ethan_schoonover

<p>The pink cast problem is no longer an issue in the newer 23" units, though I've had one bad 23" monitor with image ghosting problems.

<p>The Dells are probably a good bet (I know other photogs that love them) but be careful to get the newer units as well. Some of the units from the first half of 2006 had nasty banding problems (<a href="http://www.engadget.com/2006/05/26/dell-fesses-up-to-2007wfp-banding-problems/">see this article</a>). Evidently solved in the newer units as well...

<p>I'm not sure who manufactures the internals for the Apple and Dell 30" units, but previously LG made the internals for both the Apple and Dell 20" displays, fyi.

<p>As far as I know the 30" has always been 700:1... Perhaps you mean the 23"? Of course, there are other factors when considering an LCD purchase besides the contrast ratio. And the contrast ratio itself may be a bit over used when considering the overall merits of a particular model:</p>

<p>See <a href="http://www.tomshardware.com/2004/02/26/lcd_technicalities/page2.html">this Tom's Hardware commentary on LCD specs.</a></p>

Price per pixel, the 30" is cheaper.

The Apple Cinema 23" was recently upgraded to match the contrast ratio of the 30". This only happened a month or two ago. Prior to that the "old" 23" units had a 400:1 contrast ratio while the 30" had a 700:1 contrast ratio. In August 2006 Apple bumped up the specs of the 23" to 700:1. I don't know how you can check whether you are getting a pre-August upgrade 23" unit. FYI.

Bottom line: The more screen real estate the better. If you use a tablet or modify your mouse settings the cursor travel issue is not a factor. More pixels on display = more efficient retouching.

If price is a stumbling block on the 30", 23 is a good option. However if price is really the biggest issue then consider a non-apple display. Your mileage may vary, however... I really don't know how the Dell and other 23" competitors compare to the cinema display's quality (though I know some of the non-apple displays out there have superior contrast ratios in the 1600:1 range... for example some of the mid range NEC models).

Personally, I'm quite pleased with the investment in the 30 inch. Aperture and Lightroom make very good use of the space.

<p>I also produce fine art prints and am more than happy with the cinema display.</p>

<p>I'd strongly encourage you to invest some time in reading <a href="http://www.digitaldog.net/">Andrew Rodney's</a> excellent book titled <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Color-Management-Photographers-Techniques-Photoshop/dp/0240806492/sr=8-1/qid=1160363543/ref=pd_bbs_1/002-9099265-1595252?ie=UTF8&s=books">Color Management for Photographers</a>. It will clarify a lot of the basic terminology involved and give you a better foundation for managing color from capture to edit to print.</p>

<p>Personally, I'm quite happy having gone with the 30" display, particularly as new tools like <a href="http://www.apple.com/aperture/">Aperture</a> and <a href="">Lightroom</a> really benefit from the screen size. Until the prices on Lumiled backed LCD monitors drops, or their size increases, I'm happy with the (already excellent) color on the Cinema display.</p>

<p>Just be sure to buy a hardware calibration tool like a <a href="http://www.gretagmacbeth.com/index/communities/i1color/eye-one_overview.htm">GretagMacbeth</a> product (I use the Eye-One Display2, but you can get units from GretagMacbeth that profile both displays and printer targets). Once you have one, be sure you've gone through Andrew's book linked to above... it's one of the best I've read on color management.</p>

<p>If you are just jumping into the digital workflow, the learning curve is steep, but it's worth it to study the color management up front.</p>

<p>I just purchased a new monitor and was considering one of two options: An Apple Cinema Display 23" or a much higher end unit such as the new NEC-2180WG (the new, and first, Lumileds unit). I ended getting something different than both those options. I'll explain my decision here.</p>

<p>As background: I was using an Apple Cinema Display 23" unit as my primary display and an older Philips 18" LCD as secondary. The Philips had to go. I thought the time might have arrived, given the new NEC, to invest in some really top end monitor kit. However the price is really over the fence, out of the ballpark.</p>

<p>The Lumileds technology seems like a good long term investment. Hopefully longer life than present flourescents backed LCDs and great gamut, etc. However, reading the <a href="http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/accessories/nec-2180wg.shtml">review of the NEC MultiSync 2180WG-LED on Luminous Landscape</a> made me reconsider, basically due to price.</p>

<p>I really don't feel that the extra money spent on the NEC will be the best allocation of resources at this stage in my studio's development. Instead, I chose to scale up past the 23" and go for a 30" Apple Cinema Display (best cost/pixel of the Apple displays at present). The color gamut is acceptable to me, and after profiling I get excellent result throughout my color managed workflow. The gamut is not as big as the NECs, but for less than half the price I am getting significant screen real estate. This is, for the money, more valuable to me than the extra "gamut real estate" in the NEC.</p>

<p>If you absolutely need that color gamut, consider the NEC. If you feel the investment is better allocated to screen real-estate, then the 30" cinema display is attractively priced right now.</p>

<p><em>

Also see the <a href="http://www.tomshardware.com/2005/10/28/a_revolution/index.html">Tom's Hardware review the the NEC MultiSync 2180WG-LED.</a></em></p>