How to Buy: Displays for your business
LCD or CRT? Here's all the info you need to make sure you purchase the right display.| Editors' picks | ||||
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LCDs Sony SDM-HS73: A good choice whether you need image quality, or just a nice-looking flat-panel monitor. MORE OPTIONS  Samsung SyncMaster 171NSamsung SyncMaster 172B |
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Whether shopping for the home or office, there's one trend in displays that can't be ignored: the world is going flat.
LCDs offer many advantages over traditional CRT monitors. They are much smaller, making them an excellent choice for small desks and offices. They can display crisp, legible text and images at higher resolutions, meaning that you can fit more information in the same-size display: a 17-inch LCD has about the same viewable area as a 19-inch CRT display. They require less electricity and emit little heat. Finally, they are easier on the eyes because LCDs don't need to refresh or redraw the images many times each second the way CRTs do, creating a barely perceptible screen flicker.
LCDs now affordable
Not long ago, the sky-high prices of LCDs kept them mainly in the corner office, as well as in high-profile places, such as reception areas and conference rooms. But prices have dropped so quickly that flat panels are now a viable option even for small businesses.
Though there are many companies selling LCDs--Dell, Samsung, HP, and NEC-Mitsubishi are the biggest--the actual panels themselves all come from a handful of manufacturers, including LG.Philips and Samsung. That means you can shop for a vendor based partly on the best price for the size you need, with 17- and 18-inch LCDs representing the sweet spot in the market.
Look for an LCD that has both analog and digital (DVI) inputs, a wide viewing angle, and a high contrast ratio. Some pricier model include multimedia extras such as wide-aspect screens, picture-in-picture, built-in speakers, and composite and S-Video inputs, but most small businesses will have little need for these.
CRTs still an option
While LCDs are fantastic, CRTs still make up the bulk of the business market for several reasons. Despite price cuts, LCDs are still far more expensive than CRTs, especially at larger sizes. A 21-inch flat panel will probably run you more than twice the cost of your PC; by comparison you can find many 21-inch CRTs for around AU$1,000. And CRTs are still a better choice for graphic design or digital-video editing because they represent colours more accurately and are better at keeping up with fast-moving footage.
As long as you can squeeze it into your budget, though, a flat panel is a worthwhile investment for most small businesses.
Christopher Null is a freelance business and technology journalist in San Francisco. He has written for Wired, Smart Business, PC World, and Business 2.0. He is also a veteran of numerous small businesses--including his own Internet start-up, filmcritic.com, which he has operated since 1995.
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I am looking to purchase a multfunction laser printer for my small business. My phone line also has a Securitel service. A low frequency signal is sent down the line continuously, so that if the telephone line is cut the security company will be alerted. Unfortunately this low frequency signal can interfere with the fax signal and the fax function does not work. I was told that the fax modem in some manufacturers do not have a filter to overcome this signal sent by Securitel and some do. Can anybody tell me if they have bought a brand of Multifunction printer that is compatible with Securitel