[Help] Difference between Apple Cinema Display and other LCD

Ok ive been looking around for a monitor and ive always liked the apple monitors.

but ive always wondered why when i went to the store the quality of the apple monitors and the other lcd monitors differ soo much.

im pretty sure the lcd monitors are conntected using vga and the apple is dvi

but does the dvi connection make that much of a difference??

are there any other factors involved in the difference.

i know the pixel pitch is a little larger on most of the other monitors compared to the mac. does that affect the clarity??

#255908

Ok ive been looking around for a monitor and ive always liked the apple monitors.

but ive always wondered why when i went to the store the quality of the apple monitors and the other lcd monitors differ soo much.

im pretty sure the lcd monitors are conntected using vga and the apple is dvi -

but does the dvi connection make that much of a difference??

are there any other factors involved in the difference.

i know the pixel pitch is a little larger on most of the other monitors compared to the mac. does that affect the clarity??

The new cinema's use dvi only but other 3rd party monitors do as well.

DVI = digital VGA = analog, yes there is a difference.

Smaller pixel pitch = crisper images (mainly text)

The biggest factor for LCD's is pixel response time and the dead pixel policy. I'm an Apple zealot but the cinemas have been matched in quality and beaten in price by the Dell widescreens and the HP L2335 23" and offer more video in options. Of course nothing *looks* as good as the aluminum cinemas construction wise. Apple's warranty is 1 year only and does not publish a dead pixel warranty.

Dell will replace your monitor for dead pixels if it's new. The HP I have has a 3 year next business day replacement policy. Your mileage may vary.

#255916

the only diff in specs that i saw between a dell and an apple was the picxel pitch the diff was like 0.04mm or something that and the price..

maybe i will invest in a lcd display and clear up my desk a bit.

thanks

#256032

Little hint... the actual display panels in the Apple Cinema line are made by Samsung.

Functionaly, there is NO difference between an Apple and a Samsung display.

The case is a different story.

As for signal input, there are many digital (DVI) TFT/LCD flat panel displays out there.

Pixel density varies, so pay attention to the specs.

And yes, as with most things, you do get what you pay for. If it's cheap in price, it's most likely cheap in quality.

#256039

i think the apple ones are prettier

#256058

i think the apple ones are prettier

that is true

but im trying to see if there was a cheaper alternative to the cinema display

while keeping the quality of the screen. since at the store the cinema displays always look better then the lcd ones in the pc section of the store

$749.00 UltraSharp 2001FP 20.1-inch Flat Panel LCD

$999.00 20-inch Apple Cinema Display

the specs on both are almost identical so your pretty much paying the extra 250 for the look...

#256191

Just a note, you can get the Dell 20" wide format LCD for $560 if you go to their website and apply the following coupon: 40F961WD2MTG0K.

These deals have been floating around since the holiday season. You might also want to wait for the new 24" display Dell will start selling the next month. Many people expect the prices of 20" Dells to go down.

As for the "what you pay is what you get" kind of argument, it is true, the construction of a Dell LCD doesn't exactly match the quality of the Apple displays, but the Dell LCDs use the Samsung panels as well, so you are still getting a high quality display. If you're really worried about the aesthetics of the monitor I guess you would want the Apple, but in essense you would be buying a Samsung panel in both cases.

#256221

another thing to watch out for is backlight bleeding in some of the comparable dell monitors.... the 2001fp is generally good, but the 2005FPW widescreen has problems. The 2005FPW would be the conterpart to the apple 20", as the 2001 is 4:3 aspect. If you do end up looking at the 2005fpw, don't get a first generation, get a later generation.. (ao2?). In case you think apples are perfect or something.. they also have had some backlight bleeding problems.

Also, dell is just releasing a 24" widescreen tft too... $1200 US estimated price. The 24" uses the same backlight tech. as the 2001fp, so the first generation should be fine.

and voltaic is right... with deals/sales/coupons, the dells are quit often close to 50% the price of a similar apple.

I'm hoping either:

1. Dell redesigns their casing to get rid of all the f-ing plastic. (not likely)

2. Dells great new monitors + low $ = force apple to lower prices. (not holding out on that).

#256388

Ever since I bought my 23-inch HP L2335 display, I've been finding it's tough on the eyes and I'm wondering if anyone else has experienced this or if perhaps I'm not using it in optimal conditions.

It's connected to my 15-inch Powerbook G4 (1.25 GHz with SuperDrive) via a DVI to DVI cable and running at the display's native resolution: 1900 X 1200 @ 60 Hz. That's right: 60 Hertz!!!

I had thought LCDs don't have refresh rates. My Powerbook's built-in display doesn't have a refresh rate (it displays "n/a"). The Apple Cinema Displays I've seen in the stores don't have refresh rates (they also display "n/a"). I had thought the idea between LCD is ALL PIXELS ARE ON AT ALL TIMES.

So why does this display have a refresh rate?

HP's web site specifications are actually somewhat coy about this and hide the 60 Hz listing well away from the "1600 X 1200 native resolution" option. But there it was, clear as day in the gigantic white 8.5 X 11" "Getting Started" document placed neatly on top of the assembly as soon as I opened the box.

Looking at the display, my eyes started to feel distinctly... watery? I was getting slight headaches. And the text looked slightly blurred or ghosted... it was like I wanted to change the display resolution. But changing it to lower resolutions yielded pretty bad results.

It didn't really surprise me though... I've never been able to use CRTs with the refresh rate was below 70 Hz (maybe even 75 Hz). But again, I thought this was supposed to be an LCD.

And speaking of CRTs, this is even stranger: my Apple system profiler identifies my new display as a CRT. (It correctly identifies my Powerbook -- connected to the display as a second display -- as an LCD.)

I am beginning to think that perhaps there are "true LCDs" and LCD/CRT hybrids. Is that possible?

An e-mail from HP tech support claims they don't know what I am talking about. They suggested to use other (worse) resolutions. I would rather not use the display if not in its native resolution.

I called the Apple store earlier today and asked them about it. They told me that a "true LCD" does not have a refresh rate.

So now I'm wondering:

- Am I using the wrong video card? (It's the built-in card that came with the computer.)

- Does anyone know if anything can be done?

- Should I return this display and get an Apple Cinema Display? (Probably will get 20-inch instead, but that's another story.)

Thank you for your feedback!

Best Regards,

LM

#267650

60Hz is the default/optimum refresh rate for every LCD i've seen. apple probably put "n/a" because there's no point in changing that. quite a few monitors can go up to 75Hz but it don't mean a thing as pixels on LCDs are on all the time, like you said.

still, the screen needs to be refreshed with new content, and that's done sixty times per second, hence the 60Hz.

as for your problem, i'd speculate that your eyes hurt because you're not used to such a big screen.

and no, there's no such thing as a CRT/LCD hybrid. your HP is recognized as CRT because apple misinterprets the plug&play info sent by the monitor.

#267667

I got a 17' belinea monitor (I dont know the exact model number) and Im verry happy with it.

It has 1 dead pixel but images are generally verry crisp and its also verry thin and good looking.

#267698

i have 2 2005FPW and a 2405FPW. the 2405 is perfect! - my dell 2005FPW has minor backlight bleeding, but I dont mind all three dont have dead pixels

#268448

Could you advise the best alternative of DELL, NEC or Samsung for Cinema 22' or 20'.

I mean the specs (not the design, as Mac is the best in design

#486769