Flat-panel festival
The prices are coming down which means LCD monitors are fast becoming standard on the desktop. And business-grade 19-inch monitors are holding their own when it comes to the desktop market.
For this review, we will look at sub-AU$1000 19-inch models. What these monitors lack in depth they make up for in width and height. And such a large screen means you can push these models far away and still be able to see. We had 11 vendors submit monitors for this review, and as mentioned they are all sub-AU$1000, some well under this price.
What to look for
- Quality of image. Look for sharpness of text, refresh rate, and contrast ratio. In particular, look at tearing: the effect noticed when there are fast moving graphics or video images displayed on the screen. This is mostly a large jagged line across the screen which flashes up for a millisecond -- it is fairly hard to percieve and occurs mostly during high-contrast changes, ie black background with fast white flashes across it. Also look at bleeding: when colours tend to run into each other, primarily around their edges. This occours mostly with colours such as yellow and light pinks.
- Policy. Scrutinise the vendor's dead/bright pixel policy (zero-pixel means not one faulty pixel) to ensure that if the worst case happens you will have manufacturer support.
- Features. Look for USB hubs, and inbuilt speakers, which may be a benefit if those clunky separate speakers are taking up real estate on the desk.
- Style. Aesthetics in the office are becoming an important fact of life, especially in professional environments.
All the monitors submitted for this review were spot-on 19 inches in viewable size, and all had both digital (DVI) and analogue (D-Sub) video inputs. Some had USB ports, some had speakers, others had landscape/portrait display swivels and some had really great adjustment options.
Both the AG Neovo and the New Q feature a glass pane. Glass does protect the LCD screen itself, however, displays which have glass can be too reflective, picking up light which affects the display. It can go either way -- good protection for the panel but poor visibility due to the reflections. It is a personal or purchasing choice that will need to be evaluated at the time of procurement and it should consider the environment that displays will be used in.
The innovative base used on this monitor is really the device's standout feature. Attached to the four VESA threads on the rear, the base is easily removed to allow for wall or ergonomic arm mounting, but why you would ever want to remove this base is beyond us. Firstly it allows the monitor to tilt forwards and backwards through a decent range (although not as much as most monitors in this review). It also allows the monitor to rotate from the landscape to portrait position.
The base also performs a left/right swivel action, which most monitors do not, and it operates like a telescope to enable height adjustments up to 100mm. The base itself, while looking quite small, is sturdy and it would be difficult to knock this over even with the full 100mm extended.
The menu system of the Acer takes a while to get used to but this said, it is no brain teaser. Display Mate setup is very straightforward and the AL1922 showed very good contrast. The colours did tend to bleed in the higher range -- predominately red, yellow, green, blue, and pink. Text and graphics though were very crisp and clear. Yellows were reproduced very well and whites were very bright. Fast video playback showed virtually no tearing and the colours and depth of field are excellent.
3DMark exhibits slightly more tearing but is definitely one of the least affected monitors in this review.
The price, at AU$849, is not the cheapest in (that goes to the BenQ at AU$649), but for the features, such as portrait/landscape swivel and speakers, the Acer certainly makes up for its higher price.
Thirty-six months warranty seems to be standard for tested monitors, with the BenQ and the Sony taking it one step further offering on-site for the full 36 months. So overall, the Acer is one of the most adjustable monitors reviewed -- definitely comparable to the HP.
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I have always been a fan of the AG Neovo brand for obvious style its quality of materials. The E-19A model is no exception to this. The monitor is black all over with subtle silver highlights.
The E-19A's rear has a Kensington physical security port, DVI, D-Sub, audio, and 12V power inputs. Power is delivered via an AC adaptor. The base is sturdy with limited movement -- it is confined to backward tilt only. It is removable and there are VESA mount points behind a removable plastic cover.
The menu system on the Neovo is the older OSD (on screen display) style and it takes a bit of getting used to.
DisplayMate tests (diagnostics application for monitors/displays) showed that contrast is not the E-19A's strongest point, particularly on graduation. White also appears grey and muted, possibly due to the protective glass over the front of the monitor itself. Colours are adequate but bright blue and pink tend to bleed at the higher end of the scale, and yellow takes on a definite green tinge. While the video playback and 3D Mark tests performed quite well in respect to speed and minimal tearing, the depth of field was definitely lower than most of the monitors on this test.
