For CRT monitors, the refresh rate determines the speed that a monitor redraws, or updates, images on the screen. A higher refresh rate reduces flicker on the screen, which helps to reduce eyestrain. The refresh rate is measured in hertz (Hz) and tells you the number & times per second the monitor redraws the entire screen. A CRT monitor with a refresh rate of 72 Hz or more is recommended.

You can physically rotate some LCD monitors from landscape mode, in which the monitor is wider than it is tall, to portrait mode, in which the monitor is taller than it is wide. This feature can be useful when working with documents or browsing the Web.