BenQ FP91V+

BenQ FP91V+

We heard about the FP91V+ months ago. If we only look at the response time, this isn’t the ultimate "killer" monitor but it is close: the new panel is build by AU-Optronics and has a 6 ms response time. It is a little lower than the VX924, but as we had quite a few problems with the ViewSonic 4 ms monitor, we hope that this one will be a bit better. And, as you will see later, it is!

Ergonomics

DVI, analog, internal power supply, the FP91V+ has all it takes to please the most meticulous users. However, it isn’t vertically adjustable, doesn’t have a pivot mode, USB hub or other video inputs.



It features a surface treatment close to Sony’s X-Black series. For games, pictures, colors are more vivid and the contrast seems to be higher than it really is. Images are nice but there is still this disturbing mirror effect when scenes displayed are dark. The worst result is for movies: we clearly see ourselves in the two black stripes surrounding sequences.

Color quality

Our colorimeter is still at the beta stage and once out of two times, it isn’t possible to make the test before calibration. This is unfortunate because we felt that the monitor standard parameters were quite wrong. After manual calibration and after comparing it with a calibrated monitor close to the perfection, the LaCie 321, we felt that results were a bit better with the brightness at 35, contrast 50 and red, green and blue levels manually adjusted at 43, 43 and 34. With these adjustments the white (217 cd/m²) didn’t feature any color predominance and the black still wasn’t deep enough: 1.1cd /m². The contrast ratio measured was only 200:1. The standard white is 352 cd/m² and with a black at 1.3 cd/m², the contrast ratio is 271:1. This last figure leads us to believe that it was better before, but it was definitely too bright with burnt light shades.

Even if this monitor’s possibility to be calibrated by its future owners are very slim, here is what it is capable of, after using our tools and the definition of a new table of colors:



How to interpret the graph

On the left is the gamut: this is the monitor colorimetric range compared to the sRGB range (the one usually used for digital cameras). We are not here talking of its accuracy, but of the range of reproducible colors.

For accuracy, you have to refer to the right graph, the DeltaE. This is a measure between the color requested and the one really displayed on the monitor. The result obtained is also counter-balanced by human color sensitivity.

With Delta E > 3 the desired color is noticeably different from the one on the screen.
With 1 < Delta E < 2 colors are accurate. With Delta E < 1, the result is perfect.

Viewing angles

If we only look at the monitor from the side, we could say for sure that it is a VA because of its wide viewing angles. We would, of course, be wrong since it is a TN panel with a surface treatment. Images are still nice until 110°. It is better than some of the VA and equal to the best IPS panels.

The vertical viewing angle removes any doubts, it is a TN monitor. The image turns to black as soon as we look at it from below.

Interpolation

Play and work in 1280x1024, don’t change the native resolution. As soon as we leave it, it gets blurred. Just as usual. When will a monitor gifted for interpolation hit the market, so as to use it with all resolution and with a game console?

Video games

We have submitted the FP91V+ to a series of duels in clone mode.

Compared to the VP191b, its reaction time was better

It was hard to tell for the comparison with the ViewSonic VX924 as we were disturbed by the micro cuts. Therefore, out of the two of them we clearly prefer the FP91V+!

The FP91V+ reaction time is excellent, we really appreciate this point but we have a hard time getting over the mirror effect. Avoid too dark games, corridors with low lighting, caves… For network games you might be disadvantaged compared to you friends.

About LCD afterglow. Even if this monitor is the fastest one tested, we have to admit that it still isn’t as good as a CRT. One trained user will always spot the afterglow. Not every user has this training, so 99% of them using this monitor won’t see it. This monitor will be perfect for these users. The remaining One- percent will be disturbed and will be right: this monitor still features a slight afterglow. But, honestly, we quickly get over it as soon as we are in the game.

Movies : DVD, HD

My first twinkles, my second reflects in the dark and my third displays vivid but not always accurate colors. What am I ? A monitor not really adapted to video uses.

Verdict

It is really difficult to give our opinion with certainty on such a monitor. On one side, its particular surface treatment gives it an appreciable and impressive shine. The downside is a disturbing mirror effect, bothersome for some uses: dark games, videos…We have to focus more than usual to keep this effect out of account. Its reaction time is very good, it is the best for the moment, but it isn’t sufficient to be awarded the "Champion for games" title. Always because of this mirror effect…

Improvements here show, however, that the TN technology isn’t finished and we hope that other monitors will use this 6 ms panel without mirror filters. But we will still have to check if these monitor will still have wide viewing angles. If they don’t, fast VA panels have a bright future…

Quality / price ratio for polyvalent use: 3 / 5

Take a look at this manufacture’s dead pixel policy by clicking here!

Fujitsu-Siemens C19-4

Fujitsu-Siemens C19-4

The C19-4 uses the same Premium MVA panel as the ViewSonic VP191b monitor. Its huge advantage is that it is 200€ cheaper! And unlike the ViewSonic monitor you don’t have to make sure you are buying the right version. For Fujitsu-Siemens, there is only one C19-4.

Ergonomics

Owing to its low price, the monitor is very basic. The monitor doesn’t have a pivot mode, an USB hub, a DVI input (the VGA cable is interdependent). There is a high-end panel in an entry-level product. We don’t see that very often.

Color quality

The monitor is inexpensive but the color quality is very impressive.

How to interpret the graph

On the left is the gamut: this is the monitor colorimetric range compared to the sRGB range (the one usually used for digital cameras). This doesn’t correspond to its accuracy, but to the range of reproducible colors.

For accuracy, you have to check out the right graph, the DeltaE. This is a measure between the color requested and the one really displayed on the monitor. The result obtained is also counter-balanced by human color sensitivity.

With Delta E > 3 the desired colors is noticeably different from the one on the screen.
With 1 < Delta E < 2 colors are accurate. With Delta E < 1, the result is perfect.



The DeltaE of all the colors requested here is always inferior to 1. This means that all colors displayed are exactly the one requested. The gamut is less impressive. It corresponds to the sRGB, the digital camera standard. This is an average result.

Viewing angles

Like all VA monitors, these ones are wide but not as broad as the manufacturer says. The problem is once again the measure used by the manufacture to establish these figure. We won’t go back on this subject since we already spoke our mind in this other page.

With this monitor, the image is perfect until 100° (50° from the center) and very good until 160°. Beyond that, exterior lighting overly disturbs the picture by reflecting on the monitor. The same goes for vertical viewing angles, perfect until 100°, good but darker beyond.

Interpolation

Even if it may sound surprising to you, the monitor’s interpolation isn’t as good as the ViewSonic VP191b. It is the same panel, exactly the same reference, the color quality is just as good, but resized images and letters are blurrier and the scaly effect is more visible. This is the first time that we noticed so clearly that two monitor with the same panel can produce very different results.

Games video

Without being quite so obvious, there is also a difference with games. The C19-4 is clearly faster than all VA monitors on the market, but its reaction time is slightly slower than the ViewSonic. You can see this difference if you place both monitors in clone mode.

It is perfectly playable. The afterglow is low but it is slightly more visible than with the last generation of TN monitors.

Films : DVD, HD

This time there is no difference between this monitor and the ViewSonic: both of them have twinkling effects in very dark scenes (corridors with low lighting or sunsets), but provide very good results in all other aspects. And, above all, colors are very nice. This isn’t always the case for all LCD monitors. It is possible to watch a movie and really enjoy it. You just need to step back (1.5m) not to be disturbed anymore.

Verdict

If this monitor price was equivalent to the VP191b we would advise you to choose the ViewSonic product. But it isn’t. So if you have a tight budget or if you play a lot but are not hooked on FPS and if you watch a movie from time to time (avoid overly dark movies such a Matrix or Star Wars), then this monitor is a really good choice. The monitor quality is close to the ViewSonic, it is a VA with very wide viewing angles and an astonishing color quality (way better than CRT’s) and it has a moderate price.

Take a look at this manufacture’s dead pixel policy by clicking here!

