Dell UltraSharp 24" recommendations?

Is this actually any good?

Or can I find something better for around $433 if I just pay cash in Washington, D.C.

Honestly, you're better off grabbing a decent 23" display than some absolute bottom-tier 24" garbage:

At $433, finding a actually reliable 24" monitor is basically mission impossible—you can find the exact same model in a 24" version, but it’ll set you back nearly $533:

I’d grab that Samsung for $1585, but there's a catch—my GPU is just a GTX 1060 and it doesn't have a D-sub port. Could I just run everything through an HDMI cable instead?

Benjamin King2 said:You’re better off grabbing a decent 23" monitor than some absolute garbage 24":

Finding a reliable 24" display for $433 is basically a fool's errand—you can find the exact same specs in a 24" version, but it'll set you back nearly $533:

I'm with you on that. Anything under $500 isn't going to get you a quality 24'' screen.

The Dell UltraSharp 24 should be hitting the shelves tomorrow, so it’s finally happening.

Tyler Castillo14 said:I’d grab that Samsung for $1585, but my GPU is just a GTX 1060—it doesn't have a D-Sub port. Could I run it through an HDMI cable instead?

Of course you can.

Greetings. I’m looking for some advice, an explanation, and perhaps a bit of your patience.
To those who actually know their stuff—please, help me work through this dilemma. I’m currently a student living in Pittsburgh, and while there are plenty of tech shops around here, this Genelec store () happens to have the most reasonable prices. Their service isn't bad either, so I usually check a few places out and end up finishing my business with them.
My current 21" CRT monitor (it's a Miro brand—never even heard of it before, honestly) has been running non-stop for five years. I shut it down for Christmas, Easter, and the whole month of August when I head home, but lately, it’s started acting up. It keeps shutting itself off, similar to the way it looks when you hit the degauss button. It’s happening more frequently now; maybe twice every ten minutes, but then it ramps up to five times a minute. It’s making gaming nearly impossible. I think it’s on its last legs. Honestly, it's getting harder to stop people from smashing it. One 19" CRT I had last year was smashed by roommates who were thrilled to toss it off a balcony—I even have it on video if anyone cares to see. And personally, I lose my cool when I'm mid-battle in World of Tanks and the screen goes black. By the time it reboots (anywhere from 4 to 14 seconds depending on how many times it "degausses"), I’m usually dead or heavily damaged. At that point, our long history together is the only thing keeping me from cursing it out, let alone breaking it. But I won't touch a hammer until I buy a replacement. So, I went to check out what's available: 22", 24", and 27" models. I'm leaning toward a 24". Looking at their stock, these two caught my eye, so if you could spare a moment...
1- The first one is a Samsung

