I know it's been a very long while since I have been here, but I have been busy. I am going to keep this as short as possible Anyway, I recently ran into an issue with my current monitor. I had a Dell 2005FPW, had to get an exchange. Now I have to get the replacement exchanged, and they are sending me in circles and claiming my warranty was only for 3 years, not 5. (I'm leaving a lot out, but it's been a huge pain and still don't have a properly working monitor.) Needless to say, I don't want another Dell because of the issues. It's been a while since I had to look for a monitor, so I have been looking but finding it somewhat difficult. I want at least a 20.1" screen with 1680x1050, but would like a 22" 1920x1080. I watch movies and play games on my PC. I need a DVI-D and VGA inputs with it being selectable. I use two different things, and need to switch between the two. Preferable using a single button instead of going through a menu. I would also like the option to use my own stand that's VESA compliant at 100mm or 75mm. Unfortunately I need good viewing angles and low response times. What makes this hard is that I don't have a lot of money right now, in fact I have to stay at about $250 max. I have been really looking into LED lit monitors, as they seem to have reasonable prices for the quality. If possible, I would like the manufacture to have an advanced replacement policy, but that might be a long shot. I have issues using my PC because of the monitor issue, otherwise I wouldn't really need this much help.
Actually, if you didn't mention your problem with Dell, I would have recommended another Dell. They have been releasing some really excellent monitors lately, especially the e-IPS panels. Since you were using 2005FPW, I'm doubtful you would want to get a cheap TN panel as a replacement. They are crap, especially viewing angles, but it usually has better response time.
Ya, it's been a rather hectic past month, and I still trying to get something. Basically, I want either a solid replacement or a refund equal to the current market value. If I get the refund, that will be a good $400, and then I will have a LOT of options. Otherwise, if I get a replacement that works I will just use that as long as possible, saving money as I go. You are correct, I don't want a cheap TN replacement. But, if an LED back-lit TN panel has good or decent viewing angles I will be more then willing to get one. I also plan on store hoping to see just what options I have.
It is impossible to have a good viewing angle TN panel. Your only choice is IPS panel, especially the e-IPS. You can't go back to TN panel once you have seen IPS.
You could go for the Dell 23" U2311H which uses an IPS panel for about $250, I know its another Dell Has a res of 1920 x 1080, DVI, DisplayPort & VGA ports.
For gaming go with 1920x1200 - 16:10. For video go for 1920x1080 - 16:9. With the Dell U2410 I guess you can't go wrong but it's quite expensive. I was in the same situation when I've sold a Samsung 205BW - 1680x1050 - 16:10 (still works like a charm) and started to look for a new monitor. I was searching for the much acclaimed BenQ G2420HDBL (LED backlit) but it was out of stock for quite a while. And since 16:10 were quite hard to find at that time I had to go for a 16:9 and I've purchased a LG W2443T. I'm pretty satisfied of it.
After getting off the phone from a call-back from there legal department, I got the silent admission to there mistake with the warranty. In addition, they are sending a new monitor, my choice, with a FULL 3 year warranty as a replacement. They also should be sending a shipping lable for the return of the flickering monitor. Given that I had a 20.1" UltraSharp monitor and my space issue, I requested U2211H. Personally, I prefer the 16:9 because I do more movie/video stuff, and I use my XBox for gaming on it. I was not going to start asking for something just to get it, I just want something I can use that meets or exceeds that original specs. Obviously, I got real close with almost no loss of features.
W00T! Glad you solved your warranty problem! Chai's right. Once you tried IPS, it's impossible to go back to TN.
Talking about monitors, I've done quite a lot of reading lately/ There's a few problems with the ratio, panel type, and of course the price. I'm still a big fan of 4:3 because that's still the best for desktop use. 16:9 belongs to movies and consoles only. So here comes the biggest problem, if you are using a monitor for both HDMI and DVI usage, choices are fairly limited if you only consider IPS panels. All Dell's budget e-IPS panels have a a big problem, lack of HDMI, so you can forget about playing BD or console gaming, unless you buy HDMI-DVI cable, but you won't be able to use it for PC unless you keep swapping cables or use a DVI splitter. Dell's U2411 is one of the best choice for most users, if you ignore the price. It uses H-IPS panel with wide color gamut. It has a resolution of 1920x1200, best compromise for both desktop and movie. It is factory calibrated so it is ideal for amatuer photographers or graphic designer. U2711 has about the same qualities as the U2411, but it is a lot more expensive, and comes with even higher resolution of 2560x1440. But ratio is 16:9.
Hmm.. But if you only intend to use it for desktop use, then the lack of HDMI support is really not that important. I would really stick to a HDTV for BD or console gaming.
Unless you have a big room, 27" is really the limit for my room, not even a 30" could fit in my room. So HDMI option is too important for me not to consider. That's the reason why I bought a 24" TN monitor some time ago. Monitors are generally much better than TVs anyway, even back in the CRT days.
Well, I consider this partly resolved because there was no direct admission to the fault. Even then, there was a lot of arguing just to get this far. As for the compromise, I use an XBox 360, and I got the VGA cable. So, I have the DIV-D, VGA, and Display Port inputs on the monitor. The 16:9 ratio matches the the video standard for the XBox HD output and wide screen movies. I can always get a dongle for the display port at a later date, but I don't think I will need/want to. My room is not too big, and I only have the space for up to a 22" wide screen monitor because of thr4 ventilation requirements. Also, going for a model that is as close as possible to the original size makes me look better as it shows that I am/was not trying to get a free upgrade.
Update - Dell sent a new retail U2211H. That cam in on Monday, and it had a yellow/blue tint on the right side. By late Tuesday, it had the left half with a blue tint and the right half with a yellow tint. I knew about this possibility when I requested it, but there weren't many options for me. 3 to be exact, including this one. So, I called Dell again, on Wednesday, and they sent a refurbished U2211H, which came in today (Thursday). I go with the process, get everything hooked up, and notice a slight yellow tint on the right side. I quickly put the monitor in self test mode, and run a full screen color cycle program. In less then 5 minutes, the tint is gone. I have used it actively for about 7 hours and it has not returned. This is on both the VGA and DVI connections. I think at this point the tinting issue was just a warm up thing. I accessed the service menu, and it showed the monitor's time usage at over 24 hours, likely going through conditioning and verification. Now I simply hope that this one does not have any issues for a while. More the likely, after about 2 months of no issues I will consider this working. Just as an FYI for anyone looking into this monitor, it has a GREAT picture. It's more color accurate then the 2005FPW or the 2007WFP. The viewing angles are slightly smaller then those, but it's only slightly. Turning off the monitor also turns off the USB hub, which is a little disappointing, but not unexpected.
Yeah, turning off Dell monitors will turn off the USB hub. I found out to my dismay one day - I plugged in a USB HDD and proceeded to copy over 100 GB of files, and went to bed. To save power, I turned off the monitor. The next morning I found that nothing was copied because the transfer was disrupted when I turned the monitor off! BTW, is the tinting a common problem with the Dell U2211H?