Where the AG Neovo does edge out competition is in the style stakes -- it is just a pity there are no AV-type inputs on this display as it would look just as great in the family room as on the desk.
The price of the AG Neovo is only AU$712 which is very good for a flat panel with such style. This includes the integrated speakers. Overall, it is not particularly flexible in its ergonomics, but for the style conscious, the AG Neovo makes sense.
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The BenQ FP91G has a silver bezel with a black rear and base. The monitor's rear features a Kensington-type physical security lock port, an IEC power socket, a DVI-D, and D-Sub video inputs. The base is detachable and VESA mounting points are provided. The smallish base only allows limited forward/backward tilt movement. Due to the arch in the base and four small rubber feet, when tilted all the way backwards it could easily topple over -- the centre of gravity sits well behind its rear two feet.
The FP91G's menu system is straightforward and easy to use. Display Mate setup took a very short time. Both the dark and light contrast tests were very good, and the colours were excellent with white being very bright and black very black. Yellow is also reproduced very well making this one of the better displays in this review.
When it came to video playback, the BenQ certainly had a great depth of field, however, it was prone to tearing in some of the faster scenes -- tearing was also apparent in the fast movement tests of 3DMark.
It may have been the cheapest monitor in the review, cashing in at US$649, but it was also one of the best performing displays.
While this is certainly a no-frills unit, at the end of the day it does what is required and comes up as a definite for any 19-inch LCD evaluation shortlist. The BenQ also comes in with a 36-month on-site warranty -- pretty hard to beat.
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We thought the Acer had a commanding height adjustment, but then we unpacked the HP 1955 -- the telescopic base ranges a full 130 millimetres. The bezel is silver and just as slim as the Mitsubishi DV197SB's measuring under 15 millimetres. The rest of the display is black.
The rear of the monitor has the removable base and VESA mount points along with a Kensington security port. There is another power switch on the rear as well as an IEC power socket, DVI, and D-Sub inputs, a USB input, and two more USB ports.
The base is sturdy with an excellent movement from left/right swivel to the 130mm telescope and very good forward/backwards tilting. The monitor easily rotates from landscape to portrait position. The rear of the screen has an integrated recess which would make carrying the monitor easy (if you ever need to cart a 19-inch display around), it also helps to give the user purchase to raise and lower the screen.
The menu system on the HP is very refined and includes an advanced subsection which can be turned on and off to save confusion. When we ran the Display Mate setup and tests we were very impressed with the contrast range of this monitor, and the colour range was also good, including the yellow, however, bright blue tended to bleed slightly.
Some tearing was noticeable in the faster playback sections of movies but the depth and colours were very good, which more than compensates. 3DMark also showed up its fair share of tearing, particularly in dark scenes with a lot of sudden, fast, bright movement. In terms of picture display this one of the top monitors submitted for this review.
This is a very well designed monitor, with practical features such as a wide range of motion, a very slim bezel lending itself to multiple display environments, and with four USB ports.
The HP comes in at AU$899 which considering the features is a fair price. It has similar flexibility to the Acer, but with an ultra slim bezel, USB ports, and slightly better display quality, which edges the Acer out.
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This is one of the three more style-orientated LCD monitors submitted for this review. It has a black bezel with a hint of silver frame around the edge, a gloss white back, and a chrome mirror ring for a base.
There are no speakers on this monitor and the 12-volt power is delivered through a brick-type AC adaptor. The power, DVI, and D-Sub video inputs are all located at the rear of the base and not on the monitor itself which means neat cable routing can be achieved.
The base is not removable but through the display can be folded horizontally and has integrated clips in the ring base which lock in. The bottom of the base has the standard VESA mounting holes. The screen is also rotatable from landscape to portrait. Due to the design of the base, there is a virtually unlimited movement of rear tilt, however, forward tilt is restricted. The viewing height of the monitor can also be adjusted a small degree but there is no left/right tilt without physically moving the whole monitor and base.
