UltraSharp is no Overstatement!
Written: Jan 26 '07 (Updated Feb 11 '07)
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Pros: Sturdy, Nice Design. Great Picture and Colors. 8-Bit quality and no ghosting.
Cons: Heavy, Would rather it say "Samsung" than "Dell", but it's a very good product.
The Bottom Line: Worth every penny of the price they can be found for nowadays. Simple looks and non offending style. VERY good LCD panel for the price, Recommended, will not disappoint.
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| boogacow's Full Review: Dell UltraSharp 1905FP 19-inch Flat Panel Monitor ... |
I am the proud owner of a Dell UltraSharp 1905FP.
I purchased it to go with my Dell Dimension 2400 Desktop about a year and a half ago. I ordered from the Dell website new, and received mine quickly, shipping included, for just under $500.
Unpacking the monitor was like christmas for me, as it was the first LCD monitor I have owned. Now this does not mean I am new to LCDs, actually I used to sell computers, rather it was just my first purchased one.
Upon opening the box I was astounded to see the size of the thing. Don't get me wrong, it's not bulky, in fact it does well in camoflauging its nearly 30 pound weight. The screen however even for a 19 inch seems large, it just gives that impression. The included stand is a nearly perfect design in my opinion, the large semicircle base is very stable and solid, and the arm extends with an easy button push; and the tilt and swivel are very functional and easy to use. The portrait mode however can only be accessed by turning the monitor one direction, if you forget which it can be a temporary struggle remedied by checking which direction again. The back of the support arm has a nifty and useful built in wire guide that is quick and easy to use.
The monitor gets high marks for design, it has a simple grey or silver edge around the outside surface of the screen, matched by a couple small buttons in the bottom right corner.
Auto-adjustment works flawlessly and the monitor has many basic settings, but mostly is plug and play. The built-in menu is easy and clear to use and navigate. I didn't even need the included software disc in my case. The monitor also came with analog and digital cables for connecting.
One quibble I have with this monitor is that the DVI cable doesn't easily connect, you have to hold it firmly and turn the thumbscrews, this is mostly because the screws on the included cable are a bit short, this is not a major issue though. There is also a built-in USB hub, which some of you may find useful. This worked without a hitch.
My monitor came with zero dead pixels, this is not too uncommon with these monitors from what I understand, they are known for being rather good in this area. I have read of others being replaced for only a couple dead pixels by Dell customer support, so they are of expectably high quality in this area.
First impressions of the monitor. Very good. Very very bright, some complain too bright, but I like to be able to crank it way up for various reasons, I can do it with this one. The screen surface is matte and is excellent at killing glare, there is only minimal glare on this monitor. Colors are SUPERB. Flesh tones are very good, text is extremely good. I connected mine with the DVI cable to a GeForce FX5200 card, so I expected a pretty good picture. The LCD used in this monitor is a well-known and respected 8 Bit Samsung panel, known for its quality. Samsung makes some very good LCD monitors and HDTVs. I have also sold big screens and Samsung has always been near the top in my opinion, it was a large reason I settled on the 1905FP.
I have played many, many types and varieties of games on this monitor, and I must say that the reports of ghosting on this monitor are probably artifacts of cheap computer systems with bad drivers or inferior video cards. It was simply not a problem for me, in fact I only caught slight, slight ghosting in the most crazed of motions and contrasts. Movies also look fantastic on this screen and I prefer it over the much larger TV.
Resolution is very good, while not being anything special, the images always look well, ultra sharp. Combined with the high contrast ratio and excellent backlighting it delivers vivid, sharp pictures.
Now since I purchased the 1905FP, the 1907FP has arrived. My room-mate has this monitor and while being very nice, I would have to recommend the 1905FP over it. Why? Because they switched to a 6 Bit screen, while on paper it's inferior, in person the screen looks nearly as good, I however like the 1905FP's 8 Bit display and I think it looks better. Add the fact that it is cheaper and the design is a bit simpler than the new-fangled looking 1907FP; while still looking very high quality and you can see that there's not much reason to buy the newer version.
Last but not least, I have seen mentions that it's hard to make the screen frame of the 1905FP sit level with the desk. Call it an optical illusion, but I have noticed the same thing myself.
Overall this is a very nice monitor, I can recommended it totally. For the price you can find one of these nowadays, it's an absolute steal. You will be pleasantly surprised how many people will comment on the quality of the picture, I know I was. It's a keeper!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 495
Operating System: Windows
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Epinions.com ID:
boogacow
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Reviews written: 15
Trusted by: 1 member
About Me:
Your average 20 something consumer.
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