Viewsonic 17" LCD Monitor VP171B

I did the customary check and found NO dead or permanently lit pixels at all. Connected it up to my PC analogue video out (no DVI available) and it sorted itself out immediately giving a very clear, rock solid picture. Display is very bright and contrast is excellent (black is very black!). It has taken a little time to adjust the colours (combination of monitor brightness/contrast adjustment and changing the gamma setting in the video card setup) to get something I’m really happy with for displaying photographs etc. Works well with video and has no visible movement blur (but I’ve not tried any games). Altogether I’m very pleased.

I have had problems with the Pivot Pro software. It seemed to work initially and then caused the computer to fail on a reboot. I got a quick reply from their tech support who indicated it was a problem with the ATI video card drivers I have – Pivot Pro is not compatible with the latest version. I haven’t resolved that one yet.

Just for the record: it comes with a large assortment of mains leads and both analogue and DVI cables.

Out of the box an array of power and display cables (DVI & VGA) are provided, a comprehensive manual and an important CD-ROM. The software included enables this monitor to display windows documents such as word in portrait mode, whilst the LCD panel can rotate 90 degrees on its stand to provide a portrait display. The stand is well thought out, including telescopic height adjustment and tilt. Clips to the back keep the cables tidy.

The display with a thin bezel surround makes a stylish addition to my study, and after replacing the CRT I suddenly have twice the desk space. When turning the screen on initial tweaking with the easy to use OSD is required to automatically adjust my desktop to fit the screen. The colours are vibrant, lines and text sharp, and images are very bright, so much that I have had to adjust the brightness settings to their lowest.

I use AutoCAD and 3D Studio VIZ daily and have found the display of vector graphics and 3D images to be sharp and clear, with accurate colour rendering. When playing games such as GTA Vice City, the quality of the graphics becomes apparent in a way they didn't with a CRT display, and there is no ghosting to mention of.

I would happily recommend this monitor to anyone looking to replace a CRT, a competitively priced yet well built LCD monitor.

Used to replace an old dying 19" CRT Monitor. The image is sharp, no dead pixel, the colour are brights and realistic. I use this monitor for DVD playing, photo and games. This Viewsonic monitor is very good in all these categories.

On the few negative points I would say that even so I gained lot of space, the volume is higher than other concurrent LCD 17". It takes a bit of time to adjust the settings and especially the optimal refresh rate. I noticed blur areas at 60Hz, but the image is perfect everywhere at 70Hz. I guess it should depend on the video card (I use the analogic input).

On the extra positive points, cables all included, OSD very clear and fitted with 3 inputs (2 analog, 1 digital). But the most impressive is the pivot capability; after discovering it, you just can't do without it especially for web browsing and office.

I highly recommend this monitor.