The menu system is very good but it takes some getting used to -- the touch sensitive buttons lend themselves to getting inadvertently knocked, particularly the large power one -- on several occasions we accidentally turned the monitor off when trying to adjust and tune the settings. Display Mate tests were good across the board, contrast, colours, and yellow included. Graphics and text are both very crisp and clear.
Video Playback and 3DMark were crystal clear with very minimal tearing and great contrast ratio and therefore field of depth.
Priced at AU$999 this model is obviously relying on its stylish design over everything else -- the LG has definitely had a lot of design put into it and is certainly innovative. The performance is also very good, however, at this price there are a few better options in this review. If one can swallow the price then the LG provides the best compromise of style versus function and performance.
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Having the same width of bezel as the HP 1955 -- measuring in a just under 15 millimetres -- the DV197SB would be very well suited to multi-monitor displays.
The rear has a Kensington physical security port, a DVI, D-SUB, and 12V jack for use with the AC adaptor. There are no integrated speakers in this monitor. The removable base is attached to the VESA mounting points and the base enables the user reasonable forward/backward tilt and quite good height adjustment. There is no left/right swivel action.
With Display Mate the DV197SB didn't have as great a scope on the grey and contrasts as some of the other monitors in this review. The colour separation, on the other hand, was easily one of the best in the line up. Graphics and text were very crisp with yellow being quite good, but it did take on a very slight bluish-green tinge.
Video playback was good with excellent contrast and depth but 3DMark did show some tearing, slightly more than average for monitors in this test.
At AU$699 the Mitsubishi is the second cheapest monitor in this review. The thin bezel is definitely a boon to those requiring multiple displays without the need of any extra bells and whistles, or price for that matter, of the HP. But if bezel width is not an issue, then BenQ at AU$50 cheaper with better display performance beats the Mitsubishi in the no-frills 19-inch LCD display stakes.
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Another stylish LCD, this one features a finish that is almost pearlescent, translucent, silver/white. The rear looks like something that would suit the set of a space adventure series.
The rear of the monitor has a Kensington security lock, power switch, an IEC power socket (input) and a DC power jack (output). Also residing on the rear are DVI and D-Sub video inputs. There are no integrated speakers with this model.
The base is a work of art -- its telescopic height ranges through 110 millimetres and it has a lazy-susan swivel under the round plastic foot similar to the Philips 190B6 with a range of forward/backwards tilt. The only thing it is really lacking is a landscape/portrait swivel. There is also excellent cable routing up the base's "leg" and a plastic cover is provided to keep everything hidden and neat. The base is removable and there are VESA mount points.
The menu system is nothing short of excellent -- NEC engineers have done their homework on this one. The small joystick enables the operator to navigate with ease, the way all menu systems should be. Display Mate setup showed that the NEC performed well in contrast but fell down in virtually every colour -- red, orange, yellow, green, and pink tended to bleed towards the upper end of the scale. Yellow also tended towards a mustard hue. When playing back video, the colours seemed muted but the depth of field is good. Again this depth could be seen in the 3D Mark tests, but there was some tearing on the faster scenes.
This is another monitor which looks stylish but at AU$769 seems a little expensive. While there is a great height adjustment available there is no landscape/portrait swivel. If height adjustment is not a requirement but style is, then one would be better looking at the likes of AG Neovo.
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This display has a silver bezel and base with a black rear. The display front has a glass sheet over it which is opaque around the borders.
While first impressions from a distance are that the monitor is rather stylish, the quality of the materials and the workmanship are not. There are no integrated speakers but the vendor has supplied us with a set of very small cheap-looking external speakers and bases. These can also be wall mounted.
The rear of the monitor has no Kensington keylock port. It does, however, have audio in and out, D-SUB, DVI-D, S-Video, and BNC Video in, and BNC Video out ports along with a 12-volt jack to connect to the supplied AC brick adaptor. There are also VESA mounting points on the rear.
The base, which is removable, has an excellent range of rear tilt which once past a certain point allows gravity to take over and the relatively heavy display drops over on its back. The forward tilt is minimal and there is no swivel or height adjustment available.
