ViewSonic V3D231
Details
Price: $324.8
Size: 23"
Response time: 5ms
Input: HDMI, DVI-D, VGA
The ViewSonic V3D231 is another cheap
monitor featuring passive 3D as a way to keep costs low. You might be getting
the sense that there's a recurring theme here. Does this one have anything
going for it besides the price?
As it happens, not really. The V3D231 is
reasonably sturdy and comes with a variety of inputs: DVI, HDMI and VGA
(although again, no DisplayPort.) There are built-in speakers, which are rare
in 3D monitors at this price, and a headphone-out jack to accompany them. The
stand is the only outright disappointment, with no pivot, swivel or height
adjustments, and only limited tilt capabilities. This is always a problem when
dealing with 3D monitors, which require very accurate placement for their
effects to work.
As a 2D monitor, it's wholly unimpressive
to the point of being worth avoiding. The polarization filters that make the 3D
work undeniably affect 2D images for the worse, dulling the brightness of the
screen and blurring the lines, making text a little harder to read than on a
normal 2D monitor. These issues affect all monitors using passive 3D, but here
they seem unusually pronounced.
Again, what we're left with is a 3D monitor
that just about scrapes by as acceptable for the price, but which is worth
actively avoiding when it comes to 2D. The only thing going for the V3D231 is
its speakers, and that's not exactly praise ViewSonic will be pleased to get.
Ultimately, it's tough to find anything
about the monitor that's remarkable in either a positive or negative way. Its
color reproduction is perhaps a little better than its shelf-mates, with good
visuals across both games and movies, but it's still far below what you'd get
if you bought a 2D monitor of the same price, so that's just not enough.
LG DM2350D
Details
Price: $379.2
Size: 23"
Response time: 5ms
Input: HDMI. VGA, SCART, component
Described as a 'monitor TV', there's little
doubt that LG is aiming this screen at people who want everything rolled into
one package. It's a monitor, it has a built-in DVB tuner (with remote) and it
has stereoscopic 3D support at an affordable price, compatible with both games
and 3D movies. Does that make it all-singing and all-dancing, or a jack of all
trades but master of none?
At 23", it makes for a reasonably
sized monitor but a rather undersized TV. Still, if you're hoping for an
all-in-one package, we can assume space is an issue, so in that sense its size
shouldn't be a problem. Certainly, size is some way down its list of flaws as a
TV - it's disappointing that the tuner isn't HD-capable, for instance. If you
want to view Freeview HD, you'll need a separate set-top box.
The 3D technology (TriDef) is a passive
design, meaning you use polarized-lens glasses to view it, which is a plus: not
only are they cheap to buy, you even get two pairs included. AMD favors TriDef,
and NVidia supports it, but it's undeniably inferior to other, active
technologies in terms of the quality of the 3D image. Finding the right place
to sit for a perfect picture is trickier than it should be, and even then, the
monitor doesn't support 3D Blu-rays through a PC, only through a 3D Blu-ray
player.
As a standard 2D monitor, though, the
technology looks decent enough on paper. Although the panel is TN-based, with a
1920x1080 native resolution and 5ms response time, the excellent LED backlighting
(it has to be good because polarized glasses dull images) means colors are
better than typical TN panels. Gamers will have few complaints, but once again
there's one major flaw that lets it down, and this one relates primarily to its
use as a monitor: it doesn't do DVI.
In fairness, it does have two HDMI ports,
as well as VGA, SCART and component inputs, so it's hardly a complete turkey,
but the lack of DVI is a serious omission for PC users - particularly in the
context of HDMI's notorious compatibility problems with certain video cards and
drivers.
So as it turns out, the DM2350D fails to
excel as a TV, monitor or 3D display, and that suggests that it's mainly aimed
at people with serious space restrictions, but even they will need a separate
Blu-ray player and Freeview HD box to get the most out of its capabilities.
HP 2311GT
Details
Price: $379.2
Size: 23"
Response time: 5ms
Input: HDMI, DVI-D, VGA
Another fairly low-budget 3D monitor, the
HP 2311GT is slightly more expensive than similarly cheap models, but it uses
the same kind of passive 3D technology. It's also similarly flimsy. The TN
panel with LED backlight has a 1920x1080 resolutions and anti-glare screen
coating, making it completely average, technologically speaking.
Connectivity comes through DVI, VGA and
HDMI, but there's no DisplayPort input for those who might want to use it. A
more glaring omission is its frankly unacceptable lack of adjustability. You
can tilt the screen forward or back through 25° and... well, that's it. No pivot,
no swivel, no height adjustments. Hey, that's why your chair moves up and down,
right?
As with other screens that use this
technology, this one comes with a free pair of polarized glasses, which are
adequate but not great. They're perhaps a little tighter than they could be,
especially if worn over an existing pair of glasses, but at least they work.
We say 'work1. They do if you're in exactly
the right spot. For some reason, the HP 2311GT's 3D effects require you to sit
2ft or more away from the monitor in order to get a decent 3D image, instead of
two poorly overlapping 2D ones. It's far from enjoyable to try to play a game
that far away from your monitor, but at the same time, you'd be too close if
you were trying to watch TV. This is, quite frankly, a product-crippling
mistake.
It's worth pointing out that the HP 2311X
is the exact same monitor sans 3D features, and it can be picked up for $224,
so that indicates exactly how much you're paying for the extra technology. As
it is, the HP2311GT doesn't quite get anything right. It's not a good enough
monitor for us to recommend it as a 2D solution, and its technology isn't good
enough for us to recommend it as a 3D one. It's not even the cheapest way to
get 3D, so it has nothing going for
