WHAT'S HOT: A 22-inch wide-screen LCD with great image quality and a sexy clear frame--what's not to like? There were a few things we'll mention later, but for the most part, Apple's Cinema Display dazzled us. It produced clean text and beautiful graphics in our PC-based tests. And its especially wide horizontal viewing angle (nearly 180 degrees, by our measurement) makes this one of the better LCDs for presentations or color-sensitive design work. Its 16:10 aspect ratio (at a resolution of 1600 by 1024) lets you open two windows side-by-side or enjoy DVD movies in wide-screen format. Indeed, although Apple says the Cinema Display is primarily for work, we found it to be a great piece of entertainment gear. Apple will not disclose the monitor's pixel response time, but it appears to be faster than the 25 milliseconds typical of most high-end LCDs. We noticed crisper motion in a DVD movie and finer textures in a video game from this monitor than from others we tested for our February 2003 roundup.

WHAT'S NOT: This Apple is not a free lunch. At $2499 (at the time of our review), it's over twice as expensive as a top-notch 19-inch LCD. And while this screen will play with PCs, it doesn't play nicely. It's optimized for the video signal from Apples, and using it on a PC can produce images that are a tad dark and colors that are a hint too warm. Unfortunately, you can't make adjustments to compensate on the display itself, as Apple has moved all these functions to the OS X operating system. High-end PC users who demand optimal color quality should consider purchasing color-adjusting software such as the $50 Colorific application (which also comes bundled with some display adapters).

PC users, and even Apple PowerBook G4 owners, will also have to shell out $149 for an adapter. While the Cinema Display accepts standard DVI signals, its integrated cable uses a proprietary plug that includes video, power, and USB connections--and it only fits on Apple G4 tower systems.

Documentation is extremely scant--consisting mainly of a cartoonish setup card and a description of Apple's skimpy warranty: one year for labor and only 90 days for parts. We'd like to see full three-year coverage for such a sizeable investment.

WHAT ELSE: The monitor stands with a very slight backward rake and can be tilted about 30 degrees further back. It does not provide swivel or height adjustments, and it is too big to fit on standard monitor risers. A two-port USB 1.1 hub is located on the back of the monitor. Apple also sells a 23-inch, 1920-by-1200 version of the Cinema Display for $3499.

UPSHOT: A very impressive monitor, at a very steep price.

SUMMARY

Apple Cinema Display (22-inch) 22-inch screen, 1600 by 1024 native resolution; 23.1 by 8.3 by 18.9 inches, 25 pounds; LCD panel; digital input. One-year warranty for labor, 90 days for parts; 12-hour daily toll-free support. $2499 800/692-7753 www.apple.com