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.