Review: Top 10 19-inch monitors

From...

By PCWorld staff writer

(IDG) -- The Samsung SyncMaster 950p's attractive price and sterling image quality earn that display the top spot in this month's chart of 19-inch monitors. The KDS VS 195i placed second on the strength of its bargain price. Mediocre performance in both our text and graphics tests kept new models from ViewSonic (the G90f), Hitachi (the CM721F), and Samsung (the SyncMaster 900NF) at the bottom half of the chart.

IDG.net INFOCENTER PCWorld.com home Free daily newsletters PCWorld.com: Week in Reviews TechInformer Features PC World.com Product Finder An inside tour of the Pentium 4 Surviving a disk crash: A checklist Visit an IDG site Choose a site: IDG.net CIO Computerworld Darwin Dummies.com GamePro.com The Industry Standard ITWorld.com InfoWorld.com JavaWorld LinuxWorld Macworld Online Network World Fusion PC World Publish.com UnixInsider IDG.net search

Top 10 19-inch monitors

1. Samsung SyncMaster 950p: With generous features and wonderful image quality for a very reasonable price, the SyncMaster 950p would make an outstanding choice for word processing and graphics uses.
2. KDS VS 195i: The VS 195i's appealing price, sharp text, and large display area make it ideal for buyers on a budget, but due to its slightly subpar graphics and its lack of some key controls, we don't recommend it for professional graphics use.
3. Optiquest Q95: A great price and solid image quality make the Q95 a great value for either business or home use, though we still prefer the Samsung 950p in this price range.
4. ViewSonic GS790: A short case design and impressive graphics quality make the GS790 well suited for high-level imaging work in tight spaces. And at just $315, the unit won't set you back too much.
5. CTX EX950F: The EX950F is suitable for penny-pinchers willing to compromise text quality for an affordable price.
6. Iiyama I91a: While the I91a's image quality is above average, even better performance can be found in less expensive models.
7. ViewSonic G90f: Although the performance of the G90f wasn't particularly bad, there are several other higher-rated monitors on the chart with lower prices.
8. Hitachi CM721F: The CM721F is a good monitor for general text use, but users who do graphics-intensive work might want to look at the Samsung SyncMaster 950p instead.
9. Samsung SyncMaster 900NF: The 900NF's flat tube will appeal to those who use their monitors a lot, but the image quality of this model isn't as good as that of its stablemate, the 950p, which is much cheaper.
10. Sony CPD-G420S: The CPD-G420S is well suited for heavy word processing or professional graphics work, but other monitors on our chart perform as well and cost less.

Beyond the Top 10

Three monitors did not make the list, but have some worthwhile features nontheless.

AOC 9GLRS: The 9GLRS's price might appeal to those on a very tight budget, but the image quality leaves a lot to be desired.

Envision EN-980e: Although the EN-980e carries an attractive price tag, the image quality disappoints.

Sony HMD-A400/L: Great text and graphics image quality, but the high price will put off most users.