Since losing my last monitor to a Pizza Fetching Calamity*, I've been using a 17" Samsung TFT. It's done me pretty well but I'm hankering for something bigger and better.
*Pizza Fetching Calamity isn't quite what it sounds. The monitor worked before I left the house but when I got back 15 minutes later, all it would do was give the Tick Of Doom. No picture, no nuffin. RIP monitor. (If Snow Queen or The Boss are reading, yes - I still have it). Not good considering I'd be ensconced in front of a monitor the next day for a Warcraft raid. Cue trip to the local PC World.
What's up with the current monitor ?
Viewing angle. This is the thing that Really Bites with TFT (thin) monitors. The way most of them work is that there's a White Light* at the back which has polarising filters in front of it. The filters turn the White into Colour by taking away the Colour that's not needed. (That's techtalk best left for a different site.) The polarising causes an issue where if you're not looking bang on at the centre of the screen, it'll fade out and you'll lose brightness and definition.
*(LCD tellies have 1 White Light, LED tellies have Lots - they tell us there's a good reason for it)
On my 32" big telly, that's not a problem because tech development means the viewing angle on modern screens is outstanding. My PC monitor is a bit old though. Its best viewing angle is about 6 inches above where my eyes usually are ...
Size. It's a 17" old style screen, with a 4:3 ratio. That's not a massive problem, I actually prefer 4:3 for work because it suits my desktop style (lots of overlapping windows) much better. But for a machine that's used primarily for gaming, widescreen 16:9 works better. Things like Eve where you can have more screen real estate devoted to the huge numbers of chat channels that tend to be open. The ship interface works better too with more width. Warcraft gives a more panoramic view.
Oh. A newer monitor is more SHINY !!!!!
Always consider shininess in equipment buying.
What I'm having trouble with though is considering what to buy. This was a very simple choice a few months ago, as I was going to go for a decent sized touchscreen. At Novatech*, the only 2 touchscreens of an acceptance price (<£250) are an Iiyama and a Viewsonic. And I like the specs of the Viewsonic better.
*(Novatech are a classic example of Start Small, Earn Reputation, Gradually Grow company with an excellent reputation for getting bits to buyers cheaply. They come hugely recommended from anyone who's done business with them.)
Trouble is, I've abandoned the touchscreen idea due to being Fickle so I have huge choice now. And with choice comes procrastination. What to buy ? What tech is out there ? Who's the reliable people ? I've had no problems with Samsung screens but I'm open to options.
The problem I have is in finding trustworthy and relevant reviews of kit. The electronics industry marches on at a ferocious pace. I don't want to read reviews from 2007 because the kit under test would have been discontinued by 2008. I hate wading through irrelevant rubbish. It's worse enough having to decipher which reviewers can be trusted and which reviewers have been bought by a hardware manufacturer.
If a review site depends on handouts by hardware manufacturers to survive, if it sells kit on its site or if the adverts are slanted a particular way, it can be reasonable to assume that they have more in their heads than "how good is this kit actually ?" Bit like certain games magazines (one of which has now closed) who say a game is BEST GAME EVER only to come back 6 months later and admit that it was bugged to hell. In the meantime, loads of gamers will have wasted cash on a product not fit for sale with that decision being based on what was in the review.
Hobbyists who review stuff because they can are the most trustworthy people around in my opinion when it comes to kit. Bit like TotalBiscuit and his game reviews. He just loves gaming and it always brings out a grin listening to him go at it. However, at the same time, he's also giving an honest opinion on whichever game has his attention at the time.
So, there we have it. New monitor wanted*, dunno what to buy, not getting any intel worth a damn from the internet. One thing's for certain, it will be big enough to make me think about a new pooter desk to allow my PC speakers to fit.
*(I don't "need" it but I do "want" new Shinies)
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