Are two monitors better than one?

We all know because we feel it must be right that a bigger monitor increases productivity. More pixels means you can see more opened windows at the same time, without having to switch applications back and forth. Even better than one monitor is a solution of two or even three monitors, right? Well, I disagree a little with this last statement and it’s not just talks, as I’ve used a dual monitor setup at work and at home in the past half year, enough to get a conclusion and a list of pros and cons of using two monitors or one big monitor for your work/leisure computer.

Special dual monitor stand

First, why I think that two monitors is an inefficient setup is the fact the problem lies in our minds, which are not made for multitasking, thus you don’t need to see 10 windows openend simultaneous as you won’t focus on more than one at a time. Add to this the fact that if you have two monitors you’ll have to move your head/neck many times to cover both of them visually, and that causes a lot of neck pains after prolonged use.

So why isn’t enough a small monitor? Mainly because of the screen resolution that doesn’t allow you to keep more windows opened side by side and here you loose the most time, by having to switch from one application to another. By increasing resolution and screen size (you want something big enough to keep multiple windows on screen but small enough so you’ll only have to move your eyes, not your body to cover every corner of the screen).

My past experience with monitor setups

I’ve had first an 17 inch LCD monitor, enough for most uses or at least it was 3 years ago. I then got the second 17 inch (I haven’t paid for either of them), a moment when I had the dilemma: sell them and buy a bigger one or use them to see what’s the think like. I choose the latter option and tried it for a year, so here’s the pros and cons of this option:

Pros

• huge desktop space which can accommodate many opened applications in visual range
• cheap solution as two smaller monitors are less expensive than a good big screen
• you need less powerful hardware to run games on only one screen with lower resolution

Cons

• actual operating system and drivers/games don’t work very well with multiple monitors setups, so there’s more trouble
• if you don’t get two identical monitors you’ll see differences in colors, brightness, contrast, input lag and so on
• it’s harder to find good quality dual monitor wallpapers – but I’ve got a post with such websites that offer free wallpapers

A few weeks ago I’ve got rid of the two 17 inch LCD monitors and got a bigger 22 inch Full HD LCD. I’ve tested it in working and gaming/movie conditions and I can make a list of pros and cons of using a bigger monitor versus a two monitor setup:

Pros

• less occupied desktop space and less power consumption
• no problems with software
• I don’t have to move my head as my eyes can cover the screen area with little movement
• movies are bigger, games too

Cons

• you need more hardware horsepower to run games at higher resolution
• you struggle more with aligning windows to you can see a web page side by side of a word windows where you write your articles
• a really big screen is more expensive (if I would had bought a 24 inch panel it would’ve been more expensive even if I would have the same number of pixels)

So that breaks it down the dilemma of two monitors versus only one: get a bigger, higher quality screen and you’ll be better off.