How to buy the best monitor on the market
Find out the full scoop on CRTs
CRT monitors suffer more than their share of
misleading specifications. The good news is that if you're not picky, virtually
any monitor on the market today will provide a stable, acceptable image for most
applications. But if you're hard to please, beware, because it's easy to get
obsessive over tiny differences in image quality.
Before we do the
numbers, let's consider more important stuff, such as the choice of CRT type.
The Sony Trinitron CRT (Mitsubishi licenses this technology under the
Diamondtron brand) uses a fundamentally different technology--an aperture
grille--and costs a little more than most other CRTs. Colors, particularly
reds, tend to be slightly richer and the screen a bit brighter, but tiny text
may be a little less crisp. On the other hand, the two hairlines that are
visible near the top and bottom of the screen can be distracting to sensitive
eyes. For this basic decision--Trinitron or not?--schlep down to the
computer store and look for yourself. If the two horizontal lines drive you
crazy, then you will want to look for a shadow mask
CRT.
Another crucial nonnumerical issue: the shape of the screen. You
might consider paying extra for a so-called flat-flat or true-flat CRT. A flat
screen drastically cuts glare, the enemy of comfortable viewing. "Flat-square"
CRTs actually have a slight curvature--but they're often brighter and slightly
sharper around the edges of the screen than perfectly flat screens. Again, let
your eyes be the judge.
Now, the numbers. Remember the old cliché,
"Lies, damn lies, and statistics"? Keep it in mind as you ponder the monitor
specs salespeople throw at you:
Resolution. Higher resolution
means sharper images, right? True, but at maximum resolution, most CRT monitors
shrink Windows text, buttons, and bars to the point where they're too small to
view or click comfortably, and the refresh rate may slip to the point where
flicker becomes irritating. This table shows the optimum resolutions for three
popular monitor sizes.
Any monitor worth considering should be able to
produce these resolutions at a refresh rate of 75Hz or higher, which these days
includes nearly every monitor sold. So, for most of us, more is just wasted
capacity and expense. The exception: CAD/CAE users and graphic artists who need
exceptionally crisp, fine lines.
Dot pitch. DisplayMate
Technologies, which develops the leading monitor-testing software, refers to
dot-pitch promotion as "the great dot-pitch swindle." Dot pitch, measured in
fractions of a millimeter--typically from 0.20 to 0.28mm--most commonly refers
to the distance between any two dots of the same color (triads of red, green,
and blue phosphor dots make up the pixels that form a CRT image). Theoretically,
smaller dot pitches mean crisper images. But vagaries in how manufacturers
measure dot pitch mean you can't rely on this number for CRT comparisons. The
rule of thumb: Avoid 17-inch monitors coarser than 0.28mm and 19-inch monitors
coarser than 0.26mm. Also, graphics pros should consider a CRT with a 0.20mm or
0.22mm dot pitch, because this indicates a CRT that uses Enhanced Dot Pitch
technology, which produces exceptionally clean vertical lines.
Viewable screen area. The viewable area of CRT monitors measures
slightly smaller than the advertised diagonal CRT size; a 19-inch CRT, for
example, generally gives you an 18-inch screen area (because the measurement
includes the plastic casing around the outside of the screen, called a
bezel, or frame). But picky buyers should check this number carefully;
some monitors vary by as much as an inch and a half.
Horizontal
scanning frequency. This key number, measured in Kilohertz (KHz), indicates
how high you can push the refresh rate at any resolution. Some people are highly
sensitive to flicker, so watch the horizontal scanning frequency if you crave a
rock-solid image; an 85Hz refresh rate should be enough for anyone. Here are the
horizontal scan rates necessary to achieve 85Hz at the following resolutions:
In rare cases, a monitor won't run at an 85Hz refresh
rate even if the horizontal scanning frequency is high enough to support it. The
moral: if you care about higher-than-normal refresh rates, double-check the
specs to make sure that the manufacturer explicitly supports the refresh rate
you want at the resolution you'll be using. And the vertical scan frequency
that's always listed next to the horizontal scan frequency range? That's just
another way of saying refresh rate.
Warranty. Anything less than
three years is suspect. Three is the norm; some manufacturers offer up to five
years. The warranty should cover parts for the entire period and labor for at
least the first year. Also, look for a 30-day money-back guarantee (with no
restocking charge) to cover the off chance that you'll get caught with a lemon.
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