Whether used for reading yesterday’s e-mail or for creating
tomorrow’s breakthrough, monitors are our windows to the cyber-world.
Selecting the right one—at work, at home or professionally for
others—is an underappreciated but hugely important task. It’s akin to
choosing a mate; if you’re going to spend years staring at it, you’d
darned well better like what you see. Doubly good if your chosen is
easy on the eyes and on the budget.
I recently spent many more hours than prudent shopping for a new
monitor for my home office. Much as I love my notebook, its 12-inch
screen is too dinky for 10- or 12-hour desk days off the road. So I
started looking for a nice big, bright 24-inch business LCD that could
also handle prosumer quality photo editing on weekends.
My wife is unpersuaded that obsessively gathering product
information online qualifies as a real hobby. In fact, she believes
there is something wrong with me. No matter; my thorough, obsessive
research is your gain. During my evaluation, which lasted on and off
for many months, I discovered a number of excellent review, information
and purchase sites for computer monitors. The best of these are
featured below.
While some will suggest a specific monitor you should buy, their
real value lies in presenting professional analysis and buyer
experience and opinion. A few minutes at these sites and you’ll have a
pretty good idea about whether that sexy little number offered by your
favorite vendor, reseller or big box store really is right for you or
others you’re buying for or advising. The list starts with general
sites and moves up the geek/techie ladder.
Compare and Buy Sites
Newegg
Tiger Direct
Amazon
These are the populist starting places; broad retail sites that
offer big samples of collective feedback (some sharp, some basic) and
good prices. A reality check for business buyers.
Deeper Review Sites
Trusted Reviews
This British site provides cogent, useful three- and four-page
reviews. More depth than consumer sites, less than geekier cousins.
Don’t worry; U.S. prices are also given. Lots of computer and
electronics products. One of my favorites.
Hardcore Techie Sites
Tom's Guide
Solid go-to site now features side-by-side reviews from Brit partner DigitalVersus.
TFT Central
Want to wade into debate on the merits of IPS variants? Gamma
targets and deviations? Then these specialist Brits are your men.
Selective and deep, serious reviews. The site features an extensive
database showing what type of panels are used in LCD screens, available here.
For the serious and seriously obsessed.
XBitLabs
Another hardcore site that also features excellent reviews of various components and electronics.
BeHardware
They don’t write often, but what’s here is deep.
Anandtech
Sound tech, good forums.
Prad
You have to love a site that rates top monitors "satisfying." So is the site.
Extreme Tech
Aimed at tuners, overclockers and gamers. Dude.
Flat Panelshd.com
Another site for the in-deep, courtesy of Denmark (in English). Includes an incredible database of flat-panel types.
In case you were wondering, it came down to the Dell 2408 and HP 2475.
Both were terrific and widely praised. After much deliberation I went
with the Dell, which had a terrific special. Loving it. Good luck in
your search. Hopefully it will be shorter than mine.
