Pick a new monitor for me (and cat-proof it this time)

May 2, 2024 12:40 PM

Someone chewed on my monitor and cracked it, and now portions of the monitor are annoyingly distorted and unusable. (I don't sleepwalk and eat electronics, so process of elimination suggests the large floofy monster-child decided to have a midnight chomp session.) Help me pick a new affordable 27" monitor, and a protective monitor cover so this new one doesn't get eaten too?

Budget for this is limited, I was not expecting to have to buy a new monitor.

I use my 27" monitor for gaming (mostly with my Nintendo Switch) and connecting to my Macbook Air (M1 chip) with an HDMI cable. I use a VESA mount to connect the monitor to a monitor arm (side note: how do I figure out what size VESA mount?).

Suggestions for monitors? Would love to keep it under or in the neighborhood of $100, if that's realistic.

I'm also hoping to find some kind of sturdy monitor cover for cheap. I'm finding "dust covers", but this isn't going to be sufficient for the cat who chews on cabinet knobs and other nice crunchy hard items. (This is honestly a step up from his habit in his first year of life of seeking out electrical cords to gnaw.) I need a thicker, sturdier monitor cover to ward off his pointy demon teeth. Thoughts/ideas/suggestions? I guess I can build one out of cardboard and duct tape in a pinch, but hoping to get something slightly classier and less bulky to store when not in use.

(Random P.S. Anyone know how to rotate images on ImgBB? For some reason, some of my Cat Pics are coming in sideways, even when the original that I'm uploading looks fine on my computer.)

posted by cnidaria to Technology (14 answers total)

Response by poster: Oh, also, my living space where I do my computing can be *very bright* at certain times of day, if that impacts external monitor selection at all.
posted by cnidaria at 12:41 PM on May 2

I would suggest a 26 in x 26 in sized* pillowcase. Ideally in a fabric that you find super attractive, but floof does not. Consider spraying said pillow case with “bitter apple” spray. In addition, consider leaving aluminum foil on your desk as a deterrent.

*Other pillow dimensions might work if you can find/modify one with the opening on the larger side.
posted by oceano at 2:46 PM on May 2 [1 favorite]

Monitors with a wider bezel (the frame that surrounds the actual display panel) are a bit more nom-resistant, but they're getting harder to find. The current trend is toward thinner, smaller bezels, or even "frameless".

It probably wouldn't look great, but I'd be tempted to cut down a wooden picture frame, or make my own, to fit around your new monitor's bezel and make it bigger. Either wider, or deeper, or both, so kitty can't get their mouth around it to damage the fragile display panel. Sort of, picture the display panel on your monitor surrounded by a 3" or 4" wide frame, something far too wide for kitty to get their jaws around it and puncture the display panel.

This would work best on a monitor with rear- or bottom-mounted control buttons, instead of on the front of the bezel.
posted by xedrik at 5:04 PM on May 2

Best answer: Pool noodle? Or a less garish version.
posted by kjs4 at 5:59 PM on May 2

Many years ago Rose the Cat knocked over and killed an old iMac while prancing upon our desk. Rose was kinda grumpy but a very nice cat, and now missed, RIP.
posted by ovvl at 6:21 PM on May 2

Response by poster: Any recommendations for an actual monitor to buy that will be "good"? I have no clue about any monitor specs, it's never a thing I got into. What am I looking for?
posted by cnidaria at 6:49 PM on May 2

Response by poster: I'm also pretty overwhelmed with life chores and tasks lately, so unlikely to build anything complex, at least in the short term. Pool noodle or bumper strips sound like a solid maybe, though!
posted by cnidaria at 6:51 PM on May 2

Best answer: Regarding VESA mounts, you can tell what type you have by measuring the distance between the mounting holes in millimeters (along the sides, not diagonally). Most monitor mounts are 100x100mm.

$100 is very much a "beggars can't be choosers" price point when it comes to monitors. This ASRock 27" full HD monitor looks decent enough, though. That said, if you know what make and model your current monitor is, we might be able to make a more informed suggestion for a replacement that at least won't be a downgrade from what you currently have. Good luck finding something that doesn't have the extremely tiny bezels that are all en-vogue these days though, if that's something you need.
posted by Aleyn at 8:51 PM on May 2

Nthing it would be helpful to know what is your current monitor to calibrate your current expectations. New brand name 27 inch monitors these days will start at $100.
posted by oceano at 9:25 PM on May 2

Best answer: Wow, I had same thing happen to a monitor. Cat bit the edge and wrecked it. For the new monitor I got a piece of plexiglass and duct taped the top edge to the top of the monitor.
posted by MadMadam at 4:51 AM on May 3

Response by poster: I have a BenQ GW2780-B, which seems to be selling online for $129, which isn't awful.

I'm not necessarily in *love* with this monitor, though -- I found the extensive menu of settings confusing, and it's hard to get it calibrated so I can play video games and get good colors, except when it's nighttime. Like, I think of that as a projector problem, but it definitely became a monitor problem. I tried to turn off the auto-sensing brightness features but it wasn't very effective at fixing the problem.
posted by cnidaria at 7:51 PM on May 3

Looking up the specs on that monitor, I'd say most 27" monitors around the $100-150 price point will be pretty similar, specs-wise. You may want to double-check that the new one supports the port you use to hook it up to your computer (e.g. HDMI, DisplayPort, VGA) so you don't also have to buy a cable and/or adapter while you're at it.
posted by Aleyn at 9:40 PM on May 3

I am a bit late to this party but I wanted to suggest some cat proofing that has worked for me - Grannick's Bitter Apple Spray. I think this is originally supposed to be applied directly onto dogs but I have a cat who chews anything made out of plastic including electrical cords. What I do is take a paper towel and dampen it with the spray, and then rub it onto whatever plastic thing I am trying to keep him from eating. My cat will take a few experimental chomps and decide it is too disgusting. He has a good memory and I don't often have to re-apply. This is available on Amazon and it looks like Chewy.com also has a similar product.
posted by janepanic at 8:15 AM on May 5

Response by poster: Got the monitor Aleyn recommended, on the on-sale link they provided! It is totally great for my purposes.

I am currently hiding the new monitor when I'm not using it, but thinking I will try out the bitter apple spray and weatherstripping bumpers recommended by kjs4. If this feels insufficient I'll move on to a pool noodle and/or plexiglass.

Thanks, team!
posted by cnidaria at 2:43 PM on May 12 [1 favorite]