Introduction
In just a few months, 19" LCDs have become the panacea for PC gamers. Top-level reactivity and sensational game-play immersion for a price not at all excessive, the case for this diagonal is strong. But are 17" LCDs really dead? After all, 17" screens offer the same resolution as their big brothers. Contrast and brightness are comparable. And starting with a "claimed" latency of around 8 ms why not profit from a drop in prices and get yourself a bargain? For less then $300, you can now find fully-loaded 17" panels. These are the same panels that would have cost more than $500 about six months ago.
However, one thing is for sure: it's no longer just dream performance that's going to tip the balance. Design clearly plays an important role. That is the approach taken by LG for example; other vendors have concentrated, instead, on additional connectivity options or increased portability to attract the more demanding customer.
Through this comparison of six 17" panels, we'll see if this diagonal still has something to offer or if it's destined to the same fate as that which befell 15" LCDs about a year and a half ago: extinction.
