VA Panels vs IPS Panels vs TN Panels

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apisorder

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I was just wondering if VA panels are inherently less prone to flickering than IPS or TN.

I saw a YouTube video that compares in-game performance and general Windows usage on 24" 1080P monitors that run at 144Hz versus 60Hz, and while it was evident that with 144Hz, you just see more frames than with 60Hz in-game (and with fewer frames at 60Hz I also experience more headache, not eyestrain), however, the visual improvement was not nearly as discernable in typical Windows usage.

I have been using a HP Prodisplay P222VA, and found something strange.
http://www8.hp.com/us/en/products/monitors/product-deta...

I read that VA is more responsive than IPS but slower than TN, and that VA is also less color accurate than IPS but more then TN.

But while I experience no discomfort when viewing a TN (less motion blur but the panel is somewhat "dim," with color distortion) /IPS panel (extremely vibrant, but also annoyingly glaring), I found VA panels to be much more comfortable (maybe because it has anti-glare), all refreshed at 60Hz (which is strange, because I used to overclock my CRT to 100Hz+ because at 60Hz or even 75 or so, I would still experience flickering. I do know that they are completely different, but still, it puzzles me.)

So are VA panels inherently better for viewing or it's because of the anti-glare coating?

Thanks.
 
The flicker is usually caused by the PWM backlights which can be used on any display type. There are monitors with flicker free backlights, you just need to search for them.
 
You mainly notice higher refresh rate on the desktop as smoother mouse cursor so it's not that important there. Refresh rates on CRT vs LCD work differently, on CRT you need a high refresh rate to avoid flickering because of the way the electron gun scans the screen at x refresh rate. Because there's a short blanking period you have better motion clarity on CRTs. Some displays (e.g. ones with G-Sync) have a mode that simulates this by flickering the backlight at 120 Hz.

LCD response time as well as refresh rate determines the amount of motion blur when LCD pixels are updated. TN panels typically do the best with this but on the best IPS and VA panels the difference is negligible nowadays. Similarly 8-bit TN panels look a lot closer to their IPS/VA counterparts and have much less color shift issues than the cheap TN panels you see on laptops and less expensive monitors.

Even the 8-bit TN panels do have a more limited sRGB color space. This just means that colors on them are not oversaturated and as most content on the web or games is sRGB it is not a real issue. For those used to oversaturated higher gamut displays this will look "bland" until they get used to it. Color accuracy can vary between display models as well as individual displays. Most would benefit from calibration, some come with good calibration from the factory and some are incredibly difficult to calibrate correctly using the OSD settings.

All panel techs have their issues so it's just about picking a compromise that fits your uses and wallet best.
 
Each person will have their own unique viewing preferences obviously, so unfortunately getting suggestions sometimes will just not help. I had a similar issue with CRT monitors, where I was susceptible to refresh rate, up to 72ish, but over that I was fine and didn't get headaches. The LCD's typically don't give me headaches though, but some are hard to view for long periods of time. I used to suggest to buy locally, like from BB or something, so you could test them at home in your preferred lighting and if it didn't work, you could take it back and try another one. Now I just generally buy the better quality and spend a little more, like the Samsung I have now. You might want to bring one or two home and see which works best for you, then return them and buy similar versions from there.
 
Great. You guys have all been so helpful. Much obliged and impressed by your know-how.
 
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