Cheap LCDs now

[John]

Around black friday there were a string of really cheap LCD deals.
Mostly generic brand type of deals but Office depot, Microcenter,
circuit city etc all had $150-200 17" LCD deals.

There was also the well rated Samsung for $249 at Compusa around BF.

Right now theres a 17" at Amazon for 199 (after rebate) which is
another generic type brand but the specs seem OK.

I think possibly the worst model offered was either the Norwood at
compusa for 199 i think and the KDS possibly at office depot for 199
on BF. I could have gotten for 150 with coupons and advantage card but
passed on it cause of the possibly mediocre specs on it. However the
specs on the $249 Princeton at Buy.com now 17" are very good 16 ms ,
450 contrast ratio etc. Of course how accurate are the specs is the
question.

But I did actually buy one of the deals and was very surprised after
being on the fence about getting a 17" vs 19" and the response time
problem etc. I ended up getting the Liquid Video 17" at Circuit City
for $150 after rebates and its a 25 ms , 450 contrast ratio model. Ive
got to say that so far Im pretty satisfied . Havent tried any of the
really fast games but I was really paranoid Id see ghosting all over
the place etc and with moderate games and graphics I dont really
notice anything bad and lettering is so sharp , maybe because LCDs are
so freaking bright even compared to my "ultrabrite" Viewsonic in
ultrabrite mode that letters really stand out. Its easier to read than
my CRT screen.

Unless you are hyper picky and are on the fence about getting one -
some of those super cheapo deals are very good bargains.

Im probably going to go for several more of those 150-199 deals. One
thing the rebates tend to be hefty so Id get it from a reputable
retailer who might have to stand behind the rebates if there are any
problems.

 

[Nillen Khandu]

Looks cool

 

[burchill]

I really want one but I don't want anything less than 19" and a DVI
connector but without spending more than £350.

 

[Ray.Milne]

I really want one but I don't want anything less than 19" and a DVI
connector but without spending more than £350.

Try www.aria.co.uk

Ray.

 

[John]

I really want one but I don't want anything less than 19" and a DVI
connector but without spending more than £350.

There a few weird things about the LCDs when I was checking them out.
I went to COMPUSA where they have a line of them set up on a long
counter with PCs.

For some reason they looked postitvely HUGE that night two weeks ago.
I dont know why - some optical illusion. Ive used them on other
peoples systems etc and for some reason that night they looked BIG ,
even the 17". That got rid of the worry about a 17" being too small.

They had the CRT I have and others set up way down the other side of
the building. I thought the CETs looked smaller. And they always say
of course that LCDs have a "real" screen area closer to a larger CRT -
17" closer to a 19" etc.

So I bought the 17" and its next to my Ultrabrite Viewsonic and it
looks SMALLER - ha. Obviously the Humongoid CRT case dwarfed the LCD.
The one thing Ill say about it , you really dont appreciate just how
much space you save until you replace the CRT - the amount of physical
space it says is amazing. The other thing is I measured the glass area
and the vertical measure is the same but the horizontal is longer on
the Viewsonic. Is the actual picture bigger? Im not sure because I did
it after I put my CRT in the closet and I was too lazy to hook it up
again.

The font thing I was worried about -- no big deal after a few
adjustments switching to clear type and 120 dpi etc. The lettering is
easier to read as I mentioned since the screens are so bright.

Lack of DVI doesnt bug me that much either. For $150 for an OK 17" -
Im not complaining at all. However Im like you and already thinking of
buying a DVI 19" with relatively fast response times. Ive saved so
much desk space now I lust after the biggest screen I can get.

In the US there have been more and more 19" deals - the cheapest
around $299 or so after rebate. They are all about 25 ms though.

Ive got to go check out the 19"ers again to see if the are really THAT
much bigger to the point I want to spend the extra $$ to get one.