Fujitsu-Siemens P19-2

Fujitsu-Siemens P19-2

First of all thanks to three reader to made me discover this monitor Gaillots, Lazar and Newbie-Geek.

Ladies and Gentleman, this is the first monitor available on the market with the Samsung PVA 8 ms panel, the same as the Samsung 193P+ to be released this summer.



This is a very intense moment. This survey includes the three VA technologies capable of wiping out TN monitors.

AU Optronics MVA 8 ms –Fujitsu-Siemens C19-4 and ViewSonic VP191b monitors,

Fujitsu MVA 8 ms –Iiyama H1900 and Sony SDM-HS95P monitors

Samsung PVA 8 ms – this P19-2

However, we learned from previous test that we have to be careful on several points. To begin with, never believe the monitor characteristics! Two, check that the panel in the monitor is the one we were looking for. With a screwdriver in one hand, a hammer and saw in the other one, we made a small trip in the P19-2 to find the LTM190E4 panel. This is indeed the Samsung PVA 8ms panel with a 1000:1 contrast ratio.

So the monitor’s objective is to have a better or equivalent reaction time, than the ViewSonic VP191b, and surpass it thanks to its record contrast ratio. One good point for this monitor, we tested the previous 20 ms version of this panel with the Samsung 193P which also featured a 1000:1 contrast ratio. Our measures also led us to this result.

Ergonomics

The monitor bezel is white and in plastic. We tend to prefer metal, but the quality of materials used here is good. The P19-2 is a well thought out and nicely designed product. The monitor is vertically adjustable with a maximum height of 13.5 (distance between the bottom of the monitor and the desk). It is really possible to find the perfect height. It also has a pivot mode.



In the back of the monitor are an integrated power supply, one analog and one numeric input. Nothing too fancy, but just everything you need. For example, it doesn’t automatically change the display mode when the pivot is used, integrated speakers aren’t better than usual, there is no YUV, S-Video inputs, no USB, memory card player…

Color quality

The first selling points of this monitor are the record contrast ratio, ergonomics and the last one, according to Fujitsu-Siemens, is its fast response time. If color quality is the best argument for you, we advise you to buy a colorimeter. They are right: this monitor is capable of the best, but you have to be equipped for that!

This is the result with standard factory adjustments:





How to interpret the graph

On the left is the gamut: this is the monitor colorimetric range compared to the sRGB range (the one usually used for digital cameras). We are not here talking of its accuracy, but of the range of reproducible colors.

For accuracy, you have to refer to the right graph, the DeltaE. This is a measure between the color requested and the one really displayed on the monitor. The result obtained is also counter-balanced by human color sensitivity.

With Delta E > 3 the desired colors is noticeably different from the one on the screen.
With 1 < Delta E < 2 colors are accurate. With Delta E < 1, the result is perfect.

And this is the result after calibration:



Before and after calibration, the brightness level was 271 cd/m² and the black was very deep at 0.28 cd/m². The contrast ratio measured was 968:1. Well done Fujitsu-Siemens, and well done Samsung for the quality of the panel.

Viewing angles

This is a VA monitor. From whatever direction, the image doesn’t completely turn to black or white. The angle where the image is good and accurate is much more reduced that usual. It is only very good on 60°: 30° from above, below, left or right. This is much lower than what the ViewSonic VP191b or even the Fujitsu-Siemens C19-4 are capable of.

Interpolation

Colors are still very nice but it is also as blurred as the competition as soon as we leave the native mode, 1280 x 1024. Our new request is: "We wand decent scalers!"

Video games

I’m sure that some of you haven’t read any of the paragraph above, in order to jump directly here and see how the P19-2 behaves with games…

We are going to disappoint a lot of you guys. This panel was much awaited as Samsung clearly pushed it during the last CeBit. We could try to find the words, but we feel that it is best to be direct: this panel sucks for games. There is no improvement compared to previous 25ms MVA panels. The result is so bad that we even asked ourselves if it wasn’t better before…the characters are all followed by a trail of light comparable to comet tails. There is something like a white fog behind them. It isn’t aesthetically pleasing and is tiring for our eyes as the monitor has some difficulties and gets blurred.

Because games aren’t all FPS, and that some will be pleased to spend hours with the next Civilization IV, we can’t give 0 to this monitor for games but it isn’t far from this grade.

Films : DVD, HD

For this part it is useful to remind you that we tested a Dell monitor, also with a fast MVA panel a few months ago (the 1704FPV). This wasn’t an 8ms yet, but according to Samsung – the panel manufacturer – a 16 ms with overdrive derived from previous generations. This 1704FPV was already disappointing for games and was the first VA monitor with strong twinkling effect in movies. Our conclusion was that we didn’t like the Samsung version of the Overdrive. It gave great results for measures but not for the real quality displayed.

You have probably guessed what we are going to say: exactly the same thing. The twinkling effect isn’t constant, it can be very discreet or absolutely unbearable with some of the scenes. It all depends on the game colors for example. For example, sunsets are very nice but some of our favorite scenes in the Matrix movie are awful. It is unfortunate, because colors are very nice once calibrated (a lot better than average). If you watch a movie with this monitor, step back at least one meter or more if you can. You can even buy a couch to force you to stay far from the monitor and not see pixels in motion. From this distance you will enjoy the movie. But you will still experience this viewing angle limitation. You have to find a way to keep your eyes on the same level as the monitor. Don’t look from above or below as colors tends to change quickly. The sound level isn’t excessive even at full level. It is also quite metallic. We would have preferred a version without speaker for this monitor.

Verdict

Eve if Fujitsu-Siemens mainly push the ergonomics and color quality (to calibrate imperatively!) it is difficult for us not to be disappointed. All users waiting for this monitor, the next Samsung 193P+ or the new BenQ FP91E to buy a really polyvalent monitor will also be disappointed or even angry. Angry, because it is unbearable to see monitors introduced as fast, sold as fast monitors and with this type of results. Even if measures are established according to some norms (and what a norm! when will ISO finally wake up?) and that it is indeed possible to find them with an oscilloscope, what are their real value when we see finally the result? Zero. It isn’t possible to say that they are lying about the product characteristics because they are following the rules. What we can say here, though, is that the response time is less and less a good indicator. This notion was already questionable before, but the introduction of the overdrive has definitively and irreparably disfigured it.

We already said this in the past, and we repeat it: response time is now just an indication for the panel generation. If the response time is > 20 ms, the panel is very old. If it is only just higher than 12ms, it is 1 to 3 years old. And, if it is recent, it is under 10 ms. This is the only information you can get.


Take a look at this manufacture’s dead pixel policy by clicking here!

Iiyama E480S

Iiyama E480S

Iiyama is trying to win back the public. To succeed they have released several new products. There is first of all, the new ProLite H1900 (see this news, test to come), a very high end PVA 8 ms monitor (659€) and, at the opposite end of the price scale, the E480S, a TN 8 ms Samsung panel monitor. The panel is the same as the Hyundai L90D+ and Samsung 913N.

Ergonomics

The monitor look is standard. The black bezel (also available in white) is in plastic and the base could be more elegant.

At the back, there are no video inputs, nor USB hub, not even a DVI input. You just have to deal with the bare minimum: analog input + power supply cable. At least the power supply isn’t external.

Another frustration: the monitor OSD isn’t really handy. Options aren’t properly shared out, the icons aren’t always logical and the monitor controls aren’t well identified. The adjustment navigation isn’t easy and unfortunately you really have to use them …

Color quality

The standard color quality isn’t really satisfying. We have evaluated the color accuracy before and after calibration and results are quite eloquent.

How to interpret the graph

On the left is the gamut, this is the colorimetric range compared to the sRGB range (the one usually used for digital cameras). This doesn’t correspond to the accuracy, but to the range of reproducible colors.

For accuracy, you have to refer to the right graph, the DeltaE. This is a measure between the color requested and the one really displayed on the monitor. The result obtained is also ccounter-balanced by human color sensitivity.

With Delta E > 3 the desired color is noticeably different from the one on the screen.
With 1 < Delta E < 2 colors are accurate. With Delta E < 1, the result is perfect.



