Dell 1905fp or 2005fp for non-gamer?

[imported_douglas]

I know these two monitors are quite different animals, but I'm trying to decide between them. The 2005fpw will cost me about $70 more than the 1905fp. My primary applications are web surfing, office documents, desktop publishing, programming, and some video and photo editing. I don't do much gaming or DVD watching.

Because my applications are fairly static, I initially bought the 1905fp which is what I'm using now. It uses the Samsung PVA panel. I REALLY like it except for one thing. I notice a lot of ghosting/blurring/color-shifting even when scrolling simple documents like web pages, and that is starting to bug me. Otherwise, it's great. Great color rendition, contrast, viewing angles, and the 1280x1024 resolution in that screen size is just about right for my taste. I think 1600x1200 resolution like the 2001fp would make text too small. So all in all, the only thing I don't like about the 1905fp is the response time.

I have not seen the 2005fpw in person, but based on my research I'm assuming the IPS panel will not show the ghosting/blurring/color-shifting that I get from the PVA panel on the 1905fp. I've also read that IPS panels have even better color rendition than PVA. Those are the main benefits that I see in the 2005fpw. I don't really care about the aspect ratio. I am a little concerned about losing over an inch of vertical real estate with roughly the same vertical resolution. That will obviously make text smaller. But if the overall performance is better, then I'm willing to make that concession and pay the extra money for the 2005fpw.

What do you guys think? Will the scrolling blur be significantly reduced on the 2005fpw? Is there much difference in real-world viewing angles, contrast, or color rendition? Will there be much difference in text size at native resolution? Any other tradeoffs I missed?

Thanks!

 

[ubercaffeinated]

If the difference is only 70 dollars, I think you will be VERY hard-pressed to not get the 2005fp. It is great for only 70 bucks more, and who knows. The day may come when you want to watch a DVD on that sucker.

 

[fstime]

I would go with the 2001fpw for non gaming unless you watch a ton of movies, then get the 2005.

 

[tren001]

Second for th 2005. Movie/Video watching on the 2005 is very very nice. Even a 700 mb xvid file looks pretty good from a few feet away. And the color is very rich, and imo better than the 1905fp's slightly yellowish washed out look. And of course the 2005 is like twice as fast as the PVA 1905.

Although black colors on the 2005 does have a purplish tinge to it when you look at it from an angle, the viewing angle not being as good as on the 1905. And the risk of backlight leakage is also worth consideration.

But for $70 difference (~$400 total price) I'd go with the 2005.

 

[fstime]

Originally posted by: tren001
Second for th 2005. Movie/Video watching on the 2005 is very very nice. Even a 700 mb xvid file looks pretty good from a few feet away. And the color is very rich, and imo better than the 1905fp's slightly yellowish washed out look. And of course the 2005 is like twice as fast as the PVA 1905.

Although black colors on the 2005 does have a purplish tinge to it when you look at it from an angle, the viewing angle not being as good as on the 1905. And the risk of backlight leakage is also worth consideration.

But for $70 difference (~$400 total price) I'd go with the 2005.

Well he said he doesnt watch movies...

 

[tren001]

Originally posted by: BouZouki

Originally posted by: tren001
Second for th 2005. Movie/Video watching on the 2005 is very very nice. Even a 700 mb xvid file looks pretty good from a few feet away. And the color is very rich, and imo better than the 1905fp's slightly yellowish washed out look. And of course the 2005 is like twice as fast as the PVA 1905.

Although black colors on the 2005 does have a purplish tinge to it when you look at it from an angle, the viewing angle not being as good as on the 1905. And the risk of backlight leakage is also worth consideration.

But for $70 difference (~$400 total price) I'd go with the 2005.

Well he said he doesnt watch movies...

I didn't either ... until I got my 2005 and fired up a divx or two. I almost sold my philips setup dvd player, I was so convinced that I only needed the 2005 for my movie watching needs.

 

[imported_douglas]

Thanks for the comments. I don't expect to be watching any significant amount of movies. I'd rather watch them in the living room.

The 2001fp is not in the running for me because it cost more than the 2005fpw. It is also an older design and consumes more power. I ordered the 2005fpw during last week's deal for $384. The 1905fp that I have now cost me $316, and is still within the 21 day return period.

The purplish tinge when viewing from an angle is supposedly a trait of all IPS panels like the 2005fpw and 2001fp. MVA/PVA panels like the 1905fp have the best viewing angles, but IPS is still supposed to be better than TN. I'm assuming the 2005fpw will be acceptable in this department since everyone seems to think it's good for movies. Here is a great article that explains some of the differences between panel technologies (I hope an off-site link is ok):

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/other/display/lcd-guide.html

I did notice that the 2005fpw has almost the same pixel pitch as the 2001fp, so the text size will presumably be the same. The larger pixel pitch of the 1905fp is a benefit in my opinion - less eyestrain. Here are the numbers:

1905fp = 0.294
2001fp =0.255
2005fpw = 0.258

I'll have to wait and see if my eyes can adjust. As soon as the 2005fpw arrives, I'll be able to compare them side-by-side.

 

[Hadsus]

I was very surprised at the difference in power consumption between the 2001fp (90W) and 2005fpw (55W). They are nearly the same monitor area-wise. BTW, I was just reading a thread in another forum where a guy returned his 2005fpw because of backlighting in the corners (an issue that's been around as long as the monitor). The Dell people advised him not to try another one 'cause they haven't figured it out yet and chances are good the next one will be the same. Hopefully yours will be backlight free.

 

[NightTrain]

I can't imagine you not being happy with the 2005fpw for that price.

 

[imported_douglas]

Ok, I received the 2005fpw. Here are my impressions vs the 1905. For the record, these observations are made with the monitors at default settings except brightness was reduced to 75%. Both monitors were tested with analog input (all I have available at the moment). Frankly I don't think DVI could look much better, they both look sharp and clear.The 1905fp is rev A00 and has the Samsung PVA panel. The 2005fpw is rev A01 and has the LG S-IPS panel. The 2005 has 2 bad pixels (not super noticible) and no backlight problems. The 1905 has perhaps 4 bad pixels, but they are even less noticible than the 2 on the 2005.

Response time on the 2005 is fantastic. It completely eliminates the blurring and color shifting that I saw on the 1905. Whites look whiter, making the 1905 appear slightly yellowish. Blacks however are not a black as the 1905 (i.e the difference in contrast ratio is noticible). Colors on the 2005 are more vibrant, but seem a bit less natural imho. When viewing photos which have dark areas, there is less detail visible on the 2005. Default text size is much smaller on the 2005, it seems comparable to a 17" panel in that regard. For some reason, the 1905 looks a bit smoother and more "natural" to me, especially when displaying white backgrounds like explorer windows and web pages. I have no idea why, perhaps a difference in the anti-glare coating.

There are tradeoffs between these two monitors, and neither beats the other for all applications. If you're into gaming and/or movies, the 2005 is clearly the better choice. For static images, I prefer the 1905. Others may think I'm crazy , but I'm thinking about returning/selling the 2005fpw and keeping the 1905fp. Keep in mind that games and movies are not high on my list of applications.

I hope this info helps someone else.