About to order 22" - ASUS VH226H?

[alexjholland]

I currently own an HP w19 that has served me well for 2.5 years, but yesterday it started power cycling (when I turn it on the power comes on for a split second then dies for 3-4 seconds and this pattern repeats itself).

I recently brought an XBOX 360 and had that running into VGA, with my PC running into DVI. I have a Macbook arriving soon that will be used solely for music production, so being able to run all 3 in would be perfect.

I started out with a budget of under £150, but can push it up and a little beyond that figure if it's really worth it.

Criteria:
- 3 inputs, including 1 HDMI for my PC (DVI), Macbook and 360.
- Hi-Resolution, full HD sounds good.
- 22" sounds nice.

ASUS VH226H
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MO-013-AS&groupid=17&catid=949&subcat=

Viewsonic VX2260wm
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MO-071-VS&groupid=17&catid=949&subcat=

- I'm naturally inclined towards the ASUS as it is slightly cheaper and the name sounds slicker than 'Viewsonic' (I know that's silly).

- Which should I go for? I might fork the extra for the Viewsonic if it really is a better machine.

- How much of an upgrade will one of these be over my w19 in terms of size and quality?

Quick responses would be appreciate, as I need to order in the next 24 hours!

 

[Amleto]

viewsonic got a pretty good review here:
http://www.trustedreviews.com/displays/review/2008/11/22/ViewSonic-VX2260wm-22in-Full-HD-Monitor/p1

and I'm guessing that the VK222H is similar to the 226. the 222 didnt do so well here:
http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/monitors/2008/10/17/asus-vk222h-22in-widescreen-lcd-monitor/1

viewsonic on same site (also good opinions):
http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/monitors/2009/01/05/viewsonic-vx2260wm-22in-full-hd-monitor/1

It's certainly one of the better TN panels we have seen, it just pips Iiyama's slightly cheaper model for image quality and physical desirability and adds a few useful features, including HDMI, to boot. More importantly, that 1080p native resolution looks fantastic on a 22-inch panel, delivering eye-popping detail along with generous desktop real estate. Is it worth the extra £20 over the Iiyama? In a word, yes.

 

[alexjholland]

Argh. Thanks for the reviews, much appreciated. Still not sure though - the test for the Viewsonic wasn't 'outstanding', and the name has always sounded 'budget' to me.

Also, the stand on the Viewsonic looks chunkier, and my desk space is at a premium (any comments here?).

I really wanted to like the ASUS more, but is this Viewsonic superior?

If anyone with any more experience of either of these monitors would be really appreciated, as I have to put this order in by tomorrow lunchtime and really want to make the right choice!

 

[alexjholland]

I've been trying to find reviews for that ASUS from dedicated review sites, but no luck. All the customer reviews for it are great, the ones on OcUK are at least as impassioned as those for the Viewsonic.

I'm a sucker for design and I just think that Viewsonic looks really, really naff. The blue LED sounds like a bad idea too.

I'm very much inclined towards the chunky, assertive ASUS currently, my gut feeling (or aesthetic tendancys) are dictating so..

 

[Bones]

I just recently got the viewsonic. Heres my views:

Pros:

- Nice size (slighty dissapointing height)
- Great res, very crisp
- Really good for games, which i surprised about.
- 1080p is a bonus
- HDMI also a bonus

Cons:

- Washed out colours (compared to my dell)
- Too bright, and no matter how much tweaking couldn't get colours right
- Backlight bleed, very noticable top and bottom on default settings
- Mine was also faulty to boot, wouldn't run in native res kept on turning off and on :s
- Horrible bright blue light on the front (bluetack sorted that)
- pretty ugly


Hope this helps you, personally i'm gonna RMA and look for something else, maybe the Samsung 23" SM2333SW if i can find anything out about it at all!

 

[lucifersam]

Personally I would go for the Viewsonic, Ive been using a Viewsonic 22" for over two years now and its a great screen even if it is a TN panel

 

[alexjholland]

Thanks for the tips - particularly with Bone's less-than-impressed critique, I think I will stick with the ASUS.

The fugly-ness and bright blue LED were two very unappealing factors that do appear to be quite an issue.. Also, bright, washed-out monitors are not something I like at all and someone on AVForums just mentioned that all the ASUS he has seen had nice rich colour palettes.

The Samsungs look good and some are in my price range (just), but not with HDMI, which is something I definitely want to have.

Thanks for the tips - I will let you guys know what I think when it arrives!

 

[interspaced]

The asus is fine though it suffers from a bit of backlight bleed around the top and bottom edges and you'll need to tweak it a bit. The speakers on the asus aren't worth using. Once tweaked however the image quality is outstanding.

 

[Flare]

I was trying to make a decision between these 2 and am now thinking the asus after reading this.
thanks

 

[alexjholland]

It's just arrived, and overall I'm very happy.

After tweaking, the picture is great - very vivid and thick. Being able to switch inputs and picture modes with dedicated buttons for each is handy.

Only thing is it came with one dead pixel - it only shows up on a black screen though, as blue. This is probably the exception, not the rule, and isn't much of an issue.

The monitor itself looks great too, really thick, solid and assertive. I'd definitely recommend it.