[SGVLUG] LCD monitors

[Matt Campbell]

Hi Claude,

It's always hard buying sight unseen online.  If you are as precise about
your monitors as it seems (and you should be considering how many hours
you're going to spend looking at them) it may be worth it to buy new.  This
week I've been playing with LCDs and microcontrollers, the backlights are EL
panels (electroluminescent wire) and usually run at 500v at 400-800Hz.  They
are not cheap, nor are the inverters to run them.

I would check the seller's return policy.  I can't be worse than Apples.  If
they'll guarantee that the panel is up to spec (brightness and pixels) you
should be fine.  I don't mind buying over eBay, but I will drive out to the
seller's location and inspect the merchandise before receiving it.   It's a
lot easier to get them to let you look at three or four monitors on their
floor than to trust them to pick out a good one for you.

By the way, didn't you know that anything less than 24" is passé?

Here's a big secret.  Check out these:
http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=108&cp_id=10828&cs_id=108
2802&p_id=3005&seq=1&format=2
at $7.35 compare to $50 in retail stores.

Here's another one (the one I wanted, but it was out of stock):
http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=108&cp_id=10828&cs_id=108
2802&p_id=3411&seq=1&format=2

These are the ones I ended up with.  Four across my desk suspended a foot in
the air gives me my whole desk space clear to play with:
http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=108&cp_id=10828&cs_id=108
2802&p_id=3055&seq=1&format=2

You need to replace the mounting hardware they ship, it is really cheap
Chinese aluminum screws and bolts, won't hold the torque, but the arms are
rigid cast metal and hold the weight fine.

Good luck!

Matt

> -----Original Message-----
> From: sgvlug-bounces at sgvlug.net [mailto:sgvlug-bounces at sgvlug.net] On
> Behalf Of Claude Felizardo
> Sent: Monday, October 27, 2008 6:51 PM
> To: SGVLUG Discussion List.
> Subject: [SGVLUG] LCD monitors
> 
> I've started looking at replacing my two 17" CRTs at home again.  I
> currently have a pair of Dell Ultrasharp 1905FP's on my desk at work
> so I've been thinking of either a pair of 1908FPs or possibly a set of
> 2007FPs.   I really like working with dual monitors so I don't want a
> single giant screen nor do I want a pair of wide screens side by side
> as I think that would be too wide for my desk.  The problem is the
> prices for "standard" 4.3 monitors haven't dropped much compared to
> the wide screens.  I'm really picky about viewing angles so the
> adjustable stand with pivot that comes with the ultra line is high on
> my priority list.
> 
> Looking around, I found an ebay store called Liquidation LCD Monitors
> that claims to be a big reseller of refurbished Dell monitors.
> Apparently they sell stuff in lots of specific sizes, not one at a
> time which is fine as I plan to buy 2 or 3.  Has anyone dealt with
> them?   They claim the monitors are "grade A" (almost new condition)
> and come with all cables.  I don't care if there are minor blemishes
> on them but I'm worried about bad pixels and stuff.
> 
> Someone said the half life on the back light lamp is like 20k to 50k
> hours on LCD panels.  This is when the brightness drops to 50%. The
> 2001FP line came out like 5 years ago so they could be approaching 50%
> if they were on 24x7 but assuming an 8 hour day, they might not reach
> 50% for another 10-12 years.  Anyone know how hard it is to replace
> the lamp and how much they run?
> 
> http://stores.ebay.com/LIQUIDATION-LCD-MONITORS
> 
> Otherwise, it looks like new models can be found on ebay for better
> than suggested prices.
> 
> claude