Large monitors make you more productive! That apparently is the conclusion of some recently completed research by the University of Utah. The research showed that for people manipulating data in a spreadsheet, those who were using an expansive 24′ monitor were up to 52% faster than those people working on a measly 18″ monitor.

I have to admit that this research smacks of the sort of thing that might be developed by people who are attending some institute of learning and studying “the art of stating the bleeding obvious”. Perhaps that is a touch unfair, I suppose that there is probably quite a lot of research done that proves that a popular belief is actually untrue. But when this sort of research proves something that everyone “knows” is true, you always get the feeling that these people should get a proper job!

Anyway I digress. The point is that a bigger monitor or perhaps a second monitor is going to make your computing both much more productive and enjoyable, and of course we have the research to prove it. So go talk to the boss.

All things being equal you should always go for the biggest monitor you can afford. Though do remember that other things such as response time and resolution are also important when looking for LCD monitors.

Best value for money at the moment would probably be the very highly rated ViewSonic 28″ Widescreen LCD Monitor. Two of those would make even me more productive!

Yesterday we had a look at small footed computers or perhaps that is computers with small feet! Answers on a postcard…. Anyway we talked about the need for a LCD screen to ensure the smallest footprint possible, especially if you are presently stuck with an old monster of a CRT monitor as swapping to an LCD monitor in this case would free up half of your desk.

Some of the things to look out for when buying LCD monitors are the response time which measures how fast the image is redrawn on the screen measured in milliseconds. The faster the better, as this stops the ghosting of fast moving images, which is important especially for gamers. The contrast ratio which is defined as the difference between the black and white colours, in this case the larger the ratio, the better. Resolution is also import. You need to make sure the monitor has a native resolution that matches your video card, as the monitor will display a better image at its native resolution.

So armed with this information you can start looking for something capable in your price range. A nice example that you might want to consider if you are looking is the LG Electronics L226WTQ 22″ Widescreen LCD Monitor which has a great response time and is well rated.