LCD monitor help

[Himu]

okay i want an hd lcd monitor to double for both work (final cut, photoshop) and play (games, tv).

I don't know much about this for play, but plenty for work. I want a cheap alternative without breaking the bank or having to buy yet another hdtv.

how does one play games/watch tv on a computer monitor?

[Pringo]

If this is going to be used for professional graphic design work I think you'll pretty much need an LCD with an IPS panel. Standard TN panel displays just don't have high enough quality colour reproduction that I imagine you require. Unfortunately IPS displays cost more than a typical TN LCD and have higher response times, so I'm not really sure how well they'll handle gaming. Apparently with newer ones the response time isn't that much of an issue but you should look into that.

As for TV, I think you'll need to buy a TV tuner as well. For gaming (I'm assuming hooking up consoles?) I think you should be fine as long as you find a monitor with enough inputs for everything you want to hook up. Try getting one that has at least a DVI input plus an HDMI input if you want to hook up one console (DVI to PC, HDMI to console).

Dell's UltraSharp line is apparently pretty good. This is what I'd be looking at if I had enough cash to justify getting a new monitor.
22": http://accessories.dell.com/sna/products/Displays/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=320-9271
23": http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/products/Displays/productdetail.aspx?c=usl=en&cs=19&sku=320-9270
24": http://accessories.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=ca&l=en&s=dhs&cs=cadhs1&sku=320-8277
27": http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=us&cs=04&l=en&s=bsd&sku=224-8284&redirect=1
30": http://accessories.dell.com/sna/products/Displays/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=bsd&cs=04&sku=224-9949

If you're planning on using this with a Mac, you might want to go with Apple's Cinema Displays instead.
27": http://www.apple.com/displays/