Maximum PC

Last monitor I bought was >6 years ago... a 20" IBM I won in a sales competition.

I know nothing anymore about monitors. I need a new one for general usage (a little of everything). I can't think of anything specific or particular I do that I should mention.

I can buy this Dell SP2309W for $188.67 out the door (includes tax, shipping, etc)...
http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/products/Displays/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=320-7641

Good monitor & deal? Or should I be looking at other brands or better models? Is there a better "sweet spot" for sizes, display types, etc?

Thanks!!!
Skip

I use a widescreen Dell at work. Not near the feature set as the one in your link, but the display is nice. It mostly sees productivity apps, but also some light photo and video editing. I don't notice any ghosting when working with video, which would be one of my biggest pet peeves in a monitor I was buying for myself.

There are many people who still slam Dell for their past regressions. Their pre-built PCs may still be limited in their upgadeability, but their monitors have received favorable reviews.

22-23" is becoming the new sweet spot for price IMO. I think you have to ask if it has the features you want/need. It didn't look like there was height adjustment or rotating, just tilt and swivel. Connection shouldn't be a problem with DVI, HDMI, and VGA ports. If your good with what it offers, go for it.

For extra reading, MaxPC had a great article not long ago about monitor specs, what was hype and what was important: http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/display_myths_shattered

Good luck.

That was a great link/article. Thanks!

I've been doing more reading trying to educate myself better. Not sure it's helping or hurting.

Pretty sure it has enough features for me (pretty sure height is adjustable). Based on the price, I think I'm leaning towards the dell...

Thanks,
Skip

ps- do many people use rotation? what's it good for?

well i have mine mounted to the wall..as it seems most lcd monitors have the Vesa standard mounting screw holes..100X100

except for the Dell monitors..it seems they have no option to mount to a wall.

Most people don’t use it because it has limited real-life applications, which is why it isn’t a more common feature on monitors. Most likely, you will never need or want to rotate your display, but I mentioned it because you weren’t specific on you uses.

If you are working with anything that is in a vertical format, rotating the display allows you to fill up the whole screen instead of having unused space on either side of your application. Writing a long document was one of the uses where people found this advantageous, since it let them see the whole page at one time. With a 23â€