If the results before calibration are disappointing, those after calibration are impressive. It shows that the panel, components and electronics have a great potential, but that Iiyama was unable to fully exploit them. This monitor deserves a revision of its standard parameters.

After calibration, the color accuracy is almost as good as VA monitors. Contrast ratio is still a little bit more modest. The white is at 157 cd/m² and the black at 0.6 cd/m². The contrast ratio measured is 261:1.

Viewing angles

The E480S claims a vertical viewing angle of "only" 135°. It might seems a little modest compared to the 170° of other monitors. We remind you that this not only comes from a singularly different monitor quality, but also from a different measuring method. TN monitors manufacturers that announce 160° or above, viewing angles are only using a more lax method. (see here).

In practice the image is still good around the figures announced by Iiyama, 115° vertical, 120° lateral. Beyond, the image brightens (from above, left or right) and darkens from below. This darkening from below is the main characteristic of TN monitors. This little trick helps you recognize one of them at first glance.

Interpolation

The interpolation isn’t especially bad, but it isn’t worse than other monitors. The quality is much lower and it is possible to see clearly that we aren’t in native mode if that is the case.

Games, videos

This panel is well known, and we aren’t surprised by its results. It is a very good panel with a fast reaction time and once calibrated for us, or patiently adjusted, it will provide very nice colors. Up until today, it was the panel with the fastest reaction time. However since December (date of the previous survey) and today, two new panels were released.

First came the AU Optronics MVA 8 ms, present in the ViewSonic VP191b. We already underlined all the panel’s qualities and the fact that, despite major improvements, its reaction time is still slower than the Samsung TN tested here.

And today a new TN AU Optronics panel has been released with a 4ms-response time. It is included in the ViewSonic VX924. The non-finalized product we received is quite clearly faster than the E480S panel. The downside is that pictures are less flowing with the VX924 and colors are even less satisfying. If the final product was identical to the one tested here, then we would still prefer the Samsung 8 ms panel.

Films : DVD, HD

It is a TN panel, we already know it, so you won’t be surprised to hear that it features the usual twinkling effect in color scales. It is even more obvious in dark areas. Dots are swirling and color scales aren’t perfect. You need to step back (1.5m) not to be disturbed.

Verdict

The panel is good, but the monitor is really too scanty. The Samsung 913N price is now comparable, the Hyundai L90D+ is just a little bit more expensive but features much better ergonomics. And now there is a new competitor: Fujitsu-Siemens C19-4. Its reaction time is indeed a little slower, but its viewing angles are much better and its video quality is better. Briefly, it is more polyvalent and its price is even lower.



Take a look at this manufacture’s dead pixel policy by clicking here!

Iiyama H1900

Iiyama H1900

The H1900 surprised us several times. Iiyama had first introduced it to us on paper last April. At the time, the available information was that it was a PVA 8ms monitor and that it would cost about 659€. Now that the monitor is about to be released, this information has been considerably modified. The panel is a Fujitsu and, above all, Iiyama says on their website that it would cost …900 € before VAT ! If that is indeed the case, it would cost about 1,100€ VAT included. For this price it had better be good!

As regard Fujitsu, it is surprising to see this manufacturer at this level. We remind you that we reported in February the sale of their panel LCD activity to Sharp. We have to believe that there is still an agreement that allows them to sell their products.

Ergonomics

Inevitably the price of the monitors goes along with exceptional ergonomics. Pivot mode, vertically adjustable, 2 DVI inputs (to clone the monitor on a second identical monitor or to build a wall of pictures).



The analog input included is removable and can be changed into RCA and S-Video inputs.



There is also a four ports USB Hub and the monitor’s adjustments are no longer made from controls in front of the monitor but from Windows, with a software that is easier to use. However, it lacks a sensor to automatically adjust parameters according to ambient brightness. The Nec LCD 1980FXi, its direct competitor includes one…

Color quality

Now each time, we carry out a first test to evaluate the monitor’s initial parameters. As our tool is still at the beta stage, this test doesn’t always work. With this monitor, we obtained the standard monitor gamut, but not the DeltaE. This failure is less disturbing than with other monitors as we can imagine that someone who spent 900 € before VAT will probably calibrate its monitor.

Here are some results after a couple of adjustments:



How to interpret the graph

On the left is the gamut this is the monitor colorimetric range compared to the sRGB range (the one usually used for digital cameras). This doesn’t correspond to its accuracy, but to the range of reproducible colors.

For accuracy, you have to refer to the right graph, the DeltaE. This is a measure between the color requested and the one really displayed on the monitor. The result obtained is also counter-balanced by human color sensitivity.

With Delta E > 3 the desired color is noticeably different from the one on the screen.
With 1 < Delta E < 2 colors are accurate. With Delta E < 1, the result is perfect.

It is fortunately very good. However if the average DeltaE is very low, this result is still a little disappointing. This very high-end monitor gamut isn’t better than standard LCDs. We had hoped that Iiyama or Fujitsu would have given us more for our money and replaced the backlight, for example, to extend the addressable colorimetric space.

This result is excellent but not better than other MVA, 8ms monitors 2 to 3 times cheaper. Even worse, it is barely better than the Samsung TN 8 ms panel included in the Iiyama E480S.

Viewing angles

After very good (but not perfect) colorimetric results, we found out that this panel’s viewing angles were lower than usual. The image is still perfectly visible from a wide angle, but colors are only perfect (this is very important for a graphic designer monitor) up to 40°. Beyond 20° on each side, colors tend to grow pale. Sony, who also used a new Fujitsu panel, has added efficient filters to open up viewing angles.

Once again, we can also assume that this monitor will be used with a hood and that the viewing angles won’t matter…hum…

Interpolation

The H1900 resolution can go up to 1600 x 1200 pixels. What? Is this monitor capable of changing its resolution, is it the one that will finally correctly resize images and texts?

No

At 1600 results are very blurred. It is a little less blurred at 1024.

It isn’t better than usual.

Video games, DVD films and HD

The Iiyama website gives the highest grade to this monitor for DTP, CAD and office uses (8 / 8). The Japanese manufacturer is less enthusiastic for games and gives itself a grade of only 4/8. It is quite surprising for a VA 8ms monitor and not a very good sign for the results of our tests.

Well, in the end, this grade was still quite generous. This monitor isn’t introduced by Iiyama as gifted for games and they are right. We advise you to only work with it.

There is however, one good small point in favor of Iiyama: despite different characteristics, the H1900 and Sony SDM-HS95P panels are both 8 ms G2G produced by Fujitsu. Results are indeed quite close but a little bit better for Iiyama. It is probably due to better electronic components.

For movies, just like the Sony flat monitor, this one features twinkling effects in color scales. Colors are vivid but are ruined by the color scale imperfections. Once again: this is not a monitor for games or videos!

Verdict

Iiyama insisted on this point: despite a fast reaction time this monitor hasn’t been designed for games but for picture editing and graphic design. And they are perfectly right. Its ergonomics are excellent, and its color quality is excellent (amongst the best). But the problem is that it isn’t the best. This monitor’s price would be justified if it actually was the best. Six months ago this positioning would have been justified. For the last six months, however TN panels have improved, AU Optronics which has been building its panels since March 2003 based on the 180 patents from … Fujitsu, is now better than the master and Samsung is about to release its own 8ms PVA panels. This is a cutthroat market and we feel that the monitor price positioning isn’t clearly justified. Even if it makes Iiyama unhappy, they should divide it by two.


Take a look at this manufacture’s dead pixel policy by clicking here!

Nec LCD 1980FXi

Nec LCD 1980FXi

Relatively expensive for a 19" monitor, the 1980FXi is a professional high-end monitor dedicated to picture editing and creation. This is the only 10 bits monitor in this survey. This color range has certainly been obtained with a 8 bits +2 dithering. This is also a monitor based on a LG-Philips with a new 18 ms response time. And nothing excites us as much as a new panel.

Also, even if I take a dig at IPS, some of you are still fervent supporters of this technology. With a bit of luck and thanks to this panel, we will be reconciled.

