Now that the Home Office and WFH (Work From Home) promise to be here to stay, at least for longer… it’s time to get more comforrable. Aside from a nice, ergonomic chair for hours of sitting, a good monitor is great to have. But what do you look for in buying a home office monitor? And particularly, should you go for. a 24” or 27” monitor, or a 32” Smart TV?
A good home office monitor can make your WFH hours more effecient and relaxing. Specially if you’re using a 13” travel notebook computer!
Consider size. Typically - bigger is better. But for the home office, not necessariy. Think abuot your available work space. Can you fit in a 27” monitor or 40” SMART TV? If you have a large desk and spacious study, you can go for the larger sizes. If you will use the monitor as an extended screen to your notebook, it may not be necessary. The bigger size may in fact be less appealing as you would want yor main and extended monitors about the same height, or not too disparate, and about the same distance from you.
Is bigger really better? Consider your workspace! And what you really need. This is the Dell monitor. Notice the compact footprint.
What’s your budget? Do you want to go with the essential, or do you have a second purpose in mind? As a comparison, today the 24” monitor will go for around Singapore $200. A 27” monitor will go for around S$ 250. A 32” HD ready Smart TV will go for around S$330, a 43” HD Smart TV, S$500, and a 43” UHD 4K Smart TV, S$800. Of course the Smart TV has a lot more functions, direct internet access, browsing capability, YouTube or Netflix for those who want it, speakers, connectivity and mirroring of your phones, etc. The prospect of having much more flexibility is appealing, but read on before your purchase.
A 32” HD Smart TV will typically have a resolution that is 1366x768 pixels, which is a downgrade from your notebook computer screen. Meaning? Less sharp! Also, the height could mean tilting your head up more.
What kind of work will you do? Graphics and images? Video? Spreadsheets and document writing? If you will do detailed office work involving at least some MS Word or MS Excel files, you will want a good HD monitor with 1920 x 1080 pixels resolution. Your notebook computer would have that as a base resolution. Now note that a 32” HD or HD-ready Smart TV will only have a resolution of approximately 1366x768 pixels. This means a downgrade in sharpness and clarity on your big screen monitor! And you wouldn’t like that. Even a 1080p resolution on a 43” TV may not look so good from up close. The best would be to go for a 4K resolution on a 43” TV, but then you’d have to shell out at least upward of S$ 700. And this size could get tricky to work with, unless you have a larger room and maybe a separate table for the TV. Ergonomics-wise, this could wreak havoc to your set-up, requiring adjustments to your chair height, your keyboard height, etc.
The Samsung monitor has a large footprint. Consider this if you have a monitor stand, and how this will impact your desk arrangement.
Think also of your table. Specifically, when I was considering the Samsung 27” model, I noted the feet are quite massive, and could constrict my desk arrangement. So I went for the Dell, which had a compact footprint. Also, I find the apperance of the Dell quite appealing. There are also lower-cost models available, maybe particularly older models. But check the brightness levels. Just like phone screens, the newer models have brighter and sharper displays. The Dell and Samsung models have a typical brightness of 250 cd/sqm. I’ve seen screens that sold for S$110, but have lower brightness screens. If you’re not ready for a dimmer display, don’t go for an older monitor.
Q: If you already have a large screen Smart TV like a 60” 4K in your Living area, like me and many others, do you really need a back-up “small”-large TV? Or would a purpose-built monitor do?
After making detailed comparisons of various options, I opted for the Dell 23.8” Full HD Monitor Freesynch 75Hz SE2419HR. And I got it from the Lazada Dell Official Store. I received it in 2 days, and everything was fine and smooth, and set-up, quick. I use it as an extended monitor to my 15” notebook. And I’m happy and satisfied with the purchase.
That’s it for now. Happy computing!
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