Looking for 20" LCD with swivel for portrait mode

[dscoob]

I’m looking for recommendations on a 20-21” LCD regular format (4:3) that works well in portrait mode.

I will be doing pretty much exclusively word processing (MS Word) and web browsing. Not much gaming, no DVD watching, no photo editing or graphics work. Some music production work with Cubase.

I’ve never used a monitor in portrait mode, but I think I’ll be more productive that way since I will be using it primarily for Word and Firefox.

I’ve never used dual monitors before, but I’ve read a lot about the productivity gains, and so I thought I’d buy 2 LCD’s.

So I’m looking for a 20-21” regular format LCD. I also thought maybe a 22” widescreen would work well. But I’m leaning away from the widescreen because I think it may be too high in portrait mode, and my neck would be too busy looking up and down the screen.

I’ve read a lot about the different display technologies, and I’m not sure which one is best for my applications: Word/Firefox and portrait mode. Some people say not to get a TN if I’m using it in portrait mode because of the bad viewing angle, particularly in the vertical plane. Is this correct?

I would like the LCD to swivel so I can view it in portrait mode. But if it doesn’t, I’ll buy an Ergotron stand to swivel it if the LCD is fantastic.

I’d like the price of each monitor to be under $750.

What size do people recommend? A regular format 20-21” or a 22” widescreen?

For heavy Word and Firefox use, is portrait mode really beneficial?

What kind of technology should I get? IPS? VA? Something else?

Is there a specific model that you recommend?

These are contenders, but I’m not set on any of these, and am open to others:

Dell Ultrasharp 2007FP
HP LP2065
NEC LCD2070NX
NEC LCD2170NX
Samsung 204b
Samsung 214T
Viewsonic 2030b
Viewsonic 2130b

Thanks!

 

[Traveller]

Some people say not to get a TN if I’m using it in portrait mode because of the bad viewing angle, particularly in the vertical plane. Is this correct?

Yes, particularly in the vertical plane, but if you rotate into portrait mode, then you are no longer working with the panel's native vertical plane... . With a 20" panel, the viewing angle doesn't need to be that wide - unelss you are working with two panels, in which case you will run into problems, particularly with the monitor sitting to your right, as the worst direction to view a TN is from the bottom upwards.

I don't know why you want to get two 4:3 panels when a single 24" widescreen will pretty much allow two full A4 documents to be viewed side by side. My 24" also has portrait mode and although I had fun browsing certain web sites in this mode, I'll have to agree with your observation that it will be a "pain int the neck", literally!

My suggestion is one 24" S-PVA panel or even P-MVA which affords enough viewing angle but generally faster than an IPS for those rare gaming sessions. Dell and BenQ, for example offer decent 24" PVA / MVA panels respectively without breaking the bank.

 

[dscoob]

I've concluded that a TN panel would be a bad idea for my needs. Thanks.

I read a lot online about dual monitors, and most seemed to prefer 2 monitors than 1 big one, primarily because of the ease in separating the 2 windows/not having to deal with dragging and resizing windows--it's much easier to just enlarge a window to maximum in each monitor.

I've eliminated the 2 NEC's in my list because they don't pivot. So now it seems to be down to the Dell, HP, Samsung and Viewsonics. Leaning to the Samsung 214T. NEC makes 20" pivotable, but they start around $900.

Anyone use a PVA LCD, like the 214T or Viewsonic VP2130B in portrait mode?