Saturday, January 30, 2016

The computer monitor to buy

Recently I need to buy a large monitor, I did some research on current monitors and narrowed down my choice to Acer R240HY for:
  • IPS for accurate color and wide view angle.
  • Matte, no reflection.
  • Super thin bezel, < 6mm (1/4"), really cutting edge technology.
  • Not PWM, virtually flick-free.
  • Super low cost, $130 on Amazon and $99 refurbished by Acer on ebay
  • For gamers: 4ms response time and overclockable to 75Hz.

I ordered a refurbished one from Acer on ebay for $99, it arrived after about a week via FedEx ground. Looks like brand new to me, no dead pix. Vivid color, sharp, contrasty and bright (I adjusted brightness all way down to 0%). These photos are against a Thinkpad X220 that also has a matte IPS screen. As you can see, they look very close.


Two alternatives:
  • Dell U2414H. The UltraSharp series are calibrated in factory for the most accurate sRGB color reproduction. Its anti-reflection coating is less matte than usual for better photography. It is often on sale for $150 on Dell Outlet. U2415 is almost identical with a 16:10 ratio @1920x1200, much better than 16:9.
  • ASUS VN248H-P. It is often on sale for $109, with built-in (poor) speakers. It is PWM and its seat wobbles.

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