I have seen the WQXGA light!

[gbcrush]

That's 2560 x 1600, in case you're wondering.

I received my 30" monitor (darn you tech report!) yesterday, and finally got it hooked up last night. Wow, a thing of beauty. Immediately I noticed that it was a) a little smaller than I expected, b) bigger than I expected when I sat in-front of it, c) much lighter than I expected...possiblyeven lighter than the 24" monitor it's replacing.

Then I turned that puppy on.

Oh. Ok. Given the various complaints I've read about font sizes, reading, etc, I was immediately (slightly) disappointed that text and windows icons weren't eye-strainingly tiny Everything else was gorgeous, I was amazed at my ability to keep a web browser open, and IM conversation going and my steam friend's list in opposite corners and still see so much of the beautiful 2560 x 1600 wallpaper. I fired up some Trine and Mass Effect 1 at the new native res with everything jacked up. All the main geometry and character animations were smooth, wonderfully colored and detailed. Again, getting used to the idea that the UI scales up more than I thought it would, but wow! The pixels are tight, and they're so many of them that curves and shapes just seem ....I dunno. so damn pretty!

In the coming days, I think I'll make another pass at looking for dead pixels (the tight pixel pitch, slightly shimmery anti-glare coating, fear, and the packaging dust/room dust sticking to the surface made it hard to find any. So far, yay!). I'll also see how this baby works with games like Open Transport Tycoon Deluxe, and Bad Company 2. I fear a little what the latter might do to my current card, but I'll make it work...

It's going to take a little bit to get used to the new color calibration. Factory done by Dell, but I figure when I put together my new build in the fall, I might spend a little extra to pick up a colorimeter. I figure if I was crazy enough to pick up a monitor like this, a little extra to tighten up the color is worth it.


Consider me a convert.

Any suggestions, tips, past-experience by gerbils-who've-been-there on working with a 30?

[kyboshed]

Sounds pretty sweet, care to furnish us with a model number and link?

[gbcrush]

Sounds pretty sweet, care to furnish us with a model number and link?

hehe. Oops.

I got a Dell u3011 at 25% off last friday.

[elmopuddy]

I got a U2711 on super-sale a while back... I'll never go back to a smaller, or TN panel. Love having the screen real-estate.

[BlackStar]

Sounds pretty sweet, care to furnish us with a model number and link?

hehe. Oops.

I got a Dell u3011 at 25% off last friday.

That's an excellent monitor with bonus points for the 16:10 aspect ratio. Very nice all around (though the anti-glare coating is just a *little* more aggressive than I'd like). Consider reducing its brightness to 20-40% depending on ambient lighting. Also check your GPU drivers, this monitor has a color profile in its EDID that you might wish to check out.

Now just wait for the TN apologists to appear.

[xtalentx]

Owch @ the price. I am glad you like it though! When they hit the 500ish range maybe I will jump ship.

[gbcrush]

Owch @ the price. I am glad you like it though! When they hit the 500ish range maybe I will jump ship.

Yes. That's why I blame the Tech Report. I also have a nice tax return (with first time homeowner's tax credit) to thank. It arrived just the day before I saw the 3011 on sale...I took that to be a sign that I should recontribute to the economy

[Airmantharp]

Owch @ the price. I am glad you like it though! When they hit the 500ish range maybe I will jump ship.

Yes. That's why I blame the Tech Report. I also have a nice tax return (with first time homeowner's tax credit) to thank. It arrived just the day before I saw the 3011 on sale...I took that to be a sign that I should recontribute to the economy

<---accepts blame.

The U3011 and HPs ZR30w which I own are both LG IPS panel based monitors, with slightly different cabinets to accommodate their differing electronics packages. The U3011 has a card reader and OSD, scalar, and a multitude of inputs, whereas the HP just has the standard DVI/HDMI/Displayport set. The Dell costs a little more and has (if only measurably) more input lag, while the HP costs a little less and has a little less input lag, which made it my choice given my largely gaming orientation and no need to hook up analog components.

[gbcrush]

<---accepts blame.

Totally. You're up there with JAE and Damage as bad influences on my wallet.

So far, no regrets though. From what little I've seen of it in action so far, the monitor image just sorts of "reaches out and pulls me in" the way my 24" monitor when I first go it. Perhaps even a bit more.

That Makes me wonder (and worry) about building tolerances, and what will be the next monitor size/resolution i I'll need to jump to in a few years.


Meanwhile, since the RAM for the new build came in yesterday too, I've got four sticks to put through testing tonight. I'm totally expecting the new 30" to make the Memtest+ interface totally immersrive and 3D-like!

[Airmantharp]

Lol@Memtest.

I've personally been looking at these monitors for 6 or 7 years, so it's been a long time coming for me. I've always known that I'd need highest end or dual GPU setups to keep up with the latest games, and that's held me back a little too, as I've historically not upgraded often enough nor invested in dual-GPU capable boards. I refer again to my workstation below .

[JustAnEngineer]

Totally... with JAE and Damage as bad influences on my wallet.

Glad to be of service!

[Lazier_Said]

Of the probably 10,000 of dollars I've wasted on PC toys over the past 15 years, pretty much every night-and-day "wow" moment was after buying something on the output side.

I can't tell you anything about the user experience of a dozen generations of exponentially faster CPUs and GPUs. But I still remember the first time I fired up Strike at Karkand on a new 27" panel, Quake I on a 21" tube, Doom 2 with a new 12" sub. The only input side upgrade that compares is broadband after a decade of dialup.


Faster is ok but there's no substitute for bigger and louder.

[mmmmmdonuts21]

I recently began seeing the WQXGA light (3007) and even though it is missing some features of the my HP 2475w I can't go back. Now what I need is a nice WQUXGA panel.

[Bauxite]

Dollars spent on monitors are more valuable IMO, and in a roundabout way they make your graphics card have a shorter life.

Good displays remain useful and far outlast computer builds

Upgrading is less likely to render the old one unused too. In my case I ended up shipping an older LCD to a relatives place I visit fairly often, they never use it (not the computer/TV type if you know what I mean) but I can travel that much lighter and I don't mind leaving it there.

BTW ~30" 2560x1600 won't ever hit $500 new. By the time it does the 16:9 disease will have won and the 1k++ pro versions will be higher rez.
(Hexakaidecaenneatosis took awhile to infect 24" screens but 27" barely had a chance to try Phi)

But you can find older models for that or less if you look hard enough.

[r00t61]

You can try using Dead Pixel Buddy (http://www.softpedia.com/get/System/Ben ... uddy.shtml) to make finding dead pixels an easier task.

[mmmmmdonuts21]

But you can find older models for that or less if you look hard enough.

Thats how I got my 3007. $650 used. What a steal.

[gbcrush]

You can try using Dead Pixel Buddy (http://www.softpedia.com/get/System/Ben ... uddy.shtml) to make finding dead pixels an easier task.

Thanks! I looked for Dead Pixel Buddy, turns out this is same tool I used when I had picked up my 24" years ago. It works great, but I forgot what it was called.