Screen Dilemna

Hi,

I found a Dell 2408wfp for $370 incl. Shipping and 1 year Warranty.
Is it worth it?

I need more resolution, and I can't afford more than $400
But I NEED at least 1 HDMI and good color rendition


Should I go ahead and get it or should I get something else?

I am a 17 year old Highschool Senior moving on to College in 12 months.
Is it worth it? Or just I just live with my 13" 1280X800 MacBook and 17" 1440X900 Gateway?

I am hoping to start putting my designs on some T-shirts and sell them though the internet and locally.
But I can't get passed the squinting at this tiny screen or constantly moving windows around and stuff...


PS: The 2408wfp is an S-PVA monitor, and one of the only downsides is lag up to 38ms at times

 

What about this?

It's a 23in Dell, with 2048 x 1152 and HDMI.

Even though it's a TN panel, it's $140 cheaper with a higher resolution. It also supports 16.7 million colors so...
I mean, really depends on how nuts you are about.... colors? I dunno. You're going to need to sell a lot of shirts to offset the difference.

And by the way, about the squinting, you may be squinting with such a high resolution....

 

I picked up this one a few weeks ago and I'm loving it.
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9183224&type=product&id=1218049006792

As for ports, it's got VGA, DVI, and HDMI; and all 3 cables came in the box so no need to purchase any. As for color, I was able to clearly see the entire black to white scale (30 some different black to whites).

 

Some more TN panels.

Asus 25.5", $279. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236047
Hanns-G 24.6", $195. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824254040
Samsung 23" Ultra-High Resolution, $209. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001317

 

I am NOT trusting Hanns-G, and the Asus is a no-no due to problems that people have had.

No shiny bezels please btw...
Both my laptops are bad enough already


Samsung 23" has an... OMFGBBQ 2048 x 1152 Res. lolwut? (I just got ueber confused)
I'm guessing it's 16:9, and it actually looks quite interesting...

EDIT: http://shopper.cnet.com/4366-3174_9...33456038&rid=33192334&tag=contentBody;compare
DVI only... and the Dell has Epic Ratings

But for $370 I can get an S-PVA pannel... I don't think you guys understand TN vs S-PVA is like comparing a netbook to a laptop!
And if I get this, it should last me at least 2 years... a TN panel will FAIL in less than a year I promise you!

 

just a thought but have you considered upgrading the screen in either of your laptops? may be an easy ish solution if you are hardware freindly, but then again you would not have a second screen

 

Not worth it in any way...

MacBook upgrade... impossible, no better than 1280X800
Gateway upgrade... 17" 1920X1200 is almost a waste, especially since it will be over $150


Already thought of that hard enough

 

A TN panel will fail in less than a year? Aren't almost... all monitors out there TN panels? Considering that almost all have a one-year guarantee... I really don't think everybody is sending there's in for repair. lol.

I really think you're putting a tad too much into the panel type.

 

No, really...

I have used the 2408wfp next to a dell 24" 1080p and the 1080p TN looked like a beautiful sugar glazed steaming pile of human excrement.


Does anybody have the Dell 2408wfp !?



16:10 preferred by the way, I use Reason 4.0 and I need the vertical res.
Unless I can flip the monitor 90 degrees when I use Reason...
But most monitors don't flip...







I guess I will save up for the Dell 2408wfp
(Just sold my iPod Touch 16GB 1st gen for $125 on eBay in a record 5 minutes!
Samsung Omnia i910 8GB for $150 still up!!!)

Or if I find some nice feedback on a QWXGA monitor or any other ones I'll jump for those

 

i am currently typing on a Fujitsu T5010 laptop right now (arguably one of the best lcd pannels on a laptop currently) so although I appreciate a non TN pannel quite a bit I think you are putting a bit too much emphasis on it

My TN pannel has lasted me for i believe 4 years now (19" HANNS-G)
take a look at reviews here

http://reviews.cnet.com/lcd-monitors/dell-g2410/4505-3174_7-33581193.html?tag=tpr

http://reviews.cnet.com/lcd-monitors/dell-ultrasharp-2408wfp/4505-3174_7-32886455.html?tag=tpr

while S-PVA screens generally have much more generous vertical viewing angles the backlighting also has a pretty big effect on your contrast + color reproduction

Finally, to get that tilt+rotate stuff you can buy your own monitor stand to attach it to

 

I think buying an S-PVA panel should be a good investment since I am going to college for Graphic Design/Web Design/Film in less than a year.

