How to Buy a Computer Monitor

By eHow Computers Editor

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The main criteria for selecting a monitor are physical size and resolution (the ability to render more detail). If you work with graphics or enjoy graphics-intensive games, you will need a monitor with higher resolution.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

Antiglare Computer Screens
Computer Monitors

Step1

Determine how big a monitor will fit on your desk. If desk space is limited, consider buying a flat-screen monitor.

Step2

Even if you eventually buy from a mail-order or Web retailer, go to computer stores and check out different monitors in person.

Step3

Compare features such as antiglare coating, digital controls, built-in microphone, built-in speakers or speaker mounts, USB ports and ease of adjustment.

Step4

Compare limited warranties.

Step5

Make your buying decision based on display clarity in the size you want, for the price you want to pay.

Tips & Warnings

For typical home and small business use, specifications are irrelevant. Any name-brand monitor sold by a reputable dealer will feature at least the minimum specifications you need: .28 dot pitch, SVGA, noninterlaced and capable of 1,024-by-768 resolution.
For gaming or working with graphics, look for a monitor with a refresh rate of at least 75hz at 1,024 by 768 resolution.
The display quality of most monitors matches the price. However, if you can't see a difference between two monitors, buy the one that costs less.
At the same price, you get much better value from a good 15-inch monitor than a mediocre 17-inch monitor.
Most Web pages are created on 17-inch monitors. If you have a 15-inch monitor, you will waste online time scrolling to view everything.
The tube size and viewable area of a monitor are not the same. Read system specs carefully. One 17-inch monitor might have a 15.1-inch viewable image, while others might have 16 inches. By U.S. law, the manufacturers and retailers must indicate the actual viewable size, which is measured diagonally, but the viewable area might be in much smaller print than the tube size.
Monitors are heavy and therefore expensive to ship.

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Comments

dogman1234 said

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on 3/8/2007 I bought a commadore 64 monitor for 2000 dollars it is a 10 inch screen. Is that a good deal

Anonymous said

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on 11/22/2005 When buying a monitor, be careful of the resolution. A 17 inch monitor with a maximum resolution of 1024 x 768 will display more pixel images than a 15 inch 1024 x 768!

Anonymous said

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on 11/22/2005 When buying an LCD computer monitor, look at the response time (in milliseconds). For gaming or video, you really need something less than 16ms (more than that would look choppy or distorted). If the store does not list or know the response time, it is probably 25ms or higher. This would only be satisfactory if you mostly do word processing and web browsing.

Anonymous said

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on 11/22/2005 Cheap deals on monitors are just that - cheap. If you're lucky, you get a good one. If not, you'll be sending it in for warranty repairs and later replacing it with a good monitor. The savings come from cheap, poorly designed circuits - the guts.

Anonymous said

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on 11/22/2005 If you can afford a couple of hundred dollars more for a monitor get a LCD flat panel monitor. It's small, bright and has a wonderful picture. Make sure it has a digital video card, otherwise the image will be blurry, and you will lose the LCD advantage.

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