Monitor(s) for gaming...

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xMist

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I'm sort of a newb when it comes to monitors...:) Anyway, after three years I'm still using the 15 inch CRT that came with my Dell Dimension. It's branded by Dell although there is a good chance it was actually manufactured by someone else, I guess. It's a good monitor except I can never get the image exactly lined up with the CRT's edges but that's okay; it's a small distortion.

Anyway. I'm looking for a 19" monitor because I'm getting more into gaming and graphical arts than ever. I also enjoy watching movies on my computer and, as you can imagine, it's kind of painful to do so on my current monitor. If I could get somone's help in recommending a new monitor, that would be fantastic.

My wants:

-19 inches
-Either a CRT OR a very, very, very fast LCD screen
-If it's CRT, a flat screen would be nice but it's not essential
-If it's CRT, it would be nice to have it take up the least amount of room possible but that's not essential
-Good/great image clarity/brightness and color correctness
-Less than $300

If any such monitor exists, and is of quality make, I would really like to know of it. I'm hoping to get some deals too now that the Christmas sales are appearing. Also, if something comes close to what I want but not exactly perfect then that's fine too.

Thank you guys so much! :)
 
If you want a flat CRT the aperture-grill types (Trinitron, Diamondtron etc.) are the best, but they are heavier and bigger than regular shadow-mask CRT's.
They also sell shadow-mask flat CRT's, they weight less and cost less (afaik).
If you watch movies on your monitor when sitting far away 19" or bigger is best. Otherwise 17" is plenty (IMO).

Considering your budget and quality needs it will be CRT. I don't think they sell 19" LCD's for $300 with those specs.
 
Thanks, TheMajor! That really helps. I'll look up those terms you used and look around some more. :)

Any other opinions/things I should know? Thanks. :)
 
Three things to keep in mind:

1. The maximum resolution for an LCD monitor is 1280x1024 regardless of the size of the monitor screen.

2. Response time for an LCD screen, especially if you want to play games, is very important. The lower the number the better. It is measured in 16ms, or 12ms, or 8ms (it can go higher, even lower but I have yet to find one below 8ms). Again the lower the better.

3. Go with a reputable brand such as Viewsonic or Samsung. There are others.

Here is a link that will help:

http://forums.afterdawn.com/thread_view.cfm/252316


Believe it or not I still lean towards CRTs but finding them is tough anymore and when you do shipping cost is a killer!
 
You can get a lcd that run resolutions higher than 1280x1024 but for your price range you probably cannot find one.
 
I used to have that CRT. CRTs are better for gaming, but thats it. Outside of games, LCDs are far superior. I was comparing them side-by-side the other day when considering going back to a CRT. In games, an LCD CAN look better or equal, you just have to get one with a response time of 8ms or less and also a contrast ratio of 800:1 or higher. Also, try to get an 8-bit LCD panel and not a 6-bit one.
 
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