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Retested under our new protocol (see "How We Test"), the HP LP2465 performed well on both text and graphics. This 24-inch wide-screen LCD was particularly strong with photos and offered good details and contrast at default settings. Its scores technically fell in the middle of the pack of recently tested monitors of this type, but given the very high performance of this class, there's no shame there. The LP2465 maintained a small lead over its rival, the Dell UltraSharp 2407WFP.

This sharp-looking monitor has a thin silver bezel, and its sturdy black base lets you easily raise and lower, tilt, and pivot the screen. HP's intuitive on-screen menu includes a clever info screen that keeps a running total of the usage hours for the LCD.

The one place where the unit falls down is connectivity. HP is clearly targeting business users with the LP2465, but that's little reason to limit the unit's video inputs to two DVI-I ports. There's a DVI-to-VGA adapter for legacy systems, but no component, no S-Video, and no HDCP support. That may be a relief to some IT managers, but for the home user, it's a lost opportunity.

Competitively priced at $829 on 8/17/06, the LP2465 received a cost rating of Inexpensive on that date. Its chief rival is still the Dell, but bargain hunters may want to compare these two to the Acer AL2423DR. The Acer doesn't have as many features as the HP--notably, it's lacking USB ports--but its image quality is comparable, and its price was $699 on the same day.

Tom Mainelli and Laura Blackwell