"Sales of liquid crystal display (LCD) desktop monitors outpaced CRT monitor sales in the third quarter despite the inability of the market to adjust to lower panel pricing, according to market research firm DisplaySearch Inc. The Austin-based market research firm said LCD monitors reached 16.9 million units in sales, growing 31 percent year-over-year and 12 percent from the previous quarter to outsell CRT monitors. LCD monitor shipments are expected to reach 19.9 million units in the fourth quarter and account for 54 percent of monitor sales, the firm said. While LCD panel prices started falling mid-year, they were not reflected in monitor prices until late in the third quarter due to high channel inventories, said DisplaySearch. Thus, LCD monitor shipments fell short of expectations despite overtaking CRTs."
It doesn't surprise me that it's taken this long - for Joe and Jane consumer, LCDs look wonderful, but when buying a computer most people will spend as little money as possible. That means having a "good enough" approach, and even though a CRT will be bigger, for most people it's good enough to do word processing, email, and Web browsing. Now that the prices on LCDs have dropped so much, it will be interesting to see what happens in 2005. Hey, survey time!
I still have a 19" Viewsonic CRT monitor that I've used since about 1996. I have no reason to get rid of it and don't plan to buy a LCD unless something bad happens to the monitor.
We have a very interesting dilema at our office. I work at a VFX studio, and we have our CRTs calibrated for film output. With LCDs, you don't have that kind of color control, and they say that more LCDs are being produced than CRTs, and that nobody is building new CRT factories.
So the best we can do is buy up the rest of the CRT stock, and buy refurbished, and then, the only reason they'll make CRTs is for the specific market of needing color control, and then the CRTs will be mega expensive. Very interesting situation to be in! Progress hurts!
CRTs for me. Editing on a cheap CRT is better than a cheap to moderately priced LCD. The obsession with fast refresh rates has lead to LCDs with 8/12/16ms refresh times, which I suppose is good for twitchy games (I don't play those in general), has lead to LCD monitors regressing back to the old days where the LCD monitors were 18 bit and not 24 bit devices. The 16 million colours specification that is normally advertised is dithered up. Having seen a few of these LCDs (quite cheap for their sizes) up close, I'm not inclined to buy one.
Another issue is the fact that LCDs are backlit by some light source, usually a cold cathode light source. The problem with this is that blacks and dark colours are never truly dark. It really interferes in the adjustment of details in the shadow.
That said, the only thing stopping me from getting that second hand 21" Sony Triniton monitor at about US$300 is that I simply have no space for it on the table. Darn the large and bulky vacuum tube!
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I've had a Samsung SyncMaster 760V TFT for just under two years (if I remember correctly...I never remember when I buy tech stuff. :lol It's still pretty good, and since I don't do a ton of gaming or precise graphic editing, it fits me well. I'd love to have a 19-21" widescrean (or dual-monitor) setup, but there's other more important accessories that need an upgrade. Plus I'll be away at college next year, and then I'll just have a new laptop. (which I'm looking for recommendations on too. )
I have a 19 inch Sony LCD which is arm mounted and set for portrait orientation. Since I have a separate notebook computer for my photo work, I seldom switch the Sony monitor to landscape.
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I bought a 17" Apple Studio Display about 3 years ago (please, don't ask how much it cost). I love the thing to death, and I'm so glad I switched to LCD back then. It's truly much easier on your eyes, especially when you sit in front of your computer for hours programming away on the energy of a caffeinated brain.
It's gotten to the point where 1280 x 1024 doesn't seem like enough anymore. I've been on the lookout for a good, cheap 17" LCD so that I could dual monitor my system. The cheap Dell 17" LCD (E173P) has dropped to $201 (after coupons), so hopefully in 9 months, it will be in the $150 range.
I picked up a 17" Viewsonic about a year ago. The blacks look black, refresh rate is low (good for games), but most of all - CLEARTYPE! Don't know how I stared at screens so long without it.
I have a 19 inch and a 17 inch CRT on one computer and a 17 inch TFT (about to upgrade to a 19 inch TFT) on the other. For colour clarifty work in Photoshop I work on the CRT, for general work on the TFT. Best of both worlds. :wink:
LCD Montitors Finally Outsell CRT
It's still pretty good, and since I don't do a ton of gaming or precise graphic editing, it fits me well. I'd love to have a 19-21" widescrean (or dual-monitor) setup, but there's other more important accessories that need an upgrade. Plus I'll be away at college next year, and then I'll just have a new laptop. (which I'm looking for recommendations on too. 
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