Comparison: Twelve 19" CRT Monitors

Slot Mask

More recently, NEC and Panasonic have opted for a new method, a hybrid of Shadow Mask and Aperture Grill, combining the two technologies in an effort to attain only the advantages of each. The Slot Mask is a mix of both, with vertical slots and the firmness of the Shadow Mask (using a proper metal mask and not filaments). The resulting brightness is not as great as with Trinitron technologies, but the image gains in stability. The main monitors using this technology are made by NEC and Mitsubishi and go by names such as ChromaClear or Flatron, for Flat Tension Mask.

Enhanced Dot Pitch Or Elliptical Mask

Developed by Hitachi, one of the most important players in the cathode ray tube market, the EDP (Enhanced Dot Pitch) came out in 1987. The system is different from Trinitron in that it focuses more on the implementation of the phosphor than the mask or grill. On a shadow mask tube, the three phosphor dots that form a pixel are arranged in an equilateral triangle. This gives even distribution over the entire surface of the screen. With the EDP, Hitachi decreased the distance between the horizontal dots, so an isosceles triangle forms the pixel. To avoid increasing the surface covered by the mask, the dots are elongated, or elliptical. The main advantage of the EDP is that it offers better representation of vertical lines. On a conventional shadow mask monitor, a vertical line from top to bottom of the screen will appear to zigzag a bit. EDP lessens this effect and so improves image precision and brightness.