Is CRT really bad for you ?

[mo9]

hello,

I'm sure when we were all growing up our parents told us not to use the our computers for too long as they were bad for our eyes.

Well, i did some googling and haven't found any solid proof related to crt's effect on eyes.

What do you guys think based on experience ?

 

note: I have a CRT set up next to my main monitor because it was just lying around my home so i decided to use it.

[Guest Kloaked]

It's not the monitor itself causing eye problems, it's how people stare at them for long periods of time without blinking, or not focusing on anything else for long periods of time.

[MANIDY inc]

We will find out in 40 years when all the kids are blind or not blind 

[porina]

It wasn't just the light, but if there might be other electromagnetic radiation being pumped out towards the viewer. I don't think that argument went anywhere either.

[zMeul]

yes, CRTs fucked my eyes

[Guest Kloaked]

19 minutes ago, zMeul said:

yes, CRTs fucked my eyes

No that was you looking at your mom.

 

 

[ProjectBox153]

I've never had CRT's cause any more discomfort than flat panels (TN, IPS, or OLED), and I am on a computer more in one day than most people I know in one week. Yes I may only be 15, but I've used plenty of CRT's in my life.

[tlink]

crt's are easier on the eyes than most lcd panels are, crt's don't have the blue light problem and are really colour accurate when calibrated correctly, only oled has managed to beat it i think. and they often have quite high refresh rates which also is easier to the eye. if you're really worried about it then just stare outside into the nothingness for a minute every hour, thats often what doctors recommend i think.

[ProjectBox153]

2 minutes ago, tlink said:

crt's are easier on the eyes than most lcd panels are, crt's don't have the blue light problem and are really colour accurate when calibrated correctly, only oled has managed to beat it i think. and they often have quite high refresh rates which also is easier to the eye. if you're really worried about it then just stare outside into the nothingness for a minute every hour, thats often what doctors recommend i think.

True. I only get eye discomfort because that's me. It happens with any display, even E-Ink.

[PlayStation 2]

A CRT display itself is not detrimental to your eyes. Like any display, it's always good to not focus on just that for long periods of time.

[Mira Yurizaki]

1 hour ago, tlink said:

crt's are easier on the eyes than most lcd panels are, crt's don't have the blue light problem and are really colour accurate when calibrated correctly, only oled has managed to beat it i think. and they often have quite high refresh rates which also is easier to the eye

The catch is you need to have the CRT running at higher than 60Hz. I think CRTs last I checked can run faster, but they need to be of a lower resolution in order to do so. Otherwise CRTs have a problem with "flickering" which can cause eyes strain.

 

Color accuracy is a moot point if the display is calibrated, regardless of type. I've seen OLED displays with worse color accuracy than LCDs.

[porina]

28 minutes ago, M.Yurizaki said:

The catch is you need to have the CRT running at higher than 60Hz. I think CRTs last I checked can run faster, but they need to be of a lower resolution in order to do so. Otherwise CRTs have a problem with "flickering" which can cause eyes strain.

It depends on the phosphor decay characteristic used. CRT TVs in UK (and other 50Hz regions of world) were fine at 50Hz, but that could be a problem on monitors. Those of sufficient age to have gone through this era may have also come across mains transformers in computer speakers, which if placed closed enough to the monitor would interact with the display and cause the image to wobble.

[AshleyAshes]

On ‎12‎/‎7‎/‎2016 at 0:49 PM, porina said:

It wasn't just the light, but if there might be other electromagnetic radiation being pumped out towards the viewer. I don't think that argument went anywhere either.

Technical the electron gun striking the phosphor on the inside of the screen generates a small amount of ionizing radiation.  That said the glass that a CRT tube is made from is leaded glass and it shields the user and prevents any radiation from escaping.  The only real treat from a CRT is spinal damage from having to move them and harm to your electrical bill.

I mean, seriously, if a CRT was dangerous, you think that stepping back a few feet and sitting on the couch protected you from whatever CRT once filled your living room with entertainment? :P

[mo9]

Hey everyone,

So I was running the monitor at 1280x1024 at 60hz, and it was kinda hard on my eyes( too much flickering).

I toned the resolution down to 1024x768 and cranked it up to 85hz and it's way easier on my eyes

I also did some calibration; gamma was a bit too high. The colours are way better now.

Thanks for all the feedback, cheers.

[AshleyAshes]

Yeah, 85hz was really the go to refresh rate on a CRT.  I have no idea how anyone survived 60hz on CRTs.  Looks fine on a living room TV from across the room but it's just pain when it's a PC monitor on a desk.

