LG L1980U LCD: The New 19" Panel on the Block
by Kristopher Kubicki on May 13, 2005 4:00 PM EST- Posted in
- Displays
Introduction
Almost a year to the date, we introduced a Sharp 19” LCD that was one of the first of its kind to run a 16ms response time on a 19” panel. While the display performed well in fast motion games, certain “gotchas” plagued the display, including an abnormally poor viewing angle and a lackluster DSP. The fact that the panel manufacturers, LG.Philips LCD, opted for a 6-bit TN display over an 8-bit SIPS display only seemed to make matters worse. Recently, we were approached by LG (not the same company as LG.Philips LCD) to take a look at their newest 19” display based on the next generation LG.Philips LCD panel.LG Electronics (LGE) has produced some of the more interesting PC products that we’ve seen recently. The Tri-format GSA series DVD recorders are still extremely popular, and older displays like the L2323T still impress us whenever we see them. In the past, LGE has done a great job of marrying new technology with tried and true design. LG.Philips LCD, the panel manufacturer for the Flatron L1980U display that we are reviewing today, continues to dominate the high end display sector. The Dell 2005FPW, Dell 2001FP, Apple Cinema 30” and HP L2335 displays all use LG.Philips LCD panels, although those displays are all 8-bit SIPS instead of the 6-bit TN panel featured in the L1980U.
We have mentioned our misgivings with 6-bit panels in the past; color depth (among other things) is sacrificed for response time to appeal to the gaming audience. We’ve seen 6-bit 19” displays before, and none of them particularly won us over due to lower visual quality. With all of the difficult compromises considered for this display, LG has a bit of work cut out for them with the Flatron L1980U display. Dell’s 1905FP continues to pummel just about any new competitor in the 19” LCD sector when it comes to price and performance, but maybe this new display from LG can unseat the champ.
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nthexwn - Sunday, May 15, 2005 - link
I still like my Samsung 710T for gaming ;) Any word on 8ms displays?phaxmohdem - Sunday, May 15, 2005 - link
LOL Wish this article was published a day sooner. Not even 24 hours before this story went online, I walked out of my local Sams Club store toting two brand new Samsung 913V 19" LCD monitors. I paid around $350 ea for them.It was worth it though, these suckers have an 800:1 contrast ratio and are the durn purdiest monitors I have ever pwn3d. There is not much info online about this particular model, but I would recommend them to anyone in the 19" market. only down sides so far, is no DVI input and teh bases are not adjustable, just a tilt option. (and some ghosting on games which is to be expected from a 25ms monitor.)
BUBKA - Saturday, May 14, 2005 - link
wouldn't it be nice if somebody did a monitor review without a Matrix text complete with screenshot...g33k - Friday, May 13, 2005 - link
Thanks for the review. I enjoyed the read and as I am in the market for a new monitor, this will definitly help in my buying descisions.Spacecomber - Friday, May 13, 2005 - link
Sorry, one more comment. I believe the LG1930B uses a LG Philis S-IPS panel, though it is rated as only a 25ms panel. Still, this monitor might compare well against the Dell 1905FP, and NewEgg currently is selling it for $288 after a mail-in rebate. This might be another interesting 19" LCD monitor to take a look at.Ok, I think I'm done now.
Space
Spacecomber - Friday, May 13, 2005 - link
Thanks for this review. Trying to keep up with how these 19" monitors stack up against each other is important to me, since they do seem to be the sweet spot for recommending a LCD to someone these days (as you noted).I think some of these have been mentioned before, but an interesting comparison would be this monitor to the Hyundi L90D+, which uses a Samsung TN panel, and the Viewsonic VP912B, which I think uses the AUO panel. At the moment, I would think that the Hyundi L90D+ gets the nod for a fast gaming monitor, because of its cost, about $350.
I know you guys really like the Dell 1905FP, but its PVA panel is really too slow for games. In fact, I would like to see the 1905FP compared against the Samsung 910T. Although the 910T is rated as a 25ms panel and the Dell a 20ms panel, I didn't think there was much difference between them when it comes to games. The 5ms reported difference in response times is for black to white transitions, and this doesn't really reflect how the PVA monitor has so much trouble with black to grey transitions. The small 5 ms difference gets washed away by the high response times in these situations.
And, I personally liked the much more extensive control features available on the 910T, compared to the Dell. Currently the 910T is available for $349 at NewEgg after a $50 mail in rebate, and they even have the 193P for $392, after a $200 rebate. So, the market for LCDs using Samsung's PVA panels is actually fairly tight.
A couple of other monitors that I'd like to ask you to keep an eye out for, as they sound quite interesting, are the Samsung 193P plus and the Eizo L778. The 193P+ is suppose to be a 8ms PVA panel. I'm still skeptical if this will really make any difference in games, but inquiring minds want to know. The L778 is also a PVA panel, but Eizo claims that their "overdrive circuit" keeps the response times at a low level across the spectrum of black to grey transitions. If this is true, then this PVA panel might rival the S-IPS panels as coming close to being a good all-around LCD monitor.
Some links:
http://www.eizo.com/products/lcd/l778/index.asp
http://product.samsung.com/cgi-bin/nabc/product/b2...
Thanks again,
Space
ocyl - Friday, May 13, 2005 - link
Good poundings on the 6-bit panels, Kristopher! Keep them going :D !!!Samadhi - Friday, May 13, 2005 - link
1280x1024, it's about time someone produced a higher resolution 19" display.rqle - Friday, May 13, 2005 - link
I like these flatron monitor, burrow friend LCD to carry around. I would only pay 15% more then a dell though, so price is a bit high for me.xpose - Friday, May 13, 2005 - link
Nice review. I am glad my Dell is still the champ. hehee. Plus I paid 297.00 +tax shipping for the UltraSharp 1905FP just last week. With a price like that, this monitor doesnt stand a chance.