Coming Clean

Thursday, August 13th, 2009

I hate mucky screens. Watching people stick their fingers on a screen makes me cringe – I prop my hand up on the bezel and point with a midair finger, or a pen, in preference to making the slightest smudge.

Which is why I am quite delighted that Maplin have a TFT screen cleaner on sale at half price, that actually does a good job.

The triangular shape and stiff backing mean it gets in those corners, and the squirty spray gets rid of embrrassing projectile sandwich remains, and yet leaves no trace of streak behind.

This should be such an easy thing to do, and important since we all gawp at screens morning, noon and night. But I’ve spent a lot more in the past and got a lot less…

First look: Samsung’s new display range

Wednesday, May 13th, 2009

Samsung’s monitor range has been hugely successful over the last couple of years, combining excellent image quality with living room design, and after seeing the 2009 additions today I can safely say that winning formula looks set to continue.

The majority of the displays on show were impressive refreshes, such as the polished and angular ‘Lavender’ line and the ‘Ecofit’ low-power models – all of which we’ll be reviewing over the coming months. But in amongst them a few interesting additions caught my eye.

The first was the so-called ‘lapfit’ display (LD220 and LD190N), which is essentially a widescreen monitor without the traditional stand. Instead it rests on an arm in the same way as a picture frame.

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Do you actually want 3D?

Friday, February 27th, 2009

While researching an upcoming feature, I found a link from the BBC. Entitled “Why 3D is about to break through“, it explains the exciting world of 3D movies and projection, before concluding that it “looks like the future of 3D is firming up.”

Only trouble is, the article was from over a year ago. Since then I’ve been to see Beowulf at the IMAX, and toyed with an old game on one of Zalman’s monitors, but I can hardly say 3D leapt out at me through 2008.

This year, though, is different – one look at the barrage of 3D TVs launched at CES is enough to realise that. But while the industry hypes it, I’m intrigued to know whether you, the consumers, are actually interested in 3D at all. Going to a movie once in a while is one thing, spending your own money on kit is another entirely.

So, is it something you’d consider investing in? And, gaming and movies aside, are there any applications for which you see 3D being genuinely useful?

Where next for the TFT market?

Tuesday, January 20th, 2009

For a while now I’ve been blathering on to anyone who’ll listen (and plenty who’d rather not – Ed) about falling TFT prices, while marvelling at the bargains that can currently be had. Large-format TFTs have gone from expensive luxuries to affordable commodities in a remarkably short period of time, so I wasn’t surprised to read today that the head of LG Display, Kwon Young-soo Kwon, believes the industry has “hit the bottom.”

I’ve just finished writing a TFTs Labs for next month’s issue so I know first-hand just how crazy the market has become. We had one 22in TFT for £80 plus VAT, a 24in model for £140 plus VAT and even a monstrous 28in for a little over £200 plus VAT. If I remember correctly, some of these prices are cheaper than 17in and 19in TFTs reviewed just months previously.

It can’t be healthy for a whole industry to plummet so quickly in order to chase declining sales, and the remarks from Kwon at LG back this up. (more…)

Roll up for the TFT fire sale

Monday, August 18th, 2008

When upgrading a PC, the monitor is often the one thing people keep hold of. The rationale goes that it still works perfectly well and newer screens still use the same TFT technology that’s dominated the industry in recent times. Why shell out for a new one?

I’ve just finished testing Iiyama’s latest flagship model – a 26in monster of a display with DVI, VGA and HDMI inputs and a very impressive set of 5W speakers. It’s a solid TFT, and I was expecting a reasonably attractive price given the non-adjustable stand, but I was staggered to see just how cheap it is.

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Beware of geeks bearing gifts…

Friday, June 27th, 2008

Like most magazines, we like product exclusives. A shiny new laptop, in our hands before the rest of the press, and a review online early enough to sate the baying masses. We get plenty of hits on the website, a way to reach readers who otherwise may have looked elsewhere, and the pride that comes from a few days or weeks of being the only place to read about a product.

But what worked for the old days of magazines is just getting ridiculous in this online, instant age.

In the last month alone I’ve spent days with several brand new products from several different manufacturers, each interesting in its own way, and each so new that no reviews currently exist on the internet. But rather than basking in the glow of all that humming web traffic, I’m just about ready to put my foot through the next TFT that lands in our loading bay.

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We’re the world’s best, promise!

Thursday, June 12th, 2008

We see bold claims from manufacturers all the time, and we usually take them with a pinch of salt. If enough evidence is presented and/or we can back them up with our own tests, we’re willing to accept some of them; others vary from laughably untrue to those we’d love to believe but just don’t quite add up. But at the very least we need the full facts before we decide.

LG’s newest 22in TFT, the W2252TE, is a case in point. Heralded in its press release as “the world’s most energy efficient monitor”, it claims to offer “a 45% reduction (40W) in power consumption, leading the way in environmentally friendly computer screens”.

Inevitably, the question arises: a 45% reduction over what? (more…)