Should I switch over to widescreen right now?

[Dkcode]

Originally posted by: apoppin

Originally posted by: xtknight
I went from a VP930b to a 20WMGX2. I was breathless. Trust me, you'll notice: a much more uniform screen, deeper blacks, more saturated colors, wider viewing angles, better response time control, and a less annoying OSD. If you're willing to spend the amount of money a 24" costs, I say: why not get yourself one of the best quality 20" LCDs? Not only will you save on video card upgrades but you'll also be more impressed with the picture quality. I wouldn't replace this thing with a 2407 even if it was free. For movies/HTPC, perhaps the Dell would best it, but certainly not for gaming.

are all these monitors gonna be OK for use with Vista?

i know there were some issues with copywrited material and playback on older monitors

for me, i believe the 'natural' cost-effective upgrade from a 19" CRT to a WS LCD would be 20" . . . 24" is very expensive

I thought it was HDCP support on hi definition content? Either way im sure they will be a way to bypass it.

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: Dkcode

Originally posted by: apoppin

Originally posted by: xtknight
I went from a VP930b to a 20WMGX2. I was breathless. Trust me, you'll notice: a much more uniform screen, deeper blacks, more saturated colors, wider viewing angles, better response time control, and a less annoying OSD. If you're willing to spend the amount of money a 24" costs, I say: why not get yourself one of the best quality 20" LCDs? Not only will you save on video card upgrades but you'll also be more impressed with the picture quality. I wouldn't replace this thing with a 2407 even if it was free. For movies/HTPC, perhaps the Dell would best it, but certainly not for gaming.

are all these monitors gonna be OK for use with Vista?

i know there were some issues with copywrited material and playback on older monitors

for me, i believe the 'natural' cost-effective upgrade from a 19" CRT to a WS LCD would be 20" . . . 24" is very expensive

I thought it was HDCP support on hi definition content? Either way im sure they will be a way to bypass it.

yep . . . hdcp support --it is dependant on the monitor.

and

i don't want to bypass it

what models are "safe"

 

[Dkcode]

I know all the recent monitors from Dell are HDCP compatible. Infact any monitor intended for movies and games manufactured this year will proberbly support it. However i dont know much about the subject in mind so dont quote me on it.

 

[archcommus]

Thanks for that video, Dkcode. Boosted my confidence a bit of 16 ms displays. I didn't specifically choose my current monitor BECAUSE it had an 8 ms response time, I chose it because I could get it at Best Buy with an employee discount and gift cards, and it looked like a great display with a good response time and a fine picture. I knew it was 6-bit but I didn't mind. So, I guess it'd be okay backtracking to a 16 ms display if the lag difference will not be noticeable and if the colors/contrasts will be better.

So an 8-bit super low response time display is simply hard to come by today, and the few that exist like the NEC are pricey. Something that is 8-bit, 16 ms response, 20/20.1/21" widescreen, and has HDCP support would probably be an excellent choice right now. I could get the VX2025wm for about $32 less than the 2007WFP - which would you choose?

Or, since I'm not gaming much during the school year, I could put this off till around April and hope for maybe a lower response time/cheaper 8-bit display then. Expect significantly improved models by then?

 

[archcommus]

Looks like the FatWallet people are saying anything in the mid-350s isn't that great of a price for the 2007WFP right now, they expect sub-300 with coupons in the near future.

 

[Dkcode]

I would image by April they will be a much improved line of displays to choose from. I think your best bit may be the Dell 2007WFP, i dont know if the VX2025WM supports HDCP, and i know that it has issues with DVI & scaling hence the reason it was removed from the buyers guide. Although i belive other posters in this thread own these monitors, seem very happy with them and they could tell you more about it.

A friend of mine owns the Belinea 102030W which has a claimed response time of 8ms. After using his i could not tell the difference between that and my 16ms panel.

 

[RampantAndroid]

Originally posted by: Dkcode
I would image by April they will be a much improved line of displays to choose from. I think your best bit may be the Dell 2007WFP, i dont know if the VX2025WM supports HDCP, and i know that it has issues with DVI & scaling hence the reason it was removed from the buyers guide. Although i belive other posters in this thread own these monitors, seem very happy with them and they could tell you more about it.

