Which way would you do it: 2 monitors or 1 big one?

I can buy a Dell 2405FP (24") for about the same price as 2 X Dell 2005FPW (20"). I have an ASUS A8V-SLI-Premium card with AMD dual-core processor, but still have but one video card (soon to be two)...the video card has 2 outputs for dual monitors.

What should I do?

Thanks in advance for the advice.

Rind

[Jason425]

I would prefer the 24", but I guess it depends on what you do

[Tyler]

Ditto.

<3 dual monitors. you get much more screen real-estate with two 20" (OMG, that's still a big monitor, i'm on my laptop's 12" right now :P) than with one 24". I had dual monitors for about 6 months before one of the crapped out, and I was forced to go back to one. Of course, it really depends on what you are doing. I do a lot of research and being able to read on one screen and type on another is really nice. multiple spreadsheets are <3 w/ dual monitors. My impression is that quite a few games are getting into supporting more than one monitor, which has to be cool (though the game i'm playing now is sopwith, a 1980s 2d flying game, so i'm not exactly up with the whole gaming thing.)

[Tyler]

I haven't ever tried two monitors however I think I would be annoyed with the space in the middle.

[Jason425]

2 monitors take up a lot more space too

[vee_ess]

As Jason425 said, it depends on what you do. If you are going to use them for a significant amount of gaming or movie watching, then one monitor. If productivity is your main focus, then two will probably suit you better once you get accustomed to it.

...I guess it's like single-core versus dual-core, one operation really well, or multiple well.

these are all flatscreen, yea? so we're not talking about that much space. and 20" isn't exactly a small monitor. the space in the middle is not a problem at all, ime.

like i said, i thought lots of games were supporting multiple monitors these days, which I think would be really freaking sweet.

also, if we are talking about games, you might want to compare response times on the two. bigger monitors tend to not do as well in this area.

[Prometheus]

im getting the 2405 i hope....as soon as i get a job (starbucks or Animal)

cept i gotta pay 2x more than you!!!!!!!! grrrr stupid tax

anyway

the 2405 has EXCELLENT response time but your graphics card needs to be able to handle it......

I think you should get the 2001fps instead since the 2005 fp is widescreen and nearly the same price...the 2 monitors next to each other will simulate wide screen anyway.

[vee_ess]

Starbucks is a good job; excellent clientelle on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights, especially if near a mall or movie theater.

You might still get the benefits of a wide aspect ratio for prodctivity, but the benefits for entertainment will be eliminated because of the line down the center. I'm starting to lean towards the 2405 now.