Looking for a New Monitor (Found One! Updated)

Remove all ads!

The 2226 viewsonic I have is really 21.6"

Price is really more of a personal choice

I'm not sure about the contrast ratios, because I compared the 1000.1 against the 500.1 Viewsonics and there was quite a bit of difference in the contrast. That was one of the major factors in choosing the 2226.

The resolutoin is higher on the Optiquest because it is Ultra XVGA whereas the 2226 is Super XVGA. I'm running the 2226 on a 7900GTO, which looks very good. No gaming issues at all with that combo either. Keep in mind that older games that don't support the widescreen resolutions won't look very good at that aspect ratio. Here's the best site I found for breaking down specific games:

http://www.widescreengamingforum.com/wiki/index.php/Main_Page

Brightness ratio - That's like the candles per area. The more candles per area the brighter the screen. I think they really call them candelas, or something like that.

The widescreen resolutions are not like a square format because of the aspect ratio. You will have to find the one that looks truer to your eyes - like a square that is really a square and not a rectangle. Or a true round circle that doesn't look like an oval. I use 1280x800 which looks really good to my eyes. When you go to the electronics store try the different resloutions for yourself before deciding if the really higher resolutions are important to you.

I think they are both good choices. It comes down to if you want a 22" or a 24" screen. But the one year warranty is pretty thin for a monitor.....

 

When you get a sec, please take a look at the 24" Acer I posted, as it seems to address all my concerns. That one has a higher contrast ratio and response (in fact, it beats both monitors in all categories), more positive reviews, an included DVI cable and a 3 year parts AND labor warranty, for only $30 more. I think that's the winner, unless anyone can tell me something nasty about Acer as a brand...

 

Wow! Now you are at over $400.00 with shipping. It should be a good monitor for that much. But the specs are terrific. I used to sell some Acer stuff, particularly their notebook computers; they are just fine.

 

Ok, so I ordered it. As per usual, I'm so excited I may pee a little.

I initially ordered it on Friday, forgetting to go through the SP affiliate link. But this morning I canceled the initial order and resubmitted with it. So cha-ching in the SP tip jar.

I'll chime back in with a full review when it arrives, which should be wednesday.

 

I've been using the 21.6" Viewsonic VA2226W for a few days now and going back to 1080x768 hurts my eyes now . It's picture quality is such a huge step up from my old monitor that I'm surprised I didn't upgrade sooner.

 

Ok, so here's the review I just put up on NewEgg:


Pros: Huge. Bright, crisp and clear at 1920x1200. So crisp, in fact, that my DVDs look pretty aweful on it (oh well, on to Blu-Ray). Excellent color reproduction. I use my system for gaming primarily (where the 2ms response and high contrast really shine) and also for graphic/web design work, and it's excellent for both. I've fired up HalfLife2, Doom3, FarCry and UT03 on full settings, with absolutely no ghosting. I'm very impressed, though I may have to upgrade my 7900GS gpu before taking on Crysis, CoD4 or Bioshock (see other thoughts). ZERO dead or stuck pixels, it's in pristine order. No extra fluff like weak speakers or ports I'll never use, which help keep the price down. HD support is what sold me in the end, since I consider this a long-term purchase.

Cons: As of this posting, no professional reviews exist for this monitor. Since this is a 24"" and a TFT panel, the viewing angles aren't great, but I was prepared for this going in. In most applications and games the color shift isn't noticeable, but definitely is on a black screen. Not a tragedy, since I always look the monitor dead on anyway. I'm disappointed that the blacks aren't quite as dark as I'd like, but then I've been using a 19"" Trinitron CRT since 2000, so that's expected. That said, in the three days since it arrived I've had time to get used to it and I don't much notice it now. Because of the angle and blackness issues, this monitor is less than ideal for design work, but ideal costs $700+ and this is more than adequate. Lastly, as others have said, it's extremely bright on default settings - I had to do a lot of tweaking before I didn't feel like an image was being burnt into my eyeballs (I'm picky). But once calibrated properly, it looks amazing.

Other Thoughts: I've always thought LCD monitors were inferior to CRTs in nearly every respect, and did a ton of research before buying. The rave reviews from other NewEggers definitely proved useful and accurate. I also did a lot of price comparisons as well. You simply can't find a 24"" monitor with this high response time, contrast ratio and color spectrum for under $500 right now. I would have preferred an S-IPS panel, but I can't justify $700+ for a monitor, and in this case, the pros (2ms, 3000:1, 1920x1200, 24"") highly outweigh the cons (sub-par viewing angle, weaker blacks) for my uses. Last, I will say that I feel like I may need to upgrade my GPU to an 8800GT, since I'm now experiencing a lower framerate than I'm used to - but since I'm now viewing at double the resolution as before I'm surprised it looks as smooth as it does. Overall, this is a GREAT monitor with tons of wow factor. Highly recommended, just go into it with your eyes open.

 

Man, talk about striking while the iron is hot.

So the monitor I ordered, the Acer P243WAid, has shaped up to be one of (if not the) best monitors I've ever seen, especially for the price. But it appears like the deal may be too good. NewEgg has now deactivated the item (UPDATE: They're just out of stock, it seems) and now I can't find the same monitor online for under $446, over $50 more than what I paid for it. I'm glad I didn't hesitate now, since it appears that waiting a mere week would have screwed me. But I'm glad I struck when I did, because after having this thing for a week now, I feel like I got an amazing deal. Basically, I think I underpaid for this monitor - in terms of quality, brightness, color fidelity, power rating, SIZE, etc. - by about $100 at least. Sometimes you just get lucky, I suppose.

In short, I highly recommend this monitor to anyone looking, though it may be a little trickier to find now for the price I paid. Thanks again to everyone who participated in the thread, your insight and advice really helped with the shopping, and I seem to have scored very nicely.

Knock on wood that the thing doesn't crap out on me in a month.

EDIT: I know what the "P" and the W" stand for in the name P243W Aid, but if anyone can tell me what the "Aid" stands for, I'll bake you a cake and mail it to you. For the life of me, I can't figure it out and it's nowhere in the manual. Seriously, cake.

 

Now *that* is one hell of a customer review! But I'm shocked that you didn't give Newegg a pat on the back for fast shipping or some such as most people do.

Oh, and...

Aid

transitive and intransitive verb (past and past participle aid•ed, present participle aid•ing, 3rd person present singular aids)

Definition:

give help to somebody: to provide somebody or something with help or with what is needed to achieve something

I'd like one of those confetti cakes please.

 

Thanks. Yeah, I find detailed reviews to be the most helpful for others in the same boat, so I wanted to be sure to provide one. Reviews of the "OMG it is teh awesome NewEgg gawt it heer 2 me in 12 sekkintz ur dum if u dont buy thiz!!!?!?!" variety are as plentiful as they are unhelpful. I would have given NewEgg a shout-out, but A) I wanted to be different, B) I was reviewing the product, not NewEgg's shipping department, and C) I ran out of room. Besides, NewEgg knows I love 'em.

Now define: Irony

PS - No cake for you. Savin' the cake.

 

Good that you are happy with it, but just wait until you see an even better one... :-)

 

Hey! You asked for a definition of 'Aid', so I gave you one....now I expect a cake!

I won't forget this injustice!

 

clapping both hands. You are one step away from an account.

Kicking in an open door: Connect it whit a dvi cable, not whit the vga. (But you know that.)