CRTs! (and maybe other displays too)

[LunarLoony]

Display technology is a bit of a contentious subject. I've often seen arguments over which is better - LCD, LED and the variations thereof, even plasma when that was a going concern (and which still has a bit of a hardcore fanbase!) - but they all pale in comparison to the mighty CRT.

So heavy you'd think it was made of dark matter, but worth it for a picture quality that, in my opinion, hasn't quite been matched.

I have five units of various different shapes and sizes, on of which is a 29-inch Sony Trinitron behemoth that's currently (tragically!) sat underneath my stairs.

These things are sought-after because retro consoles are made to work with them, so games tend to look as intended in glorious 240p. But I've also put a few DVDs through my Trinitron, and they look pretty darn good too, if a little squished due to the aspect ratio.

Any other crazy CRT evangelists about?

[Epic DaVinci]

I remember having a 32" widescreen CRT in my bedroom when i lived with my mum, Took two of us to get it up stairs but i thought i was in a cinema when watching films on it (VHS films that is)

[Wiredfire]

I had the most beautiful “flat” 24” widescreen Sony Trinitron CRT about 10 years ago. Had to give it away when moving house, didn’t have anything like the space for it it was such an amazing beast.

I don’t regret passing it on, still haven’t the space for it and everything I have looks fine on the modern flatscreen (classics all emulated, everything else bar the Wii runs on HDMI anyway) but man that TV got us through some great gaming weekends!

[LunarLoony]

Occasionally I happen upon an advert or an Argos catalogue page or whatever, and it'll have a few CRTs listed. And they're very often talking up how 'flat' the screen is...
The pursuit of flatness is fascinating considering these things were essentially cubes! I suppose the goal was to reduce the various weird effects you end up with from having a rounded display. Certainly come across a few cases myself where I've played a game, and the edges of the screen are warped to counteract the nature of a CRT (though specific examples elude me at the second )

Needless to say, the Trinitrons certainly seem to be among the 'flattest' of CRTs, given they only curve in one direction. Shame you had to give yours away, but the fact is that these things are ridiculously big and heavy, so it's totally understandable.

[LunarLoony]

I remember having a 32" widescreen CRT in my bedroom when i lived with my mum, Took two of us to get it up stairs but i thought i was in a cinema when watching films on it (VHS films that is)

I've often heard that widescreen displays won't work with lightgun games - but there must be a bit more to it since I've definitely played Time Crisis 2 at a retro gaming event on a widescreen Toshiba tube.
Trouble with widescreen displays of the time is that everything expected a 4:3 aspect ratio, so everything just gets stretched!