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Review: ViewSonic VA1912WB Widescreen Monitor By Jack M. Germain April 27, 2006 8:25AM Two design components make the VA1912WB a better-than-average choice for multimedia use over other widescreen monitors. The dual integrated stereo speakers lodged in the bottom corners of the LCD panel and compatibility with DVI-D and VGA ports are impressive features.   Related Topics Widecreen Displays Monitors ViewSonic Latest News Endeavour Inspected for Damage Autism Risk for Kids of Older Mothers Go Online and You Can Save the Planet In Haiti, Relief Gaps Are Spreading U.S. To Form Climate-Change Agency The ViewSonic 19-inch VA1912WB is one of the newest widescreen monitors on the market and costs less than similarly sized displays from Sony and Samsung. Widescreen is quickly becoming the preference for both gamers and workers who want more room to roam. But the widescreen format, which stretches the viewing ratio from the standard screen proportion of 4:3 to a slightly distorted 16:10, is not for everybody. What you gain in added horizontal space, you sacrifice to a shorter image. Before going widescreen, make sure that the applications you use cater to widescreen settings if you want to get the most from your monitor. Look and Feel Weight is seldom an issue with monitors once they are removed from the box. This model is a bit on the heavy side at 9.9 pounds. And in terms of dimensions, it measures 17.8 x 15.4 x 7.8 inches. Unless you have a wide-open workspace, the display's added bulkiness might make for a tight squeeze. A slim bezel design, matte-black finish, oblong base, and horizontal pedestal all combine to give the monitor a stylish yet sturdy look. Features Two design components make the VA1912WB a better-than-average choice for multimedia use over other widescreen monitors. The dual integrated stereo speakers lodged in the bottom corners of the LCD panel and compatibility with DVI-D and VGA ports are impressive features. Cables for both of these video connections are included. The integrated speakers, considering their standard 2-inch size, produce full sound. They are a nice touch, even if you might strain to hear them when listening from across the room. Another convenient feature is the ability to tilt the monitor to enhance viewing comfort. The ViewSonic tilts about 25 degrees back and 5 degrees forward. But this monitor has no height adjustment or swivel capability. For most people, the nearly 4 inches of suspension above the desktop is a good, fixed height. However, if you are like us, and prefer a higher viewing angle, you might find yourself placing a box underneath like we did. Performance ViewSonic built this model around a nontypical native resolution of 1,440 x 900 pixels. On an older Gateway laptop, the native setting produced image quality that was slightly grainy. Changing to a more-standard resolution such as 1,280 x 1,024 made the text look a bit fuzzier and uneven. The monitor displayed some words in dark, black letters, but some of the remaining letters looked a little gray. The 0.294 mm pixel pitch -- a relatively liberal distance between pixels -- contributed to a less-than-sharp picture on a widescreen monitor. This dottiness is particularly noticeable on text displays. (continued...) 1  |  2  |  Next Page >   Tell Us What You Think Your Comment: Also Visit: iPad Info Center Billions of Bytes Mobile Device Now Apple Info Center TopTechWire.com Advertisement  Personal Tech 1.   Macworld Focuses on Mobile Apps 2.   MS: Windows 7 Doesn't Hurt Battery 3.   Nexus One 'Support' Passes the Buck 4.   Google May Make Gmail More Social 5.   Analysts Expect iPad Price To Drop EPIC Objects To Google-NSA Ties Cyberattack meant to rattle Google? Average Rating: Symbian 3 Is Now Fully Open Source But mobile OS remains linked to Nokia. Average Rating: Sony Ericsson Unveils Aspen Handset Windows Mobile unit comes with Skype. Average Rating:

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