PC Hardware in a Nutshell, 3rd Edition

Flat-Panel Display Characteristics

Here are the important characteristics of FPDs:

Panel type

FPD panels are available in two broad types:

Passive-matrix panels

Passive-matrix panels generally use Super Twisted Nematic (STN) technology. These panels are commonly used on notebook systems, where they provide adequate display quality at a reasonably low price. Only the least-expensive desktop FPDs use passive-matrix technology, which should be avoided for its low display quality.

Active-matrix panels

Active-matrix panels generally use Thin Film Transistor (TFT) technology, and are superior to passive-matrix in every respect except price. Most entry-level FPDs and all premium FPDs use TFT technology, which we consider the minimum acceptable. TFT provides usable viewing angles of up to 170 degrees horizontally and vertically. TFT panels are made in what amounts to good, better, and best grades, with higher grades providing wider viewing angles and less color shift as the viewing angle moves off-axis. As of July 2003, the best TFT panels use In-Plane Switching (IPS) or Multi-Domain Vertical Alignment (MDVA or MVA), which dramatically improve image quality when properly implemented. Unfortunately, the converse is not necessarily true. That an FPD uses IPS or MDVA does not guarantee a high-quality image, and unfortunately some very low-quality IPS FPDs are available. We expect IPS and MDVA technology to become a standard FPD technology later in 2003 and into 2004, with individual implementations, ...