Dell 1525 Viewing Angles

Hi,

I bought a 1525 with the 1200x800 display. The PC is great, works fine with the software and was a great price.

BUT - the LCD is awful, the viewing angle is very narrow. I wanted the PC for photo work and minor editing to replace an IBM T42P.
The problem is that the veiwing angle is so narrow that you move up slightly and the photo starts to wash out and down a little and the dark area's turn to black. It is very fustrating to use.

I have had it for a week and have been trying to figure what to do - in the hope I would get used to it, but I don't think that will happen.

My options are to get an external monitor, somethig like a Samsung 2232 or send the 1525 back and replace it with a Dell desktop plus the Samsung monitor.

I think this type of thins has been discussed but I could not see a concusion. Would the higher res display be better on the 1525, is the 1720 any better??

 

Welcome to the forums.

Ring up dell and say you are dissatisfied. Not all WXGA screens are bad, so ask if they could replace the display with a different model. If they won't replace the display, ask for a refund and find a different machine. I personally have found that HPs normally have good screens.

 

Will the 1525 drive an external monitor at a higher resolution? If so I may go for the external monitor option. Or I might take it back and get an Apple as they seem to have a very good screen selection.

 

Your laptop should be able to drive any external monitor to its native resolution pretty easily, provided its not a 30" or something insane like that. I have an old, beat up dell D500 with intel graphics driving a 19" to 1280x1024 without an issue. This, even though I can't push its built in screen past 1024x768 (ugh).

By and large, Laptop screens really stink in terms of accuracy, brightness and viewing angles. Please see this link for a revealing test of many different laptop LCDs: http://anandtech.com/displays/showdoc.aspx?i=2994

I would never buy a laptop for serious graphics work. Luckily, an external monitor may make an excellent choice, and there are a few LCD monitors that probably are accurate enough for your needs. I can't think of any at the moment but I would search for reviews and then decide for yourself. I know that Sony and Samsung are often standouts.

It is true that screen quality varies pretty significantly from one laptop maker to the next, however I really doubt that you will find anything (from dell at least) that TRULY compares to what most basic desktops seem to have these days.

 

Another option is to get a WXGA+ replacement, WXGA+ is much better (can tell, I have one). Might cost a buck, but it really rocks