It has a very good menu and control system, making this monitor a breeze to setup and configure. Display Mate showed that the display lacked a great deal of contrast but the colours were quite good, with only bright blue and bright pink tending to bleed into each other. White was very bright and yellow was reproduced very well.
The glass screen tended to reflect quite a lot but the vendor has assured us that the models which will be shipped have an anti-glare coating to reduce this. Personally, I think that out of the three monitors submitted with reflective screens (Sony, AG Neovo, and NewQ) the NewQ has the best display.
When playing back video there is a definite lack of depth but the range of colours and minimal tearing make up for that -- the same comments hold true for the 3DMark tests.
This is a very good concept but poor quality materials leaves the feeling of cheapness. The small things, such as the base, which looks good but has limited movement and allows the monitor to fold back once tilted past a certain point, and external speakers, were good ideas but poorly and cheaply executed. Even the glass covering over the display (which is not removable) had dust particles trapped in it and towards the lower centre of the panel it had two small marks which looked like dried up water or glue. The monitor also shipped with drivers on a floppy disk, not a CD. The redeeming features are the colour quality, minimal tearing on fast scene movement, and the S-Video and BNC video inputs.
The jury is still out on this panel -- if the quality of materials were better then there would be no doubt. At AU$749 it is well priced considering the features and quality. Display performance is also quite acceptable. Definitely worthy of consideration, but may not end up on the top of everyone's list.
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The all-silver front, rear, and base with subtle black highlights makes the Philips monitor look quite professional and refined. This monitor has speakers integrated into a grill at the bottom of the bezel and the left hand side of the monitor has a single USB port, a boon for those memory stick addicts out there.
The rear of the unit has VESA mounting points, and the base is removable with four small Philips-head screws neatly concealed behind a plastic cover. There is a Kensington physical lock port, audio in port, and headphone out port, USB input port, an IEC power socket, and both DVD-I and D-SUB video input ports.
The base has an excellent design allowing a relatively wide range of movement in most directions -- forward/backwards tilt, up/down to some degree, and a glide swivel which is a bit like a lazy susan under the round base cover.
Philips definitely has one of the better looking menu systems that is also easy to use. Display Mate showed very good contrast and the colours were also acceptable, however, blue at the higher end did tend to bleed. This is offset by the fact that all the colours appeared so bright and vibrant, almost leaping off the screen. Yellow was also very good.
Due to the excellent colours video playback was great, and the depth of field was very good. Some tearing occurred in the fast scenes and this was also reflected in the fast scenes within 3D Mark. It had one of the best pictures of all 11 monitors in this review, definitely putting it up there with the BenQ and the HP.
At AU$849 this monitor is certainly worth its money. The lack of portrait/landscape swivel is the biggest disappointment, but the performance is very good and the integrated speakers and USB combined with the refined professional look makes it a worthy display. Definitely put this one on the shortlist.
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Sony is always relatively strong in style. The SDM-HS95B has a very unique look, and seems to flow up off the table -- it sort of looks like it would be right at home in the kid's bedroom or the kitchen bench as a flat panel TV more than a computer monitor. The display panel has that really dark, black, glossy quality that we have seen in several of Sony's notebooks -- most of the other LCDs are matt black.
The rear of the monitor has a IEC power socket, a DVI-D, and a D-SUB input. There is also a Kensington security lock port and there are VESA mount points. The base is not removable and is actually strange -- it comprises a small paddle which means that the front of the monitor's leading edge sits square on the desk.
To adjust the tilt of the monitor the user simply pulls, or pushes, the top of the monitor towards, or away from them.
The small paddle has a roller on it which rolls across the desk's surface and the whole mechanism being spring loaded holds the display in place when let go. This means there is no height or swivel movement at all but the tilt is not too bad.
Display Mate took a bit to setup, particularly in the contrast and brightness areas. We actually discovered that some of the images can be viewed better from an angle. Green and blue were found to bleed quite a bit in the higher ranges and yellow took on a definite green tinge.
Video playback was acceptable and the 3DMark testing was quite good, with minimal tearing during the faster scenes. The reflective screen tends to distract when viewed in light, particularly natural light from windows.
