i just bought a viewsonic a few weeks ago and it seems pretty good. my old crt viewsonic is still kicking after a ga-zillion hours. i brought my friends samsung over to try and compare but i can't tell any differnce.95% use for trading. i heard lg is pretty good also.
Day after Thanksgiving there was a special at Fry's, where I bought a 20.1" Samsung 203B monitor for $189.99 B4 tax, after $40 rebate. 3 year mfg warranty, great specs, not refurbished not open box. Not widescreen (which has fewer square inches per diag inch, better for movie-watching than trading). Several of these are now being resold on ebay for around $190 - $225. Search for Samsung 203B. Also, www.costco.com has a ViewSonic 19" for $199+tax, as well as other good deals, and a great return policy. http://www.costco.com/Browse/Produc...&No=9&Nr=P_CatalogName:BC&cat=1680&Ns=P_Price|1||P_SignDesc1&Sp=C&ec=&topnav= Good luck. PS I'll bet if you wait until just after Xmas, there will be more great deals available.
I have not seen an LCD monitor that compares favorably to the old technology CRT monitors. LCD's have less contrast than a CRT and the viewing angle for optimum picture is critical.
Well I just bought a Hangs G 19" from PC Connection. My monitor went bad, it went from normal to dark to black over the course of 2 trading days, I had it for 4 months approx. The other Hans G is still ok, cross my fingers . They are going to fix it but it's gone for 2 weeks and I had to pay $12 shipping for a $120 monitor after rebates. No before you say it, yes it could have happened to any mfg, but this is the first LCD I had go bad so fast and a 2 week turnaround is a long time. Not sure I would buy one again. If I buy from Costco or Sams, like I had before, and have problems I take it back at any time get full refund plus shipping and just grab another off the shelf. This has taugh a valuable lesson about back up/ redundant equipment.
Trading apps. are not visually demanding enough to stress any but the worst monitor. You should concentrate on build quality, not specs. Unless you're also after gaming nirvana too
Thanks for all the input. I hope I get lucky - now it's beginning to sound like a lottery. I guess that's what I get for trying to get a 19" lcd for this cheap. If this doesn't work out, I'll be buying a brand name with better warranty. Still, I guess it's worth a shot for the price of a decent pair of sneakers. On a serious note, I've found that with electronics in general, if doesn't break in 2 weeks, you have a good chance that it's ok.
You must be kidding. I have an GEM LCD and a Samsung CRT side-by-side. Putting a text document or a chart so it spreads across both monitors, their is no doubt about the viewing quality between the two. The CRT looks like utter, utter crap in comparison to the LCD. H
1. Who can tell about how long today's electronics will last? 2. 3-year warranty is about the best except for certain NECs at much higher cost. 3. Unless you buy from Costco or Best Buy, "shipping back to manufacturer or repair center" is always a potential risk and cost. My philosophy has mostly been, "don't tie up too much money in LCDs... if they break at least you won't lose all that much." I've had about 10 of various kinds, about half are of the cheapo variety.... all are still going strong.