MaximumPC 2004 11

Reviews

O

ngoing advances in LCD tech-

nology have made LCD moni-

tors ever more affordable, but

if you see the value strictly in terms

of size, you might not be getting the

whole picture. Sure, we’ve espoused

the virtues of big displays, but it’s

possible there are perks to sacrificing

a little screen space. 17-inchers can

offer features and technological

refinement that either aren’t avail-

able or are exponentially more costly

in a larger LCD screen. That’s the

case with these LCD monitors, at

least on paper. Is it enough to make

us rethink our size bias?

—KATHERINE STEVENSON

Samsung SyncMaster 173MW

The 173MW is all about multifunc-

tionality, as a glance at its generously

appointed connector panel makes

clear. VGA, DVI, S-video, composite,

component, and coax are all present

and accounted for. Add to that a

remote control, support

for HDTV, and picture-in-

picture (PIP) capability,

and you can imagine the

monitor’s myriad uses. The

package is made complete

with widescreen propor-

tions and a built-in speaker

that spans the width of the

stylish metallic-finished

chassis. In short, for the

cost of a 19-inch LCD mon-

itor you get a lot of extras. Is it worth

the loss of screen real estate?

First, we turned to DisplayMate

( http://www.displaymate.com ), and the

173MW executed the utility’s various

test screens without incident. The

monitor proved capable, if not out-

standing, at resolving dark grays

against blacks and did a fine job with

light grays against white. Colors

looked true and graduations in tone

were distinct. It’s no wonder then that

regular content looks good on the

173MW. The picture is crisp and vivid

with excellent off-axis viewing.

Even so, we can’t wholeheartedly

endorse the 173MW. For all its mul-

tifunctionality, we felt confined. The

monitor’s widescreen makes a nice

showcase for DVDs and games, but

for computing purposes it’s awkward.

It’s neither wide enough to display

two web pages side by side at their

native proportions, nor sufficiently

high, thanks to the screen real estate

that came off the top in order to

extend the sides. What’s more, unless

you have HD, the full screen isn’t

suitable for TV—you’ll probably want

to shrink the image to Regular mode,

and you can imagine how small that

seems. PIP is a nice feature, but in this

case, it’s also another element com-

peting for screen space. And novel

though it is, the built-in speaker is no

match for even a semi-decent 2.1 rig.

For about a hundred bucks more,

you could have yourself a 19-inch

screen, a TV tuner card, positional

sound, and a bigger, better setup. The

choice is clear in our minds.

LG Electronics L1730S

The L1730S distinguishes itself with a

12ms response time. That’s the time

it takes for a pixel to go from its “on”

to “off” state, or in other words, to

change color. A slow response time

can lead to image imperfections like

ghosting and streaking, particularly

when displaying fast-motion content.

Cost considerations relegate the very

lowest response times to the smaller

monitors, with 12ms being the lowest

you’ll currently find in a consumer

product. Does the L1730S make a

convincing case for this feature?

We were doubtful when we dis-

covered that the L1730S has just a

single analog input. Analog is fine as

an option, but we prefer DVI as LCDs

are natively digital. Still, for the most

part, the L1730S was able to meet the

challenges of DisplayMate. There was

evidence of video noise (characteristic

of analog signals) initially, but we

were able to easily correct that using

the monitors Phase control. We also

experienced some issues on the dark

end of the gray scales, where the

L1730S seemed unable to resolve the

subtle differences between dark grays

and black. This latter discrepancy

surprised us, because the L1730S’s pic-

ture quality in general is so stunning.

Whether working on our desktops or

watching digital video, colors looked

so distinct and vibrant that images

seem to jump off the screen.

To put the 12ms response time

to the test, we whipped out Need

for Speed Underground , a fast-paced

driving game that we used in our May

2004 issue’s LCD gaming challenge,

and the L1730S was able to hold its

own with no noticeable visual aberra-

tions. But in all honesty, we can’t say

the L1730S performed any better than

the 20-inch Dell 2001FP LCD—the

darling of our gaming challenge—

which boasts a 16ms response time.

No, in the end, we’re not con-

vinced there’s any compelling reason

to give up size for “other stuff,”

provided cost and/or space consider-

ations aren’t your primary concerns.

76 MA XIMUMPC NOVEMBER 2004

17-inch LCD Looksee

Do good things come in small packages?

'ames look good

on the ,303,

but they look

even better on a

bigger screen.

It’s nice to get so many connector options.

M&MS

MINI M&MS

It Just doesn’t work for us as a hmultifunctionv

display.

$800, http://www.samsungusa.com

MA XIMUMPC VERDICT 

Samsung 173MW

There’s a time

and place for

the 3-7ˆ

like, say, as

the display in

your kitchen

entertainment

center.

SPECS Samsung 173MW LG L1730S

Native resolution 1280 x 768 1280 x 1024

Pixel pitch 0.289mm 0.26mm

Interface VGA, DVI VGA

"eautiful, bright image Quality and capable of

gaming.

MINI SHREDDED WHEAT

SHREDDED WHEAT

!nalog-only, issues resolving dark grays and black.

$500, http://us.lge.com

MA XIMUMPC VERDICT 8

LG L1730S