This is the first LCD monitor that I have ever purchased, so there was a sense of uneasiness with this purchase. But, one of my old CRT monitors was one the fritz, so a new monitor was definitely in order. After a lot of careful research, the Samsung SyncMaster 906BW was the one chosen. Here are the stats:
| Screen Size |
19" |
| Display Type |
WXGA+ |
| Native Resolution |
1440 x 900 |
| Viewing Angle |
160°(H) / 160°(V) |
| Pixel Pitch |
0.285mm |
| Display Colors |
16.7 Million |
| Brightness |
300 cd/m2 |
| Contrast Ratio |
2000:1 DC |
| Response Time |
2 ms (GTG) |
| Input Video Compatibility |
Analog RGB, Digital |
| Connectors |
D-Sub, DVI-D |
Reading the stats above, the biggest seller for me was the response time. I play a lot of first person shooters like Half Life 2 and Call of Duty. The look absolutely spectacular on a widescreen monitor and do not ghost at all. This makes for a really enjoyable experience.
One of the things that really surprised me about this monitor was how bright it is. It makes my newer CRT look pretty dim. The other cool feature not listed above is its 'presets' functions. With a click of one of the buttons, it will load a preset profile. These include 'Text', 'Internet', 'Game', 'Movie', etc. These make adjustments to the various viewing modes to get the best viewing experience.
I ran into only one problem: Screen flicker. Any part of the screen that was light blue or gray had a mind numbing flicker to it. At first I thought that I had gotten a bad panel, but after doing some research, I had determined that it might be due to the analog input. This product didn't come with DVI cable (which is pretty poor), but I found a decent one at Walmart for $8. I plugged that in and the nasty flickering went away. Phew! Other than this, I had no problems whatsoever.
So, for ~$200 after rebates at Newegg.com, this buy is definitely worth the cash. You get a lot of screen real estate, a crystal clear gaming experience, and an attractive look to your computer workstation. My only regret is that I didn't somehow con my wife into letting me get two.