# Comp. Monitor question **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 5, 2003, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632 "2003-04-05T03:50:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Fuel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/df705f/32.png) [@Fuel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuel)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/1 "2003-04-05T03:50:34Z")
Will i get more useful life out of my monitor by keeping the brightness setting low, like 25? It’s a 4 year old dell monitor. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/2 "2003-04-05T05:52:48Z")
No. The unit is designed and built to be driven near max contrast and 50% brightness. All you’re doing is sacrificing your eyes. ---
**Author:** ![vasyachkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/c5a1d2/32.png) [@vasyachkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vasyachkin)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/3 "2003-04-05T06:05:02Z")
you’re sacrificing your eyes anyway at any brightness because you are using a CRT LCD is with digital DVI link is so much sharper. just ditch that monitor. ---
**Author:** ![DreadCthulhu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/db5fbb/32.png) [@DreadCthulhu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DreadCthulhu)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/4 "2003-04-05T06:29:39Z")
Run the monitor at whatever settings are best for your eyes. I have an 8 year old monitor functioning as my second monitor, and it is still running fine. If you play games, don’t get an LCD - the latency is still way too slow on most LCD’s to play games without annoying blurring. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/5 "2003-04-05T06:31:18Z")
[Properly Setting Brightness and Contrast](http://www.poynton.com/notes/brightness_and_contrast/). ---
**Author:** ![Urban\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Urban\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urban_Ranger)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 8:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/6 "2003-04-05T08:30:35Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by vasyachkin \* > you’re sacrificing your eyes anyway at any brightness because you are using a CRT > > LCD is with digital DVI link is so much sharper. just ditch that monitor. CRTs have better colour fidelity than LCDs, and LCDs bigger than 15" are very expensive. Plus, LCD screens are also monitors. ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/7 "2003-04-05T10:13:52Z")
CRT monitors have better color if you are doing serious color work (like Photoshop for print). However, the prices on LCD are going down all the time. I got a 15" LCD (which is a 15" viewable, so it’s actually a “bigger” screen than a comparable 15" CRT). It was $300. Some are even cheaper than that. It is so lightweight, has a small “footprint” on your desk, doesn’t use as much power, doesn’t emit nearly as much heat as a CRT, and I have read that the LCD screens have a longer life (stay bright longer). Also, there is NO flicker on the screen (so my eyes are not straining as much as with a CRT). I never want to go back to CRT. (Unless I start doing heavy duty Photoshop print work, which I guess is a possibility.) I didn’t notice the nasty flicker in CRT monitors until I was on LCD for a while—now I really notice the CRT flicker and I don’t like it. I don’t want to put up with that anymore. I don’t know if LCDs work well with gaming (I don’t do games) but I believe I’ve heard that LCDs are improving all the time and some of the past complaints about LCDs are not so much of an issue anymore. ---
**Author:** ![Joe\_Random](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Joe\_Random](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joe_Random)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/8 "2003-04-05T10:26:15Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by yosemitebabe \* > **Also, there is NO flicker on the screen (so my eyes are not straining as much as with a CRT).** If your CRT has flicker, then you need to set your refresh rate higher. Monitors set to the default 60Hz give me a headache. I’ve found that a CRT with a refresh rate of 85Hz or greater generally has no noticible flicker (to my eyes). > [@](#): > > \*\*I don’t know if LCDs work well with gaming \*\* They don’t, which is why I don’t use an LCD monitor. Images take too long to fade before being redrawn, and that results in blurriness with fast-moving games. In fact, this is why there’s no flicker with LCDs. Sort of a double-edged sword. ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/9 "2003-04-05T10:46:57Z")
> [@](#): > > If your CRT has flicker, then you need to set your refresh rate higher. Monitors set to the default 60Hz give me a headache. I’ve found that a CRT with a refresh rate of 85Hz or greater generally has no noticible flicker (to my eyes). My sister’s CRT monitor has a refresh rate of 75 or 85 (I can’t remember). I noticed the flicker, where I never noticed it on my old iMac, which was set at 75Hz. I just never noticed the flicker, period—even on my old crappy PC, which had a monitor set at 60Hz. (Yikes!) I used that monitor all the time before I got my LCDs; now I can barely stand it. ---
**Author:** ![Tusculan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@Tusculan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tusculan)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/10 "2003-04-05T13:13:52Z")
I’m with **yosemitebabe** on this one. Got an LCD screen almost two years ago and never wanted to go back. The flicker bothered me; the steady image of the LCD is much easier on the eyes. Since I spend a lot of time behind the screen, this is a big plus for me. I’ve played some action games on it, too, without any problem (Quake II, American McGee’s Alice). The allegedly slow response of the screen wasn’t noticeable to me. But that may be because of my own slow reactions. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/11 "2003-04-05T16:34:37Z")
In my opinion, 4 years is old for a monitor. Every few years they come out with new monitor with new specs anyway, plus better energy management etc. So, run it at whatever setting you want. They probably won’t have anything better than LCD for another 100 years because I have seen films that take place in the future & they are still using LCDs 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Fuel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/df705f/32.png) [@Fuel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuel)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/12 "2003-04-05T17:28:00Z")
Since we are off the subject, but onto a subject I am curious about: Will an LCD monitor screw up DVD’s and internet movie files just like they do games? I watch movies and play music videos all the time and I would assume if games look bad on LCD, so would movies??? Both have motion… Thanks for the replies by the way. ---
**Author:** ![Tusculan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@Tusculan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tusculan)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/13 "2003-04-05T18:03:20Z")
As I mentioned in my post, I do not perceive problems with action games. Mind you, I’m a total loser in anything close to on-line gaming. When I play video (like movie trailers) on my computer I don’t notice any lag, either. This doesn’t surprise me; you can buy LCD TVs these days and surely they are good for watching television? ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/14 "2003-04-05T19:43:38Z")
On the best (and generally most expensive) TFT PC flat screen LCD monitors lag time has been reduced to the point it is barely noticable even for fast gaming. This is one of the reasons why TFT flat screen televisions cost 2-3X as much as the equivalently sized TFT PC falt screen screen. They have to have this fast response by default to have an acceptable picture. At some point in the next year or two this technology should be in even the least expensive bargain TFT flat screen monitors. ---
**Author:** ![vasyachkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/c5a1d2/32.png) [@vasyachkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vasyachkin)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2003, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/15 "2003-04-08T03:04:44Z")
i got a 18.1" viewable LCD ( equivalent to 19" CRT ) and i am sorry but the color is incredible. and the sharpness is ridiculous. i never play games, and you are right, with only 75 hz refresh it is not for serious gamers, but there is absolutely no flicker though, because in fact unlike a CRT the digital LCD doesn’t scan across the screen to make a picture, the picture is always on, so regardless of refresh rate there is never any hint of flicker and i can stare at text for hours and it is actually easier on my eyes than reading printed out material. ---
**Author:** ![vasyachkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/c5a1d2/32.png) [@vasyachkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vasyachkin)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2003, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comp-monitor-question/166632/16 "2003-04-08T03:12:18Z")
in fact i would say that since i got it ( about 2 years ago, for then $1200 ) i am now spending about 2 - 3 times more time on the computer simply because i can. i couldn’t do that before because i felt like i was going blind if i stared at the slightly washed out pixels for too long. with digital flat panel you can take a magnfying glass and you will never see a single pixel infringing on its neighbor’s color by even a fraction of a shade, because there is simply no mechanism for this to occur.