Monitors: LCDs are the most popular, but CRT monitors may offer advantages.(Computers, Phones, and Peripherals: Portable and Versatile)(Buyers guide)

In computer monitors as in TVs, models using LCD technology are becoming bigger, cheaper, and more dominant in the marketplace. Industry watchers report that the vast majority of monitors sold in the past year were lightweight, flat-panel LCD displays. They're largely replacing heavy, tubby CRT displays, which take up much more desk space.

Along with the trend toward thin displays, there's a move to bigger screens. You'll find more LCD models with screens 19 inches and larger. Most of these larger LCD displays have the wide-screen shape that's increasingly familiar from high-definition TVs. A large, wide screen is handy for many uses, including watching DVD movies, viewing and editing photos, running multiple programs, surfing the Web, and playing video games.

Prices continue to fall, even on LCDs with bigger screens. If you're buying a monitor bundled with a new computer, as many consumers do, you can often upgrade from the standard display to a bigger one for a modest amount--$50 to $150 or so.

WHAT'S AVAILABLE

Apple, Dell, eMachines (which merged with Gateway in 2004), Gateway, HP (which merged with Compaq in 2002), Lenovo, and Sony all market their own monitors for their computers. Other brands of monitors, such as Acer, Envision, KDS, LG, NEC, Samsung, ViewSonic, and Westinghouse, are sold separately. Many of these companies don't make their own monitors but buy them from outside sources and put their own brand label on them.

With an LCD monitor, the nominal image size and the viewable-image size (VIS) are the same. That sets them apart from CRT monitors, which offer a bit less screen space than the size suggests. Desktop LCDs that measure 17 or 19 inches diagonally weigh around 15 pounds, compared with 30 to 50 pounds for a CRT. LCDs with a screen 20 inches or larger are increasingly available. Wide-screen LCDs, specially designed for watching wide-format videos, are also available. Those screens have an aspect ratio of 16:9, similar to what you'll find with most digital TVs.

Flat-panel displays deliver a very clear image, but they have some quirks. Their range of color is a bit narrower than a CRT's. Also, you have to view a flat-panel screen straight on to get optimal image quality. On some models, the picture can lose contrast as you move off-center, and fine lines might appear grainy. That's an issue mainly if several people will be looking at the screen simultaneously. It's not a big concern if one user is sitting directly in front of the display. Most LCD monitors in our recent tests had a wider viewing angle than we've seen in the past.