OT - Monitors - TFT v. CRT

[Grunff]

Not the most appropriate news group, but certainly the most well informed bunch of people.

I feel like I'm going crazy - the whole world is telling me I should be buying TFTs, yet I still want to buy high quality flat tube CRTs.

Am I alone in this? Am I the only one who finds that the finer dot pitch, the higer light output and the faster screen response of a good CRT pisses all over that of a TFT (which may have cost twice as much)? Am I the only one who doesn't care that a 19" CRT takes up a large amount of room, and consumes 50W more than a 17" TFT??

Rant over. Thanks for reading.

[BigWallop]

I hate using the new machines in the office because they all have new TFT screens. I'm also about to take the one in my office and throw it out the window because I can't move around and view the screen in all its glory because the damn thing changes colours and can't be viewed properly from all other angles.

I'm with you on this one Mr Grunff. :-))

[Sparks]

They must be cheap crappy panels then!

If you compare a high quality CRT to a cheap nasty TFT, then of course there will be a huge difference

If you compare a high quality CRT to a high quality TFT, then the difference will be a lot less

Not saying TFT's are better, you just have to compare like with like here.

And as it has been suggested, what you are doing on the screen has a lot in deciding the thing to buy! (...and the available space on you desk!)

Sparks...

[Colin Wilson]

I`m quite happy with my "refurbished" Sony 17" that I picked up for=20 =A399+VAT from

a few months ago (although it looks like=20 they`re not normally doing refurbed CRTs now, but they do have a=20 selection of TFTs)

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• old email address "btiruseless" abandoned due to worm-generated spam *

--- My new email address has "ngspamtrap" & @btinternet.com in it ;-) ---

[BigWallop]

As I told the rep' that sold us them, " They are the highest spec' of crap I've ever seen ". He wasn't to pleased to hear I didn't like mine. They cost a wapping £499.99 each incl' VAT, and you can't look at them at any other angle than straight on, or they either change colours or look as if they've gone blank.

I'm personally going for a Cathode Tube Monitor again. The TFT thing I've got now drives me crazy, especially when I turn it round for other people to look at, and then they tell me they can't see it properly.

Definitely the highest specification crap I've come across. :-))

[nightjar]

I've ever seen ". He wasn't to

incl' VAT, and you can't look at

look as if they've gone blank.

Some screens are designed that way. They are ideal for use in places like banks, where you don't want people seeing the screen except from straight ahead. The ones I use have a viewing angle of 160 degrees and three people sitting side by side can easily see what is on the screen.

Colin Bignell

[usenet]

Yes, I have a 19", flat, CRT display too. A TFT of the same size that will do 1600x1200 (which I do run it at) would still cost a very great deal more than the CRT one.

[usenet]

... but not if you compare price for price still, the TFT will be much more expensive.

What sort of like with like, same price or same 'quality' whatever that is?

Space would be the main reason for me buying a TFT screen.

[Christian McArdle]

No. I love LCDs. The only problem is that I work at 1600x1200 and can't afford one.

Christian.

[Slugsie]

I'm very happy with my slightly used IBM 19" that I picked up off ebay for £50.

[Huge]

[23 lines snipped]

Crap TFT. What make is it?

[Huge]

[16 lines snipped]

Hear, hear. I bought some 200 a few years ago for a trading room refit, and we just got all the vendors to send a sample, set them up in a row and let the traders try them, then vote for which one they wanted.

[Juliette]

We replaced my partner's CRT monitor with a TFT because I could see the flicker and although he couldn't he was suffering rather badly with eyestrain and headaches. Like yours, this wasn't a cheap, nasty CRT - computers are how we make a living so we don't cut corners on quality.

The TFT did cure the eyestrain and the headaches but the cat was very annoyed as she used to nap on that monitor. His Nibs doesn't have any complaints.

Juliette

[Andy Hall]

The one with the hook to hang their red braces? ;-)

.andy

To email, substitute .nospam with .gl

[Huge]

*grin*

Those are analysts...

[Dave Liquorice]

Nope, I look on and off to see how LCDs are getting on. The viewing angle seems to be almost sorted out (now on some models). This thread has highlighted colour rendition not paid much attention to that in the past but if the damn thing changes colour as you move your head it's useless IMHO. I've yet to see one that has a decent quality text display, pixels are generally to big so you end up with jaggies (maybe the shops don't run them at their native resolution?). I don't like the lag. Power consumption, they are still remarkably greedy and don't have built in PSUs. Yet another brick to hide... LCD costs significantly more.

I'm not a "power user" of display technology, I run at 1024x768 85Hz on a bog standard CRT (iiyama Vision Master 1402 (aka LS702U)) and don't play games but I have yet to see an LCD screen that I could sit in front of without getting annoyed by some aspect of it. So I'll be sticking with CRT for the time being.

[RichardS]

Didn't they just say "I'll have 'em all, and whilst you're at it can you just adjust my machine(s) and apps so that I can have them all on different screens simultaneously"???

-- Richard Sampson

email me at richard at olifant d-ot co do-t uk

[John]

I am looking to buy a TFT (17") and would like some advice as the 'jargon' means nothing to me i.e. contrast ratio, cd/m2 etc.etc. What should I look for in these items? I am only looking at a budget of £350 tops what should I go for and are there any manufacturers/models to avoid? I was looking at either a Philips 170S4 or the Liyama 430-B both in black. I would really like one with a thin outer edge (bezel??), not bothered about integral speakers.

TIA

John

[David Hearn]

Well, simply contrast ratio is (AFAIK) the difference between light and dark that it can handle. Smaller values are worse I believe. From what I remember when I was looking, 250:1 ratio is the about what you see on cheap TFT displays. 300:1 and higher for more expensive ones.

cd/m2 is candelas per m2 where candela is a unit of measurement of light. Higher values mean its brighter. Cheaper displays tend to have lower values.

£350 should be a good price to start looking with. I was able to find a few 17" TFT's for just under £300 with plenty more appearing above the £300 bracket. I would suggest you restrict yourself to resolutions of 1280x1024 which is common for that sort of price - though you can still find 1024x768 displays for that price. D

[Grunff]

Obviously I'm biased so bear that in mind, but...

If your budget is £350, *do not* buy a 17" TFT. Or at least first take a good look at 19" flat CRTs selling at the same price, or a bit less. You will be gobsmacked by the difference.