Since I am in the market for a 22" Widescreen and unable to stretch to the very nice 24" models available (Dell / BenQ) I am finding myself running around in circles over the available 22" Widescreens that are now on the market at incredible prices.
According to the Badass website (http://www.tftcentral.co.uk) they all have the same TN film giving the usual viewing angle problems associated with it, while giving the advantage of low cost and fast response times.
Other draw backs are 16.2million colours with dithering to bring it up to the full 24bit 16.7million colours.
Excluded from my extended thought processes are several models also using this panel, most notably being the Acer AL2216W, Samsung SM225BW, BenQ FP222W and Iiyama E2200WS. This is simply because in my opinion they are so hideously ugly that they are not worth the trouble.
Edit: Having seen a Samsung in the flesh I have reviewed my opinion and think its one of the better looking models out there.
Samsung SyncMaster 225BW
Asus MW221U - Price: £273.72
Viewsonic VX2235wm - Price: £295.91
(Viewsonic Image Removed coz its damned ugly in real life).
Belinea 2225 S1W - Price: £225.87
Fujitsu L22-1W - Price: £215.91
Above image from UK source
Above image from German source
Unknown at the moment what is accurate for the UK
I have put in bold the features that stand out for each particular model.
To analyse the advantages/disadvantages of each model.
Physical Looks
Note: This section is of course my opinion and entirly based on pictures found around the web (mainly the OCUK).
Asus MW221U - Personally I like, the bottom length of bezel is a bit shiney/flashy however
Viewsonic VX2235wm - Without seeing it in the flesh there is no way to know if the shiny black is going to look "cheap" or quality, Marmite design
Belinea 2225 S1W - In my opinion this is a very weak in the looks department, sprayed silver plastic just looks cheap
Fujitsu L22-1W - The German version looks the best out of all these 4, going by a German source who actually has one the base is entirely metal as well, very clean appealing design
Specifications
As can be seen in the bold part above the Asus clearly is the leader in terms of what they quote to be the specifications, whether in reality the Asus actually has what it quotes - for example the 16.7million colours is still likely to be 6bit + 2bit dithering they just choose to do some marketing and tell us what we want to hear. The 2ms quote is also impressive giving that (like the colour quote) its the same panel across all 4, not knowing enough (maybe Badass can fill us/me in) about panel technology can the refresh rate be improved upon with electronics seperate to the panel?
The Belinea stands out of course because of its 1000:1 contrast ratio unique amoungst all those shown here, it is (arguably) let down by its single D-Sub connector. This is due to EU tax, where keeping the price down is done by not including the DVI connections. The Viewsonic is interestingly the only one with 280 cd/m2 Brightness, while all the rest are 300. The Fujitsu has the lowest spec, but it does have two D-Sub connectors.
Price
The Viewsonic is the most expensive but doesn't offer all that the Asus model allegedly does, they are both almost £60 more than the Belinea and Fujitsu this I expect is almost entirely down to saving money with no DVI connections.
Conclusion
Concluding my personal ramblings that is simply trying to help me make up my mind which model I want to purchase, the Asus stands out as having the most features while the Fujitsu stands out as being the best physically looking and the cheapest. The Viewsonic prices itself out of the contest entirely by being more expensive and offering no advantages over the Asus. The Belinea mean while sits their being the ugliest but with a nice 1000:1 Contrast Ratio at a good price. However as pointed out elsewhere on these forums it is doubtful that it would actually be achieved under real world conditions.
Leading to the final show down for VGA vs DVI. There is a reason now that all top end graphics cards come solely with DVI and that its standard on all expensive monitors, however arguably there is no quality improvements to be had by using it. Indeed my Hyundai L90D that I use now shows absolutely no difference between the two.
This leaves me leaning between the Asus and the Fujitsu, Price and Looks vs Features. I dont consider the Asus ugly at all but its not got the clean lines of the Fujitsu.
Update: In regards to the Samsung I have seen this in the flesh now down Tottenham Court Road. It impressed me very much with its looks, its also quoted to be 16.7mil colours like the Asus although the brightness is down to 280. I think its between the Asus and the Samsung now with the Samsung in the lead due to being in stock everywhere while the Asus is still too new.
What are other peoples thoughts and opinions regarding this set of monitors?
According to the Badass website (http://www.tftcentral.co.uk) they all have the same TN film giving the usual viewing angle problems associated with it, while giving the advantage of low cost and fast response times.
Other draw backs are 16.2million colours with dithering to bring it up to the full 24bit 16.7million colours.
