x2 secondary monitors - best bang for the buck?

[Omga4000]

Hey everyone,

I will be purchasing 2 new monitors to replace my deceased ones.
They will be used as secondary monitors, i.e, not my main gaming monitor.
Looking at ~24"-25", IPS, 1080p. Thin bezels are a must as they are part of a triple monitor setup.

These are the options I have at my country for a price I can afford.
Please note that they are all very similarly priced, so I am looking for the best one out of these.

AOC G2590PX
LG 24MP88HV-S
Lenovo Y25f-10
Dell U2419H
Dell U2518D****

I am leaning towards the U2419H, mostly because I have very good experience with previous Dell monitors.
The U2518D is a very big question mark. It has the best specs on paper, however, I've read about it having horrible tear issues, black bleeding, light bleeding, etc...
From what I hear it is an amazing screen if and when it works, but I do not really wish to take my chances with it.
Does anyone know if the issues in U2518D have been fixed?
Otherwise - which of the monitors would you advise me to purchase? ANY opinion would be very appreciated!

 

[silentbogo]

The U2518D is a very big question mark. It has the best specs on paper, however, I've read about it having horrible tear issues, black bleeding, light bleeding, etc...

We have few those at work and I haven't seen any BL bleeding or anything else of the sort. In terms of ergonomics it's definitely the best one on your list (height adjustment, tilt, rotation, USB hub etc).
LG seems good, but I don't like their build quality as of late. Plus it has an external power brick which in my experience is not a good thing (LG/Samsung bricks tend to die after a few years and have flimsy/fragile wires). I still have an old MP58 in my office/lab, which has a weird grounding issues (noise on VGA input only), but after years of abuse still has clean picture and even backlight. Replaced the PSU twice.

 

[Bill_Bright]

Just out of curiosity, did the two that died die at once? If so, I might be concerned about why they died; bad facility wiring, lightning hit, a really faulty card, etc.

Please note that they are all very similarly priced, so I am looking for the best one out of these.

How do you figure? The LG is priced at $199.99 and the Dell 2518D is $329.99. That's a big difference.

 

[John Naylor]

1. What is the purpose of the 2nd monitor ? Just to browse ? ... office type apps ? Photo editing ? Answer will determine what to buy.

2. The best IPS monitors are better than the best TN monitors ..... but if you're not spending $600, I generally wouldn't recommend buying an IPS monitor but w/o knowing the usage, can't comment. The Ultrasharp's are good for photo editing, I have a 24", cost me $1200 10 or 11 years ago

3. The best specs on paper is meaningless because the specs are fake. look at any review on TFT central and you will see that they aren't so much faking the numbers but changing the definitions. Like a car brand saying 0 to 60 in 7 seconds ... only to realize later that they didn't use mp/h but km/h

4. For text work, AutoCAD, browsing, office apps, etc... I generally recommend the Asus VG248QE ... great for all the preeceding and, in a pinch, say gaming monitor down, it can be used as a gaming monitor.

 

[Omga4000]

We have few those at work and I haven't seen any BL bleeding or anything else of the sort. In terms of ergonomics it's definitely the best one on your list (height adjustment, tilt, rotation, USB hub etc).
LG seems good, but I don't like their build quality as of late. Plus it has an external power brick which in my experience is not a good thing (LG/Samsung bricks tend to die after a few years and have flimsy/fragile wires). I still have an old MP58 in my office/lab, which has a weird grounding issues (noise on VGA input only), but after years of abuse still has clean picture and even backlight. Replaced the PSU twice.

If you happen to have a good batch, it'll be great.
I am trying to find out if the issues have been fixed or if it's still merely a hit-and-miss situation.

https://www.dell.com/community/Monitors/U2518D-backlight-bleeding/td-p/6210279
https://www.dell.com/community/Monitors/U2518D-A00-Backlight-bleeding/td-p/5808530
https://www.dell.com/community/Monitors/U2518D-two-have-backlight-bleeding-issue/td-p/6099591

etc etc..

Just out of curiosity, did the two that died die at once? If so, I might be concerned about why they died; bad facility wiring, lightning hit, a really faulty card, etc.

How do you figure? The LG is priced at $199.99 and the Dell 2518D is $329.99. That's a big difference.

No, they did not die together.
Both of my screens had an issue with their light source. Seems like some of the LEDs just died.
Today, one of them just refused to power up. My second one still has an issue with the LEDs, so I've figured it's their time to leave this world.
A good excuse to buy new monitors


Regarding the prices. The U2518D is the only "expensive" one in the list.
And even so, not by much at all, which is why I am even considering it.
Dell U2518D is priced at 368$
LG 24MP88HV is priced at 292$

To me, that's pretty similar. I was looking at the ~300$ range and the U2518D happened to pop-up in my search.
I figured that 70-80$ won't kill me if the screen is worth it.

1. What is the purpose of the 2nd monitor ? Just to browse ? ... office type apps ? Photo editing ? Answer will determine what to buy.