2- The second is a BenQ

Starting with the Samsung,
it looks nicer to me, but once I sit down to work—which is mostly gaming and movies—you wouldn't even know what kind of monitor I'm using. I only care about the image. I never look at the bezel or the plastic casing; that means nothing to me. I don't care about the "this looks sleek" talk girls say; my room looks like Fukushima and I don't have a girlfriend to look at it anyway. It's a bit pricier than the competitor, but I can live with that. One thing though: somewhere it says it's 23.6", and elsewhere it says 24" (http://www.lg.com/rs/monitori/lg-24EN43TS-led-monitor). That's a problem. Who's lying? Can someone clarify? Everyone seems to agree the other one is a true 24".
Also, could someone give me a brief but clear explanation of this "LED" screen type? While searching online, I ran into terms like IPS, TN, LED, TFT, and color gamut (and how high the value should be)... I'd love to clear the fog on this. If it's too much trouble, don't worry about it; I don't want to be a nuisance since I'll need your help with other things later. Both of these are LED, so it won't be the deciding factor, but I'd like to understand so I don't look like an idiot. And what about these other specs? For instance, the Samsung lists a contrast of 5 million, while the other one says 12 million. I'm thinking the second one is better based on this page http://www.benq.com/product/monitor/gl2460hm and this one http://www.itsvet.com/proizvod/benq-...onitor/21/3973, but they also mention 1,000:1, which sounds like a disaster! (Maybe that's why the BenQ is cheaper? Or because it's a "weaker" brand? In my mind, Samsung feels like a "stronger" brand—correct me if I'm wrong.) To me, branding only matters if it translates to quality; the name itself doesn't matter. Like that Miro monitor—I can say nothing but good things about it, even though nobody has ever heard of it. I don't care what the logo says, just the quality. Regarding the contrast: it mentions a "dynamic contrast" of 12 million. That sounds better than the Samsung's 5 million, but I have no idea what dynamic contrast actually is. Does it really have that 1,000:1 ratio mentioned elsewhere, or is this "dynamic contrast" just a marketing gimmick? Is it actually 12 million, making it superior to the Samsung, or is it just fluff? I need your insight on this.
Next question for you all. Take your time, no rush. A Samsung has a 5ms response time while a BenQ is at 2ms. I figured I should probably list what I actually do with my setup so you can give me a real answer. Call of Duty 2 (some days I'm playing games all day long, other days just half a day depending on how much loading takes). Battlefield 1942, Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle-earth—the first one! The second one has units with hair like Tom Hanks in *Cast Away*, total disaster. I played OGame day and night for six years, but right now I'm under a ban until 2041, so I won't be touching that until the sentence is up. By then, this monitor will probably be dead anyway and I'll have a different one, so it doesn't really matter, but I had to mention my old love (or addiction). Then there's that unfortunate World of Tanks; since last month's patch, it’s hard to even run (demands a beefier PC) and the game is such a money pit that since I'm broke, it's just not fair to me. They basically charge you to play, so I'm skipping it. I only grinded it to buy a Tiger tank before my buddy Mario could outmaneuver me like a Russian beat a German to the punch. Also Cossacks: Back to War (strategy), the occasional Dota match—mostly because I'm mediocre and my other friend Ante is way too good. Just kidding, if I'm going to play a game, I want to be good, and learning every hero and item in Dota would take a year, which sounds exhausting. Generals C&C Zero Hour, and a few others briefly. Brothers in Arms is mostly just when I'm playing with the guys. Most of these are old titles, so maybe response time only matters for those FPS games? You decide. I'm a decent COD and Battlefield player, so if there's a noticeable difference, it would mean a lot. For movies or series, I watch a couple a day. I'm not some snob looking for supersonic visuals, but I do like a clear picture. YouTube documentaries too, several a day, but that depends more on the video quality than the monitor, so you can probably ignore that. Schoolwork involves Word docs and PowerPoint presentations, nothing fancy. However, when I'm studying online, I spend about 3 to 4 hours a day reading various texts for school, plus a few more hours reading other stuff on forums. Thankfully, no eye strain issues so far. Space isn't an issue for me; I have plenty, so I don't care about people saying they need to mount monitors on walls or whatever. Stand type doesn't matter either; I'll make anything fit. All I care about is the image quality.
I read somewhere that BenQ has built-in speakers and maybe the other doesn't. Honestly, I'd prefer if it didn't. It just drives up the price for nothing since I already have speakers. I'd actually prefer no speakers at all because I worry they cut corners elsewhere to include them, and adding extra components just increases the chance of something breaking. I just want something that works.
You probably need to know my GPU to give a solid opinion, so here it is: ATI Radeon HD 5670.
As for power consumption, I couldn't care less. My utility bills are a fixed rate, so whether one monitor pulls power like a Japanese handheld or a welding machine, it makes zero difference to me.
If anyone feels like helping and doesn't want to type it all out, I can hop on Skype so you can explain it quickly.

Frank Clark59 said:Respect to everyone. I’m looking for some advice, an explanation, or just a bit of patience from those who know their stuff.
So, I’m looking for anyone willing to put in the effort to help me settle this dilemma. I’m currently living in St. Louis while finishing my studies, and while there are plenty of tech shops around, this one place () is basically the most affordable option with decent service, so I usually end up doing my shopping there.
My current 21" CRT—it's a Miro brand, which is a name I've honestly never even heard of before—has started acting up after five years of constant use. I tend to shut it down for Christmas, Easter, and the entire month of August when I head home, but now it keeps shutting itself off, similar to what happens when you hit the degauss button. It's happening more frequently lately; maybe twice every ten minutes, but then it hits a streak where it happens five times in a single minute, making gaming nearly impossible. I think it's nearing the end of its life, and honestly, it’s getting harder to stop my roommates from smashing it. One of my old 19" CRTs actually met its end last year when they were thrilled enough to toss it off a balcony—I actually have a video if anyone cares to see. Personally, I lose my temper when I'm in the middle of a match in World of Tanks and the screen cuts out; by the time it reboots (which takes anywhere from 4 to 14 seconds depending on how many times it "degausses"), I've usually been wiped out. The only thing keeping me from cursing this machine out is our long history together, and there's absolutely no way I'm breaking it until I get a replacement. So, I went out to check out the options, specifically 22", 24", and 27" models. I'm leaning toward a 24", and two specific ones caught my eye, so if you could help me out...
1- the first one is a Samsung

