What do you really want from a computer monitor?

2 points by prajwalshetty 4 years ago | 13 comments

Software engineer here, all I want from a good monitor is the ability to render crisp text (rest is bonus for me personally)

justinram11 4 years ago |

I've been using a 27" 4k monitor for the past couple of years at 125% and I'm completely sold that my next monitor will be 4k or above (can fit so much on the screen and everything is so crisp).

Though 125% is pretty rough on integrated graphics in both windows and linux, so I'll likely be looking to get a bigger 4k monitor (32"?) that I can just run at 100% in the near future.

60hz is fine for text editing and web browsing (and the extremely light gaming that I do 2-3 times a year with friends).

RicoElectrico 4 years ago |

Fast power up and switching between sources (which also should be automatic, if configured so)

Good color profile

The more bits, the better (no banding, please)

DP daisy-chaining support

Adjustability, pivot

Some form of cable management

prajwalshetty 4 years ago | |

Good points, https://www.lg.com/uk/monitors/lg-32UN880-B comes to my mind.

vestrigi 4 years ago |

A good size to resolution ratio. My MacBook drives a 27 inch 4K in scaled mode that looks like 2560 x 1440 pixels. What the OS actually does is it renders a 5K image and then scales it down. The scaling is x 0,75 which can be a resource hog. I guess it would be better to downscale by 0,5 which would happen if you’d run an actual 5K monitor like the LG Ultrafine. This would still give you a sane scaling, anything else is either too large or too small on a 27 inch. The culprit is that there’s almost no 5K monitors on the market and the LG model is way too expensive. At this point I could just get a newer computer to iron out the scaling issue.

gauchojs 4 years ago |

Great viewing angle. My 27" 4k looks "dark" in the corners from a center position.

I'd also prefer a display with integrated speakers so that a Chromecast could easily turn it into something useful when it gets replaced.

(I would probably try a Ultrawide next time, since its not a big difference in veritcal space with this monitor (scaled) compared to my old 22" display)

mikewarot 4 years ago |

I'm really happy with the 32" 1920x1080 HP monitor I bought on special, because everyone wants 4k or more now.

Fun fact: I called my spouse to see if she was cool with me getting one, she said "No... get 2", and my child has the other. 2 months later, the current health crisis hit, and you couldn't get anything at any price for quite a while.

approxim8ion 4 years ago |

a good inbuilt KVM switch, and decent (not necessarily spectacular) color reproduction. VESA mount compatibility.

privong 4 years ago |

4:3 aspect ratio (widescreen isn't that useful for coding, data analysis, etc. in my opinion)

fast power up

energy efficiency

toast0 4 years ago | |

Add me to the want 4:3 club. Still looking for an economical way to replace the two 25" CRTs in my side by side arcade game. Vertically mounting a wider monitor doesn't work in this case, because it's a sit down cabinet and there's no extra vertical space like there can be in standups, super ultra wide isn't wide enough to do 8:3. Putting the biggest monitor that fits into the horizontal space leaves a lot of vertical space :(

bsenftner 4 years ago |

Nothing but a monitor - no smart anything inside, no companion software, no manufacturer contact whatsoever, nothing but the slot for a standard cable and a plug for a standard power cord.

kevinherron 4 years ago |

LG Ultrafine 5K does everything I need. I guess if it was 100hz or 120hz that’d be neat but I don’t think DP over TB3 has enough bandwidth.

ixacto 4 years ago |

I’d like a monitor with the following specs:

4096x2160 true 4K resolution 24 or 27” 120 or 144hz refresh rate Under $1000

Too difficult to make happen?