Dream Screens

Thinking of switching from a fat monitor to a flat one? We review new 15-inch LCDs. The best have cutting-edge designs, lower prices--and fantastic image quality.

In Unliving Color

With few exceptions, the LCDs we tested produced crisp and extremely legible black-on-white text (typical of word processing documents and Web pages). But, although we calibrated all the monitors to the same contrast and brightness settings, we saw noticeable variations in the panels' abilities to display color images. Some had screen contrast that was too high--enough so that a battleship-gray toolbar in Windows looked almost white, and usually vivid icons looked either faded or, at the opposite extreme, oversaturated. Among our chart-makers, the number eight Samsung SyncMaster 150MP showed relatively tepid graphics, and the number seven Acer FP558 was plagued by screen blotchiness.

To help correct color quality, some vendors include image- or color-adjustment software with their LCD monitors (see the chart). But these consumer-grade applications don't offer the same power as the expensive color-calibration software graphics professionals use--although some of the latter packages can cost as much as the entire LCD monitor itself.

While some people will wait patiently for prices to come down even further, those of you who are ready to make the switch to a 15-inch LCD right now will find a generous number of excellent choices on our Top 10 chart. If high style is what you seek, check out the unusual case designs of Sony's SDM-N50PS or AG Neovo's M15; bargain hunters should consider CTX International's PV510.

Best Buy

Pitch-black and pixel-perfect, the Eizo Nanao FlexScan L330 earns top honors for its superlative text and graphics display, and for its price: a competitive $949.