Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)When I first saw this monitor in a store, I thought it had a beautiful display. I own an LG 23 in tv/monitor and so I was able to preview that on my computer system before buying this monitor - the look is the same. I would have given this a 5+ stars but for the customer support, which was useless and rude. So, let me provide a breakdown, 1 star being lowest, 5 best:
Display *****+
Customer service *
Features ****
Convenience ***
First off, I find lg displays to have the most beautiful of the lcd flat panel displays. The colors are vibrant, and even with my d-sub vga attached cable (i.e. not hdmi or dvi) the clarity is very crisp and clear. This model lives up to the LG standard I expected. Also, no dead pixels with this. And I even bought an open box unit that had been banged around (the box had damage).
Second, when used on a computer today, it must handle both video and text. For text, like in the editor I'm using, there is a lot of white screen. This can be blinding if the monitor is setup to be used for video. It is too bright (yet totally crisp, unlike some monitors where turning the brightness up blurs the screen), and so I need to turn down the brightness. The controls, as mentioned in other reviews for this model and other larger/smaller of its type, are difficult to find. The black plastic case does not have physical buttons; rather, the frame is touch sensitive. It is difficult to see the labels and the menus are confusing at first. It's sometimes difficult to know exactly where to touch. I would have preferred buttons. But one can get used to it, and I have a desk lamp that lets me see the labels. The power on/off is easier to find in the dark, since there's a large "pilot" lamp just under the location of the on off touch location. This would be a negative, except for a feature called the forte manager.
Now, here's where I need to explain something that most reviews I found seemed to miss. Some features are not in the monitor itself, and require the installation of a program called the forte manager. I've seen this before, in an AOC monitor I also own, and I like the idea. This is a program that runs on your pc (windows only I think, but not sure) which basically provides a well designed GUI interface on the desktop to all the monitor settings. It then can send these over the video cable somehow. The program also provides the ability to have many custom profiles that can be applied in about 3 or 4 mouse clicks. When this is setup, you might never need to use the monitor's front panel setup.
Note, however, that this only works with the d-sub and dvi inputs. HDMI is likely for use with a tv setup (dvr, sat, cable etc.). Also, HDMI has audio which can be adjusted (at the monitor) and there's a head phone jack but no speakers. I did't try this.
Here's the rub with customer service: This forte program may not work at all if you have another, non-supported monitor/display on your computer. It also doesn't support every video card. It will install ok, but then nothing works except help and support buttons.
I didn't know this at first, so I contacted (via a chat window) tech support and the first person let me explain everything in all the gory details, and then said, "we don't support forte manager any longer" and then rudely disconnected. So then I made a second contact and I mentioned forte manager right off and he said, let me transfer you to a specialist. The specialist repeated that they don't support it, and recommended I don't use it. He even went so far as to say it could mess up the monitor. The only help offered was the usual, try re-installing it. Useless! At least this person was not rude and said he "felt my pain".
Well, this feature is not only advertised, it's even built in to the monitor. If you select the zoom or cinema options in the smart or fun setups directly from the front panel on the monitor, it will say something about using the forte manager if you haven't installed this program. (If you have, then it will do the function).
Well, the only other help I was able to get was when I clicked the support button in the forte manager program which brought me to a website (launching my browser) with a 15 message or so FAQ. One stood out, it said it didn't support more than 2 monitors. I actually have 3 on my computer.
That's when I guessed that it couldn't detect my LG monitor. In the info screen, all the info was missing too. Fortunately, I have a little program for managing multiple displays called UltraMon, and with one click, I reconfigured to only the LG display. This is the same as going into the display setup (I'm on windows xp pro) and unchecking extend my windows desktop... for the other monitors.
Shazam! The forte manager came to life, recognized my LG and almost all of the features were now available. However, as soon as I enable my other monitor(s) forte manager reconfigures and stops working. However, whatever settings I've made stick, so I have a workaround at least.
The best part is the profiles and ease of setting up the monitor. There's even a wizard that guides you through it, but I didn't try that. With my others monitors disabled, and forte was working, I tried out the other features.
Easy zoom worked, which simply switched to a lower resolution - but wouldn't switch back. My ultramon does this easier and better so I don't need that one. And besides, changing resolutions also messes with the icons on the desktop. (Again, I doubt if this works on linux or mac).
The auto features of the forte manager program are greyed out, so I don't know what's up - some features only work on some LG models.
Cinema mode lets you have a small window with video that you draw a rectangle around with your pointer device (mouse etc.) and it will then dim everything else on the screen to a setting you can choose in a setup screen. Eh, probably won't use this much - especially how you really can't do anything else, since any mouse click cancels the dimming.
There is also a setup that provides modes with preset settings for movie, text, and a custom mode. This could be important, especially if you can't get the forte manager to work.
There's also a picture setup that has a gaussian blur, sepia, and monochrome modes. This is not settable in the forte manager. I don't have much use for these.
I turned on auto bright (does not require forte manager) and at first didn't think it was working, but then I covered the light sensor with my finger and I did notice the screen brightness change - but it does it slowly over about 10 seconds. Nice effect actually. I guess this is good, so that if a flash occurs in the room, the screen won't also flash with it.
As for a few other things, the pedestal was very easy to snap together and best of all, it has a lock/unlock key built in for dismantling it. Just turn it clockwise or reverse to lock/unlock. I've broke others when I couldn't figure out how to get the pedestal off. There is a tilt up/down, but not left/right, and no rotation. No height adjustment. Overall, I like it.
I don't like the shiny black plastic that everything seems to be encased in now a days. It's a big dust magnet. My older Envision has a nice metallic, non-shiny frame, which I prefer - maybe the dust is there too, but it can't be seen so readily. So I keep a can of compressed air handy. At least fingerprints don't seem to show up - since you must touch it to turn it on/off.
The cable and power inputs are arranged vertically, so it's important that the screw-ins from the cable work, which they do for d-sub. The power cord fits tightly so I don't think it will fall out. I guess this is more compact than if you plugged in horizontally, but it's harder to see what you are doing. Minor point, but my LG tv has many more inputs and it's much nicer to plug in horizontal instead of trying to push up where you can't see the sockets.
So, overall, I gave it 4 stars. If it's going to be your only monitor, then I suggest giving the forte manager a try. I don't see how it could mess up the monitor, and there's always the reset option.
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LG 53 Series brings more to the desktop than a mere computer monitor by combining award winning technology and superior features in a stylish design
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