Is it true that LCD are easier on the eyes?

[Aznguy1872]

Hi, I was wondering if it is true that a LCD screen is easier on the eyes then CRTs. If so how come?

 

[AssistantPimp]

Of course, sometimes eyes in front of CRT starts to burn, not often but it happens...

 

[Endlessshampoo]

and to even make the eyes relax more. Then buy a wideschreen so the eyes only can see the schreen and not what`s behind it.

 

[thescreensavers]

for me I think CRT@72hertz is much ersier on the eyes thegn my laptops 17inch wide screen lcd maybe looking at it for 30 min top ok but If i stare at it for more then 1hour I start getting a headache and cant read anything when scrolling down.and anything that moves is not clear until it it go still.

for me CRT@72hertz>LCD

 

[AssistantPimp]

Dunno, everybody said that LCD is easier for eyes and they don't have problem with eyes which they had with CRT...but I don't know for laptop's LCD...

 

[hennethannun]

CRTs, especially those with low refresh rates, can definitely cause eye strain.

Some people also claim that text is less blurry on an LCD than a CRT.

Personally, a crt with anything less than 75 or 80 hz really kills my eyes and gives me a headache in less than 5 minutes. by I don't really notice any difference between a good LCD at 60 hz and a nice CRT at 85 hz.

however, LCDs are much brighter than CRTs, so it is important not to use an LCD at full brightness in a dark room. that also causes eyestrain...

 

[Avalon]

Your answer is completely dependant upon what monitors you are talking about as well as their individual settings such as brightness, contrast, refresh, etc. Everyone is going to be different.

I tend to find that LCDs are too bright for me and give me a headache when using them. Turning down the brightness works, but that doesn't help the picture any.

A well calibrated LCD screen or a 100Hz CRT for me.

 

[josh6079]

Your answer is completely dependant upon what monitors you are talking about as well as their individual settings such as brightness, contrast, refresh, etc.

 

[BladeVenom]

CRTs flicker LCDs don't. The picture on an LCD is also sharper so it's easier to read.

 

[kopema]

A friend of mine has a weird problem. He will play a game for a long time and feel perfectly fine, but then several hours later he'll get a blinding headache.

I've never heard of eyestrain working that way. He recently upgraded to a higher-quality LCD with a low response time, but he still has the same problem. Does anyone know what causes this?

 

[Machine350]

What do you mean by LONG time? Maybe he's going all day without eating, I've done that before, in which case, a bad headache is inevitable.

 

[IlllI]

i think it also depends on how long you spend in front of the monitor too. if you are looking at it...say 8hrs straight, every day...lcd might be better. if you are only in front of a computer like 20min a day, there probably wouldnt be much of a difference.

 

[ForumMaster]

LCD's don't have to refresh the picture. LCD's sometimes take a bit of time to get used to but once you get used to them, they are much better for your eyes then CRT's.

 

[elkinm]

Generally an LCD is easier on the eyes at default settings.

A good CRT set to 75 Hz or higher (85 Hz) recommended is very good. The default 60 Hz refresh rate is the no. 1 cause of eye strain.
Then change your color temperature from 9300 to something like 6500, Once again, high temperature looks brighter but definitely strains the eyes.

A typical LCD is better at it releases less heat, but I have used older LCDs which felt like they were burning my eyes, even at low brightness.
With an LCD you must use the native LCD resolution as lower resolutions cause distortion in pictures and text which causes eye strain.
You need to use a good VGA cable or DVI to make sure you have a clean, sharp distortion free image.
Also, LCDs don't have the color purity of a CRT and some have noticeable view angle limitations which cause more strain. Adjusting color temperature, brightness and especially a high contrast coating on the screen helps the picture and greatly reduces strain.

So, a base LCD has less strain, but also has limitation. But both CRTs and even more for LCDs. need to be tweaked for the best picture and minimal strain.
The best way is to actually see the display before you buy if possible.

 

[Arkaign]

Yes, LCD > CRT for eye strain. The reason is technical. Even if you had a 500hz CRT, there is only a small portion of the screen lit at a time, because it takes time for the gun to trace the screen. Thus, your eyes are looking never at a solid picture, but actually at a dot scanning the screen. With LCD, the pixels are constantly lit, though it takes time for the setting of them to change. Neither is as perfect as looking at physical, solid objects, but the LCD is a lot closer to solid than a CRT will ever be.

CRT has much greater flexibility in terms of resolution however, and color reproduction is generally superior on CRT as well. I moved from a 21" CRT to a 19" Wide LCD, and while I like the stable, wide image, I do miss the feel and picture of that old giant.

 

[Aznguy1872]

ahh i see, hrm. So LCD is better in the sense of eye strain. I am currently using an Envision 19 inch CRT with a refresh rate of 85 hz and is just wondering if moving to a LCD screen would be better for my eyes.