At AU$949 there is absolutely no reason to buy this monitor. For style, the AG Neovo or NEC are far better priced and for performance the BenQ, Philips, or HP are the way to go and lastly, for flexibility (portrait/landscape, height, USB ports etc) and ergonomics, the Acer or HP would be better.
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This has a black bezel and rear framed with silver, while the base is a silver hollow rectangle. The rear of the unit has a Kensington key lock, VESA mounting points, an IEC power socket, DVI, and D-SUB inputs.
The base, which is removable, is very sturdy. The only problem is it offers little in the way of movement/adjustment -- only slight forward and backward tilting. The back of the base is removable which allows neat routing of the cables.
Once the monitor is powered up, the menu system is easy to navigate. We could achieve very good graduation between blacks, greys, and whites.
Colour graduation was also very good with only the brighter blues tending to bleed into themselves. Both text and graphics showed up with very sharp images and the yellow colour reproduced very nicely. Video playback is very smooth, and the contrast is excellent.
3DMark showed the real performance of this monitor with very little tearing apparent. Viewsonic claim four milliseconds (ms) response time with this monitor -- if this is the case then it is very difficult to detect the differences between 8ms and 4ms, most likely depending on the media, PC, and video card more than the monitor itself.
At AU$899 it seems Viewsonic are cashing in on its 4ms response claim. Granted the video reproduction is very good, however, so too were the BenQ, HP, and Philips and each of those came in either considerably cheaper or with more features.
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| Model | AL1922R | E 19A | FP91G | L1955 | L1980Q |
| Manufacturer | Acer | AG Neovo | BenQ | HP | LG Electronic |
| RRP as tested | AU$849 | AU$777 | AU$649 | AU$899 | AU$999 |
| Phone | 1300 366 567 | 02 9418 8888 | 9352 8800 | 1300 304 894 | 02 8805 4000 |
| Web | Link | Link | Link | Link | Link |
| Warranty | 36 months | 36 months | 36 months onsite | 36 months | 36 months |
| Dead/bright pixel policy | Yes | Yes -- zero pixel | Yes | Yes | Yes -- zero pixel policy for one month |
| Screen ratio format | 4:3 | 4:3 | 4:3 | N/A | 4:3 |
| Inbuilt speakers | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Inbuilt microphone | No | No | No | No | No |
| Inbuilt TV tuner | No | No | No | No | No |
| Connectors/ ports | DVI, 15-pin DSUB, audio in | DVI, 15-pin DSUB | DVI, 15-pin DSUB | DVI-I, 15-pin DSUB | DVI-D, 15-pin DSUB |
| Response time (ms) | 8ms | 12ms | 12ms | 16ms | 8ms |
| Horizontal frequency | 30-80Hz | 24-80Hz | 31-81Hz | 30-82Hz | 31-63Hz |
| Vertical frequency | 55-75Hz | 50-75Hz | 56-76Hz | 56-75Hz | 56-75Hz |
| Contrast ratio | 700:1 | 500:1 | 500:1 | 1000:1 | 500:1 |
| Brightness | 300cd/m2 | 250cd/m2 | 280cd/m2 | 250cd/m2 | 250cd/m2 |
| Colour depth | 16.7m | 16.7m | N/A | 16.7m | 16.2m |
| Viewing angle hrz/vert | 150/135 | 140/130 | 140/135 | 176/176 | 160/160 |
| Weight | 6.7kg | 6.5kg | 5.1kg | 7.5kg | 5.4Kg |
| Rotatable display (port/lscp) | Yes | No | No | Yes | No |
| Kensington lock compatible | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Wall mountable | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Wall Mounting Kit | No | Yes | No | No | No |
| Optional speakers | No | No | No | Yes | No |
| Bundled Software | No | Set-up CD | No | No | Yes |
| DV197SB | LCD 1970NX | NR190RD-G | 190B6 | SDMHS95PS | VX924 |
| Mitsubishi Electric | NEC | NewQ Systems | Philips | Sony Australia | ViewSonic |
| AU$699 | AU$769 | AU$749 | AU$849 | AU$949 | AU$899 |
| 02 9684 7777 | 131 632 | 02 9418 8888 | 1300 651 993 | 1300 720 071 | 02 9906 6277 |
| Link | Link | Link | Link | Link | Link |
