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DPChallenge Forums >> Hardware and Software >> LCD or CRT?
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 10/17/2006 05:30:25 PM · #1
Please help. I need a new monitor. I think the most I really want to spend is about $300. At that price, am I getting a better CRT or LCD?

I've been reading around the forums and it seems like LCD's are better, but you have to be willing to shell out the money, around at least $700 and up.

I don't really have any complaints about my CRT, and I noticed a lot of LCD's change brightness as you shift even a little. I've heard that LCD's are sharper, but as I said, I have no realy complaints about my CRT.

OK, enough rambling, $300 what would you do?
 10/17/2006 05:39:35 PM · #2
CRT's are DIRT cheap now, so I think you get a lot more for your money buying technology that is second in line.

I learned a long time ago that I can make just as much money with technology that isn't bleeding edge -

I have two CRT's on my workstation that are about to go south on me - I will replace them with CRTs. I work on the BIG Mac panel at one of my clients - actually prefer the larger real estate my 2 CRT's provide.

Edit to add:

for the price of one of the Mac panels, I can buy two CRTs and a D200 body! I'm going to go explain this to my wife! D200 here I come!

Message edited by author 2006-10-17 17:41:02.
 10/17/2006 05:47:08 PM · #3
Ditto. I find my Dell Trinitron 21' (Sony) excellent. Haven't seen an lcd that can hold a candle to this monitor in terms of colour reproduction, responce time and viewing angle.

My 2c

Harry
 10/17/2006 06:47:50 PM · #4
At this point in time, LCDs cannot in any way complete with CRTs on price or performance. Just make sure you compare actual monitor stats, don't just trust the brand. Every brand makes several lines of displays, each of which have different quality expectations and price points.

I love ViewSonic's monitors, but the Sony Trinitron is another display with good general reviews.

I love CRTs, but I just don't have the desk space. I currently have two 17" ViewSonic LCDs. and I'm thinking of supplementing them with a single smaller (15-17") CRT for proofing work.
 10/17/2006 07:22:06 PM · #5
For what it's worth I much prefer CRTs. Unfortunately the good ones are getting harder and harder to find. I have one 24" and two 21" Trinitrons on my home system and I wouldn't take any LCD I've personally seen over them. The 24" is truly a thing of beauty, but I believe you can only find it refurbished or used now. Of course if that doesn't bother you your $300 might come close to getting one.
 10/17/2006 07:47:22 PM · #6
LCDs are sharper and brighter. CRTs generally do better with colors. Just decide which YOU care about most, not what someone else prefers.
 10/17/2006 07:58:16 PM · #7
When my CRT died, I used the opportunity to purchase an LCD. Got a great price and recovered massive square footage on my desk. It was light and easy to position. BUT..... when it came to editing photos, it didn't work for me. Apparently it had a contrast ratio of below 600:1, which somewhere I read was the minimum you needed to work with photos. (Not that I know.. just something I read.) Those at 600:1 and above were out of my price range.

Ended up taking it back, getting a really cheap CRT and was back in business on my crowded desk.

I agree with viajero. Decide what's most important to you, and go with it!

Message edited by author 2006-10-17 19:59:44.
 10/17/2006 08:09:38 PM · #8
Thanks everyone. A CRT it is. Does this look alright?

Thinkvision

$75 Canadian after rebate, so $115 Canadian for me (I never, ever actually get around to sending them out). What do you think? Any Good?

Thanks again.
 10/17/2006 09:01:08 PM · #9
Originally posted by shanelighter:
Thanks everyone. A CRT it is. Does this look alright?

Thinkvision

$75 Canadian after rebate, so $115 Canadian for me (I never, ever actually get around to sending them out). What do you think? Any Good?

Thanks again.


I'm not sure which model this is, so check to make sure the tube is a Trinitron. If it is, it should be a good deal. One of my 21" monitors is an IBM P260 from Tiger Direct and I have been very happy with it other than some wear/rub marks on the antiglare coating. It was my main monitor before I got the 24" and has performed well. As an aside, if you do send the rebate, expect about 3 months to get anything back.

