Since their birth, computers have evolved in numerous ways. For example, you should try looking at the first PCs, or even at the computers of the year 2001. I think you will see quite a difference. Mainly because technology for computer hardware and peripheral devices has evolved. Not more than ten years ago most of the people still used CRTs. I remember when I saw a 21 inch CRT monitor for the first time. It looked huge and it seemed to have such a great image quality.

Nowadays CRTs are a thing of the past. And good riddance: they were heavy to carry around. Not that you should always carry a computer monitor with you at all times, but it’s certainly easier to move from one room to another.



Speaking of big monitors, I stumbled upon a nice one from Lenovo just the other day; namely, the ThinkVision L2440P LCD monitor. The big advantage in LCDs is that they can have a really wide display without occupying too much space. This particular monitor is 24” wide and has a native resolution of 1900 by 1200 pixels. A nice touch is that it has two signal input ports: you have both DVI digital and VGA. If you want to plug-in from a laptop’s HDMI port you can always use a DVI/HDMI adapter. One thing you should look for when buying a monitor is the contrast ratio. Basically, this is the difference that appears in the intensity of light between the darkest black of the monitor and the brightest white. The higher the ratio is, the better the monitor is, in my opinion. This monitor has a decent contrast ratio of 1000:1. Rumors say that you always have to be careful and a little bit skeptical  in this area, because manufacturers often lie a little bit about these specifications, making them look better.

Another thing that’s worth considering when buying yourself a new laptop is the response time. The response time simply specifies the time in which a pixel changes from darkest to brightest. Gamers will always feel that they need something with a super human response time. In this aspect, less is better. A lower response time means faster and smoother image display.



Image brightness also plays an important role when buying a monitor. This time the bigger value is the winner: the monitor brightness, measured in candelas per square meter, or cd/m². There are lots of opinions here. Some say that the 300cd/m² of this laptop is not enough, while there are opinions that choose not to bach monitors and make them feel right at home.

So that’s it. My advice is that you trey to get outside, buy yourself a nice Lenovo L2440p, connect it to your computer/laptop and read this article on a decent monitor. If you haven’t already read, of course.