BenQ FP222W H

Not long ago 22in TFTs were a luxury, so the £128 price tag on this BenQ really knocked us for six this month. The design won't win any awards, however, with a bland plastic base and plain angular looks. There's no adjustable stand either.

But what you do get is an incredibly well-rounded monitor for the money. Inputs aren't just limited to VGA, there's also DVI and HDMI - the only other screen to offer the latter is the £189 Dell. And image quality, while not perfect, is more than good enough for everyday use.

The backlight is bright and even, and it's clear straight away that the dynamic range is biased towards the top end. Our black test screen wasn't particularly deep and the dark segments of our gradient ramps were far thinner than they should have been. But on the other hand, video was bright and clear, the desktop pleasant and easy to read, and colour tracking generally pretty accurate.

Its weakness is contrast. At just 700:1, and lacking the now obligatory dynamic contrast function, the picture can appear a little flat next to the better models. We have a Japanese animation that has deceptive depth on the best TFTs, and the BenQ struggled to bring it to life. It also suffers from the awful placement of the control buttons - out of sight on the left side - which makes adjustments tricky.

So entertainment junkies will need to look elsewhere and spend a bit more money, but for a study or office the BenQ FP222W is an absolute steal. There's no other monitor within £25 of its price, and for us that is good enough to earn it a deserved Best Value award.

Author: David Bayon