How do these brands compare to Sony in reliability and image quality? Acer America Advueu Technology CTX International Rosewill The 17" Flat Panel monitors of these brands cost about $100-150 less than Sony and Samsung. Thanks in advance

You need to compare apples to apples. For the most part if a display is 30% cheaper it most likely doesn't have the same specs or warranty. This is not to say the cheaper display won't suit your needs. You need to learn the meaning of the different specifications relevent with LCD displays and then compare. For instance, if you are a gamer then response time is more important to you than someone doing word processing. With contrast ratio, higher is better. Analog or digital input matters. These are some of the differences.

Don't be fooled by new flat screen displays. Most of the lower end displays will produce the same quality pictures as you old monitor ($40 can). There are certain things to look for: -resolution, most old monitors will display 1024 x 780 just as well as new displays, so all you are paying for is the less room the display takes up. -refresh rates. contrast, brightness compared to old monitor. Most displays that are more sophisticated have different hook up ends, which in turn will require a better graphics card, unless you already have one. If you did not buy ine then your computer probably uses onboard graphics which will not support a display with a different end. The most I have noticed with newer displays is that the brightness can be increased more than the old monitor Just because it is new does not mean it is better! Unless better = less clutter and minimal improvement for lots of dollars. CJAE

Excellent answer by Othehill.

I have an ATI AIW Radeon 8500 128MB card. Some specs I found: Samsung: Max Resolution 1280x1024 Response Time 12ms Contrast Ratio 600:1 Brightness 300 Cd/m2 Input RGB analog with 15-Pin D-Sub CTX: Max resolution 1280x1024 Response Time 25ms Contrast Ratio 450:1 Brightness 260Cd/m2 Input RGB Analog with 15-pin D-Sub My applications are TV watching and some game playing. I like to keep this LCD monitor when I upgrade to a new PC. I guess CTX will do fine.

I just replaced a dying CRT with an LCD panel so I know what you're going through. I think you're looking at the Samsung 710 or 712n, I can't tell what model the CTX lcd is. A higher refresh rate will reduce ghosting that occcurs during game play. A question, at what angle are you going to be looking at the LCD? As you move away from center the image will get dimmer and the contrast change. Finally, look at the warranty. Samsung will send you a replacement monitor, at no cost, during the warranty. CTX has you pay for shipping and it is not for as long a duration. Just my two cents. Good luck!

If you buy that Samsung at Bestbuy they have an optional warranty that will replace the display with only one dead pixel. Dead pixel warranties vary considerably. My son has the Samsung 712N with the 12ns refresh and plays games with no ghosting.