Best LCD monitor for photographic work under 300 pounds??

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

I am looking to replace current 15 inch TFT monitor with something better. I am thinking about the Samsung 226CW but it iS so new that no reviews are available. Colour accuracy is a must! Any recommendations would be kindly appreciated!!

I am currently using an X1900GT so I assume that it would be good enough to run 1680x1050!!??

[IBM]

Go back to CRT! You can have my 21 Iiyama 514 for next to nothing if you can collect

[KowShak]

For photo work, if you're talking about an LCD you need an S-IPS panel, the easy part is telling you that you need S-IPS, the hard part is finding a screen that has an S-IPS panel, especially considering your budget. PVA or MVA is second best and TN is to be avoided if you're working with photos. The things that S-IPS gives is that the colour of black shades on the screen don't vary if you move your head about, i.e. change your viewing angle, that means that your shadows in photos are completely consistent accross the screen rather than being almost consistent, S-IPS also gives full 24 bit colour.

S-IPS panels don't come in sizes smaller than 20" and the majority of the monitors that come with S-IPS panels also come with PVA or even TN panels interchangably. For example, the Dell 2007FP came with a LG.Philips S-IPS panel originally but today it can either have that S-IPS panel or an Samsung alternative, the 2007WFP also comes with a choice of panels. LG has a number of panels with very similar part numbers that vary in panel, e.g. L2000C has a number of variants with completely different panels.

Some people do still recommend CRTs for photo work still......

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

I do not have much space so it will have to be an LCD!! I agree that a decent CRT is hard to beat though.

I have heard that S-IPS and their derivatives are the best LCDs for colour critical work but many of the cheaper monitors with S-IPS seem to ship with MVA,PVA or S-IPS(the pane lottery)!!

Any suggestions for monitors which definitely will have an S-IPS panel!!??

[Gunbuster]

I know they are older now but would an NEC SpectraView 2180 or MultiSync 2070NX still be worth getting for a good price (sub £200)?

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

I managed to acquire a secondhand(less than a year old) Philips 200W6CS as this has an S-IPS panel. I was thinking of getting a Samsung 215TW which has a P-MVA panel. I assume this will be better for colour critical work ??

The NEC 20WGX2 was the other contender but costs over 215 - 300 quid secondhand on Ebay which is around 50 quid more than the Philips. I assume that I have made the right choice!!??

[Gunbuster]

I just got a clearance NEC Spectraview 2180UX. It has a couple of stuck sub-pixels and one dead sub-pixel, but hay for £128 delivered who's complaining. Compared to my mates Dell Ultra-Sharp 1705 it's night and day on tone and fidelity. Aside from the sub-pixels its the best image I have ever seen from any monitor.

p.s. the Philips sounds pretty good for the money.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Wow!! That is a good price for a NEC Spectraview 2180UX!! Where did you get it from!!??

[Gunbuster]

Fraid it was the only one, but it was in here: http://www.unlimited.com/cu/clearanc...vendorCode=NMD was missing the hood, and I thought the spectraviews had calibrators so that was missing too. If I had paid full whack or half I would have been disapointed, but it is awesome for the money. They have a couple of other models as well still.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

The last one costs £599!!