2- the second is a BenQ

Starting with the first one, the Samsung.
It looks better to me, but once I sit down to work—and by work, I mean gaming and movies—you wouldn't even know what I'm talking about if you asked me how the monitor looks. I only care about the image; I never look at the surrounding plastic, so the aesthetics don't really matter to me. I don't care about what girls say, like "Oh, this looks pretty," because my room looks like Fukushima and I don't have any girls coming over to look at it anyway. It’s a little more expensive than the competitor, but that's not a dealbreaker for me. One thing is confusing, though: somewhere it says it's 23.6" and elsewhere it says it's 24" (http://www.lg.com/rs/monitori/lg-24EN43TS-led-monitor). That's a problem right there—who's lying? Can someone clarify this? Because everyone seems to agree the other one is a true 24".
Also, could someone give me a brief but clear explanation of this "LED" screen type? While searching online, I ran into all these terms: IPS, TN, LED, TFT, color gamut (and what value I should actually be looking for)... I'd appreciate it if someone could clear the air. If you're too busy, don't worry about it; I don't want to be a nuisance since I'll need your help with other things later. Both of them have LED, so that won't be the deciding factor, but I'd like to understand what it actually means so I don't look like an idiot. And what about these other specs? For instance, the Samsung has a contrast ratio of 5 million, while the other one claims 12 million. The logic suggests the second one is better based on what this site says, http://www.benq.com/product/monitor/gl2460hm, and also on this one: http://www.itsvet.com/proizvod/benq-...onitor/21/3973 It says 1,000:1, which sounds like a disaster. I was wondering if that’s why the BenQ is cheaper, or maybe because it’s just a weaker brand. In my head, Samsung is definitely the "stronger" brand, so please correct me if I'm wrong. To me, branding only matters if it actually translates to quality; the name itself isn't vital, since you can find incredible products from brands nobody has ever even heard of. Ultimately, I don't care what's printed on the bezel, I just want a good picture. Regarding that contrast ratio, it claims a dynamic contrast of 12 million. That sounds better than the 5 million listed for the Samsung, but I'm not entirely sure what "dynamic contrast" actually entails. Is it just a marketing gimmick, or is that 12 million figure legitimate enough that this would technically outperform the Samsung in that specific category? I need your insight on this.
Next question for you all—take your time, no rush. The Samsung has a 5ms response time while the BenQ offers 2ms. I figured I should explain exactly what I do with my setup so you can give me an informed answer. I spend my time playing Call of Duty 2 (some days I'm at it all day, other days just for a few hours depending on the workload), Battlefield 1942, and Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle-earth—just the first one, mind you, because the sequel has more units than the hair on Tom Hanks' head in *Cast Away*. I also played OGame day and night for six years, though I'm currently under a ban until 2041, so I won't be touching that until the sentence is served; by then, this monitor will probably be dead and replaced anyway, but I felt I had to mention my old obsession. Then there's the unfortunate state of World of Tanks; ever since last month's patch, it's hard to play because it demands a much beefier PC, and the game is such a money pit that since I'm broke, it's not exactly fair to me, so I'll pass. I mostly grinded it just to buy a Tiger tank before my buddy could beat me to it. Other titles include Cossacks: Back to War, which I play occasionally, and Dota, though I rarely jump in because I'm either mediocre or my friend is way too good. If I'm going to play, I want to be good, but learning every hero and item takes a year, and I just don't have the patience. I also play Command & Conquer: Generals Zero Hour and some other classics briefly, usually only playing Brothers in Arms when I'm forced to play with my buddies. Most of these games are old, so I assume response time only really matters for FPS titles, but I'll let you judge. I'm a decent player in CoD and Battlefield, so if there's a noticeable difference, it would mean a lot. For media, I watch a movie or a series a day; I'm not looking for some hyper-realistic cinematic experience, but I do appreciate a solid image. I watch a few YouTube documentaries daily, but that depends more on the video quality than the monitor, so that's negligible. For school, it's just Word documents and PowerPoint presentations. However, when studying online, I'm usually glued to the screen for three or four hours reading texts, plus a few more hours reading other things on various forums. Thankfully, I don't have any eye strain issues. Space isn't an issue for me, so I don't care about those people who claim they have to mount their monitors on the wall; the stand type doesn't matter, I can fit it anywhere, I just want the best picture possible.
I've seen conflicting info online about whether this BenQ has built-in speakers or not. Personally, I'd prefer it didn't, as it just drives up the price unnecessarily when I already own speakers. I don't gain anything from having them in the monitor, and I'd actually prefer they weren't there because I worry they might compromise other components or increase the complexity of the device, which just raises the chance of a hardware failure, and I just want something that works reliably.
In case it helps you make a call, my graphics card is an AMD Radeon HD 5670.
As for power consumption, I couldn't care less. My electricity is a fixed monthly cost, so whether one monitor pulls as much power as a Japanese handheld or a welding machine makes zero difference to me.
If anyone feels like helping and doesn't want to type it all out, I can jump on Skype to go over this quickly.

If you're torn between that BenQ and the Samsung model, there's really no decision to make: skip the BenQ and grab the Samsung. That BenQ uses a TN LCD panel, whereas the Samsung features an IPS panel, giving the Samsung a massive advantage.

Don't get distracted by those massive dynamic contrast ratios; those numbers in the millions are nothing more than a marketing gimmick designed to sell hardware. Most budget TN or IPS monitors on the market today have an actual contrast ratio of around 1000:1, which is the only metric that truly matters.

If you look at LCD monitors utilizing VA, MVA, or the newer AMVA panels, they offer a noticeably higher real-world contrast, typically hitting around 1500:1. These AMVA panels deliver much deeper, more realistic blacks compared to almost any cheap IPS monitor you'll find. For instance, we could point to two excellent, budget-friendly BenQ models, like the BenQ GW2265M or the significantly larger BenQ GW2760/HS. BenQ stands as the largest and most recognized manufacturer of MVA or modern AMVA panels. Their displays are produced by AU Optronics, a company owned by BenQ that supplies LCD panels to various major brands including NEC, Lenovo, Samsung, Dell, Apple, ViewSonic, and Acer.😉