X-bit labs

24" LCD Monitors Roundup (page 24)

Category: Other

by Oleg Artamonov

[ 10/23/2007 | 08:48 AM ]

By default, the contrast and brightness are set at 70% and 100%, respectively. I achieved a 100nit white by selecting 42% brightness and 45% contrast. The brightness is regulated by means of backlight modulation at a frequency of 217Hz. Color gradients are reproduced normally, yet you can see slight banding in them on closer inspection.

The monitor’s got a standard color gamut which is somewhat larger than the standard sRGB color space in greens.

The gamma value is too low at the default settings, producing a faded and low-contrast image. You could correct this problem in the Samsung 245T by choosing a different gamma in the monitor’s menu, but the VP2330wb just doesn’t offer such a setting. So, you have to correct the gamma in your graphics card driver or using a hardware calibrator.

The problem deteriorates at the reduced brightness and contrast. The curves rise up and the image gets paler.

The monitor offers half a dozen preset color temperature modes plus a user-defined mode. The setup accuracy is somewhat worse than average. The difference between the temperatures of the levels of gray is over 1000K, and not only dark-gray but also pure white deflects much from the name of the mode.

The response time average is 13.1 milliseconds GtG with the rise on dark tones to tens of milliseconds we are familiar with by MVA matrixes of recent past. As a result, the VP2330wb proves to have a rather mediocre speed. It is two times slower than the above-discussed 244T and 245T from Samsung and by a third slower than the Dell 2407WFP.

The contrast ratio isn’t record-breaking, yet good anyway. It is over 300:1 in two of the test modes. The maximum brightness is even above the specified value.

So, the VP2330wb looks like an average product with few drawbacks and without any exceptional traits. To name its drawbacks, the USB hub is placed rather inconveniently at the back, the labels on the control buttons are almost unreadable, the gamma compensation is set up sloppily, and the matrix is rather slow. Although I can’t say it’s a bad monitor, I also cannot give you a list of its advantages because it is not superior to its opponents in any of its parameters.