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Monitor buying tips?

post #1 of 19
9/26/09 at 9:55pm
Thread Starter 
My wife needs/wants to buy and external monitor for her MacBook. Does anyone have any advice? I think it'd be easier to buy it online, but I'm not sure what she should be looking for. It'd just be for word processing/web surfing, not gaming or other graphic intensive things. It seems like a simple thing to buy, but I wondering if there are considerations that I'm not conscious of.
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post #2 of 19
9/27/09 at 10:09am
I'd like an answer to the same question, but I fear we may be on the wrong forum.
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post #3 of 19
9/27/09 at 1:48pm
Dell makes awesome monitors and has for years. I have 2408FWP and it's glorious. I think I want a second one soon.

If you care about color accuracy and viewing angles, buy their more expensive offerings, otherwise, it doesn't really matter. I'd avoid samsung. They all have those annoying glossy bezels now and they reflect shit, which is annoying as hell. The dells are flat black with a non-reflective bezel. Small detail, but it's nice.
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post #4 of 19
9/27/09 at 3:27pm
Dell's are good. If you're not using it for games, graphics, or major photos, I'd say pretty much anything from a good manufacturer would be up your alley. Check out online reviews and the deal boards for a good sale. I'd say stick with a small size than 24". I've got one now and it's a pain in the ass resizing small internet text all the time. Rocks for watching movies though.
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post #5 of 19
9/27/09 at 3:39pm
I have two on my machines at work. I don't know what her home needs are, but having two is great.
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post #6 of 19
9/27/09 at 3:48pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by JayJay View Post
I have two on my machines at work. I don't know what her home needs are, but having two is great.
I've never understood the appeal of this. Unless you're doing a ton of photoshop or movie work what's the upside to all that extra real estate?
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post #7 of 19
9/27/09 at 3:57pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rambo View Post
I've never understood the appeal of this. Unless you're doing a ton of photoshop or movie work what's the upside to all that extra real estate?

The extra real estate.
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post #8 of 19
9/27/09 at 4:03pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks for the tips. I really like an extra monitor because you can do your main task on it and have a secondary task (email, SF, etc.) on the other one. It reduces the toggling between the two and, I believe, makes you a bit more focused.
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post #9 of 19
9/27/09 at 4:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rambo View Post
I've never understood the appeal of this. Unless you're doing a ton of photoshop or movie work what's the upside to all that extra real estate?

Um... Dual-boxing? DUH!
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post #10 of 19
9/27/09 at 4:46pm
Anything from Dell or Samsung and you can't go wrong really. Just make sure to get something above 20", the extra screen space is awesome.
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post #11 of 19
9/27/09 at 8:11pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rambo View Post
I've never understood the appeal of this. Unless you're doing a ton of photoshop or movie work what's the upside to all that extra real estate?
Helps when working with multiple documents. It's a great advantage to have both.
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post #12 of 19
9/27/09 at 8:24pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rambo View Post
Dell's are good. If you're not using it for games, graphics, or major photos, I'd say pretty much anything from a good manufacturer would be up your alley. Check out online reviews and the deal boards for a good sale. I'd say stick with a small size than 24". I've got one now and it's a pain in the ass resizing small internet text all the time. Rocks for watching movies though.

I've never heard of someone actually wanting a smaller screen! It might be helpful to just resize your screen resolution so you don't have to keep manually resizing.

If I was in the market for a new monitor, I would buy 2 x inexpensive Dell 24" screens (possibly refurbished). Would prefer 2 x 24" to 1 x 30" (probably cheaper, too).
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post #13 of 19
9/27/09 at 8:34pm
I actually have a Dell LCD monitor I don't need anymore. It's only a couple of years old, and I didn't use it much. I had it connected to my desktop PC, and I tended to use my laptop far more. In fact, that's why I'm getting rid of it; I'm going laptop only.

It's just sitting around gathering dust, so I'd be willing to let it go if you'd be interested. I don't want to turn this into a B&S thread, so PM me if you might want it. If not, no problem.
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post #14 of 19
9/27/09 at 9:17pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by onlinematt View Post
I've never heard of someone actually wanting a smaller screen! It might be helpful to just resize your screen resolution so you don't have to keep manually resizing.
I'm used to using laptops so its a change for me. Why drop your screen resolution when you can have 1920x1200 goodness? For the extra real estate guys, do you just keep documents open on the 2nd monitor and use the main for apps and surfing? As big as this fucking thing is I can't imagine having 2 of them taking up the entire desk.
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post #15 of 19
9/27/09 at 9:40pm
If you get an LCD panel, make sure you get an IPS panel. They have better viewing angles and colors, but their response time may be slightly slower than TN panels. This may be important for a gamer, but try it and see. The HP 2475W is a good IPS panel.

--Andre
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