ViewSonic VPD150

Bigger, better and cheaper is the over-riding maxim for manufacturers of LCD panels. But ViewSonic has taken a step back from the fray with its latest release by adding an extra dimension to the 15in VPD150: the ability to rotate the screen from landscape to portrait.

The idea is simple enough: PerfectPortrait software converts a video card's signal from a resolution of 1,024 x 768 to 768 x 1,024. The latter provides a portrait view that's just larger than a sheet of A4, meaning that you can see a full page at its actual size. Switching between portrait and landscape is extremely easy. You can use a keyboard shortcut, or just click on the icon that appears in your taskbar.

Setup is also simple due to the company's choice of a digital input. When using a traditional D-SUB signal from the graphics card, time is often spent fine-tuning the clock, phase and position controls. With the VPD150, all you have to worry about is the brightness level.

The only negative consequence of ViewSonic's digital decision is that for the monitor to work you'll need a graphics card with a digital output. Most graphics cards only offer an analog signal, but ViewSonic provides the ATi Rage LT Pro graphics card as part of the bundle. The LT Pro chipset is most often found in notebooks and, while it can't match the 3D performance of the latest graphics cards, it's more than adequate for 2D tasks. It also offers respectable DVD playback, if you ever want to use the monitor to watch movies.

As for image quality, there's very little to criticise. Colours are reproduced accurately and fade away with equal strength, which means images will be reproduced correctly with no tendency towards any area of the spectrum. The 65MHz refresh rate helps to maintain a stable picture with little sign of the lag that can make viewing fast-moving images uncomfortable on other TFT panels. Thanks to the efforts of the LT Pro chipset, the VPD150 copes well with resolutions below its native XGA. The only slight problem was adjusting the brightness level to distinguish between greys and whites.

There are two speakers built into the bezel of the unit that produced a reasonable amount of depth and volume - a pleasant change from the quiet, tinny output from built-in speakers we're used to. The sound quality isn't up to the standard of a separate speaker system, but it's fine for office use.

The VPD150 is built solidly and should last the distance no matter how often users rotate the screen. The panel also has quite a generous viewing angle of 120 degrees, so three or four people should be able to gather round the screen without any difficulty.

Despite all these plus points, it's difficult to recommend a 15in LCD panel when 17in CRT monitors offer similar results at a quarter of the price. However, if the ability to view a whole A4 page at its true size appeals there are two good reasons to buy: a good 21in monitor costs around the same price but takes up much more space, and this unit only costs £100 more than an average 15in TFT. When you add the VPD150's image quality and the bundled ATi graphics card, you have an extremely attractive combination - if you can spare the money.

Author: David Fearon