PP, laptop, dual monitor?

Ok, I've been reading a LOT about this and still have questions. Not sure if this is the right thread but it was the closest one I could find to deal with this subject. Ok. I have a Sony Vaio and a Dell Inspiron. I do not have a desktop pc. Both of my laptops are glossy screens. Now my question is this. I do all my photo work on my Sony, and love working on it. BUT do I need an external monitor with a matte screen to view my PP work? Also about calibration. Can a laptop be calibrated or should I buy an external matte monitor and calibrator? If so, does it matter what brand of screen or type?

For photo work you really want an IPS or MVA/PVA panel because these are the most capable of displaying correct colours. The most common type of panel and the ones in most laptops are TN which are not really suited for colour accuracy because they are typically only 6bit and have very poor viewing angles, meaning that the image changes if you move your head. Here's a quick guide to what the differences are.

You can calibrate a laptop screen and even if it is a poor quality TN then calibration will make it as good as it is capable of being.

Matt v Glossy is not really an issue as long as you don't have light reflecting on the screen, the panel type is more important.

An external monitor is a good idea as for one, you can get a big one and make viewing images easier. It's not essential though.

Also remember that laptops typically don't have dual LUT capability so if you have an external monitor, you'll have to choose between the external monitor or the inbuilt screen being calibrated. You won't be able to have both matching each other as the graphics card in most laptops can't hold two look up tables.

I have a Dell laptop. When I'm at home my laptop is connected one hundred (100%) percent of the time to an external monitor. I do have the dual screen feature turned on. So I extend my desktop on both screens. I use the laptop LCD for display tool palettes, etc. On the external monitor (View Sonic 22") I use it as my primary display for my all my work.

I use Lightroom 2 and Photoshop Elements for all of my PP needs, Lightroom 95% of the time and PE 5%.

Thanks so much! I'm definitely going to be looking into getting an additional monitor. I'm beginning to think this is the reason for questions on the color of my photographs... They may look one way on my screen but another on a good monitor. Thanks for letting me know what to look for as well!

Remember that even the best monitors still need calibrating.

In addition to obtaining accurate colors using an external monitor it is going to be alot easier on your eyes as well.

The only time I don't use an external monitor is when we're traveling, my laptop is with us. When traveling I don't do any PP on laptop anyways, I use it for web browsing, checking emails and downloading pics from my camera to my laptop to free up space in my memory card.

Also remember to backup all you data (Docs & Pics) in an external drive, for disaster recovery purposes.

Prices have come down signficantly on monitor and external drives.