Samsung PX2370 23-Inch Widescreen LCD Monitor with LED Backlight

by Samsung

Samsung PX2370 23-Inch Widescreen LCD Monitor with LED Backlight

REVIEW

I have put this monitor through some extensive testing with various movie formats and PC games, and it generally passes with flying colors. It does take some time to adjust the desktop and video playback settings, in order to get it the way you want it, but that was the only real complaint I'd have. 

When my Acer 24" 241W monitor went dead (it had been going downhill for some time), I wanted a brighter, clearer monitor that offered more vibrant colors and better movie playback in particular. After doing research and reading reviews, I settled on this Samsung 23" slim LED backlit monitor. As others state, blacks are "black" and rarely looked washed out, but that is also dependent on the quality of the media you are viewing. Streaming HD video from Netflix or Hulu looks fantastic, as do regular DVD's, in particular if they fill up the entire screen in 16:9 format instead of letter boxing on the sides (which I cannot stand). 

It's important to note that I have a Nvidia 285 GTX 1024MB video card, which is still rather high end at the time of this review, and Directx 11c. I also installed the trial version of PureVideo from Nvidia, and it "seems" to have somewhat dramatically improved video playback, but it's hard to tell if that is from my tweaking or the program's enhancements. In any case, I had the best luck tinkering with the video color and playback settings in the Nvidia control panel, pushing up the sharpness and noise reduction to about 20% and tweaking the brightness and contrast to my liking. 

Games simply look great out of the box, colors are bright and vivid, accurate and the 2ms response time serves games well. The monitor's built-in menu is easy enough to navigate and only takes a little practice, but I have let my video card's settings take over for the most part, as noted above. 

It was very hard to find an LCD/LED monitor that had across-the-board high reviews, most of them are still lacking with multimedia. This Samsung model is probably the best, and paying an extra $50 for the quality seems to be worthwhile thus far. 

The monitor is sleek and attractive looking, lightweight and slim. It was a bit more of a size reduction than I anticipated from my Acer 24", but you get used to it fairly quickly, and is due more to the slim profile of the entire monitor, than the screen size. 

As HD video becomes more available and popular online, along with the great enhancements in Windows 7, this monitor stands above most of the others, and is again very much worth the extra $, you get what you pay for, and I've learned that lesson time and time again! 

Two thumbs on this model.

features

LED backlit for ultra-thin profile

Samsung’s ultra-slim LED backlit monitor is just 16.5 mm thin which makes it easy to fit into most spaces. It's also halogen and lead-free, recyclable and engineered to consume 40% less power? making it more eco-friendly than conventional CCFL monitors.

Rich colors with 100% sRGB Color Reproduction

This monitor reproduces 100% sRGB color, to match color from the original source. So whether you’re viewing video from your HD camcorder or photos from your digital camera, sRGB support makes sure nature looks just as natural on your Samsung monitor as it did when you captured it.

Breakthrough picture quality

A faster response time and a mega dynamic contrast ratio of 5,000,000,000:1 results in clear, vivid colors and rich detail in light and dark areas.

Adjustable brightness with MagicEco™

Save energy and your eyes with MagicEco™, which lets you adjust the brightness level from 100 percent to 75 or 50 percent.

MagicLux adjusts screen brightness automatically

MagicLux measures ambient light and has four settings which automatically adjust the screen to optimum brightness. An intelligent intensity sensor detects the brightness around the monitor and adjusts levels automatically, helping to reduce eyestrain.

Automatic dual-monitor management

Never lose sight of your documents. MagicReturn™ automatically migrates content from both monitors to one monitor if you turn off or lose connection from your second monitor.

Crisp clear color from every angle with MagicAngle™

Enjoy the view from any direction. With Samsung's 5-step MagicAngle™ technology, images appear sharp and brilliant even when you're not right in front of the screen.

Adjustable brightness levels with MagicBright 3™

MagicBright 3™ offers 3 preset modes: Text, Internet or Entertainment so you can get the optimum level of brightness, contrast and gamma correction in just one click.