 

[Cookie Monster]

After using a CRT for a long time, my eye sight has slightly gone to bad. So i do believe CRTs are bad for your eyes. What are CRTs? Cathode Ray Tube. The reason they are so big is because the whole thing is an electron gun. They fire electrons from the back and this is how the image is formed. (More details could be find in the internet) Electrons being fired literally means your CRT monitor is producing beta radiation. Im not sure how much CRT has developed as of today, i still know that older CRTs will inevitably send beta particles to the user in front of the screen. These radiation could be deadly, and affecting your eye sight as well.

Then theres the refreshing ability of the CRT. If you look at a CRT from far away, you could actually observe this. What does this mean? it means your eyes are going to concentrate on the monitor without you realising. As Arkaign said, your not looking at a solid picture.

Simply, LCDs are better for your eyes because they dont have any of these side effects. Although CRTs have some advantages like colour quality, no ghosting, LCDs are ultimately better for our health.

I blame the CRT for giving me glasses..

 

[crucibelle]

Aznguy1872,

My boyfriend has an Envision CRT monitor (21 in, I believe). I have an LCD (VP930B). I recently had a problem with my computer and had to use his for about a week, and using his monitor was extremely hard on my eyes. The text was the worst; it seemed very blurry compared to my LCD.

 

[CP5670]

Your answer is completely dependant upon what monitors you are talking about as well as their individual settings such as brightness, contrast, refresh, etc. Everyone is going to be different.

It also just varies between users. What looks comfortable for one person won't necessarily be good for another. My CRT looks fine to me (I can't see flicker at 110hz and the sharpness is comparable to LCDs), while my LCD also looks good in the daytime but is too bright in a dark room even at a low brightness setting.

After using a CRT for a long time, my eye sight has slightly gone to bad. So i do believe CRTs are bad for your eyes. What are CRTs? Cathode Ray Tube. The reason they are so big is because the whole thing is an electron gun. They fire electrons from the back and this is how the image is formed. (More details could be find in the internet) Electrons being fired literally means your CRT monitor is producing beta radiation. Im not sure how much CRT has developed as of today, i still know that older CRTs will inevitably send beta particles to the user in front of the screen. These radiation could be deadly, and affecting your eye sight as well.

Then theres the refreshing ability of the CRT. If you look at a CRT from far away, you could actually observe this. What does this mean? it means your eyes are going to concentrate on the monitor without you realising. As Arkaign said, your not looking at a solid picture.

Simply, LCDs are better for your eyes because they dont have any of these side effects. Although CRTs have some advantages like colour quality, no ghosting, LCDs are ultimately better for our health.

Sorry, but you don't know what you're talking about. The CRT would have to be very old (by like 17 years or so) to not have a rear-mounted deflection yoke and thick leaded glass, which reduce the radiation received by the user to harmless levels. I actually asked my eye doctor about that several years ago and he said there aren't any long term effects of looking at these displays. I have poor eyesight too, but more due to genetic reasons than anything else. Temporary strain from CRTs is one thing and depends on the person and refresh rate, but it's hardly "deadly."

If you're seeing flickering from any distance, your refresh rate is simply too low. Most CRTs can do at least 150hz at very low resolutions; just as a test, you could try using something like that and it would probably remove the flickering. I don't consider 85hz adequate in Windows (although it's fine for games), but find the 110hz I use to be quite acceptable.

 

[hans007]

an lcd definitely should be.

crts have to refresh, your eyes have to adjust to refreshing. so they have to twitch and refocus more thats why you get eye strain. a really really good crt will have a high refresh so your eye will not be able to notice or have to adjust to it (i.e. it doesnt flicker at all).

that said, i would never ever ever go back to a crt unless it was a fantastically good one or i had no choice.

 

[HannibalX]

I think so.

At work I had a 21" Dell CRT (Trinitron) for a very long time. It would run 1600x1200 @ 100Hz so it wasn't that bad. After looking at that thing every day for a very long time I asked my manager to purchase me an LCD. After only one week on the LCD I could tell my vision was improving and my eye strain was almost gone completely.

My eyes still get tired looking at the LCD but they don't "hurt" anymore.

 

[Hadsus]

Good gosh....has this question not be posed fifteen gazillion times already? Unfortunately, some people need the attention apparently.

 

[Creig]

I notice absolutely NO difference in eyestrain between a properly set up CRT and an LCD.

I think the majority of problems come from running a CRT with one or more of the following:

Low refresh rate
Low quality monitor
Malfunctioning monitor
Improper geometry setup


Text on the 1907FPs at work seems a little sharper, but for nearly everything else my old A7217A at home (@85Hz) is superior.

 

[TanisHalfElven]

Originally posted by: Hadsus
Good gosh....has this question not be posed fifteen gazillion times already? Unfortunately, some people need the attention apparently.

not really .its just the AT forums search is broken.