PVA panel does the business

USING A 21.3in PVA panel, the £700 VP2130b from Viewsonic achieves a very high 1,000:1 contrast ratio without the reflective high-gloss finish of contrast-enhancing techniques such as Sony's X-Black technology. Viewing angles sit at 178 degrees both horizontally and vertically writes Paul Monckton.

Its 300cd/m2 maximum brightness is more than adequate for desktop work, or even small presentations. And, while the rated grey-to-grey response time of 8ms is far from cutting edge in absolute terms, it's acceptably fast for a modern PVA panel of this quality.

Viewsonic says 1600x1200 is the screen's optimum resolution.

Uncalibrated, the VP2130b does a pretty good job of maintaining smooth, accurate colour, but this improves still further if you use the supplied Perfectsuite software to calibrate the display.

Perfectsuite lets you perform every adjustment you can think of. You can then save and reload your own custom settings.

The screen auto-pivots (turning the monitor through 90 degrees rotates your desktop automatically) and there's the option to lock the display with a PIN code.

If you prefer the traditional on-screen menu approach, basic control functions are accessible by four tiny black buttons. This menu is basic but easy to navigate, although it doesn't offer the advanced functions of the Perfectsuite software. As well as pivoting, the stand sports a tilt feature, 270 degree swivelling and a 135mm height adjustment.

The tasteful black chassis has a very narrow bezel and sports both analogue and digital inputs together with a four-port USB2 hub.

Viewsonic's new pixel error policy improves on the usual ISO 13406-2 Class II specification by guaranteeing zero permanently-bright sub pixels. You have 15 days afttio spot them. ?

L'INQ
Spex, ratings, etc.