[Prysin]

On 07/12/2016 at 6:44 PM, MANIDY inc said:

We will find out in 40 years when all the kids are blind or not blind 

or need to be de-gaussed every two weeks

[GoodBytes]

On 12/7/2016 at 1:18 PM, tlink said:

crt's are easier on the eyes than most lcd panels are, crt's don't have the blue light problem and are really colour accurate when calibrated correctly, only oled has managed to beat it i think. and they often have quite high refresh rates which also is easier to the eye. if you're really worried about it then just stare outside into the nothingness for a minute every hour, thats often what doctors recommend i think.

Correct. But you have to keep in mind that this only high-end consumer grade CRTs, and higher (professional grade ones).

Color accuracy on the cheap monitors aren't accurate. And CRTs, unlike LCDs, color and intensity degrade over time (similar to OLED displays), so to get always accurate colors, you need to calibrate the monitor often... some professionals were doing it every 2 weeks, some even weekly. The shift in colors isn't that much in reality, but they like to work with the best accuracy they can to not loose time in redoing their work, or deliver unprofessional result to their clients (or printer). OLED is a bit more complicated as there is a complex algorithm on the display circuit which  adjust colors (based on the define ones) to offset the calculated, average wear of OLED sub-pixels, especially that they don't wear out at the same time.

 

The CRT must also have a good layer of phosphor applied inside that has the capability to retain the light well to avoid flickering. Also, a high-refresh rate is needed. 85Hz is the usual recommendation (although manufacture of lower-end  consumers grade monitors were pushing 75Hz... but that is a lie just to push their inferior monitors). Of course, higher the refresh rate the better. People were not interested in smooth gaming visuals at the time, as getting games to run at 60fps was already an achievement by itself, but really to eliminate the flickering.

 

They were claim about how CRT were bad for you, back in the day, but there was never really any scientific research to indicate that this was really the case. I believe it is because some people where having "red eyes", or headache after prologue usage. I think, that has more to do with the user being PWM sensitive, and/or most offices, schools, and even consumers, just bought the cheapest CRT monitor can buy. So, horrible phosphor layer, and to make ti worse 60Hz only, and curved glassed, just to screw you over a bit more. The main problem is that at the time, people didn't know, even IT staff didn't even know, and it doesn't help that only some people are affected. This is similar to many people in the IT field don't even know the difference of TN, IPS, *VA, OLED displays... they are all LCD for them, and even if they know somewhat, many don't see the value in them. So everyone in the office has a shitty TN monitor, instead of IPS for a nominal increase in price.

 

That said, CRT does output radiation, but that is silly, because your wood table, your banana, you mouse, your computer, the grass outside, your bottle of water next to you all output radiation. Like all living creature, our body are fully adapted to such environment. What is dangerous are the elevated amount and type that our body can't handle it. While CRTs radiation level is more elevated than many items in our surrounding, but it is well within the safe levels... I mean they were used for years, and no one has any problems. And if you want to compare with cancer rate.. it is more elevated now than before (maybe CRTs were helping... maybe we should return to that ). But if you take a plane to travel, you get more radiation than a CRT would do to you, and people are fine. not to mention the security checks at the airport.

 

Here is a graph:

 

Anyway, CRT are safe.

 

[Mark77]

I had what was, at the time, a very nice 19" CRT.  A Sony GDM-400PS.  Used to get lots of headaches from it.  When I replaced it ~11 years ago with a Dell 20" screen, my headaches went away. 

 

I developed moderate myopia as a kid, largely coincident with staring at a computer screen for hours at a time.  My sister still doesn't need glasses even to this day because she rode horses instead of playing on CRT-based computers.  So there might very well be something to the whole idea that CRTs are bad for people.

[Monkey Dust]

I nearly did myself some damage moving a 24" CRT monitor, does that count?

[aithos]

On ‎12‎/‎7‎/‎2016 at 11:41 AM, mo9 said:

hello,

I'm sure when we were all growing up our parents told us not to use the our computers for too long as they were bad for our eyes.

Well, i did some googling and haven't found any solid proof related to crt's effect on eyes.

What do you guys think based on experience ?

 

note: I have a CRT set up next to my main monitor because it was just lying around my home so i decided to use it.

 

Well, it's not so much a CRT vs some other kind of screen but more because you're staring at something close to your face for extended periods of time while also maintaining a high level of focus and a much lower than average rate of blinking.  That sort of thing is terrible for your eyes regardless of what you're staring at, you could say the same thing about reading a book with fine print but you won't hear people telling you not to read.

 

As for CRT vs LCD, unless you were one of the rare individuals with a sensitivity to that style of display refresh a CRT running 75hz+ is smoother and better for your eyes from a fatigue perspective than an LCD running a much higher refresh rate due to frame permanence.