CTX PR1400F

The CTX EX1200 (reviewed Labs, issue 55, p120) won the Value award in our last 21in monitor Labs, but this month it's pulled out all the stops in its quest to become Labs Winner. It hasn't happened, but this super-flat Trinitron CRT still has plenty to offer.

Horizontal colour convergence was excellent, with virtually no colour interference in the cross-hatch convergence test. Vertical colour registration was almost as good, while colour shading is effortlessly handled by the Sony tube. CTX hasn't spared any money on the electronics either, with rock-solid screen regulation earning it a distinction, and a maximum resolution of 2,048 x 1,536. The FD Trinitron tube ensures that the PR1400F's geometry is excellent, with any minor issues adjustable using the OSD, which was fine apart from the lack of a Back button.

Defocusing and black-screen testing yielded good results, but there was a degree of interference. MoirÚ didn't help matters, and couldn't be adequately adjusted: any retardant setting below 100 per cent made it worse.

Definition of both small text and shapes was no better. The CTX found DisplayMate's horizontal resolution tests a chore. It failed the horizontal wedge test but scraped a pass in the thin line-drawing tests on both axes, and also passed the vertical wedge test without a hitch.

This CTX is a perfectly sound unit aside from the moirÚ issue, but the Iiyama Vision Master Pro 510 offers greater quality, albeit no USB hub, for just £29 more.