BUYER'S GUIDE

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Criteria

Our rating is aimed at pointing you in the right direction and taking away a major part of the comparison work one normally has to do.

Of course we can't satisfy everybody since it is a subjective matter how one weighs the different criteria.

Gaming

Which displays do we recommend for gaming?

With respect to gaming and the ghosting, almost all of today's LCDs sporting 8ms response time or faster can be recommended.

TN panel monitors sporting 4 ms response time or less have shown to be particularly fast and are mainly targeted towards excessive gamers for whom the gaming performance is the main priority.

When compared to TN panels, however, VA panels with Overdrive and IPS panels can excel with their better image quality, and are almost on par with respect to gaming if the Overdrive is compatible.

What does the aspect 'games' stand for?

The aspect 'games' is supposed to demonstrate how well the display is suited for fast action games. For those who play slow (strategy) games only, this aspect may be of less importance.

Which criteria led us to this conclusion?

The incorporated panel and the responsiveness as well as games performance.

VA panels without Overdrive can reach a maximum of 3 points, and IPS panels without Overdrive can reach 4 to 5 points. TN with Overdrive, as well as very fast IPS- and VA panels without input lag can score the maximum number of points.

Graphics work

Which displays do we recommend for graphics work?

If you deal with imaged editing a lot and therefore attach much importance to very good image quality, you will be best served with a monitor that uses a VA- or IPS panel.

Although professional display such as Eizo's CG line or NEC's SpectraView line are certainly state of the art, the required investment only pays off if they are to be used in a professional environment.

What does the aspect 'graphics' stand for?

A highly rated display provides very good image quality. Aside from providing a wide viewing angle, it depicts color and gradients very accurately and also allows for adequate configuration.

What the aspect 'graphics' does NOT stand for, is that a low rated display will deliver bad image quality. In fact, it is just less suited for color critical picture editing.

Which criteria led us to this conclusion?

The incorporated panel, the properties of this panel, contrast, color reproduction, viewing angles and calibration possibilities.

Viewing angles that are worse and the 18 Bit color reproduction of most TN panels result in a down-rating. While TN panel monitors indeed are able to score four points in this category; for this to happen, though, it needs be capable of reproducing 16.7 million colors, provide wide angle viewability, and feature great color accuracy, too.

If the panel surface has a glossy coating (mirror finish) the monitor is downrated by 1 point: Although this might make the colors seem more vivid, the mirror finish effect is more of nuisance when it comes to image editing.

Displays with VA or S-IPS panel and 24 Bit color reproduction can score the maximum of points here. The base value for VA and S-IPS panels is 4 points.

Office

Which displays do we recommend for graphics work?

Basically all LC displays are suited for word processing, email, and Internet. From our point of view, a real Office display should have ergonomic features, so one can work on it long enough without beginning to show any symptoms of fatigue.

What does the aspect 'Office' stand for?

The aspect Office means that the display is particularly suited for this use from an ergonomic perspective. Accordingly, if a display has less points in this category it simply means that it is less ergonomic. Those who don't find the following criteria to be of much importance can just skip this aspect.

On a general note, you should know that 19-, 21-, 22- and 26/27/28 inch LCD monitors have bigger pixels; so, accordingly, fonts will be displayed somewhat bigger . We do not consider resolution and pixel size to be criteria for our ratings since there are too many different opinions on this topic. Some people like the finer pixel structure of 17-, 20-, 24- and 30 inch displays.

Which criteria led us to this conclusion?

Height adjustability, Pivot, miscellaneous ergonomic features such as a brightness sensor or the like.

The base value for average office displays is 3 points. The maximum score can be achieved by all displays that have a "complete" set of features, meaning they would have to have height adjustability, pivot and/or other ergonomic features.

DVD/TV

What does the aspect 'DVD/TV' stand for?

Basically, nearly all displays are suited for watching DVDs or TV. If you intend to watch DVDs with several friends, putting an emphasis on wide-angle viewability is suggested. Furthermore, having different video inputs will prove beneficial, for example, if one needs to connect a Sat receiver or a DVD player.

Which criteria led us to this conclusion?

Viewing angle, responsiveness, image quality, inputs and picture ratio as well as picture size.

While TN panels may be fast, their viewing angle is quite limited and black levels are often unsatisfying. For this reason, TN panel displays start out with a base value of 3-4 points. VA or S-IPS panel displays receive 4-5 points due to their wider viewing angle and their generally better image quality. The maximum score is achieved by displays that further provide the adequate inputs and/ or features for TV use.

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