ViewSonic VLED221wm review (LED monitor - 22")

The 1080p Blu-ray version of "House of Flying Daggers" looked good for the same reasons stated above; however, the red push was still as apparent.

We determined through our tests that the best setting for watching games and movies on the ViewSonic VLED221wm is the 9300k color temperature with the contrast set to about one quarter of maximum, and the brightness set to whichever high setting your eyes can take. We settled on maximum brightness.

The built-in speakers located on the bottom of the bezel produce decent sound, but it lacks bass. However, it has enough volume to hear dialogue clearly in a movie as long as you're not more than about 10 feet away in a normal volume-level room.

The optimal viewing angle for a monitor is usually directly in front, about a quarter of the screen's distance down from the top. At this angle, you're viewing the colors and gamma correction as they were intended. Most manufacturers do not make monitors to be viewed at any other angle. Depending on its panel type, picture quality at nonoptimal angles varies. Most monitors use TN panels, which get overly bright or overly dark in parts of the screen when viewed from nonoptimal angles. The ViewSonic VLED221wm uses a TN panel, and when it is viewed from the sides or bottom, the screen appeared to darken only a couple inches off from optimal. Of course, when viewed from the optimal angle, we had no problems.

Juice box

ViewSonic VLED22wm	Average watts per hour
On (Default Luminance)	43.41
On (Max Luminance)	43.41
On (Min Luminance)	10.26
Sleep	0.51
Calibrated (200 cd/m2)	28.37
Score	Fair
Annual energy cost (@$0.1135/kWh)	$13.30

Find out more about how we test LCD monitors.

Service and support
The ViewSonic VLED221wm comes with solid coverage including a three-year warranty that covers parts, labor, and the backlight. The company offers 24-7 toll-free technical support and support via e-mail. There is no Web-chat support, however, like some other vendors offer. Navigating ViewSonic's Web site and finding drivers and the user manual was simple and easy.