If I can gather up $370 then I will buy it.

I I can't I will probably go with one of those new 2048X1152 resolution TN pannels.

 

Save your money a bit longer and get the HP 2475w H-IPS panel
I got the Dell 2709w right before the HP screen got out. I'm glad i got it at half price otw i'd feel VERY frustrated...and it's 3" larger ofcourse.
I have to say the S-PVA panels look great and most of the problems with the 2408wfp were with the first series, the lag got a lot less with later builds.

 

lmao,

The OP suggests the 2408wfp and all you guys recommend are TN panels.

I'm sorry but TN panels are utter crap. The 2408 is one of Dell's best monitors and $370 is a crazy deal. Not only is the Dell a better monitor than all that was recommended, it destroys other LCD's in terms of connections and height adjustments.

The only other monitor that contends with the Dell 2408wfp is the HP 24" which is an H-IPS monitor.

The Dell 2408wfp has VGA, 2X DVI, HDMI, Displayport, Compactflash/xd/sd/mmc/2xUSB reader, composite, component, pip, swivel, rotate, and an aluminum stand. Its also an S-PVA monitor and once you go S-PVA/S-IPS you never go back to TN.

Honestly if you're going into Graphic Design, I wouldn't settle for anything less than an S-PVA. Don't listen to anyone who says TN's are good enough for color reproduction. I own the dell 2408wfp and its awesome, my only regret is not looking at the HP 24" H-IPS monitor first.

 

Hallelujiah!

I thought I didn't know what I was talking about! haha


Definitely going for the Dell
Unless I can find the HP's H-IPS monitor for under $400 (not going to happen haha)



Here's the link to where I will buy it, unless I can find the guy the regularly sells the 2408wfp on eBay for $370

http://us.ebid.net/perl/auction.cgi?auction=16283235&mo=auction

 

There's no way that I am going to save up that much for the HP
There are plenty of other things I need hahaha

I WILL buy the 2408wfp ASAP


I will most likely buy the new Apple Cinema Display 30" once they put it out (2010? who knows)
Since I will crave 2560X1600 by then hahaha

Or maybe the first 2K screen?!
3840 x 2160p btw

 

Yeah you won't be disappointed with the dell.

I don't have experience with ebid though. You can also check out refurbs in the Dell outlet too.

30" LCD's are so expensive especially the ACD's. For 30 inchers Apple and Dell are pretty comparable, but I still give the nod to dell just cause their panel is cheaper.

 

I will probably go with ebid or whenever I see another $370 2408wfp from this seller that has 100% ratings and has sold hundreds of them!


Although I do see the 2408wfp Revision A02 ! ! ! For only $425-$450 on eBay with 3 YEAR DELL warranty !
And I can do the Microsoft Bing Cashback for 8%+

Which actually makes it way better than ebid...

 

Yeah you want the rev a02. Also remember that the Dell warranty is a bit tricky.

Dell doesn't transfer warranty on standalone LCD's and from doing my own personal research the only way they'll service the monitor is if you have the name and address of the seller. So make sure that from whomever you buy the monitor from that you have this info.

Aside from that, Good luck.

 

Okay, I'm going to be that guy while trying not to irritate some of the repliers in this thread. If someone knows the difference between the different LCD panel types, who are you to determine that he/she puts too much emphasis in them? You get what you pay for, and there's a reason you won't see TN panels where professional photographers and graphics designers work. Now, a TN panel won't necessarily fail in a year; in fact, I don't think I've ever had hardware of any kind fail that quickly. However, Beatsiz listed good color rendition as a requirement. As long as the budget wasn't too low to afford the desired type of monitor, then I think people should be trying to make recommendations based on the requirements rather than attempting to convince Beatsiz otherwise. Don't say that a TN panel produces 16.7 million colors and then just walk away from the thread. TN panels are 6-bit/channel panels that produce 262K colors and use dithering to approximate the rest of the 8-bit/channel spectrum. If you create a color gradient in your favorite graphics program, you can easily tell the difference between a TN and something better because the dithering on the TN panel will be staring you in the face.

