[d_oob]

I went from an aging 19inch Apple Studio Display (from 2003) to a brand new 24inch Dell 2408WFP. My main draw to this monitor was its connection options. It might help with future things that I'll eventually need to connect to it and also with existing hardware (HD/SD Cameras, DV deck) and that I've heard many and seen good feedback on the 07 models. Price was a consideration as well and to be honest I originally did not want to spend this much on a monitor. I wanted to spend between $350-$450 but after shopping around and considering my options I decided to spend a little bit more for something which I hope has been a good investment.

(Short background: I do work in video FC Studio, a little bit of Lightroom/Photoshop. Machine is a Mac Pro 2.66 10.4.11 NVIDIA GeForce 7300GT)

Since this Dell is a pretty new display I'm having a hard time finding any reviews or reactions to it. I find lots of spec wars and people in forums basically begin to discuss the 08 models and end up bickering over 07 models what the 08 model needs to be. And also I am finding it hard to find professionals or non-gamers (on a Mac) that are discussing this monitor. So I would like to start a discussion on how the Dell 2408WFP compares to any/all Apple Displays and/or other pro/semi-pro LCD monitors. I am aware of more pro LCD's like Eizo which I've seen in many pro photo stores and from being discussed in other forums where users seem to swear by them. I can't afford a monitor like that nor do I feel I need something like that for what I am doing.

I would like to hear people's (designers, video editors, photographers) feelings about the higher-end Dell monitors and/or the 2408WFP - for instance I'd like to hear what it was like to calibrate it, working time with the monitor, or if a friend has one and you've had a chance to try it, you've seen it at a store, you actually have one sitting in front of you. Everyday use to anything else you can think of.

Basically I'd like to get a sense of what the Mac users think of hooking up this monitor to their machine as oppose to a Apple monitor or a PC user hooking it up, well to their PC. There are many of those. I want to hear Apple people talking about this monitor.

I will also add my experiences with this monitor as get a chance to use it the next few weeks.

Thanks for any replies.

[mduell]

It's S-PVA, so you've got the usual PVA vs IPS trades between it and the S-IPS ACDs. Aside from the new input option it doesn't appear to be much different than the 07 with marginal improvements in all the numbers.

[d_oob]

Thanks mduell

I found this wikipedia article a good read, Thin film transistor liquid crystal display - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia which describes differences between PVA, S-PVA, IPS, S-IPS and even higher resolution H-IPS. This then led me to a page about the ADC's Apple Cinema Display - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia which also discusses earlier comparisons to Dell LCD's in which 2005 models use the same panels as in the ADC, the differences being obviously connections and enclosure and that the ADC's are SWOP certified. This of course led me to the Dell displays page Dell monitors - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia which has a pretty comprehensive list of models and what type of panels were used in them. It list the 2408WFP as being, as you said a S-PVA panel, manufactured by Samsung.

CNET prizefight: Apple 30-inch LCD vs. Dell 30-inch LCD - CNET reviews talks about a comparison between the 30inch ADC vs. 30inch Dell 3007WFP which I found entertaining.

So far I have been able to calibrate my 2408WFP to pretty much match the look of the old Studio Display. What? Of course not match it because that might mean bringing down the new specs to older specs and considering that the old LCD might be fading. I basically calibrated to what my eye knew to be "right". I went through Tiger's calibrating process with expert mode on and did this 5 different times and taking an average. Each time I think I got closer to a setting that I felt was pleasing and not burning my eyes out. The 2408WFP is bright and out of the box is way over-saturated. It needed to be toned down. To a point this could be subjective and also my eyes are use to a more subdued and clean Studio Display. You see where I'm going with this?

The Dell is just so "BLAM!!!!" But is that because it is a much larger screen than the 19inch Studio Display I came from or the MacBook that I'm writing this on? I want to test this monitor out a little more over the week, doing some everyday video and photo editing. The one thing I have noticed that I'm not sure I like or not is the fading up and down of brightness.

Here's what I mean: If I open a say a browser window or blank (white) text document, I will notice that the entire screen will suddenly get really really bright. Well duh!! Right? There is a white object on the screen. Well the white object need not be very large for me to see the entire screen fade-up to a brighter level and then fade-down or dim when I close the window. That was lastnight. Now I'm not really noticing it. But I did calibrate it a little different and turned the brightness down a little.

I'm gonna discuss other little details soon concerning the adjustment controls and construction of the 2408WFP.