Message edited by author 2006-10-17 21:03:37.
 10/19/2006 11:39:25 AM · #10
tigerdirect.com sometimes has a 19-inch lcd moniter for $160, a pretty good price.
 10/19/2006 11:57:32 AM · #11
If you're going to buy a CRT make sure it's got aperture grille technology, not shadow mask. The former will have better color than the latter. These are monitors that have the "tron" at the end of their name, such as Trinitron, Diamondtron, etc.
 10/19/2006 12:02:47 PM · #12
Yeah sure you could buy a cheap lcd-monitor but it would surely suck if your thinking of using it when you are working with images.

Good color and contrast costs money. Although there are a few diffrent types of lcd panels, only a few of them are any good for viewing imgages on.

You would want to stay away from tn-panels, they are cheap and have fast response times but they are not any good with color and contrast.

What you should look for is an ips-panel or a va-panel, they are the best.

Stuff you want in a lcd screen(screens that have this are good).

High contrast values 800:1-1000:1
Symmetrical viewing angle (like 170/170)


Stuff to watch out for(screens with this are utter crap)

Fast response times(usually means that its a tn-panel)
16.2 million colors(instead of 16.7 million colors)
Asymmetrical viewing angles(like 135/150 or 140/175)
Cheap screens in general

Message edited by author 2006-10-19 12:42:32.
 10/19/2006 12:07:31 PM · #13
If you're willing to spend a tad more money, consider the Dell 20" Widescreen LCD. It has a great contrast ratio, a good response time (for an LCD, which actually only really matters if you play games or do video work) and a very decent price for what you get at $340. I work on the 24" version and absolutely love it. It's incredibly sharp, very bright, has great color reproduction, and takes up no space on the desk. Once you get a widescreen display, you'll never go back!

//accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=320-4688
 10/19/2006 12:15:11 PM · #14
Originally posted by valkner:
If you're willing to spend a tad more money, consider the Dell 20" Widescreen LCD. It has a great contrast ratio, a good response time (for an LCD, which actually only really matters if you play games or do video work) and a very decent price for what you get at $340. I work on the 24" version and absolutely love it. It's incredibly sharp, very bright, has great color reproduction, and takes up no space on the desk. Once you get a widescreen display, you'll never go back!

//accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=320-4688


Yeah, it looks good. It's proboarly a va-panel. (although I would not call the 16ms response time fast)

Message edited by author 2006-10-19 12:15:20.
 10/19/2006 12:23:42 PM · #15
The Dell 2007 WPF listed below is an S-IPS panel monitor, afaik. However, Dell recently made some changes to their 2007 model line where they are now using PVA technology in the non-widescreen model. One way of confirming this is with the website: flatpanels.dk. Click on "panelsogning" and enter the model and it will come back with the kind of technology it uses. (The website is mostly in Danish, but you have a choice of english at the "panelsogning" link.

Originally posted by xantangummi:
Originally posted by valkner:
If you're willing to spend a tad more money, consider the Dell 20" Widescreen LCD. It has a great contrast ratio, a good response time (for an LCD, which actually only really matters if you play games or do video work) and a very decent price for what you get at $340. I work on the 24" version and absolutely love it. It's incredibly sharp, very bright, has great color reproduction, and takes up no space on the desk. Once you get a widescreen display, you'll never go back!

//accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=320-4688


Yeah, it looks good. It's proboarly a va-panel. (although I would not call the 16ms response time fast)
10/19/2006 12:32:07 PM · #16
Originally posted by xantangummi:


Stuff to watch out for(screens with this are utter crap)

Fast response times(usually means that its a tn-panel)


Wha? I'm as big a fan as ghosting as the next person, but I draw the line at seeing three frames at once when watching a movie because the screen's too slow.
 10/19/2006 12:40:25 PM · #17
Originally posted by m:
Originally posted by xantangummi:


Stuff to watch out for(screens with this are utter crap)

Fast response times(usually means that its a tn-panel)


Wha? I'm as big a fan as ghosting as the next person, but I draw the line at seeing three frames at once when watching a movie because the screen's too slow.


