Decent LCD for PS3 and Laptop

[Frode222]

So I have a HP Pavilion ZD8000 laptop. Love the thing. I am however interested in getting a new screen for it, so that I can switch between it and my other computer without taking up a huge amount of desk space. I also plan on buying a PS3 in the next few months, and something that would work with that would be great, especially since I don't really own a HD tv.

Since I game I know I am looking for an LCD with less than a 8ms delay, so I don't get streaking, something with a contrast ratio greater than 800:1, and preferably 19" or so +. I am looking to spend about 200-300$ max. There is such a large selection of monitors out there I don't know where to begin looking, so does anyone have any recommendations for a great current LCD that will support a VGA in (I have a DVI->VGA adapter) as well as HDMI? for the PS3? I was also told that it had to be a special kind of monitor so that it supported BLU-Rays and HDDVD copy protection features, or the PS3 wouldn't work on it.

Thanks for your help in advance, and for the help you have given me in the past =D

 

[Tiamat]

1. What resolution are you looking for. If you want 1920x1080 for instance, this will restrict you to larger screens.
1a. Since your budget is only 200-300$, you are pretty limited in your selection.

I used a dell 2405 (higher than your budget) for computing and it was great. It was, however, terrible for playstation 2. Most likely you will have to find a 720P LCDTV which would restrict your resolution to 13xx x 768. If that resolution isnt sufficient for your computing needs, then you may want to save your money for a little while.

 

[Frode222]

1280x768 is what I use at the moment, so something higher than that really isn't necessary. I can always spend more than 300$ or so, but thats just what I was hoping to spend. If its much more I'll end up waiting to buy it until after I purchase a PS3. So your suggestion is to drop monitors all together and go with a 720p LCDTV?

 

[jkresh]

the 20-22inch widescreens (1600x1050) are in your budget of 200-300, but if you want to make full use of the ps3 you will want to make sure it has hdcp (otherwise you wont be able to connect through dvi) and you may want to consider going to a 1080p set or 24inch monitor (which are all 1900x1200 and can handle 1080p, just make sure it has hdcp).

 

[Tiamat]

Originally posted by: Frode222
1280x768 is what I use at the moment, so something higher than that really isn't necessary. I can always spend more than 300$ or so, but thats just what I was hoping to spend. If its much more I'll end up waiting to buy it until after I purchase a PS3. So your suggestion is to drop monitors all together and go with a 720p LCDTV?

My experience is limited to the 2405. I just upgraded to a Westinghouse 37" panel, and my PS2 looks much better on the Westinghouse than on the 2405. All I can chalk this difference up to is that the TV has a better scaler than the PS2.

The Dell LCD widescreen computer monitors have the necessary inputs for basic gaming, but there isn't much information on how nice the scaler is in their monitors. I can say that the 1080P LCDs I have seen do scale better than the 2405 did.

Additionally, prices of LCDs are still falling. My 37" 1080P costed 860$ shipped -- the same price of my 2405 a year ago. If your 300-400$ turns to 500-600$, you will find yourself in the regime of 32-42" 720P panels depending on sales.

My real advice is this: If you can find someone with a Dell widescreen monitor, see how it looks for console gaming. Compare to how LCDTVs look for console gaming. Ask yourself, "do I have the desire to have a large screen, or do I just want a normal sized computer monitor". I do not know if the newer Dell computer monitors have better scalers, it is quite possible that they incorporate improved scalers along with HDCP, but I can't say for sure.

 

[Frode222]

So would getting just a Normal LCD display like a 19-21" widescreen display with Analog and DVI-D(With HDCP support) work for what I want it to do?

What about the converters for HDMI->DVI ? Or do they sell a DVI Cable for the PS3?