Ergonomics

It isn’t the first time, NEC has included a standard OSD menu and another, hidden, one that is more complete. We advise you to use it, it is much richer. To access this menu, switch off the monitor, push the select control and switch on the monitor simultaneously. It unlocks three options: the Rapid Motion for movies (it is supposed to reduce the afterglow, it is initially on "off" position, we haven’t noticed any improvements after activation for scenes in motion or credits scrolling), the tile Matrix (to build walls of pictures) and the adjustment of the LED intensity in front of the monitor.



Otherwise, the monitor has a pivot mode, the base is vertically adjustable, and it includes one analog input as well as two DVI.

The latest improvements included by NEC: a sensor to automatically (when activated) adjust the image when the room lighting increases or decreases. Unlike the Sony sensor, this one is very efficient.

Color quality

Like with the Samsung monitor, if the monitor is connected via the DVI input, it is impossible to access the RGB channels adjustment. This time, however, it doesn’t matter as colors are well balanced from the beginning. In spite of that, it seems preferable to acquire a colorimeter and seriously calibrate the monitor.

How to interpret the graph

On the left is the gamut, this is the monitor colorimetric range compared to the sRGB range (the one usually used for digital cameras). This doesn’t correspond to the accuracy, but to the range of reproducible colors.

For accuracy, you have to refer to the right graph, the DeltaE. This is a measure between the color requested and the one really displayed on the monitor. The result obtained is also counter-balanced by the human color sensitivity.

With Delta E > 3 the desired colors is noticeably different from the one on the screen.
With 1 < Delta E < 2 colors are accurate. With Delta E < 1, the result is perfect.

Results before calibration, test with standard parameters



As usual the DeltaE with standard parameters are important but it is not the worst monitor ever encountered. This result is above average.

Result after calibration





A monitor calibration always improves the display quality. One conclusion is drawn from the right graph: IPS monitors are no longer condemned to have a bad color quality. This result is by far the best obtained with a monitor of this type.

This graph however doesn’t report the white and black levels. They are respectively 231 cd/m² and 0.6 cd/m². As usual, the black brightness level is a little superior to the last VA and TN panels’ generation.

Viewing angles

This is very good. The image is very good until 120° (60° up, right and left). This result is even better than MVA panels.

Interpolation

The result isn’t better than usual. The sharpness decreases when we leave the native mode.

Video games, DVD and HD movies

Like the Iiyama monitor, this one hasn’t apparently been designed for games or movies. It provides however pretty good results in both areas. This is the first good IPS for movies! The twinkling effect usually present is here extremely low. We can then fully appreciate the very wide viewing angles, accurate colors and good color scales. Movies displayed on this monitor are superb! They also benefit from the Rapid Motion option that sensibly reduces the afterglow in movies. It is still, however, quite present in games.

So, because of the afterglow this monitor isn’t good for FPS. Like previous IPS it is good enough for the occasional games to relax between two meetings but no more.

Verdict

The monitor is expensive but it features at least three major advantages.

First, it showed us that it was possible to include a sensor to automatically adjust display parameters on an affordable monitor (just as a reminder 19" monitors prices two years ago were all between 1000€ and 1,200€).

Second, this is the first IPS monitor with a very good display quality for movies without excessive twinkling effect. This proves that LG-Philips, the panel manufacturer has successfully improved the technology and especially the dithering. The chances for this monitor to be a native 10 bits are very low. The monitor probably supports natively 8 bits and correctly interpolates the additional 2 bits.

Finally, the monitor color quality is better than anything we have ever seen on an IPS monitor.

It is also important to add to all these qualities, a somewhat wider viewing angles than in VA monitors. In the end this monitor is therefore very satisfying…but expensive.

There is still one annoying downside: it lacks one essential improvement: a better reaction time. As regard the improvements made by rival technologies, the future of IPS panels for general users seems to be seriously compromised.


Take a look at this manufacture’s dead pixel policy by clicking here!

Samsung SyncMaster 930BF

Samsung SyncMaster 930BF

The 930 BF is with the 730 BF (we took the opportunity to test this identical 17” version at the same time), the first Samsung monitor with a 4 ms panel. This manufacturer´s intentions, however, weren´t always that clear. Unveiled last March at the CeBit, this panel was supposed to be released in a monitor named 930B before summer. In May they changed direction and said the 930B would be suspended, maybe even cancelled, and replaced by another monitor to come in August at best. When we had lost almost all hope, here´s the 930BF, in a version close to the one revealed in the CeBit. With the same black plastic body, only the base changed to being round instead of rectangular. Here comes the revolution!


The first thing to notice is the panel´s origin. Was it manufactured by Samsung or, to release the monitor on time, did they use an AU-Optronic panel? 30 seconds later thanks to our saw (just kidding), we found out it was a Samsung!

It´s a completely new panel. Dismantling the monitor also helps us to see more about the product´s overall quality, which in this case was quite mediocre. Inner pieces can be taken apart and nothing is fixed down, a real pleasure for testers like us who were Lego champions in our youth. We took the screen apart, took a few pictures of the interior and reassembled in exactly 30 seconds. The cables and metal protection were moveable, and all in all, we found this to be in harmony with the screen´s unrefined appearance. Despite the lowest response time, the new panel and the DVI interface, the 930BF is an entry level monitor. Finishing touches have nothing to do with the P series, but in the end this is for the best as this monitor is more affordable.

Ergonomics

The base is non-moveable, non-vertically adjustable and there is no pivot mode. There is just the internal power supply (now almost always the case) and a DVI input.

Color quality

The 930BF claims a 700:1 contrast ratio with 160° viewing angles. If the number of reproduced colors wasn’t 16.2 million, we would have even doubted the panel´s technology. On paper, TN monitors have once again evolved. In practice, you will see it´s also the case if you own a colorimeter. Without this precious tool reserved for professionals (costing from 150- 300 €), monitor adjustments are extremely difficult. The contrast ratio is really 700:1 (with the white at 210 cd/m² and 0.3 cd/m²), but colors aren’t accurate. This isn’t catastrophic, however. For example, black is dark but not a true black. Also, other colors are slightly inaccurate being a little too cold (with a predominance in blue). To play games, watch movies, or launch a slide show this isn’t a problem and probably won´t bother you. On the other hand, it isn´t ideal for picture editing. You may make corrections for your monitor, possibly your printer (if you can progressively anticipate the difference), but not for a professional printer or your friends´ screens.

The OSD menu design is unpleasant and difficult to use, so we advise you to avoid it. It´s best to use the graphic card´s parameters to adjust brightness, contrast, backlighting and gamma settings. Take a gray scale on one side and adjust the other parameters until seeing all levels. This is better than nothing.

How to interpret the graph

On the left is the spectrum and the monitor´s colorimetric range compared to the sRGB range (usually used for digital cameras). This doesn’t correspond to its accuracy, but to the range of reproducible colors.

For accuracy, there is the graph on the right, the DeltaE. This is a measure between the desired color and the one actually displayed on the monitor. The result obtained is also counter-balanced by human eye color sensitivity.

When Delta E > 3 the desired color is noticeably different from the one on the screen.
When 1 < Delta E < 2 colors are accurate. When Delta E < 1, the result is perfect.

Before calibration :



After calibration :

Viewing angles

Photos are taken at a 50° angle. You can immediately see that it´s indeed a TN panel with the lower viewing angle almost equal to zero and the image immediately darkening. From each side and above the image is still good at 40°, but after this brightness changes, being less homogeneous and ambient light reflections start to appear.

Interpolation

Quality is strictly identical to the VP191b and slightly above average. But we are still far from the expected result. As usual, only work and play games in standard mode, otherwise images are blurred.

Video games

Up until now, tests of fast Samsung panels always gave very different results. In terms of TN panels, we were disappointed by the 12 ms, then we loved the 13 ms, which we encountered for the first time in the Belinea 10 17 35. We also liked the 8 ms a lot, probably a version of the13ms withoverdrive that in practice didn´t change a thing. We didn’t see any differences between the two, and as both were excellent we can expect nothing more.

