Reviews
E
ven in their off state, 23-inch
widescreen LCDs are impressive,
dominating the landscape of any
desktop and conveying a seemingly
endless expanse of possibilities
This month we power up offerings
from Sony and Hewlett-Packard to
see if the promise (and steep price)
pays off. Both have a 23-inch viewable
screen, 1920x1200 native resolution,
and 0.258mm pixel pitch, but there
are some differences. Let’s take a look.
—KATHERINE STEVENSONSony SDM-P234
Sony’s SDM-P234 is the more stylish
of the two displays reviewed here,
with a super-sleek black chassis, illu-
minated logo, and touch-sensitive
LED control strip along the right side
that is completely invisible when not
in use. But that’s all window dressing,
so to speak. It’s the screen
that really matters and to
put it to the test, we ran
the DisplayMate utility
( http://www.displaymate.com ). If an
LCD screen has a flaw—or
even the potential for a
flaw— DisplayMate’s bat-
tery of evaluation scripts
will find it.
The SDM-P234 results:
Aspect ratio was dead-
on; screen uniformity
appeared solid; color
tracking was accurate;
dark and light grays were
distinguishable against black and
white, respectively; and for the most
part gray-scale ramps were reproduced
in a smooth, contiguous graduation
of intensity. Slight artifacting was
evident in the most comprehensive of
the intensity ramps, where faint kinks
and ripples disrupted what should
have been 256 distinct shades of gray
moving from dark to light. This could
be an issue when displaying photo-graphic images and/or matching
colors, but the effect was so subtle, it
would likely go unnoticed by anyone
but a graphics professional.
In everyday use the SDM-P234
looks gorgeous, with bright, even
color, 9-point text legibility, and
zero glare or reflection. Finally, in
what’s become de rigueur for our LCD
reviews, we took a couple of high-
speed laps around the city streets of
Need for Speed: Underground without
spotting any visual abnormalities.HP f2304
While we were evaluating Sony’s
monitor, the f2304 was by its side
running the exact same DisplayMate
scripts and real-world content via a
DVI splitter box. (It’s the preferred
method of comparison, but not
always possible if the monitors in
question have varying resolutions
and/or interfaces, in which case we
review them individually using the
same PC.)
Simply put, it was a vision of spec-
tacular excess—a testament to the fine
quality of both models.
Still, DisplayMate performance
wasn’t identical. The f2304 had no
problems with the 256-level gray-scale
ramp, but it wasn’t as good as the
SM-P234 at white-level saturation.
In other words, super-light grays
were hard to resolve against a white
background. Otherwise, aspect ratio,
screen uniformity, color tracking, andvarious other nuances DisplayMate
reveals were up to the standards we
expect from a high-end LCD monitor.
Similarly, Need for Speed: Underground
proved the f2304 to be an able
gaming display.
Indeed, the f2304 and SDM-P234
are mighty close competitors. In
the end, it came down to inputs.
In addition to the VGA, DVI, and
audio inputs that the SDM-P234
offers, the f2304 includes S-video and
Component inputs, as well as built-
in speakers. The latter is admittedly
of lesser importance, but all told,
the f2304 is the more versatile of the
two—and our new favorite
LCD monitor.86 MA XIMUMPC DECEMBER 2004
LCD Largesse
Two 23-inch widescreen LCD monitors give us good reason
to clear off our desksSPECS Sony SDM-P234 HP f2304
Viewable area 23-inch 23-inch
Native resolution 1920 x 1200 1920 x 1200
Pixel pitch 0.258mm 0.258mm
Interface DVI, VGA DVI, VGA23-inches of solid LCD splendor! Stylish chassis.LCDLSD
256-level gray-scale imperfections and limited
inputs.
$2,000, http://www.sony.comMA XIMUMPCVERDICT 9
Sony SDM-P23423-inches of solid LCD splendor! Variety of inputs.LIQUID CRYSTALCRYSTAL METH
Super-light grays were indistinct from white in
DisplayMate tests.
$2,100, http://www.hp.comMA XIMUMPCVERDICT 9
HP f2304Sony’s SDM-P234: Suddenly
you can imagine life with
just one monitor!HP’s f2304
didn’t win our
Gear Of The
Year award
for nothin’.How to Care for Your LCD
L
CD monitors are a delicate species,
so proper care is essential to their
longevity. There are three issues you
should be mindful of: damaging the
glass, damaging the antiglare coating,
and damaging the surrounding parts.
In the absence of manufacturer
recommendations, the screen should
be cleaned with water or 50% isopropyl
alcohol, using either a lint-free cloth or a
paper towel. Oily fingerprints on an anti-
glare coating are the hardest to get out.
In such instances, an ammonia-based
cleaner like Windex is acceptable, but it
may damage or discolor the surrounding
plastic parts. Never spray the screen
directly and immediately wipe up drips.
Never put any pressure on the glass.
Besides the risk of breakage, it changes
the optical properties of the panel,
usually just temporarily, but permanent
damage is possible.