Product Reviews

There's something about thinness that we equate with cool, style and desire. However, while thinness itself might be sought after, its ingredients - a healthy diet, exercise, moderation - are decidedly unpalatable. What a conundrum we are in. While slenderness is just as sexy in electronics as it is in stomachs, the same difficulties of attaining it don't apply.

The laws of supply and demand, and the industrious factories of the Far East, mean that lithe TFT monitors are cheaper than ever before.

Our Elite-listed TFT, the Sharp LL-171G-B, still costs the best part of £300. Cheaper models are available, but are they any good? Philips isn't normally thought of as a bargain brand, but the 170S, a 17in TFT, has a very low price of £255. This might not be as emaciated as some CRT prices, but it's still slimmer than a supermodel's sandwich. The 170S can't hold a candle to the Sharp in terms of looks; its circular base gives it a cheap business look, and the all-over silver finish isn't exactly stunning. However, this is par for the course for a more value-orientated product. While the 170S isn't super-stylish, or as distinctive as the BenQ FP783, it's not ugly.

Still, the 170S does boast an integrated PSU, unlike the BenQ, although the base only allows tilting, without offering the height adjustment of the Sharp. However, the most noticeable omission from the 170S is a DVI input. A graphics card generates a digital image, which is then converted to an analog signal, and outputted via the D-SUB connection. This works fine for traditional CRT monitors, because they're analog displays. However, LCD TFTs are digital displays, so when they get an analog signal, they have to convert it back to a digital one. Obviously, taking a digital signal, changing it to analog and then back again is a lot of unnecessary work, hence the DVI port on most modern graphics cards. This outputs a digital signal to any display with a DVI port, resulting in a sharper, cleaner and more accurate image. Without a DVI port, there's degradation

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and interference of the video signal, so the images on screen aren't as sharp. The 170S also lacks integrated speakers, not that we're complaining.

Looking at digital photos in Windows, it's clear the 170S lacks the BenQ's high-impact colour tuning, and colours were a little too muted. The 170S also lacks the dazzling brightness of the BenQ, so it's easier on the eyes in Windows and white-backed applications such as Word and email clients. You can't help but think it's aimed at businesses rather than home users though.

The slightly bland colours and the lack of a DVI connection mean digital images lack the crispness of the BenQ and the Sharp, and look a little fusty by comparison. However, it's easy to acclimatise to the calmer colour rendering of the 170S, and some users may prefer it to the BenQ's hyped-up, in-your-face vibrancy.

In Display Mate (www.displaymate.com) the 170S proved to be better at colour blending than the BenQ, but still couldn't really hold a candle to the Sharp. Like the BenQ, high-end whites were a problem, and one reason for the drab digital photos became clear: the 170S isn't good at providing uniform colour over the screen, meaning it's brighter and better in certain areas than others.

Overall, however, the 170S has the edge over the BenQ in Windows, as it's generally more easygoing, and it has better viewing angles - though again, still not up to those of the Sharp. In games, the tables are turned, as the 170S looks frankly mundane. Its low-key colours don't work well in a gaming environment. Even great-looking games, such as ToCA Race Driver 2, which utilise lots of neat pixel shader effects, seem to have the sheen taken off them. The 170S might be a 16ms response-time panel, but occasionally it does suffer from lag, whereas the quicker BenQ is very, very rarely caught out.

The 170S is better at DVD movies than games, but still fails to impress, with average colours, the odd blur and so-so viewing angles all adding up to a mediocre experience.

CONCLUSION

The 170S is a reasonable choice for Windows and work applications, but for photos, games and DVDs it lacks the clarity, crispness and dazzle a good TFT can offer. If it were a suit, it'd be a cheap and serviceable one for work rather than a flash, stylish Savile Row number.

The 170S might be cheap, but unless you're absolutely stuck to your budget, you'd be better off saving up and opting for the award-winning Sharp, which has better image quality and DVI. Thinness isn't everything and what's on the inside counts for a lot.