Avoid Eye Strain at Work with the Right PC Monitor
Anyone that uses a PC for their work will probably have experienced the eye fatigue associated with staring at a screen for many hours of the day. If this is not managed correctly, it can lead to eye strain, which can even be quite painful. We spoke with TechQuarters, an IT company based in London. They provide business IT support London organizations rely on for tech advice.
One of the top pieces of advice TechQuarters gives out is to take regular breaks when using technology. One good tip they offers was to take breaks and look at random objects from different distances – you’re staring at a screen that is just a few inches from your face, so try and focus on something that are a few feet away, to give your eyes a change of focus; you could even try staring at something very far away, like an object outside your house.
TechQuarters also said that, if you have to use a PC for 8 hours a day, you need to make sure that you’re using a decent monitor to help mitigate the risk of eye strain. They said that are several features one should consider when getting a monitor for work.
Resolution
The resolution of a monitor defines how high quality the display will be. The standard for monitors these days is usually 1080p, which is a known as Full HD – however, there may be some monitors that are still only 720p. There are other common resolutions, such as 4K and 8K, which are both known as Ultra HD – these tend to be on the more expensive end of the spectrum; however, they will provide an unrivalled display quality that will definitely help keep your eyes relaxed. There is one other common resolution, which is 1440p – which is halfway between 1080p and 4K, and is usually seen on ultra-wide monitors; these types of monitors can be good if you use a lot of programs for work, and like to multitask.
Most IT support companies will recommend getting a monitor that is at least 1080p, but the higher the resolution, the easier the display will be on your eyes.
Refresh Rate
The refresh rate is how often your monitor refreshes the image – so when a part of your display changes, like when you open a webpage, it will refresh. The most common refresh rate is 60hz, and this is the rate that most users are familiar with. Some monitors have a very high refresh rate, such as 120hz. These displays will look noticeably smoother, and this may help with eye strain as well.
Brightness & ContrastThis is one of the most important things. As an IT support services provider, TechQuarters always recommend a monitor with good brightness and contrast – because a dim screen will cause you to strain your eyes a lot. Brightness is measured in Nits – the average monitor is between 200 and 300 nits; but some monitors can reach up to 1,000 nits, which is plenty bright enough for any user. As for contrast, the higher it is, the crisper the image will be. It is usually measured as a ratio, such as 150:1 or 700:1 – a high contrast ratio is considered to be 400:1 or more.