| 36 months | 36 months | 36 months | 36 months | 36 months on site warranty (includes backlight) | 36 months limited warranty on LCD, parts, and labour |
| N/A | On application | Yes -- zero pixel | Yes | No | 3 months zero bright dot warranty |
| 4:3 | 4:3 | 4:3 | 4:3 | 5:4 | 4:3 |
| No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No |
| No | No | No | No | No | No |
| No | No | No | No | No | No |
| DVI-D and analogue, 15-pin DSUB | DVI-D,VGA 15-pin DSUB | DVI, 15-pin DSUB, audio in/out | DVI-D, analogue, USB, PC audio in | DBI-I, 15-pin DSUB | DVI-I, 15-pin DSUB |
| 8 ms | 25ms | 12ms | 8ms | 12ms | 5ms |
| 30-83Hz | 31-81Hz | 30-80Hz | 30-83Hz | 28-64Hz | 79-98Hz |
| 55-75Hz | 56-75Hz | 56-85Hz | 56-76Hz | 48-60Hz | N/A-75Hz |
| 500:1 | 500:1 | 500:1 | 600:1 | 100:1 | 500:1 |
| 270cd/m2 | 230cd/m2 | 250cd/m2 | 250cd/m2 | 450cd/m2 | 270cd/m2 |
| 16.2 | 16m plus | 16.7m | 16.2m | 16.77m | N/A |
| 140/140 | 176/176 | 176/176 | 160/160 | 170/170 | 160/160 |
| 6kg | 7.5kg | 6.8kg | 6.4kg | 6kg | 8.5kg |
| No | Yes | No | No | No | NA |
| Yes | N/A | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| No | No | $88 | No | No | No |
| No | Yes | Yes | No | N/A | Yes |
| N/A | NaViSET | Set-up CD | FP adjust | N/A | N/A |
We used Display Mate for Windows video edition to adjust each model according to instructions and patterns stipulated by the application. We looked at subjective image samples, movie clips and patterns to get a feel for the image quality and clarity. We also ran 3DMark to see how they looked in a fast paced graphically intensive environment.
Our test rig remained the same for all units -- an Acer Veriton 7800 with an Intel 830 (3.0Ghz) CPU, 160GB SATA HDD unit, 2GB RAM, and a NVIDIA 6800 video card with dual DVI outputs. In all the tests we used the DVI input on the monitors.
We also looked at the monitors for viewable screen size, base design, and level of adjustment (up/down, forward/backwards tilt, and left/right swivel) as well as whether or not they supported landscape/portrait rotation.
Ports are considered and internal speakers, USB, Kensington security lock ports, along with VESA mounting points are noted. Whether or not external "brick" type AC adaptors are used or whether IEC power sockets are available to power the monitors directly was also looked at.
This company wishes to replace its desktop monitors with 19in flat panel LCD monitors. All must have DVI connectivity.
Approximate budget: Less than AU$1000.
Concerns: Cost is paramount. The business requires quality monitors at the most affordable price.
This business prefers not to have speakers or other accessories built in to the device.
Scenario Winner
This month the scenario winner is BenQ for their AU$649 FP91G -- a no frills 19-inch display with good picture quality at an affordable price which fits this scenario perfectly. A close runner up was the Philips display with its equivalent picture quality and better ergonomics, however, the price (AU$200 more) and the fact that speakers were built in to the Philips enabled the BenQ to pip it at the post.
The display picture quality was one of the top monitor entries that came in for this review. The device had excellent ergonomics (height, pan, tilt) and was rotatable from landscape to portrait. It also had a very thin bezel lending itself to multi-display use and USB ports as well.
Final Words
Well they do say bigger is better, and you really can't argue when it comes to monitors, especially when these big beasts come in well under the AU$1000 mark.
As you can see there is quite a bit of diversity -- even at the cheaper end of the market. Choosing carefully, however, can expand your working space, align the monitor properly for good posture, and make work a whole lot less unpleasant
This article was first published in Technology & Business magazine.
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