WHAT'S HOT: NEC's latest professional display, the FP955, comes with a five-port USB 1.1 hub. The ports, all located on the back sides of the base, are fairly easy to reach for quickly hooking up USB devices such as mice or keyboards.

Text on the FP955 looked crisp in both a test Microsoft Word document and in a spreadsheet. Our jurors noted the FP955's able rendering of sharp text on a screen of multisize fonts.

WHAT'S NOT: The jurors were not as impressed with the FP955's rendering of graphics. Colors on some screens looked bright, but those in a photo of fruit looked slightly washed out compared with the output of other monitors.

WHAT ELSE: You can purchase the FP955 packaged with a hardware color-calibrator, called SpectraView, for $1019. You cannot buy the calibrator separately.

Overall, we found that the calibrator functioned well, making it an ideal solution for professional graphics work, in which consistent color reproduction is a must. However, we ran into a glitch when the software that it works with couldn't immediately locate the USB-connected circular sensor that sticks to the screen by suction. The SpectraView documentation, while extensive, provides no troubleshooting tips. We reinstalled the software several times, after which it finally worked.

A wizard takes you through the process of calibrating the monitor. The sensor gauges the level of ambient light in the room, and the software optimizes the monitor's colors accordingly.

Although the SpectraView would be a great tool for a graphic design firm, you must buy one per monitor, because NEC-Mitsubishi sells only one license per product. Therefore, if you wanted to outfit your office with ten displays that all use the SpectraView calibrator, you'd have to spend upwards of $10,000--and that would certainly be difficult for a small office on a budget.

The FP955's on-screen display is managed by seven buttons on the front of the bezel, which can be slightly confusing at first. A quick perusal of the manual, which explains how to make changes and provides definitions of each control, makes the process easier. Advanced controls include those for moiré and convergence.

UPSHOT: The FP955 has many assets and fairly strong image quality, though somewhat uneven results with graphics. Its hardware color-calibrator will appeal to graphics professionals, but only those who are willing to put down a lot of cash.

SUMMARY

NEC MultiSync FP955 17.9-inch viewable area, .24mm stripe-pitch Diamondtron NF aperture grille tube, 101-Hz maximum refresh rate at 1280 by 1024 resolution, maximum resolution of 1920 by 1440 at 70 Hz, TCO'99 compliant. Three-year warranty, 24-hour daily toll-free support. $419 800/632-6487 www.necmitsubishi.com