IPS vs. cPVA

Hi Folks.

I'm looking to buy a monitor next week for my "second" pc.
This is a quad core pc with an 8800GTS OC. It's a powerful rig that I recently replaced with a self built i7 920 rig.
My notion is to use the "old" pc in my bedroom. I'll be viewing from about 9 foot when in bed. I imagine I'll mostly be watching movies/hd tv with some gaming and general browsing.

I'd virtually decided on this:

NEC MultiSync EA231WMi BK 23" Widescreen IPS

But now I've spotted this:

Samsung F2380 23" Widescreen LCD Monitor [LS23NVTABW/EN]

The Samsung would save me a third of the price of the NEC (£200 v £300)
This is a major consideration.

I've been looking at reviews and it seems that the Samsung's cPVA panel is fairly new technology, whereas the NEC IPS panel is tried and trusted.
Reviews are thin on the ground and I would hate to make a decision I will regret.

Any guidance would be much appreciated, John

Thanks for your reply Oli

I take your point that if I'm going to be a way off then a really posh monitor isn't going to make much difference.
Also I've looked at some of the HannsG monitors and they look good.

I read somewhere that all the panels in all the different makes of monitor are made by either Samsung or LG/Philips.
So what you're looking for is design, inputs etc and price but also what type of panel it is.

That's very confusing. On my main rig I'm looking at a Dell Ultrasharp 2408WFP. This cost £450 a couple of years ago and I believe it still does.
It has an sPVA panel and I think it's fantastic. It has great colour etc but also it can be looked at from any angle or distance and still looks great. So I use it as my pc + tv +home theatre.

I'm trying to do the same thing in my bedroom on the cheap.
These new cPVA panels that Samsung are introducing are said to be the muts nuts apart from severe ghosting in games.
The NEC has an IPS panel. These are apparently all round fantastic but dearer.
The TN panels on most of the cheaper monitors have a very limited angle of view so hard to watch tv or movies.

I know if I go for the Samsung it'll be fine. I don't suppose I'll be doing much gaming in bed anyway. Also it looks great and has a wonderfully adjustable stand.

On the other hand, will I always regret not getting the better NEC? This IPS panel should be an excellent all rounder and has a widely adjustable stand. Also looks good, if a bit industrial.


It's all about £100. with that I could get better speakers etc.
I suppose I'm hoping someone's going to post up that they have the Samsung and that the ghosting is not an issue.

Oh well, thanks for your time, john:)

johnwillyums said:

NEC MultiSync EA231WMi BK 23" Widescreen IPS
Samsung F2380 23" Widescreen LCD Monitor [LS23NVTABW/EN]

A bit of a hint from bad experience if I may...
I've had lots of problems with Samsung over the years. Nec is just plain expensive with little or no increase in quality.

I would go with the ASUS 24" 1080p monitors.
ASUSTeK Computer Inc.

I have one in my den, thinks it's a television set (Hooked to an ASRock ION330)... does a perfect job... $239 cdn.


They also have 26 inchers now, too...
ASUSTeK Computer Inc.

Thanks for your reply CT:)

I certainly think the Asus monitors look good and have good specs.
Problem is (please correct me if I'm wrong) they're all TN panels.

I've been spoilt by this Dell Ultrasharp for the last couple of years. It's a sPVA panel and the difference between them and TN ones is very noticeable. It would be hard to go back to TN, especially for HD movies/tv.

Hope I don't sound snobbish but I had a Samsung 22" before the Dell and it was great. It's just that TN only looks good from exactly the right position.
I loved the Samsung but as soon as I got the Dell I knew I couldn't go back

The NEC monitor I'm looking at is IPS. That's a tried and tested technology and this NEC is a bargain at £300.
The Samsung one I'm looking at is cPVA and £200. That's different again to my Dell (sPVA) and supposedly has ghosting issues in games.

I think cPVA is fairly new technology and maybe has teething troubles.

Basically I'm trying decide between two bargain basement pro monitors. Well sort of pro. A proper pro monitor would be about a grand!

I'm hoping some techy type will come along and reassure me that the cheaper Samsung is ok.

Thanks again for your input, John