by The screen is of utmost importance especially when you play , but also for you who want the optimal movie experience or if you work with, for example, image editing. The panel in the screen is in many cases crucial for the gaming experience and different gaming screens are suitable for different types of games.
It can be difficult to know what type of screen is best for you and what strengths and weaknesses they possess. It is also not the easiest to understand the meaning of the different screen types and the differences between them. We have therefore compiled the most important things for you to know about the panels IPS, TN and VA – all to facilitate your purchase.
IPS panel
IPS stands for In Plane Switching and is a common panel type whose technology has the best color reproduction, ie they are more color accurate than other screens. The performance in the panel is also good at viewing angles, as the colors change less in comparison with, for example, VA and TN panels, when you see the screen from the side.
In terms of response time, IPS screens are now on more or less the same line as many TN and VA screens do, so it is clearly a screen to choose even for games that require a really high tempo. Just make sure that the specific monitor with IPS you choose has a short response time if this is what you are looking for.
Thanks to the fact that IPS panels can offer a really good color reproduction, grand games are usually very beautiful, which means that an IPS screen can give you a gaming experience that not many other screens and panels can.
Advantages and disadvantages of IPS:
- Provides a better viewing angle
- Better color reproduction
- Good alternative for both image processing and gaming
- The image is clearly visible even in sunlight
- Some screens may cause so-called ‘backlight bleeding’
- Usually more expensive than both VA and TN panels
VA panel
To most easily understand the meaning of a VA screen, which stands for Vertical Alignment, it can be said that it is an intermediate position between TN and IPS. When VA was developed, it was to be able to create a combination with the best parts from the two panels in the best possible way. So they wanted to try to be something in between and at the same time not get too many shortcomings / disadvantages from the two.
Compared to TN screens, VA can often come up with significantly better color reproductions, while they now offer a short response time for the best gaming experience possible. Although the contrast conditions are very good with VA screens, it can in combination with too hectic games result in blurred sequences that can be quite disturbing, but it depends entirely on which variant you choose. Many VA screens today can offer as good response time as, for example, the fast TN panel does.
A VA screen is best suited for you who do a little of everything possible on your computer such as playing, watching movies, surfing or using Photoshop and the like.
Advantages and disadvantages of VA panels:
- A middle ground with excellent contrast
- Better viewing angles than TN
- For the most part equivalent gaming experience as and IPS
- Also suitable for film and image and color processing
- Not as good colors as IPS
- Generally lower response times
TN panel
One type of screen that was very common in the past is TN (Twisted Nematic). This panel is the cheapest to manufacture, which is one of the reasons why it was so common in the past. A big advantage, which means that many still choose TN, is the very short response time, which is a very important aspect when it comes to games in particular. In addition, the refresh rate is generally very high. Today, however, VA and IPS screens can also offer this.
For those of you who like to play games that are competition-oriented and where the ability to react must be good, the TN panel is excellent. What is important to know, however, is that the color reproduction is often worse, while the viewing angles are often more limited. This means that if you are not sitting right in front of your screen, it can be difficult to see everything because what is displayed on the screen is attenuated from other angles.
Advantages and disadvantages of TN:
- Low Price
- Very good response time
- High refresh rates
- Suitable for fast games
- Color, contrast and hue not as good as with IPS and VA
- Requires you to sit directly in front of the screen
Summary differences IPS, VA and TN panels
The different panels have different strengths and it is difficult to rank any of these screens as the best choice, as it depends entirely on your desire for gaming experience. In addition, it is what you think is important in terms of response time and color reproduction that should play the biggest role.
We recommend that you think about what you primarily use your screen for. If you are looking for a cheap gaming screen to play intense games at a high pace, a TN screen may be the most optimal choice. However, IPS and VA also offer IPS and VA very short response times today, while they can provide better viewing angles, contrast and color reproduction.
If you are primarily going to do something in your work, for example that requires exact color reproduction, then a VA or IPS screen is probably preferable, at the same time as it will have a cruel gaming experience.
Hopefully you have clarified the biggest differences between IPS, TN, and VA so that you can more easily compare the variants that exist of each panel.
