Looking for a 19" monitor with a low footprint at a good price and still decent performance? Well I might have found just the thing. Looking for the best 19" monitor for the price? You might want think about it... Let's take a look at the KDS VS-19sn.

http://www.kdsusa.com/All/Visual%20Sensations/VS19sn.htm

The specs for VS-19sn are almost identical specs as the VS-195/195e, but it also sports a slightly smaller .25mm dot pitch as opposed to .26mm and a 17" monitor footprint, which also weighs a little less. And that's all you get for extra 30-40$ added to the price tag. (the one I have is actually .26mm dot pitch. So either they're manufacturing two models, or even though they're specs still list it as .25mm, it is no longer being manufactured this way). But if you're like me and have ever wondered "how am I going to fit a 19" monitor on my desk without buying a new desk or cutting a cubby hole in the sheet rock for it (something apartment managers tend to frown upon)", the deal starts to look rather appealing. Especially when the total package weighs in at around $300 (Internet). But you have to remember the actual monitor performance you are paying for (VS-195/195e) goes for around 270$ (Internet), and at that price, we can't expect greatness. Of course as most will tell you, buying online is tricky, and you should take precautions by looking into any vendor's return policy and try before you buy. Which is why to lessen any hassles I might encounter and to eliminate that extra shipping the monitor must go through, I paid a little more and got it locally. With that said, let's take a look at what's good and what's bad. You should understand that even though the VS-19sn and VS-195/195e are very similar spec'd monitors, they are not the same CRT. While they may share some similarities, a review of one should not be a total reflection of the other. I tested the monitor with both a Matrox G200 and 3dfx Voodoo3 3000 video adapters. I found little if no difference between the display of the two, and any visual anomaly had to occur on both cards for me to mention it. Using Win98SE default driver or KDS's latest driver didn't seem to make any difference in visual quality, but KDS's driver did add higher refresh rates for lower resolutions.

Sharpness and Clarity
Black on white text is sharp and crisp through all resolutions even at 1600x1200 @ 75Mhz (I wrote this entire review in notepad at 1600x1200. In fact, I rather enjoyed it, but my favorite resolution is 1280x1024 for general purposes). But starting at 1024x768 I began to see some fading on the left and right sides of the monitor enough so that the shadow mask becomes apparent and text on the edges is a little dotty. This is probably a misconvergence issue, and the monitor lacks H and V convergence controls. This is also what probably prevented me from making use out of the entire viewing area at higher resolutions. I lost about 1/8 inch on the left and right side at 1280x1024, and lost about 1/2 inch on the left and right side as well as about 1/8 inch on the top and bottom at 1600x1200. Trying to utilize the black space at these resolutions would create enough fading on the edges that it wasn't optimal. White on dark text such as the desktop becomes a little fuzzy at higher resolutions, but it's only noticeable at 1600x1200. It's really not that bad even at this resolution. I saw no geometry problems at any resolution using Sonera Technologies' DisplayMate demo even when maximizing full use of the viewable screen at higher resolutions. Nor did I see any through normal use that couldn't be worked out with the controls.

Graphics and Color
If there really is one place the monitor truly has no hiccups, it's the ability at graphics and images. No dullness or blotchy spots in displayed images. They are clear, crisp, and sharp when brightness and contrast are setup correctly. You can probably get better definition from more expensive monitors and it would have been nice to get the advertised .25mm dot pitch, but what this monitor gives is nothing to laugh over. Certainly makes it a good inexpensive gamers choice. I might even recommend it for those truly penny-pinched people who do graphics editing. DVD was beautiful. I would pit against any of the other monitors in this price range (cheaper Relysis monitors come to mind) and probably some of the higher priced ones as well.

Controls
One thing you have to do with just about any monitor is adjust the view either to your liking or just to plain make it satisfactory. So how the controls are laid out, how they work, and what's offered is important. This is a big negative for the monitor, and it probably comes from a cost saving point of view. The controls are accessed from what I like to call a compass style unibutton with +\- oriented on the N\S and Enter\Exit(Degauss) on the E\W. It's probably cheaper to manufacturer it this way, but I have serious qualms about it. For one, they are not intuitive. You will have to acclimate yourself to using these controls. Also, the buttons are not very responsive. It shouldn't take a jack hammer to get response from the button. The demo model I looked at was similar, which should have been a clue, but I thought well this was a demo model and it's just worn a little. I really can't stand the integrated Exit(Degauss) button. I must have accidentally hit it trying to bring up the menu over ten times the first week I owned the monitor, or I'd hit it accidentally trying to close the menu when it had automatically closed. This shouldn't hurt the monitor unless you do it in succession repeatedly (I actually did it a couple times in succession much to my dismay and with a sigh of frustration). In fact, the annoying hum that some of the other reviews have mentioned is actually an auto-degauss for preventive measures. Once you get use to the controls and the fact you have to press firmly on them, you should be ok. Another issue is moire' something a lot of larger monitors experience. It's the plow-track effect, but the monitor comes with H and V moire' controls, and using 85Mhz refresh for all resolutions, I was able to adjust most of it out. Using higher refresh rates for lower resolutions, there was still some evidence of moire'. At 1600x1200@75Mhz, I didn't have to mess with it.

One other small detail is the power indicator light. When the monitor is shut off through power-saving, it displays an intermittent 2 sec green/amber blink. I'm one of those people who leaves the system on 24/7, but I do shut the monitor off. I would of rather left the blinking for suspend and standby modes. So either you have to live with the blinking, or you have to live with the auto-degauss feature when using the power button. Pick your poison, but again, it's a minor issue. The monitor is sleek and looks very nice sitting on the desktop.

Overall, I'm going to give it one of those tentative ratings of 4 stars. If you understand what you are getting for what you are paying, you'll probably be happy with the monitor. It's probably one of best in this price range. 1600x1200@75Mhz is very usable, which should benefit anyone programming, working with multiple documents, and/or image editing. Did I say 17" monitor footprint? Try slightly larger than 15". Of course, it still has the height of a 19" monitor. This is another plus for people who need spacing saving such as me. I don't think you'll find a better short-neck at this price. On the other hand if you don't need the small footprint, you can save money by either getting the VS-195/195e or spend a little more money on something like the Samsung Syncmaster 900P, which I think is a little better monitor (but it's not a sn). As far as quality and support goes, I've read mixed posts about it. I haven't experienced any problems with mine in the few weeks I've owned it and others have reported the same, while some have reported even after receiving replacement models it still was no good. Some will say KDS's KARES system is good, while some will say it's a nightmare. This can be typical of a lot of things. If I experience any quality problems with this model, I will certainly come back and update this review. I don't know if Visual Sensations sums up the monitor, but Visual Sensations that are easy on the pocket book certainly does...



Recommended: Yes