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March 10, 2005
Dude, I'm Getting a Dell... Actually, Two Dell LCDs
03:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (5) ~ PC - Customizing
When I first purchased a PC back in the 90s, I had to have a big screen — one capable of running 1600×1200 resolution. Why such high resolution? Because the screen is your primary interface to the computer (you look at it all the time), so the more resolution you can run, the more windows you can have visible at once and the longer you can make your windows to avoid/reduce scrolling. At the time, I got a great deal from Viewsonic on a 21” CRT. I think it ended up costing me something like $1200.
My current monitor is a Mitsubishi Diamond Pro 2040u (21” CRT). I picked it up around about five years ago, and it’s run like a champ since. However, it is very large and heavy as hell… so heavy I hate moving it. It probably a power hog too since 21” CRTs typically draw something like 140 watts of power. I think I paid something like $1100 for the monitor, which was also a great deal at the time.
CRTs are still the bomb for high-end graphics production, since they can more truly reproduce colors. The Sony GDM-C520K Artisan is the monitor of choice for this kind of work. However, for most general computing applications, LCD panels are the way to go. They are now relatively cheap and even fast enough to run games on.
It wasn’t too long ago that you’d have to pay almost two grand for a decent 1600×1200 LCD panel. With the huge demand for panels, economies of scale have kicked in and you can pick up a great 20” LCD for under $700… actually, I paid just a little over $500 for a Dell 2001FP.
Actually, that’s not quite correct. I actually paid a little over $500 each for two 2001FPs. Two? Yes two. Since my graphics card supports dual monitors (one through DVI and one analog), I’m going for a dual-monitor set up. Two monitors is almost a must for applications like Photoshop where you have a gillion of these little tool palettes (which control things like layers and color histograms) in addition to the main image window. With two monitors you can place all of the palettes on the second monitor leaving the primary monitor just for the image you are editing. It’s also nice to be able to place your music client, IM client and other applications in the second monitor leaving the primary just for web browsing.
Going with two 1600×1200 monitors will give me 3200×1200 pixels of screen real estate. I had thought about getting Dell’s new 2405FPW 24” LCD, but at $1200, it’s about the same price as two 20” panels, while only running 1920×1200. And if you think that I’m nuts to care about getting the maximum resolution possible, check out Dell’s multi-monitor page. Clearly, there’s a lot of people/businesses who what big screens.
If you’re interested in buying a Dell monitor (or any Dell product for that matter), be sure to check sites like Techbargains’ Dell coupon page to make sure you’re getting the best deal. I saved $125 on my monitors by using a coupon I found on their site.
The 2001FP doesn’t support portrait mode (rotating the monitor 90 degrees for 1200×1600 viewing), but you can buy portrait-enabling software from folks like Portrait Displays.
Dude, I’m gonna be stoked when my panels arrive.
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