Hitachi CML190B
Bright images and sharp text highlight an otherwise simple LCD.
Roy Santos
WHAT'S HOT: Hitachi's CML190B achieved the highest overall score in our image-quality tests, edging out traditional market leaders such as NEC-Mitsubishi and Samsung by a hair. This bright LCD displayed finely nuanced images with brilliant colors. Sharp text and menu icons enlivened Microsoft Word documents, and game performance was on par with the best flat screens. Also, we saw few motion artifacts in our screening of Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, and shadowing was visible only in the fastest sequences. It performed a shade better on these tasks than most other 19-inch LCDs we reviewed.
Hitachi thoughtfully placed the power and video connections under a removable cover on the right side of the panel (if you're looking at it from the back). This makes cables easier to connect than on most LCD monitors, which force you to aim the connector upwards and attach it to the underside of the panel.
The CML190B's swivel base works better than those on other displays we've looked at. Only the middle part of the base moves. Many other monitors have a simple lazy Susan-like turntable at the bottom, and the lip of the base typically rubs against the desktop when you try to rotate it. A small notch in front of the base acts as a reference point for centering the screen.
WHAT'S NOT: The swivel base is the CML190B's only extra feature. Its height is not adjustable, and the $970 price seems a bit high considering that it doesn't include any expensive extras such as USB ports, speakers, or a pivoting screen.
WHAT ELSE: The CML190B's horizontal angle of view, at 120 degrees, is about average for other 19-ich LCDs we have evaluated. (Please note that PC World uses a different method than monitor vendors do for measuring angle of view. For details on our procedure, see "Lab Notes: The Angle on LCDs.")
UPSHOT: If your only concern is the very best image and text quality, Hitachi's CML190B is for you. But at a price that flirts with $1000, this LCD's basic design seems a bit skimpy.
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