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NEC's E231W packs in the features

The Features score in CNET's monitor reviews is determined by asking one simple question: "What am I getting for the amount of money I'm paying?"

So, it should come as no surprise that a monitor that offers a lot for $300 would score highly in the Features subrating, and the NEC MultiSync E231W did just that.

First off, the NEC includes the "quadfecta" of ergonomic options, featuring tilt, swivel, pivot, and height adjustment. It also includes a number of useful Eco options we first saw in the NEC MultiSync PA271W's OSD. No to … Read more

A waking dream of color, from HP

I've been getting requests to review the HP DreamColor LP2480zx for the better part of the last year. Sorry it's taken so long, but here it is. Better late than never.

It's an interesting endeavor, to review a product that costs well over $2,000. This is especially true when other devices that serve the same basic purpose exist and can be procured for fraction of the cost.

In this situation, the intended audience has to be considered. Does it meet their needs as best you can tell? Are there lower-priced alternatives?

This leads to comparisons that … Read more

NEC's LED monitor does ergonomics

As I've mentioned many times in the past year, LED-based monitors have become completely ubiquitous. So, in an LED-monitor world as vast as the one we live in--where one is released every week, practically--how does a monitor vendor make its LED hopeful stand out? NEC seems to think ergonomics and DisplayPort are the ways to go.

This week, the company announced the 23-inch MultiSync E231W. The monitor includes a fully ergonomic design, featuring 110mm height adjustment, tilt, swivel, and pivot, as well as DisplayPort support.

Also, in an attempt to diminish your carbon footprint when using it, the E231W … Read more

NEC PA271W brings onscreen customization to a new level

The decision's been made. The NEC Multisync PA271W is the best-performing monitor we've yet reviewed. It has a high resolution (2,560x1,440 pixels), impeccable color, and an incredibly detailed and in-depth onscreen display (OSD), obviously designed by crazy people (I mean this in the best possible way).

Unfortunately, these same crazies decided not to give this $1,349, 27-inch monitor an HDMI or even component ports.

So, how does it compare overall with the high scoring all-star that is the Dell UltraSharp U2711? Well, we've already let one cat out of the bag, the NEC performs--slightly--better, … Read more

Lookup tables galore in NEC's new professional display

You really can't go a couple of months without NEC announcing a new professional display, huh? Well, at least they keep me busy (as if I needed that).

This week, NEC announced the successor to its MultiSync 90 series of professional displays, the Multisync PA241W. The display features 102 percent coverage of NTSC and 99.3 percent of Adobe RGB standards. According to NEC, this is an increase from 72 percent in the MultiSync LCD2490WUXi?. NEC also claims a 38 percent smaller footprint size.

Below is a list of features included in the MultiSync PA241W:

1,920 x 1,… Read more

NEC's S-PVA monitor shows its true (and accurate) colors

You gotta love a good Super Patterned Vertical Alignment (S-PVA)-based display, don't you? Well, you're obviously not required to love them, but with their deep blacks, good viewing angles, and, for the most part, accurate colors, they certainly make it difficult to dislike them.

Case in point: the NEC MultiSync P221W is a 22-inch, $390 S-PVA display that includes the aforementioned perks of most S-PVAs.

A monitor needs to have more than just great performance, however, to justify its price. Extra features and connection options can work wonders toward a monitor's overall worth. With Dell recently … Read more

NEC releases 5:4 monitor: Cue the yawns

You know, I'd almost forgotten they still make these. When i say "these," I'm of course referring to standard aspect ratio monitors. With the advent of wide-screen 16:10 and now 16:9 monitors, the last three to four years has seen 4:3 and 5:4 monitors go the way of the Dodo.

NEC seems determined that we don't forget standard aspect ratios and in September will be releasing the 19-inch MultiSync EA190M. According to NEC, the display is designed for "a variety of business environments, government applications, and education users."

Just what government applications are we talking about here? In every episode of "24" I've ever seen, everyone uses wide-screen, 24-inch Dells. This monitor must be for less well-funded government divisions.

According to NEC, the EA190M consumes 50 percent less energy and contains 50 percent less mercury than traditional LCD monitors. It has a one-touch button to go into EcoMode. This most likely puts a cap on the brightness since a display's brightness is the main determining factor for power consumption.

Here are a few other features of the EA190M:… Read more

NEC adds 23-incher, DisplayPort to MultiSync line

As a follow-up to a monitor we recently reviewed, the NEC MultiSync EA221WM-BK, on Tuesday NEC announced the 23-inch NEC MultiSync EA231WMi.

The EA231WMi is a 16:9 aspect ratio monitor with a few notable improvements over the EA221WM-BK. First off, the new display uses an IPS-based panel as opposed to the TN panel the EA221WM-BK used. Also, the EA231WMi is the first NEC desktop display to feature a DisplayPort connection.

DisplayPort is a rare, but powerful connection that has been heralded as the future of digital monitor connections.

Additionally, the monitor includes a one-touch button for Eco Mode and … Read more