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Samsung BX2350 review
Product Samsung BX2350
Website www.samsung.com/uk
System Specifications 23-inch LED-backlit display, 1920 x 1080 resolution, 1000:1 contrast ratio, 2ms response time, D-sub, 2x HDMI, 555.3 x 423.5 x 208.7mm (with stand), 3.7kg
Price £230
SAMSUNG HAS BEEN BUILDING a bit of a reputation for itself in the style stakes with some of its recent LED-based displays and the BX2350 on test is arguably its best looking entry yet. A superbly slim panel, it measures just 67mm thick without the stand and weighs 3.7kg.
The screen's bezel is finished with an attractive acrylic surround that enhances aesthetic appeal without looking tacky, and a chrome-finished boomerang-shaped stand coordinates beautifully with the overall approach. Unfortunately these aesthetics come at the expense of flexibility - a rather slight 10-degree tilt is all you'll find in terms of adjustment and this is quite stiff, requiring both hands to operate comfortably.
The 23-inch panel offers native resolution of 1920 x 1080 and with a 1000:1 contrast ratio, 2ms response time and general look and feel, operation seems fairly oriented towards gaming and video playback. VGA and twin-HDMI ports are present, but it lacks a DVI-D port. However, Samsung includes a DVI-to-HDMI adapter in the box, so we're not too concerned about this omission.
Setup is a little convoluted due to the enforced manual driver selection and a monitor driver installer that really should be redundant in this day and age, but also includes the Magictune Premium software that unlocks many of the more advanced features of the panel. In truth this mainly provides a more accessible route to manual and automatic setting adjustment that is also available through the on-screen menus, but since these use touch-sensitive controls that, while better than many we've seen, are still rather temperamental at times, it's a welcome alternative.
The software also allows for configuration of a custom key that offers one-touch access to a feature of your choice, and a Magickey mode that, when enabled, ties controls to open selected applications or web pages. Five Magicbright preset modes include standard, game, cinema and custom, along with a dynamic contrast option, while a Magicangle mode attempts to address viewing angle issues found with TN-based panels by adjusting brightness to compensate for a range of applications.
Though the default viewing mode seemed very effective in terms of establishing accurate colour balance and contrast levels from the get-go, we were impressed by the Magicbright presets when testing the screen with games and video. Refresh rates are excellent here and we saw no signs of ghosting or image blur during frantic moments in games and when viewing some high-octane 1080p test clips. Colours are generally accurate as well - they did appear overly vibrant at times during gameplay, but this can be improved by enabling the Magiccolor mode.
It does take some time to learn your way around the various adjustments available, but unlike many rivals the convenience on offer from the Magic-branded controls means it's far quicker and easier to find an optimum image and, with a bit of patience, the BX2350 is capable of impressive performance
We were less impressed by the Magicangle mode however, which while quite noticeable when selecting an optimum viewing angle didn't improve things dramatically enough to compensate from inherent issues with the TN-based design. Finally, a Magiceco control allows users to adjust backlight brightness (and therefore power consumption) by selecting between 100 percent, 75 percent and 50 percent modes, and though the latter is only really suitable in dark environments, we worked comfortably at 75 percent during the daytime and would be happy leaving this as the default.
In Short
Samsung's BX2350 is a superbly stylish display with impressive performance and a wide range of ways to adjust settings for different environments. Though it's a little more expensive than some similar rivals, it will appeal to those who prioritise media and gaming use. µ
The Good
Slim and attractive design, impressive performance and tuning features, very responsive.
The Bad
Some issues establishing optimum colour balance for gaming, Magicangle modes don't make much of a difference, touch sensitive controls can be temperamental.
The Ugly
Inflexible in terms of angle and orientation adjustment.
Bartender's Score
5/10
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that were some interesting comments, it is indeed odd that things seem stuck at the HDTV resolution even on larger panels, you can buy 22" with HD resolution but 27" has the same damn resolution.
As for all being widescreen, that's true too (apart from some medical panels that cost several thousand)
You would think that in this global market with billions of customers they could supply more than one option and still be economically secure.
Despite all the positive comments in the article about MagicThis and MagicThat, the overal score is only 5 out of 10.
Is it a typo or are there things left unsaid?
Pulling the tuner and speakers out of a TV and slapping on a DVI connector does NOT make it a computer monitor.
Pixel Pitch 0.2655mm? Still too high. Let me know when y'all get it down to where a computer monitor should be, 0.25mm or lower.
Oh wait! that would mean you'd have to give it higher resolution than the average $300 TV.
Alas, the smaller non-widescreen monitors eg. 17" are going the way of the CRT monitors - becoming extinct.
I guess you can blame it partly on Microsoft, who was adamant to fuse computing and home entertainment. The precursors to this were the Media Center version of Windows and maybe the Xbox.
"Watch movies on my PC monitor, widescreen? Cool!", the average consumer says. So the screens get bigger, wider and sleeker - not unlike the form factor for most LCD/LED TVs you see on the market these days.
If the screen gets smaller, they want mobility. And so the tablets were born.
I'm still using a 17“ Samsung Syncmaster 710N at home - it's about 5 years old now. Still working. At my workplace, I'm using a 17" Dell Ultrasharp monitor. The system admin offered to upgrade my workplace monitor to a 19"(?) widescreen monitor. I said 'No thanks'.
Why is it that a 10 year old thinkpad has better resolution than a new monitor.
why does a 4 year old 24" monitor have better resolution than a new one?
1080 is for consumers to watch movies, not computing.
I own the 24 inch version of this monitor, the BX2450, and the worst thing about it is the stand, and the extremely narrow angle of tilt that it provides. Apart from that, the image quality is superb via HDMI, when surfing the web, playing games or watching tv via a plugin pc freeview card. Yes, it was relatively expensive at £250, but the monitor is the most important component of a desktop p-c in my opinion, so it's always worth spending a few extra pounds.