Windows® 7 compatible

Samsung monitors have been tested to meet all technical requirements for compatibility with Windows®7 and the Windows® Color System standards for consistent and accurate color across mediums.

ENERGY STAR® Compliant

ENERGY STAR® rated, this monitor uses up to 33% less power. Plus, the Power-Off feature automatically shuts off the monitor when you’re not using it, not only saving energy but also prolonging the monitor life. Being green never felt so good, or was this easy.

Rated EPEAT® Gold

EPEAT®-registered products have less cadmium, lead, and mercury for a safer environment. Plus, the higher efficiency helps by saving money, minimizing greenhouse gas emissions and making products easier to recycle. EPEAT Gold products meet all 23 required criteria plus 75 percent of 28 optional criteria.

Type

• LED Display

Design

• Black Cabinet Color

Display

• 23" Screen Size
• 1920 x 1080 Resolution
• 250 Brightness
• 2ms Response Time
• 1,000:1 Typical Contrast Ratio
• 5,000,000:1 Dynamic Contrast Ratio
• 170°/160° Viewing Angle
• 16.7 Million Colors Supported

Features

• Magic Picture Controls: MagicLux, MagicECO, MagicReturn, MagicAngle, MagicBright 3™, MagicWizard, MagicTune
• Mac Compatible
• Windows® 7 Compatible

Inputs

• 1 HDMI Input

Power

• 25W Power Consumption
• 0.3W Standby Power
• 12 V/3A External Adaptor Power Type

Weight

• 9.0 lbs. Product Weight
• 13.2 lbs. Shipping Weight

Dimensions (W x H x D)

• 21.9" x 17.1" x 9.2" With Stand
• 21.9" x 13.3" x 1.0" Without Stand
• 24.8" x 19.1" x 5.9" Shipping Dimensions

Image Gallery:

Viewsonic VX2450WM-LED 24-Inch (23.6-Inch Vis) Widescreen LED Monitor with Full HD 1080p and Speakers

Viewsonic VX2450WM-LED 24-Inch (23.6-Inch Vis) Widescreen LED Monitor with Full HD 1080p and Speakers

Well, we tend to call the new monitors LED and the older flat panels LCD but the truth is they are both LCD displays. The newer flat panels such as the Viewsonic VX2450WD-LED use LEDs to create the back lighting whereas the most older models use cold cathode fluorescent lamps. 

I am somewhat of a monitor nerd. I have five 1920X1080 displays arrayed around my desk. Four of those are Viewsonics. Two are the aforementioned VX2450WM-LED and two are Viewsonic VX2433WM with fluorescent lighting. 

When I bought the first VX2450WM-LED, I was impressed enough to order another. The two things I noticed immediately were that the colors seemed a bit more vibrant with the LED displays and that the LED displays are cool to the touch whereas the older displays generate a significant amount of heat. Given that in addition to my two client machines, I have five servers (2 Windows 2008 which will soon be shut down and three Ubuntu Linux), heat becomes an issue. 

One of my "musts" for any monitor is that it be VESA mountable. I have found that moving the monitor of the desktop and mounting it on a framework behind the desk opens up an amazing amount of desk space. I note that more and more consumer displays lack the VESA mounts. All the the Viewsonic monitors (the 2450WM replaced two Viewsonic VX2255s) have had VESA mounts. 

The VX2450LEDs do not have HDMI inputs as do the 2433WMs but at least at present I'm not sure that's a big issue for monitors. They do have DVI and VGA inputs both of which work just fine. 

One of the features I quite like is the "Auto Off" feature that can be set to turn the display off after a predetermined amount of time. 

A couple of further comments. If you are limiting yourself to one monitor you are missing a whole world of productivity. Most newer computers have two video outputs and can easily be set to use two monitors. Even new laptops can extend the desktop to a second display. Try it you'll like it. 

The second comment is to say how much I like Amazon Prime. I was a bit unsure of it but finally gave it a try. Now virtually everything we order comes to the door in two days. I order even simple things like watch batteries and they show up with amazing regularity. There is a 30 day free trial which I recommend you try. During the trial, when you need something, think Prime first. I think you'll like it.