« Return to: Top 10 15-Inch LCD Monitors
| Rank | 15-inch LCD Monitor | Street price (3/25/02) | Overall rating | Quality of text/graphics | Comments |
| 1 | Best Buy NEC MultiSync LCD1550X | $515 | 94 | Outstanding/ Outstanding | FEATURES: 15-inch viewable area, 13.6 by 7.9 by 14.9 inches,1 13.2 pounds, dual video input,2 three-year warranty, 24-hour daily toll-free tech support; LiquidView software. SUMMARY: Image quality for both text and graphics was extremely good, but it comes at a price: This is the second-most-expensive monitor on the chart. The panel pivots to portrait mode. (  ) |
| 2 | Best Buy Sharp LL-T15V1 | $399 | 88 | Very good/ Very good | FEATURES: 15-inch viewable area, 13.3 by 7.4 by 12.7 inches,1 7.5 pounds, analog video input, three-year warranty, 24-hour daily toll-free tech support; Sharp setup utility software. SUMMARY: This unit doesn't come with a digital input, but it does provide very strong image quality and a stylish design. The price is also attractive: This is one of the less-expensive monitors on the chart. (  ) |
| 3 | CTX PV520A | $425 | 87 | Very good/ Good | FEATURES: 15-inch viewable area, 15.1 by 6.7 by 14.8 inches,1 12.5 pounds, analog video input, three-year warranty, 12-hour weekday toll-free tech support; PivotPro software. SUMMARY: The monitor lacks a digital interface, and its image quality was not as impressive as that of the Sharp or the NEC. It has removable speakers that deliver rather weak sound. Pivoting the monitor to portrait mode is easy. (  ) |
| 4 | Iiyama Pro Lite 3835UT | $549 | 87 | Outstanding/ Very good | FEATURES: 15-inch viewable area, 13.5 by 8.5 by 13.5 inches,1 13.2 pounds, dual video input,2 three-year warranty, 10-hour weekday toll-free tech support; PivotPro software. SUMMARY: This model scores higher for text than the top-ranked NEC, and ranks a close second on graphics, but it is the most expensive monitor on the chart. The panel pivots to portrait mode and includes a four-port USB 1.1 hub. (  ) |
| 5 | Hewlett-Packard L1520 | $465 | 85 | Very good/ Very good | FEATURES: 15-inch viewable area, 13.9 by 8.2 by 14.9 inches,1 10.3 pounds, dual video input,2 three-year warranty, 24-hour daily toll-call tech support; PivotPro software. SUMMARY: Well-organized on-screen menu permits easy adjustments. The monitor comes with both analog and digital video inputs, and it is the only model here to come with cables for both types of video connection. ( ) |
| 6 | Eizo Nanao FlexScan L365 | $510 | 85 | Very good/ Very good | FEATURES: 14.9-inch viewable area, 13.4 by 6.2 by 14.5 inches,1 9 pounds, dual video input,2 three-year warranty, 8-hour weekday toll-free tech support; Eizo LCD utility software. SUMMARY: The black-on-black button labels on the bezel give the monitor a clean, stylish look, but they are difficult to read. However, the excellent on-screen menu makes setup easy. ( ) |
| 7 | ADI A600 | $369 | 83 | Very good/ Good | FEATURES: 15-inch viewable area, 15.2 by 7 by 15.6 inches,1 10.7 pounds, analog video input, three-year warranty, 12-hour weekday toll-free tech support. SUMMARY: The monitor case is larger than those of other 15-inch LCDs but is the only one not to require an external power block. This is also the cheapest monitor on the chart. It provides above-average image quality, but no digital input. ( ) |
| 8 | Samsung SyncMaster 570vTFT | $390 | 80 | Good/ Good | FEATURES: 15-inch viewable area, 15.2 by 6.6 by 14.4 inches,1 12.6 pounds, analog video input, three-year warranty, 24-hour daily toll-free tech support. SUMMARY: Elegant design, reasonable image quality, and an attractive price, but monitor has no digital interface or software. A useful option is a USB hub that adds four USB 1.1 ports and that fits in the base. ( ) |
| 9 | Benq FP581 | $394 | 77 | Good/ Average | FEATURES: 15-inch viewable area, 14.5 by 13.1 by 7.9 inches,1 12 pounds, analog video input, three-year warranty, 24-hour daily toll-free tech support; I-key calibration software.SUMMARY: This monitor includes a built-in folding base that doubles as a carrying handle, as well as speakers that produce tinny sound. There is no digital interface, and the panel cannot be rotated or raised. ( ) |
| 10 | ViewSonic VE155 | $399 | 76 | Good/ Average | FEATURES: 15-inch viewable area, 14 by 7.9 by 13.5 inches,1 8.1 pounds, analog video input, three-year warranty, 24-hour daily toll-free tech support; ColorMatch software.SUMMARY: The unit has no digital interface and showed lackluster image quality, but it offers stylish looks, an excellent on-screen menu, a pleasing price, and software for matching on-screen colors to printouts. ( ) |
How We Test: Twelve judges rate a monitor's text and graphics quality at the native resolution of 1024 by 768. We evaluate each unit on how well it displays typical business letters, spreadsheets, Web pages, and scanned photos. The overall rating is based on text and graphics quality (25 percent each), price (20 percent), features and ease of use (20 percent), and service and support (10 percent). The best possible overall rating is 100. Data based on tests designed and conducted by the PC World Test Center. All rights reserved. For more details, see "A Guide to PC World's Star Ratings." All monitors are TCO '99-compliant unless otherwise indicated.
1 Includes base.
2 Includes both digital (DVI) and analog inputs. The digital input must be used with a graphics card that has a digital output.