what to look for when buying a gaming screen

[hazza]

hi guys. after the big red man came down the chimney, i have some cash, and have decided that i need a new monitor/screen. I am probably going to go for a 19", a big step up from my current 15"! i have a few questions though:

1. Widescreen or not? I game quite alot, (especially day of defeat source and unreal tornament) is widescreen going to improve/impair my gaming? (my card is a 6800gt)

2. What is a respectable response time (gaming in mind) of course a 2ms response time would be good, but i dont think my budget would stretch that far (£150-£200). bear in mind that i havent seen any ghosting on my cheapy advent 15" flat screen.

3. how many colours should i be looking at?? (i think the answer to that one is 16.2million)

4. what brightness is respectable? (i dont know the brightness of my current screen, but i think it is very low, as with it turned right up on the menu screen, it is still quite dark. very annoying when gaming, and you cant see anything!!)

5. contrast ratio? (does that just link in with whether it is widescreen or not?)

6. viewing angles? (again, i dont know the current angles of my screen, but i think its quite terrible: to make the picture lighter you have to look down on the screen, rather than straight at it. not funny on doom3 when im playing standing up!!)

7. is DVI much better than analogue?





essay over guys lol.

thanks in advance

harry


p.s. i realise that my budget limits the amount of options i have, but im not really looking for a super-duper-do-everything-screen lol

 

[hazza]

*edit* my current screen is a proview, not an advent

 

[Trotter]

1. Widescreen or not?

Great if you use your rig as a media center, but I prefer a satndard screen for games (unless you get a 22" or better widescreen).

2. What is a respectable response time (gaming in mind)

Anything less than 8ms will work. 5ms or less is best. My monitr is 8ms, and I have nada ghosting.

3. how many colours should i be looking at?

Doesn't matter... they all look great to the human eye.

4. what brightness is respectable?

Dunno. The higher the better.

5. contrast ratio?

Again, the higher the better.

6. viewing angles?

Totally personal preference. I use my monitor straight on, so it doesn't matter to me.

7. is DVI much better than analogue?

Yes. If your graphics card only has VGA, it won't matter. But go with DVI if you can.

 

[joshd]

Anything less than 8ms will work. 5ms or less is best. My monitr is 8ms, and I have nada ghosting.

Mine is a 16ms, and I've not seen any ghosting at all... I think above 16 is risking it though.

 

[talldude123]

Mine is a 16ms, and I've not seen any ghosting at all... I think above 16 is risking it though.

Is 12MS okay?

That's what the majority of Acer monitors are.

 

[hazza]

thanks guys. any other opinions?

harry

 

[swtwc]

For me besides ms is pixel pitch (or dot pitch). I like a crisp clear picture. I won't go above .26. But that's just me.