Beatsiz, yes, absolutely get the 2408WFP. At under $400, it's an excellent deal. The best deal I saw in the Dell Outlet store when they had them in stock was $460. The monitor has all the inputs you'll ever need and you also get a USB hub and memory card reader. Since you already demand good color reproduction and will be studying graphic design, ignore all these recommendations for TN panels. True, the 2408WFP isn't an IPS, and PVAs have their own limitations such as horizontal gamma shift, but they'll still blow away any TN panel. I've had the unfortunate experience of doing graphics work on TN panels and even when calibrated, the colors never look quite right.

As far as warranties, I've had a bloody hell of a time dealing with Dell on warranty issues and I bought directly from them. I've had my 2707WFP replaced five times in the past year. The 24"+ UltraSharps have a Premium Panel Guarantee which allows you to exchange a monitor even if it has only one defective pixel. Four of the monitors I received had a bad pixel, while the fifth one (first chronologically) had dark corners. I was close to saying to hell with it by buying a 3008WFP and putting my 2707WFP on eBay before I finally landed a good tech support extension that worked with me and finally got me a flawless replacement. Honestly, I was starting to like the idea of getting a 30", but saving $1000 easily wins out in the end. Anyway, you will be in a battle if you ever have warranty issues, so be prepared and have all the pertinent information ready if and when you deal with tech support.

Definitely try to get the necessary info from the seller like MrX8503 mentioned. Dell is willing to ship replacement monitors to a different address because I moved in the past year and had to tell them the new address over the phone despite having updated the address in my online account, but you'll still need a Dell customer account number to do so.

 

Thank you very much!!!
I know that it's an S-PVA

S-IPS is the holy grail, but there's no way I'll get one for under $400, even 500... the minimum would be $550 for a USED une with no warranty etc...


The only thing holding me back right now is the warranty...

If I buy it off of ebid or eBay and get the persons info how would I proceed in a situation where my monitor has a problem?!

I call up Dell and how would I go through this? Dell Customer Account Number?!


Hopefully this monitor will last me through college and then it will be used as a secondary monitor once I get an S-IPS monitor!

 

If you ever have to contact Dell, here's what will happen. I'll even humor you with the first 29 or so transfers.

1. Call Dell and give them your customer account or order number. Make sure that the seller of the monitor from eBay gives you the original invoice from Dell and you should have that information. I always give the order number because I can't remember my customer account number worth a lick, and the order number is more relevant since you're dealing with that specific order.

2. You tell Dell that you have a monitor warranty issue.

3. The idiot on the phone transfers you to their TV tech support department.

4. The TV tech support guy transfers you back to the customer service "lobby."

5. The idiot on the phone transfers you to the printer tech support department.

6. The printer tech support guy shows some mercy and transfers you to the monitor tech support department.

7. When talking to the monitor tech support guy, provide the customer account or order number on the invoice that the eBay seller provided you. Provide your name, the serial number, and service tag of the monitor when requested. Spend about 20 minutes of your hour-long phone call on hold while the monitor tech support guy looks up your warranty information after you convince him that you have a Dell UltraSharp with a Premium Panel Guarantee and that one dead pixel is enough for an exchange. Tell him that you need to change the shipping address and make sure to give him your phone number and e-mail address. Also make sure to get the phone extension for the department in which the tech support guy works.

8. After confirming with his manager, you will get a replacement monitor shipped overnight/next business day. If your tech support guy is good, you will receive a follow-up call to confirm that you received the monitor and ask if it works well. If not, you'll get yet another replacement shipped overnight. A free return shipping label should be provided in the box with each replacement monitor for you to ship back your defective monitor.

9. Ship the defective monitor back to Dell's refurbishment center.

10. Save the extension of the awesome tech support department you worked with for future reference because you probably don't want to deal with any other knucklehead by going through the transfer-o-rama again.

11. Retell your story on the NBR forum.

The 2408WFP has an excellent warranty (three years if new), but it takes some patience to get in touch with the right party to get everything right if issues arise. If your monitor is perfect the first time around, you're all set. I honestly believe there were QC issues with the 2707WFP, but I'm aware that I ran into a string of bad luck as well.