For PVA technology, results were clearly less satisfactory. The 16 ms followed by the 8 ms panel haven’t brought any improvements in terms of afterglow. The overdrive probably improves measurements and is good for a product´s specifications, but in practice the result brings strictly nothing! The PVA 8 ms (in the Fujitsu-Siemens P19-2) is far from being comparable to the ViewSonic VP191b MVA 8 ms panel.

In short, for games Samsung is capable of the best but also the worst results.

For this 4ms, performance was excellent! It´s much faster than the previous 8 ms, which is obvious in clone mode. There is an improvement, but it isn’t the revolution we expected. The most finicky users will still notice some afterglow.

Once again, its perception depends on the user. It definitely exists, but only bothers a minority. There are some that claim they are demanding, but don’t notice it on an IPS 16 ms monitor, which we find totally unacceptable. On the other hand, there are those that won’t understand how we could qualify this monitor with a high enough reaction time for intensive gaming. No one is right or wrong. The afterglow is here but it affects us differently. We´ll just say that 5% of users will still find it excessive.

Compared to the BenQ FP91V+, 6 ms

We couldn’t compare this monitor to the VX9224, which at the moment is still only available in its pre-series with a couple of bugs (acknowledged by ViewSonic). They will be corrected with the final version, which will be available in next few days. So we asked BenQ once more to send us their current fastest monitor, the FP91V+.


At first sight, the main difference between the two monitors in gaming isn’t the level of afterglow but the difference in colors. The FP91V+´s are much brighter and more accurate and pleasant to the eye. They are so much brighter that unfortunately they still have a mirroring effect. We immediately preferred playing with the BenQ. If we consider the afterglow in deciding which one is fastest we declare Samsung the winner. Differences were minimal, however. We really had to look for details to give the advantage to the 930BF, and it does have the lowest reaction time. Once again this doesn’t mean that afterglow is non existent.

Films : DVD, HD

As usual with TN panels, and especially for Samsung, there is a strong twinkling effect in videos. This is not the strong point of this monitor, all the more so that the lower viewing angle is very small. Children will have a hard time with this screen and they won’t see anything. In addition, you can´t move the monitor toward the user. A tall person can incline it a few degrees but a smaller one can’t.

Verdict

Samsung has suspended its zero dead pixel policy, standard adjustments aren’t very good, and the OSD menu isn´t easy to use. In addition ergonomics are at a minimum and the plastic body has no interest whatsoever. Well, nothing makes this monitor stand out except for its performance in gaming. Our opinion is that this screen is for games only, especially fast ones. Otherwise why buy the monitor with the highest reaction time?



Take a look at this manufacture’s dead pixel policy by clicking here!

P.S. Next week we will receive the new version of the ViewSonic VX924. We will see if the 930BF can keep the title fastest monitor…

Samsung SyncMaster 930MP

Samsung SyncMaster 930MP

It is one of the latest tendencies: the LCD monitor is now in your living room and is used equally as a computer monitor, TV and for the game console. The 930MP is one of the most complete monitors available on the market and even includes a remote control.

Ergonomics

The easiest way is to start with what the 930MP doesn’t have. It doesn’t have an USB hub, nor a pivot mode and it isn’t vertically adjustable.



And now what it does have:

SCART plug (one),

DVI input, D-Sub 15 pins (analog),

YUV, RVB, S-Video, RCA inputs,

RF antenna (radio),

integrated tuner,

a nice remote control.



Unfortunately, it also has an external power supply. It isn’t huge but it is no longer the tendency to have it outside the monitor. Frankly we prefer it to be invisible, hidden in the monitor.

Color quality

The standard color quality could be very much improved, according to our test tools …



How to interpret the graph

On the left is the gamut this is the monitor colorimetric range compared to the sRGB range (the one usually used for digital cameras). We are not here talking of its accuracy, but of the range of reproducible colors.

For accuracy, you have to refer to the right graph, the DeltaE. This is a measure between the color requested and the one really displayed on the monitor. The result obtained is also counter-balanced by human color sensitivity.

With Delta E > 3 the desired colors is noticeably different from the one on the screen.
With 1 < Delta E < 2 colors are accurate. With Delta E < 1, the result is perfect.

The gamut is normal. With the DeltaE, the result is awful. In fact, it isn’t as bad as it looks. This measure amplifies the reality. Of course, the colors displayed aren’t the right ones, but they aren’t completely crazy either. In fact, they only seem lighter than the one requested. This is what our eye sees. Our tool doesn’t make the difference between a wrong color because of a different shade or in the same shade but a little too light. Colors aren’t crazy to the point where all users will change their monitors’ adjustments. The image displayed wasn’t shocking like with the VX9224 (see further).

Anyway, a calibration singularly improves results.

Calibration with DVI input

According to the legend, DVI monitors resituate nicer pictures and faster. We have fought against this erroneous notion from the start, and we demonstrate here, once again, that it is inaccurate. Using the DVI input doesn’t improve the monitor response time but it can cause some problems with the monitor colors. Some monitors, including this one, cut the access to several user adjustments by means of the OSD, in numeric. Here, for example, it is impossible to independently adjust the red, green and blue channels. It is only possible to adjust brightness and color temperature. This smaller amount of accessible parameters has a negative influence on the monitor color quality. Here is the best result obtained:



Of course it is clearly better than the standard results. Here is the result obtained after the same adjustments with a VGA input but with the possibility of accessing the color channels:

Calibration with VGA input



Colors are even better, especially the dark ones, closer to black.

We might also think: if it is impossible to adjust RGB channels with the monitor why don’t we do it directly from the graphic card? You will indeed find advanced display parameters quite easily, as well as the option for adjusting colors. However, in our opinion, even if you really have a good eye, this tool isn’t handy at all. It only allows you to make wrong adjustments. It is possible to have access to brightness, backlighting, and contrast, and with the advanced mode, the RGB graphs. But all of this doesn’t help to easily adjust your monitor. When you know that all options available in the OSD aren’t enough and that you will find them in the analog menu, why would you choose the hard way?

Viewing angles

It is a standard VA monitor, but not a recent panel. Unlike the TN monitor, the image is still visible almost from the top of the monitor. It is, however, best to consider that colors are still accurate until 100°. Beyond that, they tend to get lighter.

Interpolation

This monitor is a multi-source. Potentially, it could have as its source a DVD recorder, soon an HD player, a computer, a console game…All work with their own resolutions, so it is essential that this monitor be capable of resizing pictures.

How disappointing that is! DVD and HD movies quality is good like all LCD monitors but console games or computer games’ quality with another resolution is strongly reduced. When will the manufacturer improve the component’s quality in order to resize pictures???

Games video

With a 25 ms response time, we were expecting horrible results and tests confirmed our fears: the 930MP reaction time is awful. With a computer, there is some afterglow and with a console it is even worse because, on top of this, there is the problem of picture resizing.

Anyway, this monitor hasn’t necessarily been designed for this particular use (but we feel that it could still be legitimate to use a console with this monitor). All its video inputs tend to use it for movies.

Films : DVD, HD

The good point is that the twinkling effect is very, very discreet and only appears in the darker images. This is the best result with this type of panel. Light and intermediate colors quality is good and color scales are progressives, everything is fine so far.

The problem is once again, the reaction time. And we cannot leave out of this account the blurred areas due to the low speed of liquid crystals, the multiplication of characters while in motion, trails of light…The image is really ruined by the afterglow. Once more, we aren’t all equally sensitive to this problem but when we know what the other monitors are capable of…

Verdict

Take a look at this manufacture’s dead pixel policy by clicking here!

Sony SDM-HS95P

Sony SDM-HS95P

The HS95P includes a Fujitsu MVA panel with a 12ms response time. That means that it would be a fast panel, different from the one included in the ViewSonic VP191b. Will this monitor combine very wide viewing angles, good color quality and a fast reaction time?

