BenQ E2200HD and E2400HD - 1080P FullHD LCDs
by Jarred Walton on November 4, 2008 5:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Displays
BenQ E2200HD Specifications
| BenQ E2200HD Specifications | |
| Video Inputs | DVI with HDCP support HDMI Analog (VGA) |
| Panel Type | TN (Unknown Manufacturer) |
| Pixel Pitch | 0.248mm |
| Colors | 16.7 million (6-bit with dithering/interpolation) |
| Brightness | 300 cd/m2 |
| Contrast Ratio | 1000:1 10000:1 Dynamic |
| Response Time | 5ms, 2ms GTG |
| Viewable Size | 21.5" diagonal |
| Resolution | 1920x1080 (1080P) |
| Viewing Angle | 170 horizontal/160 vertical |
| Power Consumption | <45W max stated 37W max, 16W min measured |
| Power Savings | <2W |
| Screen Treatment | Matte (non-glossy) |
| Height-Adjustable | No |
| Tilt | Yes - 20 degrees back/5 degrees forward |
| Pivot | No |
| Swivel | No |
| VESA Wall Mounting | 100mm x 100mm |
| Dimensions w/ Base (WxHxD) | 20.58" x 16.06" x 7.35" (WxHxD) |
| Weight w/ Stand | 10.56 lbs. |
| Additional Features | None |
| Audio | 2 x 1W Speakers Audio in, Line out |
| Limited Warranty | 3-year limited warranty, M-F 8:30AM-5:30PM PST |
| Accessories | VGA cable, audio input cable, driver CD |
| Price | Online starting at ~$250 |
Like many other inexpensive LCDs, BenQ uses a TN panel on the E2200HD. As you will see on the next page, that means viewing angles (particularly in the vertical dimension) are compromised compared to other panel technologies. As discussed in our last 24" LCD roundup, however, TN panels also have some advantages over other panel technologies, particularly S-PVA. The biggest advantage is that internal processing lag (also called input lag) does not appear to be a factor on TN panels. We should also mention that while we feel TN panels are not as nice as S-IPS panels, particularly on laptops where vertical viewing angles really matter, for desktop use they work fine.
The on-screen display (OSD) for the E2200HD offers all the usual options including controls for brightness, contrast, aspect ratio, color correction, and several preset viewing settings. Personal preference plays a role, but we found that using the "Standard" viewing mode and "Normal" color setting provided the most pleasing experience. Worth note is that the dynamic contrast option is not something we like to enable on any LCD so far; this can dynamically alter the backlight brightness depending on the content currently being displayed, and we find this more distracting than just sticking with a static brightness setting. It also tends to mess up any color accuracy calibration.
You can see the various options available in the menu system in the above gallery. One of the nice features is that pressing the "Enter" button on the bottom right will quickly switch between the three video input options without the need to enter the regular OSD (although you can also select video input inside the OSD if you prefer). Quick access to volume settings is also available via the third button, and the fourth button switches between the five viewing presets.
The E2200HD has two aspect ratio options, Full and Aspect. "Full" is supposed to stretch whatever resolution you're running to fill the whole screen. "Aspect" should maintain the aspect ratio of whatever resolution you're using and fill as much of the screen as possible, leaving you with black bars on the top/bottom or left/right sides. Overscan is also available on certain resolutions, specifically 1080P and 720P; we wouldn't recommend using it even if it's available, but feel free to disagree. As usual, aspect ratio control doesn't always function properly on every resolution with every input, so we created a summary of our testing of common resolutions.
| BenQ E2200HD Resolution and Input Notes | |||
| DVI | HDMI | VGA | |
| 800x600 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 1024x768 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 1152x864 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 1280x720 | Wrong AR (Hor. Stretch), no Fill | 16:10 AR | 16:10 AR |
| 1280x800 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 1280x960 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 1280x1024 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 1440x900 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 1600x1200 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 1680x1050 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 1920x1080 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Resolution support was exceptionally good on the E2200HD. The only oddity is that one resolution we would expect to work perfectly -- 720P -- didn't even show up on our test system using a DVI input. Even after adding that resolution, however, there were still problems with 720P DVI support, and those problems extended to the HDMI and VGA inputs as well. For whatever reason, the aspect ratio control is wrong regardless of what you set it to when using 720P DVI. It only fills the center portion of the display, and if you select "Full" it stretches the output horizontally but not vertically. 720P is better on HDMI and VGA, but it's squished horizontally to fill a 16:10 AR, leaving black borders on the left and right. It's unfortunate, since 720P support can be important for certain devices (i.e. Xbox 360, PS3). The remaining resolutions all work properly; the only two issues we noticed are that 1280x768 and 1360x768 both had the wrong aspect ratio as well; both stretched to fill the same area as a 16:10 resolution instead of 5:3 and 16:9 respectively.
The built-in resolution scaler works well on all of the inputs when you're not using native resolution, but the closer you are to native resolution the more likely you are to see artifacts. Specifically, 1680x1050 doesn't stretch as well as lower resolutions and if you were to display a black on white grid, you would notice that certain lines are thicker and others are thinner. Obviously, you're best off running at native resolution if possible; if you want to run at a lower resolution (i.e. to get higher frame rates in a game), we would recommend 1440x900 or 1280x800 over 1680x1050 due to the scaling artifacts.
