Having real trouble choosing a 23-24" monitor. Please Help!!

[AJ_EQ]

I have spent countless hours now trying to decide what monitor to buy, but there just seems to much to choose from and now I have a massive list.

Im looking to spend between £150-£200.

I mainly will use the monitor to watch movies in my room, play games and connect my 360.

This is a shortened list of what I have come up with. Any opinions and help would be much appreciated.

Dell S2309W: http://accessories.euro.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=uk&l=en&cs=ukdhs1&sku=193757

Asus VH242H: http://hothardware.com/Articles/Asus-VH242H-236-Widescreen-LCD-Monitor/

Samsung SM2333HD: http://www.samsung.com/uk/consumer/...EKF/EN/index.idx?pagetype=prd_detail&tab=spec

LGW2361V: http://www.amazon.co.uk/LG-W2361V-23-inch-Monitor-50000/dp/tech-data/B00261VAMI/ref=de_a_smtd

BenQ V2400W: http://www.benq.com/products/LCD/?product=1313&page=specifications

Samsung Syncmaster p2450h: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-P2450H-inch-widescreen-Monitor/dp/tech-data/B002DPYQSW/ref=de_a_smtd

Acer S243HL: http://us.acer.com/acer/product.do;...cond189e.c2att1=0&ctx1.att21k=1&CRC=712559224

All these monitors are so similar technically and I know they wont all live up to their proposed stats, but I have no idea, which would be the best.

Any help or suggestions would be welcomed.

thanks

 

[solistus]

I'm not super knowledgeable on such things, but when I bought my display in September, the best deal I found was the Acer H233H. I paid $180 USD at Fry's a couple months ago, and it's a 23" 1080p display. My only complaint is that the menu, input, etc. buttons are touch sensitive; they look nice, but for functionality and to avoid the occasional accidental input switch I would prefer traditional buttons.

 

[AJ_EQ]

Thanks, that looks just like another one to add to my list.

The problem Im finding with choosing one, is that I dont like to choose a monitor based on its consumer specs, e.g "dynamic contrast ratio". Id rather see it for myself, but my computer stores dont stock any of the ones ive mentioned.

Can anyone tell me whether one brand is more reliable than another at all?

Also how much difference does the LED backlight technology make a difference? Does anyone have experience using a monitor with it?

thanks for help so far.

p.s maybe I should just pick one out of a hat.....

 

[jaguarskx]

I only have experience with one monitor in your price range. That is the Asus VK246H; there is the VW246H which is the same monitor without the webcam.

Here is my review:

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/54250-3-asus-vk246h-review-final-update

Overall, it is a good monitor for that price point if you are not into professional grahpics.

 

[AJ_EQ]

I checked out your insanely thorough review, which was great! I just wish I could find similar reviews that good so I could at least make a comparison.

I would love to get a more expensive panel such as the Dell ultrasharp 2408wfp or maybe even a lovely NEC, but money is an issue at the moment.

So I guess Im just looking for the best TN panel on the market.

Are there any brands I should avoid or some which have reliability issues? I like the look of the new Acer S243HL with its "dynamic contrast" of 8,000,000:1, but I have no idea what the typical contrast is on this and can find no reviews since it is so new. It also has LED backlighting, which is supposed to give the panel a better contrast ratio if im not mistaken, but I dont have any experience of using an LED panel. Any of you guys have an LED backlight monitor?

My search continues....

thanks for all the help so far!!

 

[jaguarskx]

Personally, brand names that I would avoid are DoubleSight, Hanns-G, Acer (they just look cheap to me).

Forget the BS "dynamic contrast" it's mostly marketing especially when they quote such outrageous numbers. In my Asus review, Splendid Mode sets different "dynamic contrasts" for different viewing modes. Yes, it does affect colors and in my review it was mostly done poorly. Don't let that number wow you.

I believe LEDs allows for better contrast ratio since it is probably easier to control their voltages, but come on 8,000,000:1? LEDs allows for thinner monitors and lower power consumption.

My 47" LG 47LH90 HDTV uses LED backlighting with "dynamic contrast" of 2,000,000:1. It uses better components than the Acer. I'm looking at it and it does look nice, but the picture quality of my NEC LCD2690WUXi which does not have dynamic ratio looks nearly as nice. Is there a difference? Yes, but it is minor.

 

[AJ_EQ]

I definitely agree on the marketing of the "dynamic contrast" terminology.

So maybe LED is not such an important influence to my choosing.

I have narrowed it down now to a choice between:

Asus VH242H/VW242H

Dell Sp2309W

There is also the samsung xl2370, but it would be a little over my budget.

Damn I just found Dell 2209wa, which is an e-ips panel for super cheap, but it has no HDMI, No 1080p and is only 22"

...the struggle continues...

 

[cjl]

I would tend to lean towards the 2209WA, personally. It will give the best image quality of the bunch.

 

[AJ_EQ]

Although the Dell 2209wa definitely would have the best image quality, but I have still have some concerns about it:

1) Its only 22" when ideally Im looking for a 24".

2) It has no 1:1 scaling

3) only 1680x1050... no 1080p

4) no hdmi

5) shadows on the screen due to being inset.

Does anyone have any experience with the Dell 2309w?