What monitor should I get?

[Robotics Guy]

Hello! I just found this forum. Cool stuff :D

I have a 17" gaming laptop that's really nice, but when at home I'd love to have a bigger screen for playing games (and working) on. I've been looking at different brands and sizes of LCD monitors for a while now and have run across this 23" Samsung monitor from Sams Club: http://www.samsclub.com/shopping/navigate.do?dest=5&item=440057&pCatg=5902

It has positive reviews, but I thought I'd ask the experts (A.K.A. you guys :)) if there's a better monitor I should be looking at? My budget is, unfortunately, limited at about $250 or less.

I really, really, would appreciate advice!

Here are the specs for the Sams Club monitor I linked to:

23" Samsung P2350 Wide High Definition LCD Monitor

# Screen Size: 23" Wide
# Resolution: 1,920 x 1,080
# Brightness: 300cd/m²
# Contrast Ratio: DC 50,000:1 (1,000:1) (Typ.)
# Response time: 2ms
# Viewing Angle(Horizontal/Vertical): 170˚ / 160˚ (CR>10)
# Color Supported: 16.7M

Signal Input:
# Video Signal: Analog RGB, DVI
# Sync. Signal: Separate H/V, Composite, SOG
# Connector: 15pin D-SUB, DVI-D

Thanks!

[whismerhill]

it really depends on what YOU want
-is gaming with acceptable framerates at native monitor res important to you?
-same question with max details + FSAA ?
-in this case do you play those games that are used as reviews in graphic bench with the heavy load they put on the graphic card

-do you want your monitor to be adjustable in height position ?

-is this only for gaming or are you doing other things with your monitor ?

-is response time important to you ?

-is accurate colors important to you ?


and this list is non-exhaustive ...

[Robotics Guy]

I've just found this monitor today and am seriously considering buying it:

Dell S2409W
http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/p...15&lid=1003769

$80 dollars off. Can't beat that!

A few concerns though. Will the 1920 X 1080 resolution be a problem for games? And also, it has a higher response time at 5ms compared to the Samsung's 2ms. Do you think that will make a difference?

[chabooka]

I've just found this monitor today and am seriously considering buying it:

Dell S2409W
http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/p...15&lid=1003769

$80 dollars off. Can't beat that!

A few concerns though. Will the 1920 X 1080 resolution be a problem for games? And also, it has a higher response time at 5ms compared to the Samsung's 2ms. Do you think that will make a difference?

well... I play street fighter just fine with 5 ms

[Robotics Guy]

Well, I was able to see the Dell in-store yesterday and am a little disappointed with it. It was sitting next to a Hannspree monitor which seemed to be much brighter and have better colors. The Dell looked like it had really bad "white" colors too, there was a very noticeable yellow tint to the screen when it was supposed to be white :?

To try and answer whismerhill's questions:

-is gaming with acceptable framerates at native monitor res important to you?

-same question with max details + FSAA ?

I don't know if my Gateway 6860FX can handle me playing games at a 24" screen's full resolution. So I'm note sure..

-in this case do you play those games that are used as reviews in graphic bench with the heavy load they put on the graphic card

Are you asking if I like to play the newest-and-greatest games? If so, then yes, I do.

-do you want your monitor to be adjustable in height position ?

That would be nice, but most of the cheaper monitor I've seen are not adjustable other then tilt. I can improvise though, set it on some text books or something :)

-is this only for gaming or are you doing other things with your monitor ?

I'll be doing all my schoolwork on it, as well as some web design and a lot of programming. And of course I'll be playing games on it.

-is response time important to you ?

Yes. I don't know what response times are considered "acceptable," but I'd rather not have ghosting problems.

-is accurate colors important to you ?

Of course I want to get the most for my money, so I want to get the best monitor possible. But accurate colors are not important enough for me to take out a loan to pay for it :D

Thanks for your help! And I'm not stuck on getting either of the two monitors I've posted here.. If anyone knows of a better monitor for under $300, I'd be really grateful for your advice.