Traveling with 24inch monitor

Personally, I would probably not bother taking a $150 USD monitor in an airplane (though I can imagine circumstances where it might be necessary). If you don’t have the original box (or don’t want to use it because it makes it look new), I would suggest packing the monitor with something rigid in front of and taped to the screen if you don’t have hard-sided luggage.

If you can get ahold of some foamcore (plastic foam sandwiched between two sheets of cardboard, used for graphic arts etc.) two or three layers of 3/16" thick hot glued together may be sufficient.

I have traveled with some fairly heavy/bulky electronics, a couple years ago I went out to a radiation testing facility on the Canadian West Coast with a couple computers, power supplies test equipment, test jigs, space rated electromechanical assemblies and so on, total more than 80kg packed into Pelican cases and one heavy corrugated carton. It was quite straightforward, though the electronics cost about one extra ticket to bring.

Pelican cases are great, but not cheap and even a knock-off might not be as inexpensive as ordering a monitor on Amazon or equivalent for shipment to your end destination.

I used to fly regularly — as in, hundreds of flights over many years — with a monitor in checked in luggage and the only safe way I found is to use a geargrip shield with the shield covering the glass and the back of the monitor lying on my trusty pillow (which I haul around anyways because I like sleeping comfortably). Either this or the original box can work but too often the original box is not suitable for flying.

Yes, your monitor can be broken from the back, I had one to break so. Inside a hardshell, no less. You need to protect front and back both and have a shield which is larger than glass so it can’t bump on the side either.

Wrapping a monitor in a towel or two is just asking for disaster. Bubble wrap in my experience gets too bulky by the time you assure the sides are protected too.

This, of course, only applies if you are interested in a semi-DIY light weight and relatively cheap solution inside a suitcase. GATOR, Pelican etc have excellent premade solutions that protect your monitor from pretty much anything (short of high explosives). I did try flying with a Pelican and I was satisfied with the protection but I was less satisfied with the weight (go figure).

I have carried a Dell U2417H from New York to New Delhi with a layover in Paris.

How I packed?

• Wrap with two layers of bubble-wrap.
• Lay a thicker cloth at the base of suitcase
• Cushioned edge of suitcase with softer clothes
• Keep the monitor on it
• Keep remaining softer clothes.

The formula is keeping in mind that airport workers do throw suitcases sometimes.

I’ve travelled with a monitor in the checked luggage. It was a somewhat bulky flat-screen from late 2000s. I have to say, I was totally expecting it to not survive the flight since I received it kind of as a gift – the person was going to throw it away. To my surprise it worked afterwards and still works to this day. It was a return flight so the monitor was wrapped in a lot of dirty clothing as to cushion it. With today’s fragile ultra slim displays that crackle when you hold them the wrong way? I wouldn’t risk it.

As for security, nobody asked anything and I didn’t see any signs that the bag had been opened. It was in Schengen Area so your experience may differ.

Done it, works fine in checked luggage, but you need something to avoid pressure on the display surface itself or you’re risking dead pixels.

If you only have one monitor, the best thing I could think of would be a wooden board (ideally something like MDF) taped to the front. For two monitors, I’ve usually taped them together so their screens face each other.

Yes. It is possible to do this safely. The important is to pad the monitor well. Mine (a 27" NEC) survived inside a suitcase wrapped in towels several times and once in yoga mat. If you monitor has a stand that can be separated, it is best to detach it and wrap separately, as I did notice that it detached once during transport, so luckily it popped out instead of breaking.

Be prepared to answer questions and have to unwrap and re-wrap it several times. The last time I flew with a monitor, I was asked every single time to come to security so that they inspect the suitcase with the monitor. This not only included the departure scan but also both stop-overs. One place they even a long argument as to why I would need to be travelling with a monitor. Most times they asked me to unpack it, they inspected it and I was left to pack it again.

You could get charged duties for import if it looks new and that really depends on your arrival country and agreement with the country of purchase or manufacture. It is not possible to know what duty you will need to pay without knowing more. For example, as a Canadian, there is a duty-free allowance that I am allowed to bring back, depending on the duration of my stay abroad and some monitors are below that allowance, in which case no duty is required but a receipt is requested to determine this at the point of entry. If it costs more than the allowance, I would be asked to pay duties on the entire amount, not just the excess. Check duties and exceptions for you point of import.

BenQ GL2480 monitor which is 24 LED MONITOR so the idea of putting it in my normal suitecase and cover it with some kind of protection will be a good idea?

Yes. I actually never had any issue even when not using any protection, but doesn’t hurt to add protection, esp. on the screen side, if you have time for it when packing (I typically casually put some bubble wrap around it, it takes me ca. one minute per screen). Just make sure there are no hard objects next to the screen, eg avoid putting a weight next to it.

what if my suitecase got scanned in the airport and the officer relized it is a monitor i willnot get charged or anything??

No.

Source: I traveled dozens of times with a cheap 24-inch monitor (typically two) in my check-in luggage. It never attracted the attention of the security team or customs.

FYI: Ultralight ~24-inch computer monitor.