I got a Dell Vostro just before going to uni in september, with one of the really nice 17" 1920 x 1200 res screens, now however i'm becoming increasingly depressed using my desktop computer (with its poor 17" 1280 x 1024 display), so my question is really are there any nice shiny high res monitors out there that can rival my laptop ?

i've looked all over the place but i cant find any that pack that sort of res into that size, i'd be looking at a 24" screen to get that sort of res when actually i only really want something up to a max of 20".

if they dont make desktop screens with this res, why? if they can put it into a laptop whats stopping them?

i'm so confused!

You'll probably find that your laptop display has a comparatively low refresh rate (probably 60Hz) and much slower response times (8-24ms) compared to desktop displays which are often considerably faster. High-res, high density displays are also more expensive - quite a chunk of the money you spend on a laptop pays for the display.

Slow response times are unattractive to gamers, as they can cause ghosting, and lower refresh rates tend to strain the eyes. Given that, and the relatively high cost of producing a display of the kind you describe, I guess that most manufacturers simply don't feel there is enough money to be made from them.

why don't you get a 24" display and a bigger desk?

You can find some really nice screens that will match at:
Learn about Dell's laptops, desktops, monitors, printers plus computer electronics & accessories.

hey no i wasn't really looking for a dell screen, lenovo do some nice ones, otherwise i'll go for a samsung or LG, along those lines, they tend to make the panels for most displays anyway i think.

and it wasnt to match my laptop, it was to put with my custom build desktop.

reckon they'll start releasing 1920x1200 displays at like 20" sizes soon?

Get yourself a nice 32" widesceen and sit well back from your pad

I am on the 27" and it hurts my eye's sitting right up, awesome for watching movies on though

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The main display resolutions available for LCS are really:

1280x1024 (SXGA): 17", 19" LCD
1680x1050 (WSXGA+): 20", 22" 16:10 (sometimes called 8:5) Wide LCD
1920x1200 (WUXGA): 24" 16:10 Wide LCD

You can get 17" Wide at 1440x900, but that's quite a step back in vertical resolution. More exoctic displays like 1600x1200 19" have been around, and may still exist, but the big brand manufacturers don't do them.

The more important aspects of a panel are really the colour quality and uniformity. Response time plays a big part, but it's pretty near impossible to cut through all the smoke and mirrors and try and compare one response time to another, because they have all different ways of measuring it. As the100thmonkey said, the better technology is the more mature technology, so generally speaking, desktop LCDs have better operating specifications that cutting edge laptop panels. The most reliable method to judge a panel is the manufacturer. Samsung, LG and (ashamedly) Dell are my favourites. Philips is also pretty good.

What you're probably noticing with the laptop display is not so much the resolution itself, but the DPI. A 17" LCD at 1280x1024 will have a visibly better image that 19" at 1280x1024 because the 17" has to fit more dots in a smaller area ("more dots per inch"). This is a good argument for choosing a smaller panel.

Refresh rate doesn't play a part at all, it's always 60~75 Hz, with the differences being utterly meaningless. In fact, 60 Hz is usually the best setting for most LCDs. In the days of CRT, low refresh rates would product a noticeable flicker, resulting in eye strain. Most people weren't comfortable until the refresh rate was up near the 80 Hz mark. With LCDs, it's merely a synchronisation clock speed.