Display

CRT screens are things of the past. Some stores still carry CRT displays, but even if they might seems a good deal price-wise, they remain inferior to an LCD display. CRT screens are bigger, heavier, more expensive and flicker which is bad for eyesight, especially when hoping to put in a full days work on the computer.

LCD screens come in different sizes and shapes, from 17” 4/3 format to 30” 16/10 format. When choosing a screen, it is best to browse in the store. See if 4/3 is for you or if you prefer wide format screen. You have a lot of options as far as price and size. Prices are going down and we think that for now the best deals are 20” wide screen displays that you can find online for less than $200, which is only about $50 more than a 17” or 19” display.

One thing needs to be done for most of the LCD displays in order to minimize even more the fatigue you may feel after looking at it for a long time. You must lower the brightness (refer to the manual). Most of the LCD screens come with brightness way too high for a normal viewer. They usually look good on brochures but anything over 210cd will be too high. Start with brightness at 0 and, if you need to, go up and check if the brightness is right for you.

LCDs have a fixed number of pixels. Only the recommended resolution should be used in windows. If you decide to use a lower resolution (you won’t be able to use a higher one) the screen will have to extrapolate information and the display will most likely be blurry. In games, the resolution you can play at will be limited by the video card you are using, but will be lower than the recommended resolution and will not pose a problem with reading and typing.

• Family/office computer: 19 to 22" depending on your needs. Look in stores to be sure the resolution will not be too small for you to use it.
• all around gaming computer: 19 to 22" depending on your needs. Look in stores to be sure the resolution will not be too small for you to use it.
• media center: your TV or as big as a screen as you can afford
• gaming computer: 19 to 22" depending on your needs. Look in stores to be sure the resolution will not be too small for you to use it.