ADI MicroScan G1000 review

Taxan's Valuevision 2175 (reviewed issue 65, p179) set a new precedent in the 21in CRT market, priced at a mere £469 and offering reasonable quality to boot. The G1000 may cost £66 more than the Taxan, but it boasts features such as BNC inputs, a non-captive D-SUB cable and a 20in screen area.

The G1000 is similar in design to the ADI MicroScan G710 (reviewed Labs, issue 65, p123), but also sports a built-in microphone in the bottom centre of the bezel. ADI has focused a lot of its efforts on reducing the size of the unit: the cabinet depth of 440mm is a good 50mm smaller than the Taxan Valuevision 2175, so it will be easier on desk space, and weighing in at just 31.5kg it's comparatively easy to move.

DisplayMate Multimedia Edition was used for performance evaluation. The screen regulation tests were particularly impressive with no visible disturbance of the display, while a white box flashed repeatedly in the centre of the screen. This is the best performance we've ever seen of this test, out-performing even the Mitsubishi Diamond Pro 2040u (reviewed opposite). Horizontal colour convergence was perfect in the default setting, with controls available to adjust it if necessary. Vertical convergence, however, was unsteady at the top and bottom of the screen, and manipulation of the control for this tended to make things worse. Like the Iiyama Vision Master Pro404 (reviewed opposite), the shadow-mask tube showed its weakness in the dark screen test, where reflections were clearly visible in stark contrast to the 2040u's black Diamondtron Natural Flat tube.

Despite some impressive performance, the overall image quality was disappointing. The shadow-mask tube wasn't nearly as clear or bright as the Iiyama 404, and is far removed from the clear and stable display you get from an aperture grille. The curvature of the screen means it's difficult to get the geometry right, and this isn't helped by the limited distortion controls, with only pincushion, trapezoid and parallelogram options. Some of the image quality criticisms can be attributed to moirÚ interference. Although both horizontal and vertical correction controls were provided they only made the picture worse. The OSD control system itself is logical enough to navigate, with a series of submenus, none of which are over-sized, so you can get where you want quickly.

The top resolution of 1,920 x 1,440 at 75Hz is impressive for a monitor in this price range, although realistically it's of no practical use. Unlike the Mitsubishi Diamond Pro 2040u, it's performance at 1,600 x 1,200 at 85Hz is disappointing, looking squashed and elongated and not nearly as clear or stable. The preferred viewing resolution for this monitor is 1,280 x 1,024 at 85Hz.

For £535 you wouldn't expect the same performance as the £729 Mitsubishi Diamond Pro 2040u, but it's worth taking the Plus 200 (reviewed issue 66, p166) into account, which for just £55 more offers the same screen area with a Diamondtron Natural Flat tube, giving a better picture and better value for money. Also, if you're looking to save money, the Taxan Valuevision 2175 costs £469, and offers similar performance albeit without the same array of features.

ADI is pitching this monitor in the mid-field between the consumer and the professional markets as is reflected in its pricing. However, the extra features push the price up rather than performance or image quality, so if you don't need the BNC inputs or USB ports go for the Mitsubishi Diamond Plus 200.

Author: Ben Hardwidge