2. The best IPS monitors are better than the best TN monitors ..... but if you're not spending $600, I generally wouldn't recommend buying an IPS monitor but w/o knowing the usage, can't comment. The Ultrasharp's are good for photo editing, I have a 24", cost me $1200 10 or 11 years ago

3. The best specs on paper is meaningless because the specs are fake. look at any review on TFT central and you will see that they aren't so much faking the numbers but changing the definitions. Like a car brand saying 0 to 60 in 7 seconds ... only to realize later that they didn't use mp/h but km/h

4. For text work, AutoCAD, browsing, office apps, etc... I generally recommend the Asus VG248QE ... great for all the preeceding and, in a pinch, say gaming monitor down, it can be used as a gaming monitor.

1. They are both secondary monitors, part of a triple-monitor setup.
They will be used for browsing, using multi-window while programming, watching videos, and so on. Simple tasks overall.

2. Definitely not going the 600$ way.
Obviously, I prefer having IPS monitors as secondary monitors, since they will be the ones I watch videos on and browse the most.
My main screen will be doing gaming, mostly.

3. Well, I doubt they fake their resolution and screen size
These are the only big differences between the other monitors.

4. The VG248QE is a great screen, and cheaper than all of the other monitors I have listed.
I have even looked at the MG248QR at some point.
However, as I've mentioned before, a thin bezel is a must for me. I will be using a triple-monitor setup.
I also figured an IPS panel would be much better in secondary monitors, for the overall greater brightness and color accuracy.
Scrolling a web-page at 144Hz / with G-Sync isn't very thrilling to me



Thank you all for your assistance!!

 

[silentbogo]

I am trying to find out if the issues have been fixed or if it's still merely a hit-and-miss situation.

It happens with all monitors, and in most cases it develops over time (either thermal stress on reflectors, or moisture in the air etc).
Even my $400 Samsung U24E590D has some backlight leakage, which it did not have 2 years ago. Just the side effect of thinner LCD assembly, hard usage and the environment.
Speaking of Samsung: their QLED monitors are also relatively cheap. 24-28" VA goes for around $300 nowadays, while QLED is around $350. You get 4K res, flicker-free backlight, Freesync and in case of QLED - 10-bit color (most likely fake 8-bit+FRC, but still).

 

[Omga4000]

It happens with all monitors, and in most cases it develops over time (either thermal stress on reflectors, or moisture in the air etc).
Even my $400 Samsung U24E590D has some backlight leakage, which it did not have 2 years ago. Just the side effect of thinner LCD assembly, hard usage and the environment.
Speaking of Samsung: their QLED monitors are also relatively cheap. 24-28" VA goes for around $300 nowadays, while QLED is around $350. You get 4K res, flicker-free backlight, Freesync and in case of QLED - 10-bit color (most likely fake 8-bit+FRC, but still).

Every 24-25" Samsung monitor I've seen had fairly thick bezels, so that's a no-no

 

[John Naylor]

1. They are both secondary monitors, part of a triple-monitor setup.
They will be used for browsing, using multi-window while programming, watching videos, and so on. Simple tasks overall.

2. Definitely not going the 600$ way.
Obviously, I prefer having IPS monitors as secondary monitors, since they will be the ones I watch videos on and browse the most.
My main screen will be doing gaming, mostly.

3. Well, I doubt they fake their resolution and screen size
These are the only big differences between the other monitors.

4. The VG248QE is a great screen, and cheaper than all of the other monitors I have listed.
I have even looked at the MG248QR at some point.
However, as I've mentioned before, a thin bezel is a must for me. I will be using a triple-monitor setup.
I also figured an IPS panel would be much better in secondary monitors, for the overall greater brightness and color accuracy.
Scrolling a web-page at 144Hz / with G-Sync isn't very thrilling to me

Thank you all for your assistance!!

1. While the best IPS monitoreds are better than the best TN monitors, people still make the mistake that a cheap IPS monitor is better than a cheap TN monitor. Goos quality TN monitors can be had for $199 ... not so with IPS. For you stated usage, dark scenes look poorly on IPS . So if ya watching sports ya fine, scifi, horror or anything with a lot of outdoor night or dark indoor scenes will oft leave you with some difficulty discerning movement.

2, yes, the $600 is obviously for gaming.... or if watching a movie, it will have a supperior image. i was just watching something ... or trying to on secondary monitor while answering forum messages ... used slider bar about 6 times to go back to parts I missed

3. Don't need to click the specs tab for size and resolution ... but 5 ms is like 12 ms IRL.

4. Yes, as I said, if you are getting a half way decent TN for $225, it can be worthwhile to bump up to the VG248QE to be able to use in pinch as a spare gaming monitor. For example, I have one and ...

a) When son came home from college, we'd play on line games together and we'd plug my secondary into my lappie.

b) in an MMO, I do the same with my lappie to run an alt or jump in on the test server

c) When doing a build for someone, put it on my workbench so get OS loaded, do overclocking and show them how it performs before it leaves

If you don't have any such needs, than might as well save the $25.

But we have a Dell IPS that was used primarily for photo editing ... it's response time and lag make it unsuitable for enthusiast gaming. It's fine for youtube videos and stuff. But it is "less than satisfactory" for movie watching with night time or indoor dark scenes because of the IPS Glow .... when the bad guys are creeeping up, monster in the woods or intruder in house kinds stuff, can't see what's going on. My son is using it as a 2nd monitor for web access mostly while gaming. But when he streams movies and stuff, he uses the primary,