LG Electronics L1981Q

LG Electronics Flatron L1981Q

L1981Q Review, by Laura Blackwell May 24, 2005

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• Reviewed by: RustyDragon

  Strengths: 8ms response time; three-year warranty; monitor can be flipped and adjusted in half a dozen ways and the picture automatically adjusts to portrait/landscape/upside-down; DVI & analog connectors

  Weaknesses: default brightness nearly blinded me; one dead pixel found (after extensive inspection); slightly on the expensive end for a 19-inch LCD; bezel is sturdy but feels like it will wear out fast.

  Overall: I picked this bad boy up while searching for a monitor that would serve both my requirements of both computer artwork (Photoshop, Poser, Bryce, Inkscape, etc.), standard administrative work (MS Office, Quicken), and hardly least of all some serious gaming that wouldn't wear out my eyes the way my CRT did. This looked to be the perfect solution. So far, it mostly has been. The ability of this display to twist the screen and adjust the height and lean makes this monitor the closet thing a CG artist can get to an electronic easel when paired with a Wacom Graphire or Intuos tablet. This alone was reason enough for me to grab it, but when I started up Battlefield 2 I found that this monitor wasn't far in quality from the Dell 2405, which I would have purchased if I had an extra $500 to throw around. No noticable ghosting, and the image quality isn't far from what my CRT threw at me. Also a plus was the choice of inputs: both VGA and DVI-I (cables included) On the down side, I did notice one dead pixel in the lower left-hand corner, but I only noticed that after scouring the screen upon delivery, and it's barely noticeable. I still have to scour around the area to find it even now. Another concern is the bezel. It seems sturdy enough right now, but after some serious artwork use I get the feeling it will get worn out rather fast. You'll also need to adjust the brightness if you work in low light, as this screen is nearly blinding out of the box.

• Reviewed by: ssstodd

  Strengths: Exceptionally clear and bright picture. Heat sensitive controls are "cool." Compact and light.

  Weaknesses: "forte Manager" software did some weird things to my computer.

  Overall: Did a lot of research before choosing this monitor. Went to the nearby big electronics superstores (BB and CC) and did the side-by-side comparison. The LG outdid them all everytime. The PC Magazine review chose the Dell UltraSharp 1905FP as their Best-Buy, but I have used the Dell's at work and there is not comparison. If they chose it because of the difference in cost, the current $150 mail-in rebate (8-16-2005) makes that no longer an argument. As I look at the monitor right now I am in awe of the brightness of the picture and the clear graphics. One problem I had...The "forte Manager" CD that comes with the monitor that allows you to change settings with the mouse versus on the monitor did some weird stuff to my operating systems (Win-XP). The mouse moved erratically and no icons would respond. I had to go into safe-mode and delete the software and then everything was OK. Called LG tech support who stated that it was a conflict with some other software I had wasn't helpful. Since I just replaced my hard-drive and it basically only had XP, Internet Explorer, and virus software on it, makes me doubt it...but, I could be wrong. Otherwise, fantastic.