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As LCD prices continue to drop, more and more
users are making the switch from conventional CRT displays. Their small
footprint is probably what attracts many to them to begin with. They do
however, have other advantages over CRT's such as their bright, vivid colors
and substantially lower power consumption.
We usually associate DELL with computers.
Those in the market for a high quality LCD display typically will look at
respectable manufacturers like Samsung, Sony & Planar. Yes, you can
purchase any of these name brand LCD's on the DELL website but they also
manufacture their own line of displays. They were not quite as popular
though until the release of their Ultrasharp series LCD's.
These have gotten quite a bit of attention lately and are some of the top
selling LCD's in the market. But how good are they? We will take a
look at one of their most popular in the series, the DELL Ultrasharp 1800FP.
The 1800FP is an 18.1" display with an attractive slim bezel design.
Before we go off and look at this display, I
would like to point out a few things you should be looking for when shopping
for an LCD. I will not get too technical and will only point out what
you should mainly be looking at when you read those product specs.
What to look for
Connection Type: Do you have a high
end video card with a DVI connector? You may want to consider one with
a DVI port to get the best possible picture. Many of them nowadays offer both
Analog and Digital outputs allowing you to connect two computers to it.
Brightness & Contrast: You would
want to get one with the highest possible in your price range.
Contrast ratios for current models are typically between 300:1 and 500:1 but I
have seen new models offering a high 700:1 contrast ratio.
Response Time: This is one of the
most important things to look for. You want to find one with the lowest
possible response time. This will provide smooth video playback
with minimal or no ghosting. A majority of current models offer a
low response time of only 25ms.
Viewing angle: Look for the
highest. Most current models have a horizontal and vertical
viewing angle ranging between 140º and 160º
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