Excluded from my extended thought processes are several models also using this panel, most notably being the Acer AL2216W, Samsung SM225BW, BenQ FP222W and Iiyama E2200WS. This is simply because in my opinion they are so hideously ugly that they are not worth the trouble.
Edit: Having seen a Samsung in the flesh I have reviewed my opinion and think its one of the better looking models out there.
Samsung SyncMaster 225BW
- 16.7 Million Colours
- 700:1 Contrast Ratio
- 5ms Response Time
- 280 cd/m2 Brightness
- DVI / VGA
Asus MW221U - Price: £273.72
- 16.7 Million Colours
- 700:1 Contrast Ratio
- 2ms Response Time
- 300 cd/m2 Brightness
- DVI / VGA
Viewsonic VX2235wm - Price: £295.91
(Viewsonic Image Removed coz its damned ugly in real life).
- 16.2 Million Colours
- 700:1 Contrast Ratio
- 5ms Response Time
- 280 cd/m2 Brightness
- DVI / VGA
Belinea 2225 S1W - Price: £225.87
- 16.2 Million Colours
- 1000:1 Contrast Ratio
- 5ms Response Time
- 300 cd/m2 Brightness
- One Analogue Input (D-SUB)
Fujitsu L22-1W - Price: £215.91
Above image from UK source
Above image from German source
Unknown at the moment what is accurate for the UK
- 16.2 Million Colours
- 700:1 Contrast Ratio
- 5ms Response Time
- 300 cd/m2 Brightness
- Two Analogue Input (2 x D-SUB)
I have put in bold the features that stand out for each particular model.
To analyse the advantages/disadvantages of each model.
Physical Looks
Note: This section is of course my opinion and entirly based on pictures found around the web (mainly the OCUK).
Asus MW221U - Personally I like, the bottom length of bezel is a bit shiney/flashy however
Viewsonic VX2235wm - Without seeing it in the flesh there is no way to know if the shiny black is going to look "cheap" or quality, Marmite design
Belinea 2225 S1W - In my opinion this is a very weak in the looks department, sprayed silver plastic just looks cheap
Fujitsu L22-1W - The German version looks the best out of all these 4, going by a German source who actually has one the base is entirely metal as well, very clean appealing design
Specifications
As can be seen in the bold part above the Asus clearly is the leader in terms of what they quote to be the specifications, whether in reality the Asus actually has what it quotes - for example the 16.7million colours is still likely to be 6bit + 2bit dithering they just choose to do some marketing and tell us what we want to hear. The 2ms quote is also impressive giving that (like the colour quote) its the same panel across all 4, not knowing enough (maybe Badass can fill us/me in) about panel technology can the refresh rate be improved upon with electronics seperate to the panel?
The Belinea stands out of course because of its 1000:1 contrast ratio unique amoungst all those shown here, it is (arguably) let down by its single D-Sub connector. This is due to EU tax, where keeping the price down is done by not including the DVI connections. The Viewsonic is interestingly the only one with 280 cd/m2 Brightness, while all the rest are 300. The Fujitsu has the lowest spec, but it does have two D-Sub connectors.
Price
The Viewsonic is the most expensive but doesn't offer all that the Asus model allegedly does, they are both almost £60 more than the Belinea and Fujitsu this I expect is almost entirely down to saving money with no DVI connections.
Conclusion
Concluding my personal ramblings that is simply trying to help me make up my mind which model I want to purchase, the Asus stands out as having the most features while the Fujitsu stands out as being the best physically looking and the cheapest. The Viewsonic prices itself out of the contest entirely by being more expensive and offering no advantages over the Asus. The Belinea mean while sits their being the ugliest but with a nice 1000:1 Contrast Ratio at a good price. However as pointed out elsewhere on these forums it is doubtful that it would actually be achieved under real world conditions.
Leading to the final show down for VGA vs DVI. There is a reason now that all top end graphics cards come solely with DVI and that its standard on all expensive monitors, however arguably there is no quality improvements to be had by using it. Indeed my Hyundai L90D that I use now shows absolutely no difference between the two.
This leaves me leaning between the Asus and the Fujitsu, Price and Looks vs Features. I dont consider the Asus ugly at all but its not got the clean lines of the Fujitsu.
Update: In regards to the Samsung I have seen this in the flesh now down Tottenham Court Road. It impressed me very much with its looks, its also quoted to be 16.7mil colours like the Asus although the brightness is down to 280. I think its between the Asus and the Samsung now with the Samsung in the lead due to being in stock everywhere while the Asus is still too new.
What are other peoples thoughts and opinions regarding this set of monitors?
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