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Flat-panel
Monitors: 5 Things to Know
by Kim Komando
reprinted with permission from the
Microsoft Small Business Center
 It's hard not to admire the sleekness of flat-panel
displays. They are a perfect example of form melding with
function to create a superior product.
Is it time for you
to trade in your trusty cathode-ray tube (CRT) monitor for a
stylish new liquid crystal display (LCD) model?
Here's a look at
what makes flat-panel monitors appealing. And what might
keep one off your desk.
1. You'll save
some desk real estate. The most obvious advantage of the
flat-panel display is its size, or lack thereof. CRT
monitors are big, honking things. Their cabinets are about
20 inches deep. They work, but they're passé. All of the
work in a flat-panel monitor is done behind its thin screen
by liquid crystals and millions of transistors. So the flat
panel doesn't need a long case. If you are stretched for
real estate on your desk, the small footprint is very
enticing. It's not just space savings for your computer
desk. Some flat panels can do double duty as a television.
To watch TV, you just hit a button on the flat panel or use
the included hand-held remote control. You'll pay extra for
this feature. But if your living quarters are cramped, one
monitor lets you check e-mail as well as watch your favorite
sit-com, if you're so inclined. Sure, you can watch TV on
your computer using a CRT. If you don't have one already,
you'll need to install a TV tuner video card. But the
picture quality isn't as good, and who needs the hassle of
booting up your PC to watch TV when there is a more
convenient alternative? You'll also find flat-panel monitors
that have built-in USB ports. This is especially handy if
your computer (like mine) has all four USB ports in the back
of the machine. No longer do you need to pull the computer
out from behind the desk to simply download pictures from
your digital camera. You just plug the camera into one of
the flat screen's USB ports and you're good to go.
2. You get a
better picture. There's another nice thing about flat
panels — they're brighter. Generally speaking, text and
graphics are easier to see on brighter monitors. Flat-panel
displays are also usually crisper. Graphics and text have
sharper edges. This brings us to an important point: analog
versus digital. CRT monitors use an analog signal, meaning
it is carried on a wave. Flat-panel monitors can be either
analog or digital. Many flat panels have connections for
both. Digital is sharper and, therefore, better. But whether
you can use a digital flat panel depends on your video card.
This is a circuit board inside your computer. Its output
points stick out of the back of your computer. The video
card is easy to find — your current monitor is hooked up to
it. If your computer is relatively new, you may have both
digital and analog outputs on your video card. If you don't
know what a digital output looks like, ask a salesperson at
a computer store to show you. You can probably fit a
digital-output card to your computer, if necessary. A card
will run you less than $100.So what are the disadvantages of
flat-panels, other than having to learn about digital and
analog? The most obvious is price, which leads us to No. 3.
3. They're not
cheap (though they save in energy costs). While they've
come down in price, there's still no getting around it:
You'll pay a bit more for flat panels (although the gap in
prices from CRT monitors has narrowed). That's because
they're more difficult to manufacture. A 15-inch monitor, as
measured diagonally, will run you $150 to $200. The lower
end would be a sale machine, which may not be what you want.
If you go up to 17 inches, you're talking about $200 to
$250, and 19 inches, $300 to $350. I consider a 15-inch flat
panel marginal. It just doesn't show enough, even when all I
am doing is writing a letter. I prefer a 19-incher. By
comparison, a 17-inch CRT monitor (which is actually 16
inches of visible screen, or less) can be had for $60. A
really good one might run $100. Nineteen-inch CRTs range
from $75 to $200.You'll make up some of the difference on
your power bill. Flat panels only use 30-40 watts of
electricity. CRTs run about 110 watts. Over a year's time,
those savings will make a small dent in your utility
payments. That also means flat panels run cooler, making
them more comfortable to use.
4. They still
have some latency issues. Traditionally, flat panels
have had a problem with latency (which means time wasted in
refreshing your screen). Movement on the screen cannot be
shown until the screen is redrawn by the computer. This is
done many times per second, and is called the refresh rate.
The standard for CRT monitors is 85 times per second. You'll
know if a CRT monitor's refresh rate is too slow. It will
flicker. Some CRT monitors can be refreshed more than 100
times per second. At these high rates, movement is smooth
and the display is rock solid. Flat panels don't redraw
their screens this fast. Because of the technology, they
don't flicker. You won't notice latency with office
applications, such as a word processor. Nor will there be a
problem surfing the Internet. But if you like to play fast
computer games in your spare time, you could see latency.
Same is true for video editing. If you're into either in a
big way, you'll want to check the response time on a
flat-panel monitor. The lower the better. I'd shoot for a
maximum of 20 milliseconds. You may also notice black or
bright spots on the flat-panel screen. That comes from bad
transistors behind the screen that are stuck on or off.
Manufacturers consider a few bad transistors normal. One or
two bad transistors probably won't bother you. But check a
new screen carefully. If bad transistors irritate you, take
it back.
5. Know some
basic specs before buying. If you decide a flat panel is
for you, here are some specs that I recommend you take to
the store: No matter what flat-panel monitor you purchase,
and even if you have one already, you'll need to adjust the
picture's color, brightness, contrast and more. Most flat
panels include software for that. If yours doesn't, try
DisplayMate for Windows (http://www.displaymate.com/)
for about $70.
One thing's for
sure. There's a flat-panel display that's just right for
you. And once you see the big picture in the small
footprint, there isn't any going back.
Bonus tip:
Install ClearType
Type on many new flat-panels
often looks blurry. Microsoft recognizes the problem and
included a solution in Windows XP. It's called ClearType. It
can make type on flat-panels much sharper.
To find ClearType,
right-click on an empty area of the desktop. Click
Properties. Select the Appearance tab and click
Effects. Select the box next to "Use the following method to
smooth edges of screen fonts."
Click the down
arrow and choose ClearType. Click OK>>OK. You still have to
fine-tune ClearType. To do that, go to the Windows XP
ClearType link on this page under "Related Resources." Once
there, follow the wizard and select the type that looks
best. I recently bought a flat panel and followed these
steps. It works very well.
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