What to look for in a monitor?

<p>Or, you could just tell me which to buy. Or if I need to get one at all.</p>

<p>I don't know what my monitor budget is-I don't want to under-purchase but I do know I'm not likely to ever need a $7k monitor. I have searched on here and it seems there's a cheering section for NEC PA-series monitors. I don't understand what makes them different from the monitor I have, which is an Acer H233H (except for several hundred dollars...) So please, help me out. I'm willing to spend a few hundred dollars on a monitor if it's something that will help me progress in my learning & enjoyment of photography & PP. I do intend to print at home eventually, on a quality printer, if that makes a difference.</p>

<p>I appreciate the help. I've been reading online but like anything else, it seems there's a lot to know and I don't want to miss an important spec when/if I start shopping.</p>

<p>what you're 'missing' is that the better monitors (ie. NEC Spectraview PA and Eizo) have internal intelligence and custom chips inside that control their color and performance whereas the vanilla ones do not and simply rely on the computer's graphics card (and the lack of the intelligence and chips saves hundreds of $$)</p>

<p>On that note, do you have any colour calibration? If not, you would be wiser to invest in monitor calibration over buying a new monitor without any.</p>

<p>The source may be considered a bit biased, but it contains lots of useful info:<br>

http://www.imagescience.com.au/kb/questions/120/Monitors+For+High+Quality+Imaging+Work</p>

<p>T</p>

<p>Don't know if this will help. The photographer who has done some tutoring for me recently posted a link on his facebook page to the ViewSonic VP2365-LED. He said he bought 2 plus the X-Rite calibrator for his assistant.</p>

<p>I'm a hobbyist photographer but have been researching digital imaging technology since 1998. I got tired of ordering displays online and found a factory calibrated sRGB-ish LED display at my Best Buy, the LG 27ea63v-p. This YouTube video does quite a good review including Delta E number before and after calibration... http://youtube.howtorepeat.com/vSeh8ERSVx4/LG-IPS277-vs-27EA63-REVIEW-COMPARISON-Video-(IPS237-vs-23EA63).html</p>

<p>You can also see my review at Amazon on this model where I posted photos of various gradients that show no banding and included settings to get the best precalibration optimization so the video card adjusts are quite minimal. IOW you get full 8 bit rendering. Color gamut is slightly less in sRGB but extends a bit beyond in greens/yellows.</p>

<p>According to the review suggested by Tom, the Eizo Foris FS2333W at around $500 is probably the cheapest quality monitor you will find, with the highly accurate monitors from Eizo and NEC retailing for $1000 and much more.</p>

<p>Considering the cost of photographic equipment, photo printers, software and good computers, the monitor is not something that is that expensive and should not be skimped on if one is looking for the highest quality results. My computer monitor is showing signs of eventual demise and I will certainly look at available comparative information before buying.</p>

<p>Other than color temperature and sufficient controls to vary the monitor parameters, a good monitor is also one which maintains its color and luminance constant over several tens of degrees of viewing angle from the perpendicular to its surface. Very few do that. It is something very easy to check when examining different monitors.</p>

<p>Thanks all for your help! I wonder if I could get a better price on Black Friday?</p>

<p>Definitely go with the Eizo display if you can afford it. I would've picked that one if I'ld known about it before buying the LG. That's the first sub-$500 IPS/sRGB Eizo I've ever come across.</p>

<p>Quality control is everything when buying displays for photo editing online and from what myself and other's experiences throughout the years dealing with these types of displays quite a few had to ask for refunds or accept refurbs from the manufacturer which was what happened with my Dell 2209WA. This is the main reason I stopped buying online and went with Best Buy's LG 27" which I did have to swap out for a <strong>NEW (not refurbed)</strong> model in the store due to the touch sensor buttons not working. I could also examine the condition of the box the unit was shipped in to check for stress, holes and indications of it being crushed or kicked/dropped.</p>

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<p>I wonder if I could get a better price on Black Friday?</p>

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<p>In this hectic time of the season I'ld suggest you get insurance on shipping, a liberal return policy or try to buy it in the store. Have you seen the YouTube videos of FedEx and UPS deliveries? They give new meaning to "drop shipped" especially during the holidays.</p>

<p>Good points, Tim. I'll see what Best Buy has in the store or just wait till after the holidays. I'm in no rush to buy, and I'm certainly in no rush to deal with the shipping pitfalls this time of year!</p>

<p>Certainly one needs to inspect the packaging of items for clues to possible damage, as well as the items themselves, no matter where they are purchased from. Virtually everything that you buy is delivered by truck, if not directly to you, then to the dealer, including Best Buy. My point is that one does not escape the issue of shipping damage by avoiding FedEx, UPS, etc.</p>

<p>Actually, I cannot recall the last time that an item that was delivered to me by UPS, etc, was damaged in shipping. If their service was all that bad, nobody would use them. YouTube videos aside, most people never have a problem.</p>

<p>Renee: I've been getting emails from B&H and Adorama about Black Friday sales, so you may find something there. Like Carl, we've ordered many electronic items online, including camera lenses, laptops, and a TV. We've never had a problem. It is wise to know the store's return policy - my sister had to return a TV to Adorama - but I've always found that items are packed well enough to handle the shipping.</p>

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<p>My point is that one does not escape the issue of shipping damage by avoiding FedEx, UPS, etc.</p>

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<p>Like Carl, we've ordered many electronic items online, including camera lenses, laptops, and a TV. We've never had a problem. </p>

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<p>Not that both of you speak for all, but your points also don't rule out nor do they confirm the source of the damage even on a perfect looking package or kid glove treatment in shipping. A 5 year warrantee pretty much covers that anyway if by chance a year or two later the unit mysteriously acquires screen uniformity issues and other odd visual artifacts that can't be traced back to rough shipping.</p>

<p>What's important here is that Renee shouldn't be pushed into a quick sale due to Black Friday bargain pricing. An Eizo at that price is already a bargain but the hefty warrantee better cover problems with the screen or else it's just another cheap monitor she'll be replacing with a refurb.</p>

<p>Below is the kind of screen artifact I couldn't have imagined or even foreseen from the cheapest $100 "gamer" TN display, but just showed up right about a year after my 3 year Dell warranty expired on my 2209WA. It was a refurbed sent to me by Dell directly because the "NEW" one I bought at Amazon had warm/cool color temp uniformity problems.</p>

<p>I wouldn't say shipping was the cause because I didn't get to see how it was handled in shipping, but it was a PITA having to go through two displays on a model that was raved about on the web and became a hot seller. I paid $300 for the Dell, an IPS display.</p>

<p>For perspective I'm a photographer who doesn't buy a lot of gear. I still have the same single DSLR I bought back in 2006 and it still works. Most of my purchases has been software so the odds of me having this much trouble with a "highly rated" piece of hardware shouldn't have happened but it did. So buyer beware.</p><div></div>