 

HAHAHAHA Sounds like FUUUN ! ! !

When does the 3 year Warranty start if I buy it NEW off of eBay?
And if it is Refurb and 1 Year Warranty?


I think going with the $425-$450 3 year warranty NEW is better than $370 1 year warranty REFURB right now...

 

The warranty starts on the date that's listed on the Dell invoice. That's another reason why it's important that the eBay seller provides you with the original Dell invoice.

Read the auction listings carefully and make sure the new ones you're looking at have the three year warranty. They come with three years by default, but I once saw an eBay listing where the seller bought the monitor brand new but said he downgraded the warranty to one year to save money.

 

Well if it says 3 years, then I'm sure it is since the seller would have to accept a return because of false info.


But all in all I only buy from 100% sellers and some sellers have sold HUNDREDS of 2408wfp's

And since they are A02 revisions, the warranty couldn't have started any earlier than March 2009 hahaha
The first time anybody got an A02 revision was in April 2009...


So my warranty would still have over 2.5 years once I buy my monitor this summer

 

some good advice for sure.

Not sure if you care about this but Dell is releasing the new Ultrasharp 2410 soon. Its supposed to be an H-IPS monitor, but its probably gonna cost more than the 2408 because of it being an IPS.

So the 2408 may be discontinued soon.

 

The HP 2475 can be bought for 560 easily....and that's for an H-IPS

btw....my service Call with Dell went like this:

Hi...i got a screen with this service tag.....
It flickers, i want a new one.

Ok....it'll be there in 2 days

 

I don't really worry much about it being discontinued... the A02 just came out a couple months ago... warranty will cover it and plenty other are available.

New monitors will cost alot and be on A00 revision, and I'd rather just buy a trustworthy monitor... The Dell 2408wfp

$560 brand new?
I did searches and have not found anything like that...
Forget it, I don't feel like spending that much money, it's not worth it...


S-PVA vs H-IPS to me will be like comparing the iPhone 3G to the iPhone 3GS or like comparing a Desktop 8800 GTS to a laptop 8800m GTS

Basically a very marginal difference until I get used to it and learn about it...

 

http://www.nextag.com/HP-LP2475W-24-SMART-621477444/prices-html?nxtg=21c90a24052d-9C4A17AB25F0CAAA

first search result for "HP 2475w price"

And although i like s-pva panels and i have one myself.....the difference is quite a bit larger than the examples you're giving. The S-PVA will serve you fine though

 

$535.00 with free Shipping and 3 year Warranty...
Interesting...

This is my new Dilemna:


Dell 2408wfp for $425-$450 with 3 Year Warranty
or
HP 2475w for $525-$550 with 3 Year Warranty


My problem is already getting $400 haha so another $100 won't be too easy

 

I would stick with the Dell, since you already went over budget once.

Also you might be tempted in buying a monitor calibrator which is another $100. lol

 

Is the HP 2475w THAT MUCH BETTER?
Is it really worth it for $100 more?

I don't really think so since $100 more is almost 25% more expensive in this case...

I mean, I am not look at having THE BEST 24" monitor...


A Calibrator and an S-PVA should suit me just fine for now...

 

No you're right....stick with the Dell, it'll definetly be good enough. And if you're a couple years further the prices for H-IPS panels will have gone down so get one when you feel like upgrading.

 

Yeah definitely

I hope there will be a 2K monitor in 2-4 years
3840 x 2160p sounds godlike!

 

I agree with the other two posters. You should stick with the 2408WFP because you've already maxed out your budget. That's not necessarily bad since you are getting every last dollar out of it for a premium piece of hardware. If you think you're going to have trouble scraping up another hundred for the HP, then don't.

Warranties seem to be at least somewhat important to you, but if you think you're going to end up over-budget, would you consider a 2407WFP or 2407WFP-HC for less and then getting a SquareTrade warranty on top of whatever warranty comes with it?

 

Because those don't have HDMI Display Port blablala and a bunch of other features that are definitely worth the little extra!


But for now the 2408wfp A02 Revision with 3 Years Warranty sounds AMAZING!