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10e - Tuesday, November 4, 2008 - link
Keep in mind, that if you set 1:1 pixel mapping on your video card whether ATI or nVidia, both of these monitors will display 1:1 with black borders. 1680x1050 works perfectly as do other resolutions. To me this is the only reason you need 1:1 pixel mapping, and if the monitor supports it, it's not a big issue if it is not explicitly stated in the menus.A PS3 is a good benchmark here, and if the monitor was set to 1:1 you would get a full screen XMB/dashboard, and most games, running at 720p would display a tiny image with large black borders elsewhere. This is why proper aspect ratio scaling is important.
Additionally, for the seldomly used 480p resolution, the monitor can simply be set to stretch to full screen so that this content is displayed at proper aspect ratio.
I would say 1:1 pixel mapping in all cases is more useful for 16:10 monitors as opposed to 16:9.
wicko - Tuesday, November 4, 2008 - link
One problem I've had with TN panels is that under certain conditions in a game I've noticed a strange artifacting appear. It is most obvious under Source engine games, like Lost Coast, HL2, CS:S, but also noticeable in other games and even in movies. In the game, to reproduce it all you have to do is look at the sky and move the mouse around at varying speeds, and pay attention to the clouds. I noticed this magenta colouring appear in the silhouette of the cloud in the position it used to be, and then it will quickly disappear. Sometimes its other colours, it depends on whats being displayed. I've noticed this in movies (in the latest Bourne movie with the fight where he pistol whips the guy in the end) and in games. I think it was really bad in Quake 4, the part where you're launched into the air in a pod, and fog is rushing past, you can see a strange discolouring going on. Not sure what this is called, I haven't been able to find any info about this. I've noticed it with 3 different monitors with TN panels (a year or two ago) and since I've bought an LG panel with 5ms response time (not sure which panel) I haven't been able to reproduce it. Can anyone tell me what that artifacting is called, and do these new BenQ monitors have the same issue?JarredWalton - Tuesday, November 4, 2008 - link
It may have simply been an issue where the transitions between colors ended up with some image persistence that looked weird. You can see in the lag/response time images that there's an afterimage on moving objects, which ends up being half way between what was there last frame and what will be there in the next frame. It's likely that in some instances the half way point looks magenta.Some people call this "smearing", others "ghosting", or "motion blur". I call it image persistence I guess.
wicko - Tuesday, November 4, 2008 - link
I think this is a little different. I've seen ghosting before, and I was under the impression that low response time monitors don't have that issue. You only see this situation occur with certain colours, otherwise its completely unnoticeable.JonnyDough - Wednesday, November 5, 2008 - link
Whatever you choose to call it, in my experience 5ms or < = none of it. On 8ms monitors it is still noticeable. My advice when buying a monitor is to shoot for integrated no speakers, HDMI, 1080P, matte finish on the screen and bezel, and at a 2ms response time. Also, anything under 21.5" is a waste of time in my opinion. A 19" or 20" monitor will suit many people just fine. I use Samsung Monitors and I think they're fantastic. I have the 204B and the 215tw, both of which have served me well with only one dead pixel in 4 yrs. I got the 20" for gaming with a 2ms response time, and the 22" (8ms response time) because it has component jacks. The only downsides are that I bought them as HDCP and HDMI were just coming into fruition, and that the 215tw has some worthless speakers which not only contribute to a rise in the cost of the product, but the weight and size of it too.wicko - Wednesday, November 5, 2008 - link
Like i said, I've only seen this occur with 2ms panels. 2 of them were samsung (I can't remember what the models were) and another was the Viewsonic Vx922 (although there was considerably less of that happening to the VX922, a much higher end panel than the samsungs). On the LG, a 5ms panel, I haven't noticed this problem, which leads me to believe that its *not* ghosting. I've seen ghosting before. The whole screen kind of slides around, and its more obvious in darker areas. However, this only happens with certain colors, as far as I could tell, and they were all light colours.MadMan007 - Wednesday, November 5, 2008 - link
The ms ratings of monitors is pretty often bs anyway. The overdrive required to get the fast speeds you mentioned can be done well or poorly, it sounds like the ones that had the problem were done poorly.Gizmonty - Tuesday, November 4, 2008 - link
I bought an E2400HD about a month ago (in Australia) and it came with a DVI cable as well as a VGA cable. I've been very happy with it.Slash3 - Tuesday, November 4, 2008 - link
Regarding the lack of 1:1 mapping, it can still come in quite handy for people who sometimes play older games, which commonly supported resolutions no higher than 1280x1024. With 1:1 mapping, this would result in a very close vertical fit, as intended (albeit with the unavoidable black bars on the left and right). Having to stretch the image to what amounts to 28 pixels in each direction (up and down) will result in reduced image quality with no perceived gain in size. This won't affect all users, but it is certainly a feature which separates the quality displays from the budget models.For 1280x720 content, scaling to fit is the obvious solution, as the aspect ratio is unchanged. That said, it's always nice to have the option. Sometimes, the pixels should only go where they're intended to be.
JarredWalton - Tuesday, November 4, 2008 - link
Agreed... which is why I list it, but at the same time it's not quite as critical as getting the AR correct with stretching (at least if the user asks for it). 1:1 is just a nice extra, which is becoming less necessary as time goes by. If it's there, though, bonus points. :)