TFT 21-24" For Gaming

[Ubermann]

Building a system and need a good monitor for gaming.
Price is hmm max $700.

Wtf do i choose ?
Finding good reviews this days on internet is a mess..

[Silver Bullet]

Samsung 226BW/CW or 2232GW (coming soon) ... Asus has some nice LCDs and then there is always Dell. Google is your friend for finding reviews...

[it_burns_when_i_pee]

personally i'd avoid the samsung panels, not just because of the panel lottery but also because i have bought several 22" screens and found the 226 series to be terrible when compared to rivals

i did a little critical review of the 226cw, 215tw and w2207 here:

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...d.php?t=158012

here i posted another bunch of pics of the L226WTQ vs an older screen

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...d.php?t=154437

some people will claim that the monitor they got is the best thing ever, but im hard to please and realistic. check above links to see what i mean, pay alot of attention when comparing screens for color etc. I have the samsung 215tw and w2207 at the moment - im awaiting a swap out for the samsung to get a panel that doesnt suffer video lag. then i will decide which i will keep, the hp or the older samsung

[Soulburner]

Check the LCD Buyers Guide and the Anandtech LCD Thread.

[Serra]

I would get a 226BW - *IF* you can get the right panel. That's the trick, they have 3 panel types and only 1 is actually made by Samsung... the other two apparently just don't look as good. If you don't mind buying, checking, and returning if applicable then shopping elsewhere and repeating, it's a good investment.

[hewi]

I'm no Exptert in judging monitors, but I'll give my vote for the Samsung 244T. Saw one in a store and I just had to have it. Not sure if it fits your budjet tho, costs around 900 euros here in the cold north.

[Teqqles]

226BW is definitely worth it if you can get hold of an 'S' panel. I've yet to fire mine up, so not sure if I won the lottery yet

[shepard]

http://www.widescreengamingforum.com....php/Main_Page

good luck !

[it_burns_when_i_pee]

there are many comparisons out there with pictures. check them out before you commit your cash. be sure not sorry!

on the links i have above, check the pictures. the color representations & gradients. poorer blacks / off whites, greys & blacks.

if you are as picky as me then you will want to be sure about your hardware. i got a replacement 215tw coming tomorrow. when its up i will be comparing the two again and will update my thread. if it wasnt for the lag i would choose it because it has a clearly superior 8bit panel. anything 22" or more has a 6bit with in-effective dithering

and the 6bits can be said that they are no better than the first tft screens out. although the gloss on the hp does make up for it, to SOME extent

[ChaosMinionX]

I would get a 226BW - *IF* you can get the right panel. That's the trick, they have 3 panel types and only 1 is actually made by Samsung... the other two apparently just don't look as good. If you don't mind buying, checking, and returning if applicable then shopping elsewhere and repeating, it's a good investment.

S panel is best, however A panels with the proper calibration and color profile look identical to the S panels, I have both my main monitor is an S 226BW, my 2nd is a A panel, fixed colors with a profile and some tweaking.

[Soulburner]

there are many comparisons out there with pictures. check them out before you commit your cash. be sure not sorry!

on the links i have above, check the pictures. the color representations & gradients. poorer blacks / off whites, greys & blacks.

if you are as picky as me then you will want to be sure about your hardware. i got a replacement 215tw coming tomorrow. when its up i will be comparing the two again and will update my thread. if it wasnt for the lag i would choose it because it has a clearly superior 8bit panel. anything 22" or more has a 6bit with in-effective dithering

This is not true - all current 22" models have TN 6-bit panels, yes. But to say that anything larger does as well, is wrong. In fact most panels larger than 22" do not have TN panels, though that is changing with more "budget" models coming to market.

My BenQ FP241W is certainly not a TN panel, and neither are the Dell 2407WFP, Samsung 244T and many others.

[YukonTrooper]

If you want the best panel between color, performance and price then the P-MVA screens are where your money should go. BenQ 24" and LG 24" both fall into this category. Here is a nice comparison of three 24" LCD's: http://www.bexox.com/showdown.htm. I purchased the LG-L245WP which is the same as the LG-L246WP in the review. They are named differently because one is the version you buy in brick and mortar stores and the other is the one you can buy online. They did this so you could not cross price match between the two models. I bought it based on the fact it had the lowest input lag of the 24" monitors which is better for gaming. However the BenQ shouldn't be overlooked because it offers superior input capabilities and the input lag on the BenQ vs the LG should be imperceptible to the human brain.

