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ViewSonic's VP2330wb 23-inch wide-screen monitor is a well-rounded display with an unobtrusive, ergonomically impressive design. With both smooth physical adjustments and easy screen adjustments, this monitor would be a winner even without the full-featured software bundle of extra goodies. The only thing that might make you pause your hand on its way to your wallet is the price: $1099 on 8/17/06, a bit expensive at that time.
At default settings, the VP2330 performed well in the PC World Test Center. Our jurors liked its clean text, and they approved of its graphics performance--but with a few caveats on the latter. We found its display of our test photos of a glazed fruit tart and of a group of people somewhat washed out. At time of scoring, it received a rating of Very Good for both text and graphics (several other monitors did as well, and the spread of the scores was very tight).
It's easy to fine-tune the monitor's image. It has the usual menus in its on-screen display (OSD) controls, with a few nice additions. It's one of the few monitors we've seen that allows hue and saturation control in an easily accessible menu. The six color presets are given in kelvins in the OSD; the manual explains these presets in plain English (6500 kelvins = warm, and so on). To get the most out of this monitor, however, it's best to install the Perfect Portrait Perfect Suite that's included on CD. Not only does the program walk you through the simple steps to optimize your monitor, it includes rare extras such as the theft deterrence and automatic screen pivoting features.
The VP2330wb looks like many recent ViewSonic models, with its thin black bezel, enigmatically labeled buttons for screen adjustments, and a four-footed paint-splat of a stand. What's remarkable isn't what it looks like, but how easy it is to adjust. It includes the full gamut of movement: tilt, height, side-to-side swivel, and pivot. Movement is fluid, but the panel remains in place when set, avoiding the extremes of stiff or slithery adjustments.
Laura Blackwell
