BenQ V2420H – Too expensive for the features it offers
Pros
- Good performance
- Backlight clouding is minimal
Cons
- Issues if color scaling
- Price is too high considering the features that it has to offer
Bottom Line:
This monitor performs according to our expectations but the price is a bit high and hence we won’t recommend you this panel.
- Manufacturer’s specifications
- 22.8 inches wide, 7.4 inches deep, 16.9 inches height, 8.6 lbs weight
- Enclosure Color – Glossy black
- Display (projector) image aspect ratio – 16:9
- Image brightness – 250 cd/m2
- Image Contrast Ratio – 1000:1 / 10000000:1 (dynamic)
- Max horizontal view angle – 170
- Max vertical view angle – 160
- Diagonal Size – 24 inches – Widescreen
- Dot Pitch / Pixel Pitch – 0.276 mm
- Maximum Resolution – 1920 x 1200 pixels
- Color Support – 24-bit (16.7 million colors)
- Max Sync Rate (V x H) – 76 Hz x 83 KHz
- Video Bandwidth – 205 MHz
- Response Time – 5 ms
- Front Panel Controls – Power on/off
- Adjustments/Controls – Color temperature
- Display Positions Adjustments – Tilt
- Video Output – None
- Tilt Angle – 20
- Signal Input – DVI-D, HDMI, VGA
- Features – HDCP, LED Technology, Senseye Technology
- Analog Video Signal – RGB
- Digital Video Standard – High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI), Digital Visual Interface (DVI)
- Audio Output – None
- Interfaces – VGA – 15 pin HD D-Sub (HD-15) , DVI-D – 24 pin digital DVI , 1 x HDMI – 19 pin HDMI Type A, Headphones – Mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm
- Connections – D-Sub, HDMI, DVI-Digital
- Cables Included – Power cable, VGA cable
Design:
BenQ V2420H has a glossy black chassis along and there is a green ring which surrounds the power button on the lower right side of the bezel. The footstand is circular shaped and it is 7.4 inches in diameter. The gap between the desktop and bezel’s bottom is about 2.8 inches.
Inside Dope:
BenQ V2420H costs $300 and at that price, we find it hard to recommend this monitor especially because there is the much better Samsung PX2370 available for just $10 more. The V2420H does have some advantages over the Samsung monitor – it has less backlight clouding and is one inch wider. However, the V2420H color performance is a bit poor which makes it a difficult argument against the Samsung monitor. We would recommend you to pass this display and go for the Samsung PX2370. However, if you still insist on this the V2420H, then read on.
The panel wobbled a lot when we knocked it from the sides. This monitor tilts back by ten degrees but there is no pivot, swivel or height adjustment options. BenQ V2420H has DVI, HDMI and VGA connection options. All these connections are located on the display’s back and are easy to access. There is a headphone jack located alongside the VGA port.
OSD or onscreen display array is located on the right side of the BenQ V2420H. There are labels for each of the functions above the keys and they are front facing. The labels won’t be easy to read in low light rooms though as they are colored in dull white shade. The navigation array consists of Menu button, Left/Right button, Auto button and Enter button. The Auto button automatically calibrates the display when you are on an analog connection. The left and right buttons can also be used as volume adjustment and preset toggle buttons.
We struggled a bit initially to get hold of the OSD navigation but after a small learning curve, things went quite smooth. There are preset modes like Eco, sRGB, Photo, Game, Movie, and Standard. The presets, as you might know, just change the display brightness and color temperature in order to make it more appropriate for the said task. For instance, the Eco mode will reduce the brightness for less power consumption. There are some color preset options like Reddish, Bluish and Normal color temperature. BenQ lets you change the RGB values of the monitor individually.
We tested the BenQ V2420H on its DVI port and connected to a Windows Vista computer. It didn’t perform as well as the Samsung PX2370. The V2420H struggled in scales tests which calculate the panel’s capablity to display linear intensity progression. In Color Tracking tests, the colors of the monitor were greenish. In Black Level test, the dark grays were crushed. Finally, when put through Dark Screen test, there were less clouding as compared to the Samsung panel.
When checked for text based tests, the BenQ V2420H didn’t have any color problems and the black text was quite clear on white background. The fonts were clearly visible till fone size of 6.8. For movie tests, we used the Blu-ray Avatar disc. The colors were mostly accurate but the videos had a bit of green tint. The color is quite inaccurate and the sharpness too is less than ideal. However, the movie performance is quite good.
For game tests, we played World of Warcraft as it is really good in testing the vibrancy and color quality for games. We used the game mode for testing which overly saturated the colors and gave the game garish look. The sRGB mode, on the other side was better than others for games. PX2370 was much better than this in games.
For photo tests, we saw that the BenQ V2420H lacked sharpness and environments and faces had a green tint. The sRGB preset was the best for photo quality as the colors looked relatively accurate and the clarity was good too.
The best viewing angle for any computer monitor is usually from the front. At this angle, the colors are viewed as intended by the manufacturer. Most monitors are made to be viewed only from this angle. BenQ V2420H is a TN panel and we saw that the panel darkened six inches off the center when we viewed it from the sides.
