The review has been updated to include DVD playback. A more detailed analysis of chapters used in the playback analysis will be posted in a couple of days.
*** Updated 1/21/09 - Detailed analysis of movies used to evaluate this monitor has been posted. ***
In case people are interested, the ASUS VK246H is selling for $310 (including free shipping) over at Newegg:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236048
Enter coupon code: EMCBCBBBA for an additional $30 off, but it expires on 12/17. $280 shipped. * * * EXPIRED * * *
I purchased it basically to monitor some processes on my HTPC. My two primary displays are my 26" NEC 2690WUXi and my good ol' 19" Planar PX191 from 2002.
Like all 24" monitors selling for less than around $550 (excluding sale), this monitor uses a TN panel. The benefits of a TN panel are:
1) inexpensive price - $280
2) low response time; this has 2ms GTG
My expectations for this monitor are relatively low, but I will just be using it to monitor some functions and surf with it from time to time. My low expectations are basically due to the inexpensive and "inferior" TN panel technology.
1) At best the Asus will have adequate color accuracy. The average person should not have many issues with this. This is basically due to 6-bits of data used to represent each primary color. To cut to the chase, that means 64 shades of each primary color (Red, Green, Blue) can actually be produced. That equates to only 256k real colors can be produced. Thru a process called dithering the remaining 16.2m - 16.7m colors can be reproduced; but are at best "estimated" colors.
My NEC 2690WUXi will blow this Asus out of the water when it comes to color accuracy, then again it does cost over 4x more than the Asus. My old Planar PX191 will have no problems blowing this thing out of the water too since it uses a S-PVA panel.
2) I expect this monitor will be using temporal dithering or FRC (Frame Rate Control) as opposed to spatial dithering (older tech). Basically spatial dithering means if the panel is trying to create a color that it cannot actually produce (remember a TN can only produce 256k real colors) it will try to re-create the desired color by blending colors in a mesh or checker board pattern to estimate the color. For example, assume the pixels in a TN panel cannot display purple, to do so the panel will display alternating colors of red and blue. Zoomed in it will look like a checker board. Normal view you will see purple in general, but you may also notice that some "patches" look more blue or red than the rest of the purple area.
Temporal dithering (FRC) is a newer dithering tech. Taking the above example, instead of alternating pixels displaying blues and red, each pixel will rapidly flash between blue and red to fool the brain into thinking that a solid color of purple is being displayed. There are a couple of drawback to this: 1) some people may experience eye fatigue or headaches after prolonged use. While you may not notice the flashing, your brain will on a sub-conscious level and some people may be vulnerable to this. 2) While technically this type of dithering will allow for more colors (16.7m opposed to 16.2m) the colors will not be accurate enough for those who demand the absolute best color accuracy they can get.
3) This monitor's 2ms GTG response time should generally mean that there will be little ghosting when playing games. Since I generally don't see much ghosting on my NEC 2690WUXi which has 6ms response time, I would be surprised if I were to see ghosting in the Asus in the same gaming environment.
It should be noted that response times are not absolute values. Response times can change depending on what is being displayed on the screen. Those 2ms, 5ms, 6ms, 8ms, etc listed as part of the specs are simply the response times under the most ideal situation (if one actually existed). I've seen some tests which measured response times as high as 40ms for a monitor who's specs claimed "2ms".
Response time of my 19" Planar PX191? Well back in 2002 GTG (grey-to-grey) response time was not used. Instead the harsher BTW (Black-to-White) response time spec was used. Response time is 25ms for BTW, I would expect if it were to be rated using the more recent GTG methodology it would be around 16ms and yeah, there is ghosting.
4) Viewing angles will suck compared to my NEC and Planar, but then again this is a known issue with TN panels. I don't expect colors to wash out to bother me too much at more extreme angles since this monitor will have limited usage. Some TN panel monitors are particularly bad where the mere turning of your head will cause your eyes to see a shift in colors.
5) Backlight Bleeding - All monitors will display some level of backlight bleeding no matter how expensive it is. That is simply the limitation of LCD itself. However, based on my personal experience it seems TN panels are prone to displaying a lot of backlight bleeding. This could be due to trying to keep production costs low and the fact that for most probably will not notice bleeding under normal circumstances. At work the vast majority of LCD monitors are made by NEC (not a cut-rate manufacturer by any means). When stopping by co-workers' cubicles for a friendly chat or for an impromptu meeting I do happen to notice that the backlighting looks uneven. Hell the backlighting on my monitor at work is uneven. I can even notice it with a white background.
I expect the Asus to be no better or worse than my monitor at work. I just hope it works out that way.
==================================================================
I will post a review of the monitor before the end of the year and maybe before Christmas assuming I do not deep-six this piece of crap.
Since my HTPC has an nVidia 9600GT I will load up Fallout 3 to judge how well it can display graphics. I find the game to be pretty immersive on my NEC monitor. Then again it is 26" and has 1200 row instead of a mere 1080 rows. I don't play many games.
I'll also preview some DVD movies to look at action scenes, dark scenes and very colorful scenes. I don't have a blu-ray player or movies yet.
