I’ve been using the same Apple 17in CRT display with my computer for many years now so I wasn’t surprised when it started blinking a few weeks back.
As the problem worsened, I mentioned it to Mummy’s Little Angel, who happened to have an old CRT display sitting in a cupboard and offered to bring it up when she came to visit recently.
Her display worked with my computer, not always the case with Apple Macs and PC monitors unless you have an adapter, so it went in the corner for when the Apple display failed utterly.
Today, just over a week later, the old Apple display kicked the bucket.
The image started blinking faster, then developed folds like an old blanket and finally shrank to the size of a small envelope.
On the positive side, MLA’s generosity meant I was able to get up and running again with a replacement monitor immediately. It also uses about 15 per cent less electricity than my old one, so that’s a gain too.
But, the downside is that I’d forgotten how bad budget PC displays could be.
I’m long accustomed to a large, optically flat display that could be accurately calibrated for colour reproduction, particularly when working on photographs and other images.
I’m also used to having a wide choice of resolutions in millions of colours at a high refresh rate.
Now, it feels like I’m working in an office again.
The display is a 15in one, which wouldn’t be too bad (I use the Other Half’s laptop from time to time) except that the screen is noticeably curved and the top resolution is just 800×600.
I could go up to 1024×768, but that would mean dropping from millions of colours to thousands. I prefer to have the colours so 800×600 it is.
And speaking of colours, that brings me to the worst thing—colour rendition is abysmal and the image has a very faint pinkish tone to it.
I can’t calibrate it out and if I put a white test sheet over half the image, the pink tinge is very, very noticeable.
So, I don’t think I’ll be doing much photographic work for a while.
The final downside is that it’s one of those displays that emits a constant low-level buzz while its on—the final touch needed to recreate the complete office computer experience.
I should add that this is not a complaint about MLA’s gift, more a reflection on just how spoiled I’ve been for the past eight years.
I intend keeping my eye out for something better, but unless it’s very affordable (or free) I just going to have to get used to this display.
I dread my monitor going as well. It’s not professional standard but it is pretty good. I’ve had it over 6 years, a 19″ CRT with a flat screen and people though I was crazy going for it rather than a LCD.
It does come back to need and want though doesn’t it. If my computer fails, strictly speaking I don’t need a new one. I can write or ‘phone people, read books for information, buy a paper for news and do my accounts longhand. But I think I would be lost without it - so I think I’d better start saving
My main computer worry is the hard drive. It’s just over five years old now so it’s definitely at the end of its reliable life. A new 250Gb drive would give me five times the capacity and, if I buy a reputable brand, give my Mac another four or five year’s life. But, I’d also have to fork out £40-50 for a good drive.
So I’ll wait and keep archiving everything to DVD—although that’s another issue. My DVD writer is an old single-speed one and it’s getting harder to find single-speed discs. We managed to get some free DVD-Rs recently but they’re either 4x or 8x, so I can’t use them.
I’m definitely not a good computer consumer!
No complaint felt here!
When I saw your monitor I did think wow that’s the business.
Just as long as it buys you some time.
Oh and I also have DVD re-writers and CD drives sitting in the same cupboard.
Ok I admit it and am a hoarder!