I'm talking about screens faster then 8ms(or really cheap 8ms screens)
 10/19/2006 12:46:38 PM · #18
Originally posted by Olyuzi:
The Dell 2007 WPF listed below is an S-IPS panel monitor, afaik. However, Dell recently made some changes to their 2007 model line where they are now using PVA technology in the non-widescreen model. One way of confirming this is with the website: flatpanels.dk. Click on "panelsogning" and enter the model and it will come back with the kind of technology it uses. (The website is mostly in Danish, but you have a choice of english at the "panelsogning" link.


I just guessed after looking at the price and technicals (quite cheap, good contrast, symmetrical viewing angle, slow response time). It really looks like that screen is a good buy if its an ips panel.

edit: nice site (danish is no problem for me ;) )

Message edited by author 2006-10-19 12:50:45.
 10/19/2006 12:58:16 PM · #19
The CRT's you can get for $300 will be WAY better than the cheapest LCD's.
 10/19/2006 01:01:59 PM · #20
Originally posted by ddpNikon:
The CRT's you can get for $300 will be WAY better than the cheapest LCD's.


Well the lcd you can get for $1000 will be better then the crt's you can get for $300, so what?

The softness and powerconsumption of crt's is just awful.
10/19/2006 01:34:35 PM · #21
I went to a seminar recently where the speaker was from a design school here teaching photography ... he said that CRT screens are the way to go ... they were far superior for working with images than LCD or Plasma.

Kari
 10/19/2006 02:03:35 PM · #22
Originally posted by kari1:
I went to a seminar recently where the speaker was from a design school here teaching photography ... he said that CRT screens are the way to go ... they were far superior for working with images than LCD or Plasma.

Kari


We have a saying here, roughly(and not literary) translated it means "there's two sides of every ass". That pretty much sums up almost every debate in the hardware forum :D

Message edited by author 2006-10-19 14:14:25.
 10/19/2006 02:16:32 PM · #23
I have 2 crt,s. one is a Gateway and the other is a Dell Trinitron. My wife has a Compaq, and my son also has a dell. All of ours work beautifully and they were all bought from second hand stores for less than $10.00 each. none of them are more than 4 years old
 10/19/2006 02:41:40 PM · #24
Ill toss my 2 cents into the ring.

I cant remember the exact model but until recently I have been using a 21" viewsonic crt. 5 years ago the beast set me back over $500. If I remember correctly it has a .25 dp or less and overall a very good picture.

A couple weeks ago a built a new system and wanted to free up some desk realestate as well as gain screen realestate so I opted to go with a samsung 225BW 22" wide screen LCD which runs 1680x1050 resolution.

From a brightness standpoint the LCD is far brighter than the CRT.

CRT has better dot pitch and a more "even" picture since the LCD images changes slightly depending on how you view it (ie angles and such).

The LCD has no ghosting at when games are played.

The LCD has some backlight bleed through along the top and bottom which isnt really noticable unless you looking at a very dark (almost black) screen.

I could not get very good color representation by using adobe gamma to adjust the monitor. Out of the box it lacked depth/contrast and everything was a bit washed out.

After using a spyder2 on it however I feel the depth and overall picture quality are on par if not slightly better than my older CRT monitor.

The added size of the monitor allows me to see so much more of my images when viewed at 100% that it really helps in PP.

The LCD was under $400 and has no bells/whistles like USB ports, card readers etc but for the price it has what I would consider a very good image and taking into account all aspects (ie added viewing area, saved desk space etc) Im glad I chose the monitor I did.

Just like anything visual the monitor you chose will be very subjective.
 10/19/2006 03:23:45 PM · #25
Originally posted by Olyuzi:
The Dell 2007 WPF listed below is an S-IPS panel monitor, afaik. However, Dell recently made some changes to their 2007 model line where they are now using PVA technology in the non-widescreen model. One way of confirming this is with the website: flatpanels.dk. Click on "panelsogning" and enter the model and it will come back with the kind of technology it uses. (The website is mostly in Danish, but you have a choice of english at the "panelsogning" link.

Looks like a good resource, but can somebody explain what all these codes mean? Which are the ones to go for, and which to avoid?
The paneltek page lists a whole bunch of LCD types but unfortunately isn't translated.
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