Lastly I will not post any pictures since I do not have a camera.
*** Updated 1/21/09 - Detailed analysis of movies used to evaluate this monitor has been posted. ***
In case people are interested, the ASUS VK246H is selling for $310 (including free shipping) over at Newegg:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236048
Enter coupon code: EMCBCBBBA for an additional $30 off, but it expires on 12/17. $280 shipped. * * * EXPIRED * * *
I purchased it basically to monitor some processes on my HTPC. My two primary displays are my 26" NEC 2690WUXi and my good ol' 19" Planar PX191 from 2002.
Like all 24" monitors selling for less than around $550 (excluding sale), this monitor uses a TN panel. The benefits of a TN panel are:
1) inexpensive price - $280
2) low response time; this has 2ms GTG
My expectations for this monitor are relatively low, but I will just be using it to monitor some functions and surf with it from time to time. My low expectations are basically due to the inexpensive and "inferior" TN panel technology.
1) At best the Asus will have adequate color accuracy. The average person should not have many issues with this. This is basically due to 6-bits of data used to represent each primary color. To cut to the chase, that means 64 shades of each primary color (Red, Green, Blue) can actually be produced. That equates to only 256k real colors can be produced. Thru a process called dithering the remaining 16.2m - 16.7m colors can be reproduced; but are at best "estimated" colors.
My NEC 2690WUXi will blow this Asus out of the water when it comes to color accuracy, then again it does cost over 4x more than the Asus. My old Planar PX191 will have no problems blowing this thing out of the water too since it uses a S-PVA panel.
2) I expect this monitor will be using temporal dithering or FRC (Frame Rate Control) as opposed to spatial dithering (older tech). Basically spatial dithering means if the panel is trying to create a color that it cannot actually produce (remember a TN can only produce 256k real colors) it will try to re-create the desired color by blending colors in a mesh or checker board pattern to estimate the color. For example, assume the pixels in a TN panel cannot display purple, to do so the panel will display alternating colors of red and blue. Zoomed in it will look like a checker board. Normal view you will see purple in general, but you may also notice that some "patches" look more blue or red than the rest of the purple area.
Temporal dithering (FRC) is a newer dithering tech. Taking the above example, instead of alternating pixels displaying blues and red, each pixel will rapidly flash between blue and red to fool the brain into thinking that a solid color of purple is being displayed. There are a couple of drawback to this: 1) some people may experience eye fatigue or headaches after prolonged use. While you may not notice the flashing, your brain will on a sub-conscious level and some people may be vulnerable to this. 2) While technically this type of dithering will allow for more colors (16.7m opposed to 16.2m) the colors will not be accurate enough for those who demand the absolute best color accuracy they can get.
3) This monitor's 2ms GTG response time should generally mean that there will be little ghosting when playing games. Since I generally don't see much ghosting on my NEC 2690WUXi which has 6ms response time, I would be surprised if I were to see ghosting in the Asus in the same gaming environment.
It should be noted that response times are not absolute values. Response times can change depending on what is being displayed on the screen. Those 2ms, 5ms, 6ms, 8ms, etc listed as part of the specs are simply the response times under the most ideal situation (if one actually existed). I've seen some tests which measured response times as high as 40ms for a monitor who's specs claimed "2ms".
Response time of my 19" Planar PX191? Well back in 2002 GTG (grey-to-grey) response time was not used. Instead the harsher BTW (Black-to-White) response time spec was used. Response time is 25ms for BTW, I would expect if it were to be rated using the more recent GTG methodology it would be around 16ms and yeah, there is ghosting.
4) Viewing angles will suck compared to my NEC and Planar, but then again this is a known issue with TN panels. I don't expect colors to wash out to bother me too much at more extreme angles since this monitor will have limited usage. Some TN panel monitors are particularly bad where the mere turning of your head will cause your eyes to see a shift in colors.
5) Backlight Bleeding - All monitors will display some level of backlight bleeding no matter how expensive it is. That is simply the limitation of LCD itself. However, based on my personal experience it seems TN panels are prone to displaying a lot of backlight bleeding. This could be due to trying to keep production costs low and the fact that for most probably will not notice bleeding under normal circumstances. At work the vast majority of LCD monitors are made by NEC (not a cut-rate manufacturer by any means). When stopping by co-workers' cubicles for a friendly chat or for an impromptu meeting I do happen to notice that the backlighting looks uneven. Hell the backlighting on my monitor at work is uneven. I can even notice it with a white background.
I expect the Asus to be no better or worse than my monitor at work. I just hope it works out that way.
==================================================================
I will post a review of the monitor before the end of the year and maybe before Christmas assuming I do not deep-six this piece of crap.
Since my HTPC has an nVidia 9600GT I will load up Fallout 3 to judge how well it can display graphics. I find the game to be pretty immersive on my NEC monitor. Then again it is 26" and has 1200 row instead of a mere 1080 rows. I don't play many games.
I'll also preview some DVD movies to look at action scenes, dark scenes and very colorful scenes. I don't have a blu-ray player or movies yet.
Lastly I will not post any pictures since I do not have a camera.