Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Fantastic product.
An IPS HD Display for under $260 - if I were in charge of a Graphic-related company & on tight budget would buy these monitors in high volume. Upto Summer2010, IPS monitor would rack up close to $1000, those from Eizo cost several $THOUSANDS. However, I am writing this in Summer2010 so if reading much later. consider that progress never stops & things I say today may become obsolete in half-year.
People with professional background in Engineering, CAD/CAM, Photography, or other Graphic Art/Design need no further explanation.
For those who have no professional knowledge - here's a brief intro:
Majority of cheap monitors today are still TN-type (Twisted Nematic), they've fast response times (dynamics) suitable for gaming, but not for serious Graphic work b/c they're destroying colors, have awful backlight artifacts and if you look from a side (at over 170* degrees) it can be seen as awful white blemishes, color bleeding/blending, etc. - unsuitable for professional work, but since they're very cheap consumers think they're "OK".
But this Monitor is one of the few, early crops of IPS (not TN) displays that emerged in the year 2010 at reasonable prices. Looks like IPS-panel manufacturers have finally reduced costs. This HP monitor is not really HP, and many others are not what the label/box says, read this fact:
Despite myriad of LCD Display manufacturers, there're only a HANDFUL of actual LCD panel manufacturers, they just get repackaged/distributed under other names. Most of the panels come from Japanese-rooted co's, and manufactured in Korea, increasingly in China, some high-end in Japan and (USA - for really high end, medical & military use).
So this HP is not really HP - the panel is "LG Electronics". It is a great panel under $300, we're talking ISP (not TN) type!.
However do NOT use this monitor for very fast, video intensive Gaming if your demands are extreme, it's OK for gaming, don't get me wrong; response time is under 8ms so it's OK, but you have to understand that IPS is meant for professional Graphic work, and while improvement in response time in IPS within past several years has been amazing, some TN panels are still faster.
I still recommend this Monitor for EVERYTHING, including heavy gaming - I just proved it at home, and read other people's reviews in terms of gaming. I bought it however for other work (CAD Design & Photography).
Of course Eizo or other highend IPS are still out of reach for this monitor, but look - $300. An Eizo can set your wallet off by $1500 at least!
AND OTHER POINT - HP HAD FORESIGHT TO INCLUDE "DISPLAY PORT"!
For those who don't know what it means, it's the successor of HDMI, it's the newest/hottest port for professional Monitors, HDMI will probably remain default choice for entertainment/TV's for awhile, but DisplayPort is superior and is taking computer industry by storm, and slowly encroaching into TV's also, DisplayPort allows multiple monitors hooked to the same serial chain, unlike HDMI's obsolete interface, DisplayPort has better bandwidth, etc. - you can educate yourself.
Don't complain too much, b/c this Monitor also offers other ports - DVI-D is one example, I know some will complain on lack of HDMI, but me - I don't miss obsolete HDMI, my nVidia card has DisplayPort and if your doesn't - just use DVI-D, if your computer only offers HDMI, then HDMI-to-DVID adapter is less than $10, at least that s whjat I paid on Ebay for an older monitor which has no DisplayPort.
of course there's also the venerable SVGA port, but avoid it.
BACKLIGHT IS CFL, NOT LED! Ohh please don't be shocked! Rage about LED displays is directed at clueless customers who only consider Brightness, low cost & thin profile; I know you're reading this & are getting shocked. CFL backlight in a "professional display"? Here's a clue for nonprofessionals:
LED's are unable to be flicker-free at brightness below 100%, because they cannot be dimmed by simply reducing voltage - they must drop certain voltage across junction, it's a more or less fixed value. The way dimming is achieved is by PWM (Pulse Width Modulation). I don't have time to explain, this is not an Engineering forum. Just take my word for it - LED backlight displays, although being the staple/default choice for currently produced laptop & thin models, are bad for professional's eyes, and so is CFL of low quality, This HP is using high-quality CFL (I saw somewhere, they use 50Khour bulb?), you can Google/AltaVista for yourself and discover what other people are discovering recently - there's a group of people whose eyes & heads develop severe fatigue from LED bright lit monitors that industry is pushing down our throats, b/c it's costs them less to produce & recycle, and consumes little energy in laptops/netbooks. This display is CFL and believe me you will like it.
TAKE THIS ADVICE SERIOUSLY:
NEVER ALLOW HP TO SET ITS DEFAULT BRIGHTNESS/CONTRAST - LIKE MOST MANUFACTURERS THEY ARE TRYING TO KILL OUR EYES.
If you spend 10-12 hours/day looking into computer monitors, and been doing it for decade(s) and care about your health, you know what I mean. Don't let this thing to rise above 30-40% brightness, contrast should be higher - 50-60-70% than brightness.
Default setting is almost 90% brightness or something which really destroys quality, but Hp just did what everyone else is forced todo - bright monitors sell better in stores, once you bring home and work in the evening in properly dimmed room, you know it's bad for the eyes, so reduce brightness, most important - excess brightness destroys quality in terms of COLOR GAMUT.
Excellent price for this product. LG panel repackaged/rebadged as HP, with HP custom Firmware & Enclosure.
Looks like an eye candy, also, though most important thing is performance. not looks, the monitor is always "in your face" so it matters. Comes wit more cables than I even need.
Dell introduced its own model following same "cheap IPS" philosophy, weeks after HP, but I still prefer HP. I used to swear by ViewSonic, and not shortly but for many YEARS I would only go with ViewSonic. But for that matter, I also used to be fixated on IBM Thinkpads. Things change, no more Thinkpads for me & no more ViewSonics - perhaps some companies get so accustomed to highlevel status, that eventually they lose the "edge".
I actually wonder how is it possible to manufacture this thing for under $260, unless they make in 100,000+ quantities.
Stan Starinski, MSEE
New York, NY
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