Not to mention 90 rotating screen which will be amazing for Reason 4.0 and lengthy reading



But if I can make another $100 in any way and if anybody owns an HP 2475w gives me personal feedback and comparison on it then I'll go with that...

 

PVA/MVA suffers from black crush when looked straight on. IPS does not have that. However the black level on PVA/MVA is better. I have both panel types in front of me.

Anyway if I think you will be happy with the 2408WFP. If you are thinking about the HP 2475w might as well buy the Apple 24" ACD refurbed at $599. One way or another it is way better than TN.

 

Apple ACD is NOT an option...
Too old, only 1 DVI connection, no real useful features and just... no...
ACD 30" 20XX version, yes maybe... but that's later


Black Crush, what is that?


I am only going for the HP 2475w if I can find it for under $525 or if someone convinces me or proves to me that it is worth it over the 2408wfp @ $425-$450

 

"Black crush" refers to the occurrence where you may lose black detail when looking at the monitor from straight on, but if you view the screen from an angle, you'll see those lost details. The gradations of very dark grays appear to be "crushed" to black and you may have difficulty distinguishing the difference between #000000 and something like #080808 from straight on. Personally, I don't have that much of a problem with it, but you should keep it in mind when considering VA panels. This is the trade-off for those deeper blacks and perceived increase in contrast that VA panels are known for having, and that's why high-end LCD TVs use VA panels.

Also, the horizontal gamma shift effect that is responsible for black crush is most noticeable with blacks and what most people would consider to be dark shades of gray. I don't notice the color shift with lighter grays or any other color. Black crush is still many times easier to tolerate than the off-axis color inversion of TN panels.

 

Oh, ok now I get it!

Doesn't really seem to be much of a problem to me!
If I can get the money for the HP 2475w by the end of this month then that monitor it is


I might also get a Mimo External USB Touchscreen for Christmas for myself
I'll use that for my pallets, dashboards, info etc...
And I'll either check out the thumbnail on that screen where my Photoshop menu is or just drag the picture over to the USB screen or to my main screen and check out for dark greys

 

GET THE SCREEN ALREADY!!!! lol....joke

 

those external usb screens are pretty nifty. Some day I might pick one up.

 

22" Dell UltraSharp 2209WA E-IPS Panel LCD Monitor for $208.08 plus free shipping (normally $289 - use coupon codes 7XRCSVHMT9VDL0 and 7LXC0FZZR54P3X).

E-IPS!?


H-IPS is what compared to E-IPS?

 

From what I've read E-IPS is similar to S-PVA.

S-IPS/H-IPS are still top dogs.

 

I don't know too much about the different panel subtypes, but that looks like it may be a bargain if the size and resolution seem okay to you. According to Wikipedia, E-IPS is a low-cost variant of AS-IPS, which has supposedly increased contrast over other IPS panel types.

It's short on the input options (no HDMI), but it seems like it's been consistently ranked as the top 22" display. The Dell Outlet has them for $199 and you can use a 20% off coupon code on a new one:

http://www.techbargains.com/news_displayItem.cfm/175957

Here's the HardForum überthread for it:

http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1387587

 

OMG, now that completely throws me off =/


Dell 2209WA monitor for less than $200
or a 2408wfp for $400+


Gaaah!!! I could even get 2 Dell 2209WA's for the price of a 2408wfp lol hahaha


I'm holding off on the monitor for a couple weeks since I don't have an immediate need anymore (school, working on some more research, development, business plan etc...)

And during this time there will be the new 2410 2210 etc...



So maybe it will become a Christmas gift to myself or from someone haha

 

So eBay has seen a jump from 10-20 monitors for sale to 100+ since last week!
You can get a Dell 2408wfp A02 for $375 free shipping if you look well!!!

But now... An awful thing has been released... the Dell 24-inch U2410 IPS
24inch III PPP SSS IPS IPS IPS IPS IPS

EYE PEE ESS


"The IPS-panel features a 1920 x 1200 pixel resolution, 6-ms response, 178-degree viewing angles, 1000:1 typical contrast, and 12-bit internal processing (1.07 billion colors), and 96% AdobeRGB and 100% of sRGB color space coverage" -Engadget

(O_O)