SPCR

I'm looking for a 20-23" monitor to complement my 17" laptop and small netbook.

I think I can just about cope with a 1920x1080 res, my 17" machine's 1600x900 and I can live with the text size, bar the need of a slight bump up on browsing.

From looking here and elsewhere, when it comes down to noise, AFAICT the Samsungs seem to be the most likely to have an issue. As for other brands it's pretty hard to tell, I'm sure every brand has at least one 'noisy' model.
I've been looking at the Benq G2222HDL, I can't find any negatives as yet.

I can't afford to break the bank so I want to keep the price under £150. Oh and I want to buy in the next week too!

No problem here with the SyncMaster PX2370 from Samsung :/
But had previously the SyncMaster T260HD, and it did have that problem but that was only when you where focusing on it.

Hayate

IdontexistM8 wrote:From looking here and elsewhere, when it comes down to noise, AFAICT the Samsungs seem to be the most likely to have an issue. As for other brands it's pretty hard to tell, I'm sure every brand has at least one 'noisy' model.

Don't be so sure. Samsung is probably the most popular and widely sold monitor brand. No surprise that it would garner the most criticism (and probably praise, too, tho most people are less vocal when something works well.)

MikeC wrote:Don't be so sure. Samsung is probably the most popular and widely sold monitor brand. No surprise that it would garner the most criticism (and probably praise, too, tho most people are less vocal when something works well.)

I can only perform what is akin to little more than cursory glance in terms of checking out what's what when it comes to monitors. Samsung certainly have a wide array of panels and they sell them by the truck load. Therefore it's a much harder task to decipher what's suitable for me and what isn't.

Monitor noise is unlikely to be that high on the majority of people's criteria. And, like you say, you're more likely to hear the problems than the positives. So I hope I can find more to choose from than avoid.

The HP RZ24w might be interesting, they're supposed to have a beefy PSU. My unit isn't buzzy - unlike our TV for instance.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6824002524

Unless this is unavailable/overpriced on your side of the pond, it will be hard to beat in your price range. Hard to find an IPS this size for less.

I would go with a 23 inch monitor with 1680X1050 resolution. A 16/10 aspect ratio works much better as a computer monitor than the shorter 19/9 ratio that is pushed out to the great unwashed.

LG W2252TQ is what I use. 1680x1050, 22"

Think the W2253TQ is the model after, which has higher resolution (1080p?)

Superb monitors.

If you are looking for a quiet monitor (as in minimal buzz), may I suggest trying the older 20 inch (or 23 inch if price permits) Apple aluminum cinema display (non glossy CCFL backlit model).

Its a completely sealed design with no vents of any kind. It was also completely void of any noise at all - something I took for granted at the time.

I used to have a 30 inch cinema display and it is also a sealed design. It gets hot but not alarmingly so even at full brightness, and was completely silent all the time. I've since used a Dell 2209WA (a monitor I would have recommended on any other website but this one due to noticable buzz) and my current Dell U2711, which has a faint but tolerable buzz which is almost inaudible at sitting position (faintly audible at 3am with no other sound).

Oh, and Aluminum Apple Cinema Displays all use IPS panels.

So if the older cinema display fits your budget and other needs (resolution...) it is a top recommendation from me for silence.

Michael Sandstrom wrote:I would go with a 23 inch monitor with 1680X1050 resolution. A 16/10 aspect ratio works much better as a computer monitor than the shorter 19/9 ratio that is pushed out to the great unwashed.

1680x1050 fits into 1920x1080 though.
I agree that 16:10 is better but I would not sacrifice both horizontal and vertical resolution just for that reason.

Just to follow up on a few suggestions. . .

Apple - way out of my league.
NEC - again out of budget.
LQ - the former has gone, the latter looks promising although itself appears to have been superseded.
HP - can't find anything about the model mentioned.

I'm pretty fine with 16:9, became accustomed to it with my Samsung NC10, so after using 4:3 on my main machine(s) for years the change to 17" 16:9 wasn't overly painful.

How about Dell? If I would buy a monitor today it would probably be a Dell 23" or 24" with LED backlight.

Have been using the Benq G2400W for 2-3 years now (can't remember, to be frank). 24" in size with a 1920x1200 resolution on a TN panel with your run-of-the-mill cathode backlight.

Lots of bleed, terrible stand (get an adjustable one, seriously), horrible controls... but it was cheap, takes games no problem, angles aren't bad for TN (can see from all angles, no fade-to-black and very faint colour distortion for my eyes) and is nice enough to use if you don't need the controls. If you want it cheap, this Benq has served me well enough - now replaced by other models of course.

Buying a new one... I'd probably consult http://www.prad.de.

IdontexistM8 wrote: HP - can't find anything about the model mentioned.

Sorry, was a typo, it's the ZR24w. It's an sRGB IPS display (good for gaming too).