Help needed with 24-27" All-Purpose Monitor!

[manosteel00]

Hi All,

I'm planning on doing a GPU upgrade to an ATI 6950 or 6850 soon and wanted to get a new monitor to go with it.

Currently I'm running two 1680x1050 22" monitors that are alright. I want to try out the IPS realm and am looking to do the following in order of frequency:

Web Browsing/Video Watching
Gaming (WoW, Black Ops, Civilizaiton)
Working from Home (4-8 applications up at once)

I considered the 30", but it just seems a bit overkill. 22" is a good size right now since I have two, but if I step up I'd like to go to either a 24 or 27.

The contenders:

1.) Apple 27" Cinema Display - I LOVE the craftsmanship of Apple, though I don't know if I'll like the glossy screen. I also question it for gaming.
2.) HP ZR24w - I've heard good things and I can get a good deal on one.
3.) Skip IPS and just go with a typical 24" monitor, maybe even do 3 for Eyefinity.

** I really want to avoid using Dell. I hate the company and unless there is a no-brainer reason to use one, I'd rather support another company.

I really like the Apple but I'm not sure how I'll like the glossy. I don't have to deal with a LOT of light so it might be a non-issue.

Any help would be well appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[jaguarskx]

Well...

Dell actually have pretty good monitors that actually seems to fit your general criteria; U2311h, U2410, and the U2711. All three are good general purpose IPS monitors. But since you want to avoid Dell...

The Apple 27" shares the same H-IPS panel as the U2711, but the Dell has a matte finish instead of glossy. I hate glossy so Apple is out of the question for me.

The HP ZR24w is pretty good. It uses an e-IPS panel. See the following review. There really isn't another recommendation I can provide, unless you want something high end.
http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews/hp_zr24w.htm

Not really interested in Eyefinity myself. I have two 25.5" H-IPS monitors and only use the 2nd monitor when I'm watching a movie and surfing at the same time or if I am doing stock research. I suppose three monitors will be great for day trading, but my desk is too small for another high end 25.5" monitor.

If you do go w/ Eyefinity, then the HD 6950 is the way to go. But I'm sure you already figured that out yourself...

Here are reviews for the Dell's in case you are interested:

http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews/dell_u2311h.htm
http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews/dell_u2410.htm
http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews/dell_u2711.htm


Of all the monitors mentioned, I would go for either the Dell U2410 or the Dell U2711. However, I'm a sucker for NEC's high end monitors.

 

[manosteel00]

Thanks for you advice.

I do like what the U2711 brings to the table. However, it is priced around $1100 from what I've seen.

I can get the HP zr30w for $1100 as well, so I guess it would be a tossup between those two. Would you still go with the Dell?

 

[jaguarskx]

Unfortunately, I have not read a good in-depth review of the HP ZR30w. Based on a few somewhat shallow reviews it does seem to be a good monitor. When properly calibrated it does have good accurate colors and the backlight is pretty uniform. I believe that the input lag is also pretty good at less than 16ms or less than 0.5 frame vs. a CRT monitor for gaming purposes.

Between the Dell and the HP, I would go for the HP especially since it is 2560 x 1600 instead of 2560 x 1440. I don't know how the anti-glare compares to the Dell. The Dell is suppose to have a pretty think AG coating making gray colors have that dirty or "sparkly" look to it. NEC monitors have a lighter AG coating treatment than Dells so the effect is not as noticeable.

 

[varis]

I take your budget is rather flexible. The HP ZR24w sounded like a nice monitor to me, but I decided to go with dual Dell U2311H instead because the price isn't significantly higher.

I don't think Eyefinity would be worth it with 6850.

You may want to read a few threads from the last few weeks, as I saw some that cover issues that would be of interest to you. For example

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/304547-15-1900x1200-6850-runs-crysis
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/59067-29-multiple-monitors-benefits-issues