Samsung 215TW question

[ark1]

I am tempted into finally giving my 7 years old CRT a rest and go with a LCD.

Is it worth getting the Samsung 215TW for a computer that runs on an amd 2100 (1.7GHZ) + ATI x800xl ? In other words, will I be able to use the max resolution for that LCD in gaming or am I going to be limited by the CPU ? I plan on upgrading my CPU (most likely getting a whole new box) around the time when Vista is going to be released which is at least 6 months from now.

Also, I see the 204B model (20 inch) is on sale for $449 CAN and the 215TW is on sale for $599 CAN. Is it worth paying the extra $150 for the 21 inch model ? According to the specs, 204B has a better response time (5ms vs 6 ms) but a lower contrast ratio (800 vs 1000). I assume I will need to buy the cable for digital output in both cases ?

My usage for this monitor is going to be mainly writing and gaming (including FPS) with occasional movies.

Thanks for any inputs

 

[Karan]

- i think your cpu might hold you back a little bit. im currently on a p4 3.2e and an x850xt and my pc barely kept up with running games at 1680x1050 so you might struggle a bit depending on the game.

-the 204b is a 4:3 format whereas the 215tw is a 16:10 format, and they run at 1600x1200 and 1680x1050 respectively so infact the 204b theoretically will stress your pc a little more. then theres the question of whether you prefer widescreen or non-widescreen.

-also ive heard that the 204b might be a TN panel (hence the ~5ms response time) whereas the 215tw might be a s-pva panel (~8ms response time) so you should get better viewing angles and color reproduction with it. i can confirm the latter, as i spent bout 30 mins one evening in futureshop walking between the 2 and examining them closely.

 

[Imitation]

- i think your cpu might hold you back a little bit. im currently on a p4 3.2e and an x850xt and my pc barely kept up with running games at 1680x1050 so you might struggle a bit depending on the game.

-the 204b is a 4:3 format whereas the 215tw is a 16:10 format, and they run at 1600x1200 and 1680x1050 respectively so infact the 204b theoretically will stress your pc a little more. then theres the question of whether you prefer widescreen or non-widescreen.

-also ive heard that the 204b might be a TN panel (hence the ~5ms response time) whereas the 215tw might be a s-pva panel (~8ms response time) so you should get better viewing angles and color reproduction with it. i can confirm the latter, as i spent bout 30 mins one evening in futureshop walking between the 2 and examining them closely.

Yeah your pc will be hurting trying to push both of these panels at their native res. Heck you'd have a hard time with a 17 or 19" panel realisticly with that cpu. Karan is right about the panel types for both. I looked at the 204B and considered it but after seeing the better colors and viewing angles of the 215 i was sold. I came from a TN panel and was satisfied with the colors but I'll never go back to TN now Also the 215 has tons of inputs if you ever want to hook up a cable box or something to it. That was a big plus for me as well. Lastly, my 7800GT and 170 can handle CS:S and day of defeat:S maxed out on the 215, but COD2 and other games like FEAR were too much for max settings for comparasion.

 

[elleana]

It all depends on the game and amount of eye candy you want, really.
I'm on a P-M 1.8Ghz with a x600 mobility (laptop) and I can run WoW reasonably at 1680x1050. I don't play many other games so I can't really tell.

Oh, and it comes with both VGA and DVI cables so you should be good.