A friend of mine owns the Belinea 102030W which has a claimed response time of 8ms. After using his i could not tell the difference between that and my 16ms panel.

No, it doesn't have problems with Scaling. It doesn't have any scaling at all.

As far as DVI issues, some people have had them, I have never had ANY...I don't know...

As far as how mine is: I love it. I can see no ghosting, and once I tweak it through the NV drivers, I think it looks as good as anything else I have seen. Even straight out of the box it isn't bad...just turn the gamma down a notch. The warranty is 3 years if I am correct, and I got mine with no dead pixels. I had tried out a 204B, but didn't like it...partially because 1600x1200 is something my 7800GT could barely do.

Only issues I can cite with it - the anti gloss filter makes things seem to...shimmer (some call it that. I don't...I'd sooner relate it a monitor looking like it has a little bit of dust on it.) and the stand has no vertical adjustment. I'll probably get an arm for it eventually though (it uses a standard VESA mount so its very easy to get a mount.) I love my vx2025, and I wouldn't give it up for anything...other than maybe a 24" widescreen.

The only cautions I have about WS is that some games just DON'T support it. Despite the petitions, EA still refuses to support it. In the BF series, their excuse is that it is an "unfair" advantage. My response - what the heck is SLI then? Or a better sound card? EA needs to die...

If you want to check which games will work with widescreen: Widescreen Gaming Forums Game listing

 

[jiffylube1024]

You should switch yesterday!

 

[beemercer]

I like my 20.1" WS, but if you play a lot of games you may be stuck at a lower resolution if they dont support WS.

 

[xtknight]

Originally posted by: apoppin
are all these monitors gonna be OK for use with Vista?

Vista itself will be fine with VGA/DVI monitors. If you want to play Blu-Ray/HD-DVD discs, the NEC 20WMGX2 supports HDCP. The 2407 does as well. You can check the Guide for the HDCP compliance of the recommended LCDs.

 

[archcommus]

If you had a 24", wouldn't it be possible to still run games at 1680x1050 and stretch it to the full size of the monitor? I ran FEAR at 1024x768 on my 1280x1024 LCD and it looked perfectly fine, just like running at any resolution on a CRT.

 

[jiffylube1024]

Originally posted by: archcommus
If you had a 24", wouldn't it be possible to still run games at 1680x1050 and stretch it to the full size of the monitor? I ran FEAR at 1024x768 on my 1280x1024 LCD and it looked perfectly fine, just like running at any resolution on a CRT.

Yes, that would work. But it wouldn't be at native resolution. It would still look fine though - 1680X1050 is a lot of pixels, and it's the same aspect ratio.

but it wouldn't be "perfect" 1:1 pixel mapping . I'd much rather run at 1920X1200 with no AA or 2X AA than 1680X1050 (on a 24" WS) with AA or 4/6X AA. It just looks cleaner.

 

[archcommus]

Originally posted by: jiffylube1024

Originally posted by: archcommus
If you had a 24", wouldn't it be possible to still run games at 1680x1050 and stretch it to the full size of the monitor? I ran FEAR at 1024x768 on my 1280x1024 LCD and it looked perfectly fine, just like running at any resolution on a CRT.

Yes, that would work. But it wouldn't be at native resolution. It would still look fine though - 1680X1050 is a lot of pixels, and it's the same aspect ratio.

but it wouldn't be "perfect" 1:1 pixel mapping . I'd much rather run at 1920X1200 with no AA or 2X AA than 1680X1050 (on a 24" WS) with AA or 4/6X AA. It just looks cleaner.

True, I guess I'd just have to see how a 1680x1050 image looked scaled up to 1920x1200.

The 1920x1200 resolution is just really tempting for optimizing my 2D work environment efficiency, like when programming, being able to have work up on the left/internet on the right, etc.

 

[archcommus]

Additionally, if this is a monitor I would like to keep for 3+ years, it'd be nice to get something with an HDMI port. Unfortunately the only monitor out with one right now is the $800 24" BenQ.