheap) Viewsonic 19" VP191s LCD screens four years ago and the improvement was vast. And they still look great.

 

[Pie 1]

Yeah! Why bother gaining an informed opinion on that particular monitor!

Informed opinion from an instruction manual?
LOL!


Anyway...

I'm afraid that I really have better things to do than read instruction manuals for equipment I neither have, have any intention of owning, or in fact particuarly care about.

 

[editor]

Informed opinion from an instruction manual?
LOL!

It certainly shows you that you were totally wrong to claim that the monitor wasn't capable of being calibrated. It may not be the best monitor around, but for someone on a budget (yes, these people do exist) it could prove totally adequate when combined with a calibration tool.

Is there any particular reason why you're acting so sneery on this thread? If you have no interest in discussing the topic sensibly, perhaps you should bugger off.

 

[Pie 1]

Is there any particular reason why you're acting so sneery on this thread? If you have no interest in discussing the topic sensibly, perhaps you should bugger off.

Oh FFS. I dunno, editor - is there any particular reason why you have to act like you've got a 3 ft pole wedged up your arse whenever anyone so much as remotely question's anything you post in this forum?

Over & out. I'm not getting involved in yet another of your bizzare pedant fests.

<over to you for your usual self rightous last word>

 

[editor]

Oh FFS. I dunno, editor - is there any particular reason why you have to act like you've got a 3 ft pole wedged up your arse whenever anyone so much as remotely question's anything you post in this forum?

Over & out. I'm not getting involved in yet another of your bizzare pedant fests.

<over to you for your usual self rightous last word>

What is the matter with you? You're acting like an uptight prick with some real issues.

If you don't like what I post, try ignoring it rather than dragging the thread down with childish snipes.

 

[Sunray]

But then you're heading into the 'is it worth it?' conundrum if you're looking at a four year old CRT that's taking up half the room while those cheeky slimline LCDs are calling your name.

And, of course, CRTs can't always be repaired:

I'm not advocating getting a CRT over a LCD. 22" Illyama is 38Kg I think.

If you get it for free? 40 quid at a decent TV engineer (who are difficult to find these days) would be a reasonable given what they can do.

 

[editor]

I'm not advocating getting a CRT over a LCD. 22" Illyama is 38Kg I think.

If you get it for free? 40 quid at a decent TV engineer (who are difficult to find these days) would be a reasonable given what they can do.

I could be wrong, but I suspect that my old 21" CRT was beyond help.

The picture quality has got so fuzzy that it was only readable at 1024 x 768. I'd had it for four years or so, but it had been on just about 17 hours a day.

 

[Pie 1]

What is the matter with you? You're acting like an uptight prick with some real issues.

If you don't like what I post, try ignoring it

 

[mauvais]

Cheap LCDs are still way off after calibration. CRTs are much better for it until they degrade sufficiently over time such that they can no longer display within the required parameters.

Eizo (or I imagine LaCie) pro graphics LCDs are ace, as I'll always tell you. Way better than CRT or anything else. You could get a 21" for £600 or a 24" for £710. A Spyder calibrator is about £60. If you're doing professional photo PP and you're making any reasonable amount of money, then that's not that much of your time.

As for dual monitors, I have dual 20" 4:3 monitors at work - not cheap either - and I don't find I miss that when I get home to a 24" widescreen, especially not for photo editing.

 

[editor]

As for dual monitors, I have dual 20" 4:3 monitors at work - not cheap either - and I don't find I miss that when I get home to a 24" widescreen, especially not for photo editing.

Really? I've got so used to a dual monitor set up that I don't like working back on one, even when it's a huge screen.

I guess I like organising things by assigning them to different monitors.

 

[editor]

This looks an interesting, albeit rather pricier, option:

All of the monitors I've reviewed at CNET are consumer-level designs. One of the reasons for this is that professional-level monitors have a limited audience because of their expense.
NEC is seeking to change that, somewhat. On Friday, NEC announced the 22-inch P221W LCD monitor. This is being targeted at professionals who need to work in color-critical environments, but don't want to break the bank. You'll have to be the judge--for now--on whether $637 is "breaking the bank".
NEC's supplied features for the display include:

• 1,680x1,050-pixel native resolution
• Wide color gamut that achieves 96 percent coverage of AdobeRGB
• Internal 10-bit programmable lookup tables (LUTs)
• S-PVA LCD technology that provides for the widest viewing angles available with minimal off-angle color shift
• AmbiBright automatic brightness adjustment
• 1,000:1 typical contrast ratio
• 16ms response time
• 300 cd/m2 typical brightness
• XtraView+ 178 degree (88 degree/88 degree/88 degree/88 degree) viewing angle
• ECO Mode and carbon footprint reduction
• Analog and digital input signal
• Four-way ergonomic stand (tilt/swivel/pivot/height-adjust)
• Optional soundbar

The monitor includes a three-year limited warranty and will be available in December.
You'll also have the option in December to purchase the NEC Spectraview kit which purportedly includes an optimized calibration sensor based on X-Rite iOne Display v2 for a price of $374.99.



http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10075120-1.html

 

[mauvais]

Really? I've got so used to a dual monitor set up that I don't like working back on one, even when it's a huge screen.

I guess I like organising things by assigning them to different monitors.

Multiple screens are handy for a few things like development, but not for photo editing. That's almost always one app at a time, in my case PS or Lightroom, and you want the image as big as possible so you can get in close without losing context. Therefore a big single screen is far more useful. Same applies to games or video for different, obvious reasons.

 

[editor]

Multiple screens are handy for a few things like development, but not for photo editing. That's almost always one app at a time, in my case PS or Lightroom, and you want the image as big as possible so you can get in close without losing context. Therefore a big single screen is far more useful. Same applies to games or video for different, obvious reasons.

Weeelllll, that's obviously how it works for you, but I do a lot of photo editing and prefer to have two screens - one for the photo and the other for toolbars and other apps that I need to keep an eye on.

 

[mauvais]

This is how I work, full screen:

and I can't imagine that being anywhere near as useful on a smaller or 4:3 dual monitor setup.

It'd maybe be nice to have a second smaller screen, possibly vertically oriented, but not for anything photo related - and I don't miss it.

 

[Sunray]

I could be wrong, but I suspect that my old 21" CRT was beyond help.

The picture quality has got so fuzzy that it was only readable at 1024 x 768. I'd had it for four years or so, but it had been on just about 17 hours a day.

I could fix that. The focus has gone and its the easiest to fix thing on a CRT. Usually the pots (variable resistors) ageing and thermal cycle.

http://www.mackb.com/Uwe/Forum.aspx/mac-hardware/1687/CRT-Monitor-Out-of-Focus

good example of what you need to do, but not recommended unless you've had some training cos you could hurt yourself if you fuck up.

 

[povmcdov]

Off topic, but I'm using my new 22" widescreen LG flatron W2242T for the first time tonight. It was only 110-120 ish and I'm loving the acreage, this being my first widescreen and actually my first monitor over 19"

I cant believe I didnt get a better one eariler, especially considering my previous screen was a knackered old phillips 19" CRT that I had to beat up when the tube went funny every night.

I'm so impressed I want a Terry Pratchett special now, with 6 of the buggers. I think my GPU would ignite at that point though though...

 

[UnderOpenSky]

Its great isn't it? I moved up from a 15" laptop which I'd used for year.

Only problem is that I found myself eyeing up 24" models last time I was in town.

 

[povmcdov]

Stop it now, I'm broke enough without that kind of talk...

The system attached to it didnt help the wallet either really despite the fact that ist decidedly mid range.