What to look for in a monitor?

[AgentSquishy]

I have been looking around, but I really don't know what I'm supposed to be looking for in a monitor. I know I want it to be LED, 20+ inches, quality company, and around $150. This one looks nice and it is on sale at a store near me for. Is it a good one? What am I supposed to look for in a monitor?

 

[HEXiT]

resilution: will your gfx card output the native rez of the monitor at the recommended hz. older gfx cards only done 1080i meaning they would have to interlace causing lesser quality output on a 1080p monitor.

fast response rate 5ms or less for gaming with an absolute maximum of 8ms if you cant find quicker.

if its backlit by a bulb and not led then look for light bleeding at the edges of the screen. (the screen gets lighter at the edges of a blackened screen screen) the less the better.
the contrast ratio, anything over 700:1 is ok for gaming. the higher the better
but remember even monitors with 50,000:1 ratios may not actually be any better than a 1000:1 ratio monitor there just calibrated with a different standard.

there are other things to look out for but the above is the basics.
also atm the new led back lit monitors are coming down in price and have surprisingly good image quality you may have to spend a little more but they do look nice, as well as using less power.

 

[casey10]

Here is a great monitor for 160$ and it's 23" http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009255

 

[casey10]

I thought that was a really great price for that monitor considering it's LED and 23"

 

[HEXiT]

its not that great a monitor. acer screens tend to develop banding over time8-12 months that becomes more and more noticeable.
better to get a smaller screen from a better manufacturer such as lg or samsung

 

[casey10]

i've had my monitor from acer forever, and monitor brand doesnt matter because all they do is make the case EVERYTHING inside is usually made by samsung.

 

[blackhawk1928]

Well obviously you want good resolution. I recommend you buy 1920x1080 (Full HD) minimum. After all its 2011...! Next you should look into fast response times: This ranges from 8ms to as low as 2ms (I think). It may sound like there is no difference, but for a gamer, a slow response time can make visible ghosting or whatever. Good contrast is a good thing and I guess good refresh rate...I don't know much about refresh rate though.

 

[pelov]

LED backlit monitors suffer from the same light bleeding at the edges of the screens as do the non-LED versions.

What you should be looking for are what has been noted above (response time, resolution and contrast ratio), but also the quality and level of blacks the monitor can achieve. Generally speaking, it's harder for LCDs to manage a "true black" and often is lighter than what it should be.

Do you need certain inputs/outputs? Speakers? TV tuner? HDMI? DVI? Do you plan on plugging anything into the monitor besides the PC?


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236100

I own an ASUS monitor and I love it. The blacks are nearly as black as the framing of the monitor itself. HDMI, LED backlit, 1080p and it has speakers. 3 year replacement warranty is a big +

 

[AgentSquishy]

That ASUS Monitor looks amazing. I'm definitely going to keep my eye on that one.

How big is the difference between 5ms and 2ms? Is it noticeable?