Foreword: I wrote a news item last April 14 saying that Sony has successfully improved the X-Black 2. The monitor presented didn’t feature any mirror effect as disturbing as with the previous X-Black and X-Bright monitors’ generation. One month later we were finally able to order the first monitor of this type: the SDM-HS95P and it was a huge disappointment, the mirror effect is still present. Obviously, the monitor presented one month ago wasn’t an X-Black at all. So I apologize to all of you who hoped for a better monitor to come



The new Sony range design differs seriously from the previous generation. Instead of a base, there is now a prop, the bezel color is now black and several pictograms are found on the left side of the monitor.



The HS95P apparently promises us fantastic results. Almost complete viewing angles, a 1000:1 contrast ratio, a fast reaction time, and a sensor to automatically adjust the brightness and an intense brightness.

Ergonomics

The new look includes the replacement of the base by a non-vertically adjustable prop. The monitor doesn’t have a pivot mode either. We have the choice between DVI and analog interfaces, but there is no USB hub. The only really new trick is: an automatic sensor to adjust the brightness. The problem is that we didn’t find it very efficient. Playing in the dark or with the light switched on hasn’t changed the brightness: 294 cd/m² for the first case and 295 cd/m² for the second. Switching the lights on or off considerably reduced the panel mirror effect. But at this stage it is important to remind you of a couple of details.



Sony doesn’t build any panels and only added some value to their high-end monitors with the X–Black technology. Sony described it for us in this previous article.

In a nutshell, they changed the back lighting system and added filters to the panel to reinforce the contrast (or an impression of contrast). The problem is that these filters turn the panel into a mirror. We clearly see ourselves in the monitor, but not when the light is shut down.

The HP95P has the price of a very high-end monitor but standard ergonomics. Now we will have to hope that this price will be warranted later on, with the other tests.

Color quality

On the one hand, there is a monitor with 1000:1 contrast ratio, and on the other a brightness measured around 300 cd/m². To keep its promises, the HS9P should be able to provide a 0.3 cd/m² black. The result in practice is: 0.8 cd/m².



How to interpret the graph

On the left is the gamut this is the monitor colorimetric range compared to the sRGB range (the one usually used for digital cameras). This doesn’t correspond to the accuracy, but to the range of reproducible colors.

For accuracy, you have to refer to the right graph, the DeltaE. This is a measure between the color requested and the one really displayed on the monitor. The result obtained is also counter-balanced by human color sensitivity.

With Delta E > 3 the desired colors is noticeably different from the one on the screen.
With 1 < Delta E < 2 colors are accurate. With Delta E < 1, the result is perfect.

Just as a reminder, we made this test with all , IPS, MVA and Lumileds panels here.

The comparison of this graph with the other ones shows the HS95P’s good results. Its gamut is very close to the sRGB colorimetric space. Compared to this space, we usually find a little weakness in the blue compensated by a good green level. The DeltaE graph is better than any of the five reference monitors.

Viewing angles

This monitor illustrates once more the foolishness of the measures taken to establish viewing angles. It is surprising, but this time, the norm used disadvantaged this monitor. Sony introduces the HS95P with 170° lateral and vertical viewing angles. If we just stick to this figure, this monitor would only be average, since even TN monitors now announce this level of characteristics, whereas VA claims to reach up to 176°. However, this monitor provides, thanks to the X-Black 2 filter, much better than average results.

It is, though, important to differentiate between two situations.



At night, with no other light sources than the monitor, the image is superb, without reflection and has almost complete viewing angles. The 170° claimed are accurate this time. Colors are in fact perfect until 130° for vertical and horizontal viewing angles, then beyond they tend to get lighter but it is still very good.

In daylight, the panel reflects surrounding lights. The viewing angle will depend on how your lighting reflects on the monitor. In the end, it will be much lower.

Interpolation

The result is comparable to the quality obtained with the ViewSonic VP191b: it is better than average but there is still some work to do in order to let the user choose any of the resolutions to work. The quality is immediately reduced as soon as we leave the native mode.

Video games

It is the biggest disappointment: the afterglow is really present on this monitor and it is just barely better than 25 ms MVA monitor. There is no, or very little, progress (especially if we compare this panel to the new MVA AUO). Blurred areas due to traveling are so strong that we were disturbed even with World of Warcraft, which doesn’t require a fast reaction time. Of course, if you are caught up in the game, you may not pay attention to this problem. However, as soon as the character is passive, for example while traveling, it is possible to see disruptions on the sides of the objects which don’t appear with very fast TN and MVA panels.

It is even worse with FPS games. We don’t advise you to use it with this type of game.

Just for your information, this Fujitsu panel has a response time of 12 ms according to the ISO norm, and 8 ms for G2G. Iiyama using a very similar model for the H1900, chose to use this characteristic for their monitors.

Films : DVD, HD

It is getting worse. If VA monitors so far meant good quality for video, this one features, like the TN monitors, a strong twinkling effect. Colors are superb but pixels are moving and it is quite annoying.

Faced with this result, we have to ask ourselves whether if these VA are sill real 16.7 millions f colors panels, or whether, as we feared during the CeBit (see this news), some of these new panels only reach 16.2 millions of colors with dithering.

Verdict

Take a look at this manufacture’s dead pixel policy by clicking here!

ViewSonic VP191b

ViewSonic VP191b

We already wrote an article on the VP191b. We felt however that it would be unfair not to include this monitor in this list since it has the potential to be a winner.



First of all, we remind you that ViewSonic had the bad idea of keeping the same name as one of their previous monitors, instead of finding a new one. The result was quite a mess in shops. To spot a new 8ms version, a third generation, you need to look for a sticker placed on the right side of the box:

Color quality

The VP191b was tested before the new color evaluation procedure. Like for many other monitors, the test before calibration didn’t work, so we only reported the one made after:



How to interpret the graph

On the left is the gamut this is the monitor colorimetric range compared to the sRGB range (the one usually used for digital cameras). This doesn’t correspond to the accuracy, but to the range of reproducible colors.

For accuracy, you have to refer to the right graph, the DeltaE. This is a measure between the color requested and the one really displayed on the monitor. The result obtained is also counter-balanced by human color sensitivity.

With Delta E > 3 the desired colors is noticeably different from the one on the screen.
With 1 < Delta E < 2 colors are accurate. With Delta E < 1, the result is perfect.

Just as a reminder we made this test with all , IPS, MVA and Lumileds panels here. The comparison of this graph with the other ones shows the HS95P’s good results . Its gamut is very close to the sRGB colorimetric space. Compared to this space, we usually find a little weakness in the blue compensated by a good green level. The DeltaE graph is better than any of the five reference monitors.

It is very good. It is hard to find anything to say about these results.

Games, movies

Fast, the VP191b is really faster than the previous VA generations. The comparison with TN monitors show, however, that TN still are slightly faster. The Iiyama E480S, for example, with the Samsung TN 8 ms panel has, in practice, a lower reaction time. It is the same for the Samsung 913N and Hyundai L90D+ of the previous roundup, including TN panels. It is also consequently slower than the VX924, but the VP191b doesn’t have flow issues like the other monitor. It is also faster than the C19-4, including the same panel, and is a lot faster than MVA 8 ms based on the Fujitsu panel.

Even if it isn’t the fastest monitor, this excellent behavior will please almost all gamers. I say almost all of them, because there are still a few users who will continue to claim the superiority of CRTs (and it is true) and won’t go near an LCD monitor.

After a couple of hundreds of LCDs test, and hours spent playing with all sort of monitors, our conclusion is that its reaction time is very good, and it is even possible to play FPS games.

About movies, and we already said that before, this monitor features twinkling effect in dark areas but has a good image quality for the rest.

Verdict

The color quality is very good, it features very rich ergonomics for a general user monitor. The monitor design is rather dated, but its reaction time, its ergonomics and viewing angle are such that this monitor is finally, the most polyvalent on the market and our favorite for the moment.



To have more information about this monitor : read the full test

Take a look at this manufacture’s dead pixel policy by clicking here!

