Howdy:
I'm considering buying this monitor Samsung 21.6 Widescreen LCD Monitor Model 216BW.
It has the following:
5ms Response Time
3000:1 Contrast Ratio
1680X1050 Resolution
DVI (HDCP) Magic bright 3
Analog RGB, DVI
High Glossy Back
I look in to epinions.com but there is not a review on it. Any body here may be able to tell me about all the above or lead me toward a review website were I may be able to find info on it.
THANK YOU.

I have no personal experience, but there has been many discussions about LCD display for photo work on dpreview.com, retouching forum. Here is one:
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1006&message=25369276
I understand the type of LCD (TN, IPS...) is of utmost importance for colour accuracy and angle of view, whereas response time is not. On other threads I discovered that many brands cannot guarantee the type of LCD for a given display reference, and that can be a lottery...

Hi Don,
I've been using a Samsung SyncMaster 225bw for a bit more than two years now and I'm happy with it. The wide screen takes a bit of getting used to, since it's necessary to adjust screen resolution a bit. Not a big deal, really.

I use a Spyder 2express for color calibration and it's just not a problem. One thing you should know is that you can't/shouldn't use the Adobe Gamma gizmo that comes with PSE. Somewhere or other I read that one should uninstall it. I did that and nothing bad happened as a result.

Just like any LCD monitor, it has viewing angle issues, but I sit in front of mine and don't much care what a kibbitzer sees or doesn't see.

I found the thread that MichelB posted to be pretty interesting. My monitor, being 2 years old, is a dinosaur, I suppose, and therefore didn't figure into the dpReview discussion. Those guys get a little angsty sometimes, so I wouldn't let their comments sway me too much. As far as service/support goes, since you live in the US, you can buy whatever you get from a store that will take it back if it doesn't work out for you, and not worry about Samsung support.

Good luck,
Steve

Hi Don,
Sorry I don't know anything about the monitor your looking to buy. I looked at a lot of monitors before finally making a purchase of Samsung 226BK a few months ago. Really glad that I got the wide screen monitor this time. Happy hunting.
John

Thanks Michael,Steve and John:

I'll keep looking.

I've had the Samsung SyncMaster 226BW since last April and have been very happy with it. I also use the Spyder2 for calibrating and have never had any problems with it. The only difference other than that extra 1/2" on the screen size is the 226BW has a 2ms response time, which as has already been noted is not a factor unless you intend to play games on it too!

Howdy:

I thank you all for your help.

A good friend of mine knowing that I was looking for a monitor game me a Sony Trinitron Multiscan 300SF 20". According to him the monitor was purchased by his trainig dept. but was soon replace by a projector. He told me the monitor have less than 40 hours of use and has been sitting in his office for 2 years. He asked his boss for it and the man gave it to him and he turn it over to me.

I calibrated the Sony monitor using Spyder 2 Pro. I then proceed to compare images between my monitors both destop and laptop side by side and the old super heavy Sony is superior in both shadows and hilights rendition. I took the white orchids image to see how it responded to whites and the Sony show every little detail with incredible fidelity. I then took Bethlehem pictures to see the shadows and it was again superior to my LCD's monitors. I thank him with one of my images and praise God for his kindness. I now have a better tool on hand to continue my quest on imaging.