n3rd.org

Sometimes more really is more. Case in point: computer screens. Unless you do nothing but “office stuff” and watch YouTube you simply can’t have enough screen real estate, especially if you’re a developer. Any serious computer user who says that he wouldn’t prefer two or more screens over one any day of the week is either lying or has never even tried it. But more on that in few days.
A few months back I decided to get a new screen but just couldn’t make up my mind what to get. After weeks (seriously!) of weighing up the different options and their pros and cons I ended up buying a Dell 3008WFP. Thirty decadent inches of awesomeness. (Yes, I need help. Shut it.)
There are – believe it or not – actually a few practical arguments for getting a 30″ monitor. First of all, it has a significant higher resolution compared to smaller ones. The step from 1920×1200 to 2560×1600 is huge – a difference of almost 80%. Compared to my 21″ and 18″ screen it’s more than twice and three times the resolution, respectively:

Secondly, its sheer size is in some cases truly advantageous and not just a dick by proxy. While getting two 24″ screens probably would have been more reasonable, cheaper and possibly more ergonomic, it’s obvious that watching movies is a job for the Big Gun. That damn thing is so insanely huge, it’s not even funny. You know how now matter what screen you buy you always get used to it eventually and everything feels like before? Not with this one you don’t, no Sir! I’ve had it for several months now and it still impresses the crap out of me.
If you sit at an unhealthy distance of say 60 to 75cm (that’s 23.5 to 30 inches, you American SI heathens) it fills out most of your field of vision and you can really immerse in movies and games. Right now I’m playing Need For Speed: Undercover and holy god damn is that fun. With a surround sound system you can hear the cops behind you, you can hear the swoooosh when you pass another car and when you ram something you can actually feel it, thanks to the subwoofer. That’s an experience you can’t have with a small screen, no matter which way you spin it.

That’s not a very exciting screenshot, I know that. Just click on it and view it in full size. If your browser shows scroll bars, you lose ;-)