ViewSonic VX924 prototype

ViewSonic VX924

ViewSonic has successfully released two very nice monitors. They released first the VP191b, the first LCD monitor with a fast reaction time and extra wide viewing angles. Today, they are once more the first to release a monitor with a 4ms-response time panel. Our tests confirmed this figure: this really is the fastest monitor on the market. This panel is even better than the Samsung 8 ms included in the very good Samsung 913N and Hyundai L90D+ monitors. However, there are a couple of downsides…

First of all we have to specify that ViewSonic sent us a pre-series. The unit tester isn’t the final product and, as we noticed a couple of problems, we asked ViewSonic to let us test once more, later on, the final sales version.

Ergonomics

According to the pictures circulating on Internet for the past few months, this should have been a very nice monitor. This pre-series’ finishing touches are, however, disappointing. To begin with, the bezel is made of plastic and not metal and it isn’t the nicest plastic either. Then some of the pieces fit loosely and squeak when pushed. Just grabbing the monitor to incline it produces sounds that we would have preferred never to hear.

ViewSonic has also added some sort of grey frame to the black panel. This grey frame moves with a "slatch!" sound under a single finger’s pressure.



The OSD is accessible via the " 1 " control on the monitor. It isn’t at all obvious and the lack of clear indications is sometime misleading. If you press the control "2" the image displayed disappears: the monitor looks for another video source signal (from DVI to analog or the other way around).

About ergonomics, the bezel is quite good-looking but the base is fixed. It isn’t vertically adjustable and the monitor doesn’t have a pivot mode. There is no video input, no sensor to automatically adjust the brightness according to ambient lighting, no memory card player, and no USB hub… Only the essential is present: power supply DVI, analog input.

Color quality

Once more we repeat , this monitor isn’t a series product. This is a good thing because the standard adjustments of this monitor are quite surprising. You just need to open your wallpaper, a movie or play one of your favorite games to realize that the colors aren’t accurate.

How to interpret the graph

On the left is the gamut: this is the monitor colorimetric range compared to the sRGB range (the one usually used for digital cameras). This doesn’t correspond to its accuracy, but to the range of reproducible colors.

For accuracy, you have to refer to the right graph, the DeltaE. This is a measure between the color requested and the one really displayed on the monitor. The result obtained is also counter-balanced by human color sensitivity. With 1 < Delta E < 2 colors are accurate. With Delta E < 1, the result is perfect.


Before calibration, test with standard adjustments


After calibration



The least we can say is that ViewSonic’s team hasn’t just carried out wrong adjustments. If you look at the DeltaE graph before calibration, you clearly see that it was easy to spot the color problem. Our new test procedure is recent, only one month old, but this high score will be difficult to beat.

After calibration, results are fortunately a lot better. If we consider as good, results inferior to DeltaE = 3, the quality of this monitor is satisfying. After correction (quite long, hesitant and irksome – without the colorimeter we could never have reached this result), the pictures finally featured the right colors.

For the best adjustment, reported above, the white is at 239 cd/m² and the black at 0.39 cd/m². The contrast ratio measured is 613:1. This result is good especially for a TN monitor.

Viewing angles

The image displayed is still nice until 130° on the side and only 60° for vertical viewing angle.

For the vertical viewing angle the 60° repartition is in fact 45 above and 15 below.

This result is far from the 160° claimed. If there is a chance that ergonomics or color quality might improve with the final product versions, chances are that viewing angles will remain identical.

Interpolation

We could remove this step as all answers are almost invariably identical, but we feel that it is important to keep it for the manufacturer to understand our requirements and our disappointment in this area. Not a single monitor is capable of displaying a nice picture in any resolution other than the native one. Of course, it is still possible to play but the quality will be strongly reduced: a little blurred with less sharp shapes and sometime a scaly effect…We have to play in 1280x1024 and it is too bad for you if your graphic card isn’t powerful enough.

Video games

Let’s get to the point: yes this panel is the fastest one ever tested here. But no, it isn’t our favorite to play with.

We might consider that the occasional gamer or user will be pleased by such a response time. This is true, this panel is very fast and the afterglow is even lower than before. Since the release of their 16 ms panels, this is the first one produced by AU Optronics where we can clearly see an improvement. We feel that the AUO 16, 12 and 8 ms are simply identical. Adding the overdrive to the panel helped to improve the communicated response time for grey to grey but didn’t result in any real progresses. For us AUO has stagnated with TN panels for the last two years.

This panel finally marks new changes. The improvement to 4ms is due once more to the overdrive obviously even more intense than the one applied to the VP1191b. If we noticed a reaction time improvement, we also spotted the apparition of micro cuts especially visible during lateral traveling. Objects in motion aren’t flowing perfectly. This problem isn’t really perceptible when the character runs straight ahead of him. However, if it turns a little, this effect is immediately perceptible and it is frankly unpleasant. Not everyone will perceive it but for intensive gamers it is a very disturbing effect. It is so unpleasant that we even prefer a monitor with a slower reaction time such as the Iiyama E480S.

Films : DVD, HD

There is a strong twinkling effect = very average result for movies. This is a secondary monitor to use for video sequences but not as a potential substitute for your TV.

We tried to put ourselves in the shoes of a standard user. We adjusted the monitor as best we could without using our colorimeter, to see the type of results we could obtain. As we feared with the color test, the results were disappointing. We were soon faced with an unsolvable gamma problem. Images feature too much contrast. Blacks are too black, white too white. Using the contrast, brightness and color parameters aren’t enough.

Verdict

Same player shoot again. This first test excited us very much, but our conclusion can’t be final at this stage. We spotted too many problems, finishing touches, color quality, fluidity…we hope that ViewSonic will soon send us one of their new units. We also expect the color problem, at least, to be corrected. Our expectations are lower for the other problems, but it would be a good thing to see an improvement in the pictures’ flowing.



Take a look at this manufacture’s dead pixel policy by clicking here!

ViewSonic VX924 2nd version

ViewSonic VX924

Samsung and ViewSonic are in competition to release the first 4 ms monitor. To benefit from the amount of interest this product announcement has stirred up, ViewSonic sent English and French magazines a pre-series version before its Korean rival. This kind of behaviour is common, the press (and us especially for monitors) being fond of exclusivity.


This time we were unfortuneate as the model they sent us was defective. ViewSonic missed this first release, and they acknowledged it after our test showed there were problems with unfluid movements, especially noticeable with lateral movement. All hope wasn’t lost, however. The problem was reported to upper management and then to the research lab, which updated the monitor’s firmware with two corrective patches. The updated VX924 isn’t disappointing; the unpleasant finishing touches on the body, and the colorimetric and flow issues have all disappeared.

Ergonomics

We weren’t really excited about the first prototype. Monitor pieces didn’t fit perfectly and produced nerve grating sounds when we pressed on them. The finishing touches didn’t correspond to a $499 product, and this was quite surprising as they already have experience with the same design. This body is also found on the previous VX910 and VX912.

As we expected, ViewSonic made some changes and sent us a better product. Pieces were all in place and don’t move when a button is pushed. This is good but also normal!

The monitor’s design is appealing, but ergonomically it is less so. The screen looks very pleasant compared to the Samsung 930BF, which is too dark and unattractive. The VX924 is a lot nicer. The two monitors share a couple of disadvantages, which shouldn’t be seen on high end products. They aren’t vertically adjustable and controls aren’t clearly identified. We could also have expected, even if not everybody needs it, a USB hub, pivot mode, video input or tuner. In the end, the ergonomics correspond to an entry level product. We pay good money to have the latest panel, and we hope that other manufacturers will soon use the same components so that prices will drop!

Color quality

The VX924 pre-series failed almost every test including this one. Factory adjustments were completely wrong. The ViewSonic France representative who was present during the tests had a strong reaction when she saw these results. Again we feared the worse with the new model, but ViewSonic made some real efforts. Now this is even the main advantage of this monitor compared to the Samsung 930BF as colors are quite accurate (graphic designers can forget about it however), vivid and sparkling. They beautifully enhance movies (from a certain distance, we will get back to this point later) and games. Compared to the Samsung, which is also quite difficult to adjust, the ViewSonic clearly wins in this domain.

