Recommend me a monitor for processing

PatrickO

PatrickO

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Patrick
Edit My Images
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I'm completely done with trying edit on my laptop screen.

Can you recommend a monitor I can plug into my laptop for viewing/processing pics.

Prefer not to spend a fortune as I'm buying loads of other togging kit as well. Is around £100-200 unreasonable?

Also what's needed to calibrate the screen?

Many thanks, Patrick
 
Hi Patrick

Any of the Dell ips ones within your budget are good. What OS are you using on the laptop?

I have a spyder 3 pro which is good for dual monitor setup on my Dell 2209wa's, however I seem to be having issues with mavericks.
 
PatrickO said:
I'm completely done with trying edit on my laptop screen.

Can you recommend a monitor I can plug into my laptop for viewing/processing pics.

Prefer not to spend a fortune as I'm buying loads of other togging kit as well. Is around £100-200 unreasonable?

Also what's needed to calibrate the screen?

Many thanks, Patrick
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A decent monitor really shouldn't be an afterthought with whatever change you have left, it's a vital part of your photographic gear.

However.... £100 -£200? Well.. you're scraping the bottom of the barrel there. The Dell 2412 is the closest to your preferred budget, but even that's over £200. There's also the Dell 2209WA, but it's not a great screen. Both of these are only 6bit panels. Don't think that all you need to look for is IPS and you're OK.. that's simply not true. Both the 2209 and and the 2412 are 6 bit panels, and technically are only capable of displaying 262,000 colours. They make up the shortfall using a dithering pattern (FRC - Frame Rate Control Dithering).. and this reduces sharpness at the expense of colour. Out of the 2 however, the Dell 2412 is the clear winner both on paper and real life (used both screens personally).

Diving Pete said:
dell 2413
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At over £300 it's well out of his budget... but I agree... this would be what I'd consider a minimum for any halfway serious image editing due to the true 8 bit panel... 14bit LUT and using the X-Rite i1-display Pro, can even be hardware calibrated instead of the usual software calibration offered by most low to mid-range screens. The U2413 (not U2413H) is a superb screen for the money.

As for calibration. A good choice is the Color Munki Photo. However... personally, I'd go for the X-Rite i1 Display Pro, as it is more compatible with various other calibration programs, and IF you get the above Dell U2413, you can calibrate it at the hardware 14bit level... you will have to settle for software calibration if you go with any other choice.
 
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Not sure how this Dell U2312HM stands up to David's scrutiny, but it came recommended from lots of people when I looked into it last year. It's 23in £174, and while I pondered a larger screen, I wasn't sure I needed one and the 27-inchers are a lot more money. Anyway, v happy with it so I bought another for a dual monitor set-up for less than one 27in.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dell-Ultras...mputers_4?ie=UTF8&refRID=1EXA0JJT2WHW2HSWS0P9

PS You could use your laptop screen as a second monitor.
 
Whatever anyone else says, Patrick, the Dell 2209WA is a perfectly decent screen for editing photos. You can be anal about it, but I have one and it is perfectly fine.
 
Many thanks for replies. I've got to admit that most of the tech stuff on monitors just goes over my head:confused:

The 2209WA seems to be discontinued. Not sure what the replacement is.

Do people think one of these would be ok?

Dell E2414H LED 24" 1920x1080 http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Dell_DELE2414H_LED_24_1920x1080_Monitor_860-10213/version.asp

Dell DELS2340L 23" 1920x1080 http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Dell...GA_HDMI_Monitor_-_Black_859-10178/version.asp

Dell U2312HM 23" 1920x1080 http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/dell_U2312HM_SILVER_U2312HM_SILVER/version.asp
 
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I have the Dell U2412M and am very happy with it. It is 1920 x 1200, and the extra depth over 1080 makes a surprising difference when it comes to LR and PS. Using that alongside my laptop screen, which is an IPS 1920 x 1080 makes a very useful dual screen setup.

You can get the U2412M for just over £190 from here - was over £200 when I bought mine.
 
HoppyUK said:
Not sure how this Dell U2312HM stands up to David's scrutiny, but it came recommended from lots of people when I looked into it last year. It's 23in £174, and while I pondered a larger screen, I wasn't sure I needed one and the 27-inchers are a lot more money. Anyway, v happy with it so I bought another for a dual monitor set-up for less than one 27in.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dell-Ultras...mputers_4?ie=UTF8&refRID=1EXA0JJT2WHW2HSWS0P9

PS You could use your laptop screen as a second monitor.
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It's also a good cheap screen.

PatrickO said:
Do people think one of these would be ok?

Dell E2414H LED 24" 1920x1080 http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Dell_DELE2414H_LED_24_1920x1080_Monitor_860-10213/version.asp

Dell DELS2340L 23" 1920x1080 http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/Dell...GA_HDMI_Monitor_-_Black_859-10178/version.asp

Dell U2312HM 23" 1920x1080 http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/dell_U2312HM_SILVER_U2312HM_SILVER/version.asp
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The Dell 2312 would be my pick from that lot. Miles ahead of the other two.

