My Viewsonic G810 is dying, and I'll need a replacement soon. I've had this baby since '01 and its only now starting to flicker and ghost the slightest bit. I'd get a LCD but I can't stand the low refresh rates, lower color range, and blurrier image at non-native resolutions. I'd prefer something 19-21 inches that can at least do 1600x1200 at 85~90Hz. I know a few of you run higher resolution than that, so I was wondering, what monitors do you guys suggest? I haven't bought a monitor in years and have no idea what are some good models out there now. I'd just go with viewsonic again but their new models seem pretty pricey. The G810 couldn't even run 1600x1200 above 75hz, so I'd settle for something that could at least do that resolution flicker free.

If you get a LCD you'll get used to it and there isn't much of ghosting as in older LCDs like from laptops of 1999 (if they existed at that time)

I was thinking they were still 50Hz, and the fact they eliminated ghosting is very good news indeed. I guess I'd even take an LCD now if I found the right deal. These CRTs that do the refresh/resolutions I want are very pricey indeed.

Thanks for the tip on contrast ratios. I was just looking at ones that boasted 5000:1 and my jaw dropped. Even if that's not how high they actually perform it's still very surprising to me how much they've improved.

Quick question: With so many LCDs using widescreen pixel ratios, are there any 4:3 ones out? or should I even concern myself with that?

I really don't like widescreens, but with LCDs I haven't seen many 4:3 screens larger than 19 inch (1280x1024) (Well, technically that's not even 4:3...)

I've seen a few 1600x1200 ones online, but they all seemed a bit older and usually shitty response time and/or contrast too

How well does widescreen work with games? I'm starting to see the option to change to widescreen ratio in more games, but what happens if it doesn't support it, I just get the black bars on the sides?

How well does widescreen work with games? I'm starting to see the option to change to widescreen ratio in more games, but what happens if it doesn't support it, I just get the black bars on the sides?

Either that or the screen will be stretched (It's usually configurable in your video settings

Thanks for all the help guys.

I'm looking for LCDs that go above 1600x1200 but they all seem to be very expensive. I can't seem to find one under $300. I may have to just go with a CRT due to insufficient funds.

If you bought a CRT now you'd be shooting yourself in the foot. TFTs are the way man. Less power usage, brigher, more consistent and compact too.

Thanks for all the help guys.

I'm looking for LCDs that go above 1600x1200 but they all seem to be very expensive. I can't seem to find one under $300. I may have to just go with a CRT due to insufficient funds.

1680x1050 can be done for as low as $200ish if your lucky, but past that there is a pretty big jump in price

I picked up a HyVision 22" for around $220 (was on sale with a rebate) at tigerdirect.ca. I've noticed since then they've skyrocketed to like $300+!

As you've been told, LCDs have come a long way. I was concerned about getting one, as the 17" OLLLLLD LCD I used occassionally at my father's house was horrible, with a response time of like 25ms (ie tons of ghosting). Now though, the average 22-24" Widescreen has 2-5ms, and you don't notice any ghosting whatsoever.

The only cons I've come across:

-Blurry resolutions in older games that don't support widescreen resolutions, and annoying stretching which can makes characters look a little "fat"
-Some contrast issues if you've viewing the screen from an angle as opposed to sitting in front of it. Obviously really only an issue if you're trying to watch something on the screen while laying down on a couch or bed or something, and even then it's not a big issue, stuff just looks darker and blacks aren't really that black. Might just be an issue with my brand of monitor too

You CAN find Widescreens for under $300 - though you might want to just drop the extra bucks and get real quality (Mr. SLI'd 8800 GTXs!!!!!)

edit: wrote pros when i meant cons for some reason.

Well technically they're GTs, and I only got em for 200$ each, which is about as much as I'd like to plunk down on a monitor. I was thinking about it and I'd really like something capable of HD (1920x1080), but I seem to be in a standstill. I can't find any good CRTs that go that high, and the LCDs that do are definitely out of budget.

You guys are making a great argument for LCDs but I'm seriously dead split between the two. 

Get a widescreen LCD man, they're so nice. My mom has this nice 22" and I have a 20.1" and both are a joy to use.

I was thinking about it and I'd really like something capable of HD (1920x1080), but I seem to be in a standstill. I can't find any good CRTs that go that high, and the LCDs that do are definitely out of budget.

This doesn't make sense as even 20" widescreen LCDs run at 1680x1050 which is far better than 720p and nearly as good as 1080p. However, 1080 content will scale down to fit all the pixels your screen can display which will look fantastic all the same. You're going to have to drop a pretty penny to get a 24" widescreen LCD which DOES run at a better resolution than 1080p. Check this little chart I found on wikipedia if you want to learn more about how resolutions compare.

I would recommend a 22" widescreen LCD as you can get them for $200 on TigerDirect and they really do run at a beautiful resolution. I can't honestly see the need to drop $300 more for 2 extra inches and true 1080 greatness (you know deep down you want it just for braggin rights anyway).

Make sure if you get an LCD that you get the DVI hookups for them. The quality is worlds better through DVI (DVI is just like HDMI except it cannot be encrypted and does not carry audio).

I never had an LCD before the on I bought a few months ago for my birthday. I will NEVER go back to a CRT now that I have my 22" widescreen LCD. I doubt it's even worth the extra money for a 1920x1200 LCD. High definition looks just as good on a 1680x1050
The only problem I've ever had was when I switched from my old VGA(for some reason I was using vga on this shit) to DVI, some of my older games were blurry. When I switched my graphics card though, the blurry picture went away, so everything looks perfect now besides some stretching, but there's nothing you can do about that even if you went CRT. You'll get used to an LCD right away. If you want though, go to your local computer store and look at the quality of the picture. They really do look incredible.

About the widescreen thing, some games actually have widescreen resolution options, like Oblivion.