The sweet spot for monitors at the moment is 22" 1680X1050 but is slowly moving into the 24" range. The Samsung 226BW S panel is the best overall LCD for input lag and the C and A panels are close but definitely not as good. You won't be able to find the S panel unless you can get one on eBay but they go for $$$ and isn't worth it IMO. These are all TN panels which produce noticeably weaker colors than other panel types. The S panel however is actually quite good for a TN.

If you want the cream of the crop then look at the Planar 26" PX2611W monitor. It doesn't get any better than this at the moment. Up until this time s-ips panels have been superior in terms of color quality and have been the go to monitor for graphics development, image editing etc. However the input lag has been horrendous at best and was unusable for gaming. This Planar introduces a new h-ips panel which retains the excellent color and has amazing input lag results. The only downside? Price. In the $900 range.

IMO with the money your willing to spend I would go for a 24" monitor. I know the LG can be had for real cheap right now as they seem to be on sale all over the place. Go with the BenQ if you need the extra inputs or like the styling better. I have the LG and play FPS heavily but notice no input lag at about 24/1000ths of a second. The BenQ has about 33/1000ths of a second, Samsung S panel at about 9/1000ths, A and C panels at about 16/1000ths and the Planar at about 12/1000ths of a second. I was going to go with the Samsung but decided on the 24" for the size and color quality improvement. Cheers.

[it_burns_when_i_pee]

i read that all current tft's 22" and above were tn panels because of cost / technology? maybe they arent, i read it online in a review justifying why all tn panels dont compare. i think it was trustedreviews.com

24" is a too big and the resolution too great for my liking so thats out. 20-22" is ideal but fed up of buying and returning monitors. i've had 7 so far and wont be trying anymore until something worth trying comes along.

the replacement 215tw came and it suffers the same lag, although it is not as great, maybe more livable but im still keeping the hp until something better comes along. damn shame

[YukonTrooper]

No not all 22" monitors and above are TN. All 22" monitors are TN but the 24" range consists of S-PVA, P-MVA, A-MVA and TN.

215TW is horrible, stay away. Go for a Samsung 226BW A or S panel if you can actually find them. Unfortunately you will probably only find a C panel and although input lag is good for gaming, ghosting and color quality suffer compared to the A and S panels. The A panel can actually be calibrated close to S panel levels but the C lacks.

If your willing to get a refurbished unit then look at a vx2025wm. I say refurbished because they no longer manufacture this panel. It is still the best overall 20"-22" monitor available regardless of being not made anymore. P-MVA screen, excellent input lag and will look a lot better picture quality wise because of A) the color and B) 1680X1050 at 20" offers more pixels per inch than 1680X1050 at 22".

Here, if your looking at a 20" or 22" then check out these reviews:

13 20" LCD's tested: http://www.behardware.com/articles/6...6-8-16-ms.html

9 22" LCD's tested: http://www.behardware.com/articles/6...nd-coming.html

Comparison of S panel vs A panel: http://www.behardware.com/articles/6...e-verdict.html

C panel: http://www.behardware.com/articles/6...r-226bw-c.html

[Soulburner]

I went with a $199 Acer AL2051W 20" for another rig and was not disappointed. It was the only 20" at that price that did not have a TN panel. The response time was fast enough to not ghost (visibly the same as my BenQ FP241W), the color was very good and the viewing angle was insane. My girlfriend could see what I was doing across the room at almost a right angle.

[it_burns_when_i_pee]

i had the 226bw a panel and side by side against an hold hp 19" it couldnt compare. colors and backlight bleed were terrible so i took it back, got the lg 226wtq, that was better but only a bit. then had the 226cw, 215tw and hp w2207

i've stuck with the 2207. side by side the 226 couldnt compete. and if it wasnt for the lag i would choose the 215tw. but the lag is un-liveable in my opinion

so had to go with my 2nd choice for now. will keep an eye out on ebay etc for a tidy 2nd screen or until something better comes along

[troisanh]

happy with my dell 2407wfp-HC be it gaming or watching dvd's.