How to interpret the graph

On the left is the color spectrum. It’s the monitor’s colorimetric range compared to the sRGB range (usually used for digital cameras). It doesn’t correspond to accuracy, but to the range of reproducible colors.

For accuracy, you have to refer to the graph on the right, the DeltaE. This is a measure between the color requested and the one actually displayed on the monitor. The result obtained is also counter-balanced for human color sensitivity. With 1 < Delta E < 2 colors are accurate. With Delta E < 1, the result is perfect.

Initially

The colorimeter confirms most of our first impressions: the most vivid colors are particularly well reproduced, the darker ones are not. Here the Delta E goes sky high.



A couple of manual corrections

We significantly improved color quality by reducing contrast and especially brightness. The good thing is that the standard 6500 K color is accurately defined. It wasn’t necessary to intervene on RGB channels to get a balanced image.

After calibration

Obviously, using a colorimeter strongly improves results. The black becomes really black. Initially it was at 2 cd/m² (!!!), and then at 1,5 cd/m² after manual calibration. It’s now 0,37 cd/m². This washed out result before calibration isn’t really disturbing for game play and you have better vision in darker areas. Be especially careful, though, when editing colors in pictures as the final result on another monitor or paper may be too dark.

Viewing angles

TN monitor lateral viewing angles have considerably improved.


Pictures are taken from a 50° angle. As is usually the case with TN monitors; the inferior viewing angle turns to black way before the manufacturer’s figure. But compared to the Samsung 930BF, it is less « worse ». 160° in the monitor’s specifications is, however, a little exaggerated…

Now honestly, how can the horizontal viewing angle (the picture in upper right corner) and the vertical (the two images below it) be seen as equal? It’s clearly not so. So either there is a serious problem in the definition of this value or else it’s an unacceptable policy by manufacturers in giving any value they want. The problem isn’t new and we have been aware of it for five years now at behardware.com. It’s still infuriating to see such values and that consumers can do nothing about it.

We thought only consumer associations could do something, and we alerted the two most active ones, which are responsible for all problems connected to flat monitors, dead pixels, etc. They politely refused to handle the problem, and one explained that one of their team already dealt with the subject. Ok. One of them even mistakenly left “sent them the typical refusal letter” on thier reply to us. So, I guess we can only insist in our articles on the lack of rigour on the part of manufacturers as we have today.



By “Still good” we mean the angle up until which colors are still accurate. The “Still satisfactory” is the limit beyond which colors are completely wrong. As long as we remain within this angle shades are similar, beyond it they are not.

Interpolation

No improvements in this area despite the double corrective patch. It’s sharp with standard resolution and blurred with any other.

Video games

We conducted a lot of tests with the monitor in clone mode and compared it to the:

VX924 1rst version, the prototype we kept.

The Samsung SyncMaster 930B, a Samsung TN 4 ms previously tested

The BenQ FP91V+ we asked BenQ to send us this monitor again for this test.

For the first test, the VX924 prototype against the VX924 with the two patches. The winner was the VX924 new version! The first had movement flow issues (as we said in the first article) and it’s obvious as soon as a game is started. We also quickly spotted color corrections, which make them more natural and nicer with the new monitor.

Compared to the Samsung 4 ms the result is less obvious. Samsung wins but not by much. After a couple of minutes if we pay attention to this aspect only, not to the game, we see that the Samsung monitor is slightly faster for all color changes. Afterglow is slightly less perceptible. It hasn’t disappeared, though, and CRT fans will continue to see it with the SyncMaster 930BF even if it is low. We actually preferred playing with the VX924. First of all, the ViewSonic monitor is nicer, not the most important aspect but it matters. Colors are also much more vivid. The Samsung’s seem dull (we already saw that during the comparison with the BenQ monitor).

We also compared it to the BenQ (and we thank the manufacturer for this second loan). Here was a surprise (or actually it was what we thought might happen) the VX924 and the FP91V+ display exactly the same results. The two images are vivid, colourful and pleasant. Afterglow was identical, in our opinion. There is no particular progress between the AU Optronics 6 and 4 ms panel and, in fact, it’s something that we saw before. We felt that the Taiwanese manufacturer’s 16, 12 and 8 ms panels had similar afterglow despite different response times. AU Optronics confirmed our doubts during the CeBit, that panels were strictly identical except for a different overdrive application. There are slight algorithm variations, so slight that machines measuring response times (and we feel that they are no longer up to date) are fooled. When playing or watching movies, it doesn’t make a difference.

Here we are probably facing the same situation. The 6ms panel is different from the previous generation, but this 4ms seems to be similar with one or a couple of Overdrive adjustments to win a couple of milliseconds and change characteristics. It doesn’t make any difference in practice.

It is nevertheless a victory because of the applied mirroring effect. This is very popular in Asia according to manufacturers (Sony, Neovo, Nec, BenQ...) but we don’t really like it. We don’t see the interest of seeing ourselves as soon as our character walks into a dark room. They invariably respond that this filter reinforces colors. But as we see with the VX924 the filter isn’t necessary as colors are sparkling and the mirror effect present on the BenQ isn’t seen on the ViewSonic monitor.

Films : DVD, HD

We won’t be too hard on this monitor here. There was some progress compared to the VX924 pre-series as colors are much more accurate. The twinkling effect is still present and viewing angles are narrow. TN monitors might be useful for occasional video viewing but not to watch an entire movie. At least this is our opinion.

Verdict

This second attempt is a success. It isn’t the fastest (Samsung is slightly ahead), but the VX924 largely makes up for it with much nicer colors.

The latest ViewSonic panel is quite expensive. Here for once we know that the displayed price is directly due to the component as the previous and much cheaper VX910 and VX912 uses the same bezel and are covered by the same warranty. The VX910 is often sold for under $350 , and the VX912 is occasionally found for similar prices.

This price gap is too high so let’s hope that manufacturers will quickly release other 4ms panel monitors to give Viewsonic some incentive to lower their prices.




Take a look at this manufacture’s dead pixel policy by clicking here!

Conclusion

Conclusion

To the question : which monitor is the best today, the jury answered unanimously :



The verdict is given: the new challengers including TN 4 ms and Samsung/Fujitsu 8 ms panels haven’t replaced the ViewSonic monitor, which is still, for us, the best balanced monitor on the market.

This monitor won’t, however, be the best for all monitor users. This is the one we recommend for a multiple use: games, office, picture editing, video, surf…

If you have a tight budget (almost 200€ cheaper), the Fujitsu-Siemens C19-4, a monitor including the same panel than the VP191b with lower ergonomics and little higher afterglow will be a very good choice.

Hard core gamers will still benefit more from a TN panel. The 4ms version hasn’t convinced us and we are waiting for a final version to see if some of the problems we noticed are corrected. While waiting for these corrections, the Samsung TN 8 ms panels monitors are still the most interesting. More and more are now under 400€: there is the Iiyama E480S tested here, the Hyundai L90D+, the Samsung 913N…
The first 6ms, the BenQ FP91V+, has the best reaction time, but the panel surface treatment – mirror effect – disturb us. It isn’t really annoying for games, but it distorts colors and reduces movies quality.

For graphic designers, you have two options. If you have an important budget you will find the new Nec LCD 1980FXi a very good choice. This is a very good IPS monitor. If you feel it is too expensive, the new VA AU Optronics will be perfect once it is calibrated. The Fujitsu-Siemens C19-4 has an unbeatable price/quality ratio.

Finally for video, the NEC monitor also provides the best results ahead of VA panels. This is the first time that we obtained such a result. Once more, if you prefer to save your money for other things, the VA of Fujitsu-Siemens and ViewSonic are excellent choices (with twinkling effects in dark areas).

Survey : Episode II

This new roundup doesn’t replace the last one published for 19" monitors, it completes it. The tested products are still in shops. It is, however, best to make an update of the monitor prices tested in December.

You will also notice the price reduction in less than 6 months: 25%.

> Access to the previous 19" survey: 8, 12, 16, 25 ms

We also remind you that we published a 17 inches survey, another one for 20 inches and a third one dedicated to 23 and 24 inches monitors.