The E2414H is a TN panel... avoid.. TN panels are crap. You'll regret buying this.

The S2340L is a IPS panel, but 6 bit (but so is everything in the sub £300 price bracket), and has limited input options... very cheap though. I have no personal experience with this panel however.



The23rdman said:
Whatever anyone else says, Patrick, the Dell 2209WA is a perfectly decent screen for editing photos. You can be anal about it, but I have one and it is perfectly fine.
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With all due respect... it is a perfectly OK screen, but it's not a great screen, and is totally outclassed by the U2413, and even the much cheaper U2412. You owning one doesn't mean you can tell anyone to disregard comments from other people, unless you have experience of all the other panels being discussed that is.
 
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Pookeyhead said:
It's also a good cheap screen.




The Dell 2312 would be my pick from that lot. Miles ahead of the other two.

The E2414H is a TN panel... avoid.. TN panels are crap. You'll regret buying this.

The S2340L is a IPS panel, but 6 bit (but so is everything in the sub £300 price bracket), and has limited input options... very cheap though. I have no personal experience with this panel however.






With all due respect... it is a perfectly OK screen, but it's not a great screen, and is totally outclassed by the U2413, and even the much cheaper U2412. You owning one doesn't mean you can tell anyone to disregard comments from other people, unless you have experience of all the other panels being discussed that is.
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Why does everything have to be a fight? I never said it was great, just that it was perfectly up to the job. You seemed to be dismissing it and being, frankly, a bit of a snob by suggesting that Patrick wasn't taking taking his photography seriously enough because his budget was as stated.

Those other screens may indeed be better. All I was saying was not to discount it.
 
Another U2412M user here - Aria.co.uk do them for the best price that I know of, as recommended above.

Agree about TN panels being useless for editing - you get a huge change in tonal range just by moving your head a few inches.
 
The23rdman said:
Why does everything have to be a fight? I never said it was great, just that it was perfectly up to the job. You seemed to be dismissing it and being, frankly, a bit of a snob by suggesting that Patrick wasn't taking taking his photography seriously enough because his budget was as stated.

Those other screens may indeed be better. All I was saying was not to discount it.
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I have no wish to fight - I just said it wasn't great. I am not suggesting Patrick isn't serious either - that's you reading too much into what I said, but £100-£200 is very, very low budget for a decent monitor, and if you want something decent, you're limited to rather a few offerings at that price. This isn't being snobbish, it's being realistic Dean.

Both myself and others have pretty much listed what could be considered decent at this price, and Patrick has some options to choose from.

...and let's be honest... if you didn't own that particular monitor, you'd have probably not made any comment.
 
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As David says, your screen is an integral part of your kit. Don't skimp on it at the expense of something else that you can save a bit longer for. (which I think he was referring to?) Get the best you can afford, you'll hopefully be using it for a few years.

btw, I got an Asus PA238Q a couple of years ago (best I could afford at the time & still happy with it) but don't know how it compares to the others mentioned.
 
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Many thanks for all replies. It's good to hear different points of view and get input from people who have used monitors for processing. I definitely feel better equipped to make a purchase.

PS just been trying to use Lightroom on my laptop and it's reminded me why I started this thread.
 
Pookeyhead said:
I have no wish to fight - I just said it wasn't great. I am not suggesting Patrick isn't serious either - that's you reading too much into what I said, but £100-£200 is very, very low budget for a decent monitor, and if you want something decent, you're limited to rather a few offerings at that price. This isn't being snobbish, it's being realistic Dean.

Both myself and others have pretty much listed what could be considered decent at this price, and Patrick has some options to choose from.

...and let's be honest... if you didn't own that particular monitor, you'd have probably not made any comment.
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Fair enough. :)
 
Hi Patrick, if youre going to be strict with your budget then the Dell Ultrasharp U2312HM is probably your best option, i used one before going "all in one a" couple of years back

However if youre a skinflint then the Dell Ultrasharp 2209WA isnt to be sniffed at either, i have one upstairs as a backup if my Dell 2710 all in one machine ever fails and to be honest there really is no visible difference to the "normal eye" provided its calibrated correctly
 
Moi?
 
PatrickO said:
Many thanks for all replies. It's good to hear different points of view and get input from people who have used monitors for processing. I definitely feel better equipped to make a purchase.

PS just been trying to use Lightroom on my laptop and it's reminded me why I started this thread.
Click to expand...
Why what is wrong you do not specifically say?
 
Bythesea said:
I have the Dell U2412M and am very happy with it. It is 1920 x 1200, and the extra depth over 1080 makes a surprising difference when it comes to LR and PS. Using that alongside my laptop screen, which is an IPS 1920 x 1080 makes a very useful dual screen setup.

You can get the U2412M for just over £190 from here - was over £200 when I bought mine.
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+1 for this monitor. There's a review on tftcentral.co.uk if you're after more information - http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews/dell_u2412m.htm
Also I much prefer the aspect ratio of 16:10 (golden ratio too) - it just looks better and is far easier to work with.
 
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