Dell UltraSharp 3007WFP-HC

Dell's UltraSharp 3007WFP-HC turned in strong scores in the text portion of our image quality tests: True to the monitor's name, text in a Microsoft Word document was indeed sharp, and text in a screen of multi-sized fonts was crisp and easy to read, even at small font sizes.

The Dell didn't perform quite as well as the other displays when rendering color, though it did represent colors nicely overall. While colors in a screen of a Web site looked bright and accurate, some photos appeared slightly dark, with muted shades. The effect was not really distracting--just enough to be barely visible.

The 3007WFP-HC has easily accessible media slots and USB ports--a four-in-one media card reader, a separate CF slot, and two USB ports all reside on the left side of the display. Two more USB ports are situated on the back.

The only controls this model includes are those for brightness--touch-sensitive buttons on the front let you turn brightness up or down. It lacks other controls because there are no on-screen components to support the display's high resolution of 2560 by 1600. Dell says that future versions of the display will include an OSD.

The 3007WFP-HC has a smooth black bezel and a V-shaped silver stand. It tilts and swivels smoothly, though it does not pivot. It is height-adjustable and wall-mountable.

With a $1700 price tag, this Dell monitor is certainly not cheap, though its cost does fall in the same range as other 30-inch LCDs. But if you're looking for a big display on which to spread out a few open windows, then the 3007WFP-HC could be a good investment.

Kalpana Ettenson