Dell G2210

Pros: The on-screen display and management interface is well thought out and fairly easy to use.

Cons: Washed-out color

Energy-saver mode (a main selling point of this monitor) makes automatic brightness adjustments, which are distracting.

If monitor is Off-Off (i.e. no light at all), it won't turn on if the computer is turned on before the monitor

Summary: This monitor has the washed-out color typical of TN (twisted nematic) displays. No way this monitor deserves the glowing recommendation that CNET gives it on its color performance. Not bad for a TN panel, but not great.

The "Energy Saver" mode is one of the big selling points of this monitor. It is supposed to automatically adjust display brightness to match your room conditions and (in "Plus" mode) the content of the screen. Unfortunately, instead of a slow, unnoticeable fade, it makes the adjustment in one jump, which is just big enough of a change to be distracting and annoying. I'm now running the monitor on Standard mode.


There is a problem with the power system.

Under normal conditions, the power system works fine. The monitor enters sleep mode (amber light), and turns back on when it sees a signal from the computer - no problem. However, under certain conditions, the monitor becomes unresponsive.

Sometimes I'll start a long-running backup at night. I'll turn the monitor off by pushing the power button, and go to bed. When the backup is done running, the computer will hibernate.

The next day, if I turn the computer on before I push the monitor power button, the monitor becomes unresponsive. No light, no response to the power button, nothing.

To get out of this condition, I have to pull the plug on my computer, then push the power button on the monitor, then turn the computer back on.

This circumstance is rare, but annoying enough that I have decided to return the monitor as defective.