Decent Monitor for Under $200: Is there a good monitor for viewing and editing photos that costs less than $200 - something that would work until a top-of-the-line monitor would fit...

weedhook

Is there a good monitor for viewing and editing photos that costs less than $200 - something that would work until a top-of-the-line monitor would fit the budget?

OddJobber Loc: Portland, OR

No. What are you using now?

martinfisherphoto Loc: Lake Placid Florida

I went thru several back in the day before I bought a decent computer. I found them at computer repair shops.. Ask the shop owner if they can calibrate it for you.

wmontgomery Loc: Louisiana

TigerDirect.com has this:
HP V242h 24" 1080p LED Monitor
1920 x 1080, 0.276 mm, 5ms, HDMI Port, VGA, and DVI
Item# HEW-102773028 | Model# K6X12A6#ABA
Today only for $130.
Might meet your needs not knowing what you currently have.

BBurns Loc: South Bay, California

Costco has a number of them in your price range.
For example:

http://www.costco.com/Acer-27%22-Full-HD-LCD-Monitor-%5b1920x1080%5d.product.100170127.html

BebuLamar

I bought a couple of used one from Ebay. They are good.

Photocraig

I got my Acer 24" ips H236HL @ Amazon for $139 a month ago. It was $169 at tiger. There were plenty including Acer, Viewsonic and HP under $200. This one is fantastic for all uses and especially for photo editing. Be sure to get an ips monitor.

I replaced a failing 10 year old flatscreen. I thought my lenses were soft. It turns out the monitor wasn't showing the results of the $ Bill resolution tests clearly.

Mojaveflyer Loc: Denver, CO

You might also look at the Dell Outlet store on the Dell website... www.dell.com

rebride

Contrary to what OddJob says or thinks, there are some that would fit your description.
Here is one -
http://www.amazon.com/Dell-P2414H-24-Inch-LED-Lit-Monitor/dp/B00EMB4KVI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1434227213&sr=8-1&keywords=p2414h
Pretty much a Dell Ultrasharp clone.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

weedhook wrote:

Is there a good monitor for viewing and editing photos that costs less than $200 - something that would work until a top-of-the-line monitor would fit the budget?

There is a middle ground. The answer to your question is no. But you can get a decent display for less than the >$1000 LaCie or HP Dreamcolor or NEC or other top of the line display. Figure on around $500 for a decent display, and add some $$ for a proper profiling tool if you don't already have one.

I know of no <$200 displays that are not 6 bit, and therefore unsuitable for photo editing. Don't waste your money.

rebride

Dell/Lg have been making 6 bit monitors modified to mimic 8 bit for awhile now especially in the Ultrasharp series (which can be had for $250.00 and under). Many people have used them successfully. I would think quite a few around here at UHH have.
To get a IPS AH monitor that in practice can be hard to distinguish from 8 bit is 'something that would work'. A good place to start.
To get true 8 bit under $200.00? That is not going to happen. Gene51 is right. $500.00 and up for those rigs.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

rebride wrote:

Dell/Lg have been making 6 bit monitors modified to mimic 8 bit for awhile now especially in the Ultrasharp series (which can be had for $250.00 and under). Many people have used them successfully. I would think quite a few around here at UHH have.
To get a IPS AH monitor that in practice can be hard to distinguish from 8 bit is 'something that would work'. A good place to start.
To get true 8 bit under $200.00? That is not going to happen. Gene51 is right. $500.00 and up for those rigs.

As far as 6 bit displays for photo editing - I recommend against that for two reasons - a 6 bit display can only natively display 262,000 colors. Frame Rate Control (FRC) switches colors on adjacent pixels (oversimplification but effectively it is a decent working explanation) relying on the human eye's "latency" (the image will persist for a split second after it is switched) and your eye does the color blending. This is not at all an issue with video, where visual latency creates the illusion of moving images, but in a photo editing application it is not so good - you half the time you are editing a color or tone that does not really exist.

The second reason is that the color gamut is usually poor - a 6 bit display is analogous to what is on a cheap laptop.

This is a good article that explains a lot of why you want a true 8 bit panel as a minimum for photo editing.

http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/articles/content/6bit_8bit.htm

weedhook

Thanks for all the replies. I am currently using an old CRT monitor which is not really suitable for photo editing. The more research I do the more I agree that spending less than two hundred may be a waste of money; however I will check out the ones recommended. In an old (Dec. 2013) issue of Shutterbug, David Brooks recommended the ASUS PA249Q Pro Art which runs close to $500. There also is an ASUS PA248Q Pro Art which Amazon has for somewhat less and did get very high reviews, especially for color accuracy.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

weedhook wrote:

Thanks for all the replies. I am currently using a... (show quote)

the 248 is 6 bit and the 249 is 8 bit. Both have accurate color, the 249 has a wider color gamut without FRC - which makes for a better editing experience.

weedhook

Thanks for the info on those two.