New Monitor Buying Guide

The monitor is undeniably one of the most important aspects of your computer system. There are many reasons to put a reasonable amount of money into it. The primary reason is expectancy of use. You can use even very old monitors on many new computers, even though the computer that originally was attached to it has been replaced several times.

There are a few different types of monitors, but the two primary ones are LCD and CRT. CRT are the older ones many mature readers are used to. They resemble small televisions, and often make a sonic sound when powered on. CRT stands for Cathode Ray Tube. This reason is because of the way the image is placed on the screen - via a cathode sending a ray through a tube and onto the screen.

The pros of a CRT monitor are in a way quite obvious. Since the widespread use of LCD monitors, they have become much cheaper - as much as hundreds of dollars cheaper, depending on the size. They most always come with sturdy bases, and tend to last a long time as their screens are hard and difficult to break. The cons are equally as obvious, however. The biggest problem is their weight. If ordering one online the shipping will be very high comparatively to other items you may order. This can increase exponentially with the size of the monitor. In some cases they may be very difficult for one to lift, and have been shown to actually have caused back problems in a few professionals. It is also necessary to degauss these types of screens. The earth's magnetic force duplicates itself inside the monitor, which will actually distort images and color on televisions. An example can be shown when one would put a magnet to an old CRT TV and twist the colors (not recommended for experiment.) Older models would require a professional to use a degaussing tool on the piece of equipment; however newer ones have a degauss system built in. Also, the newest medium for signal movement between PC and monitor, the DVI cable, is mostly unsupported in CRTs.