My old CRT monitor had started to show signs of ageing & so purchasing a new monitor was on cards. Today, the heavy CRT monitor's have become extinct due the cheap manufacturing costs involved in LCD technologies. One can today easily get an LCD monitor as big as 22inch comfortably under Rs.10,000. This means going for smaller models is useless unless one is on a tight budget.
I had some pre-requisites already thought in my mind for the new LCD monitor. First was, it should be big enough but not smaller than 22 inches. Next was, it had to be a Full HD(1980*1080 pixels) ready. Finally, it should have good color reproduction capabilities along with excellent contrast ratio. With the above criteria & a budget of Rs.10,000, I began my hunt for the LCD monitor.
After researching on online forums, I found that Samsung 2233SW & BenQ 2200HD were only two options within my budget. I had seen the Samsung 2233SW perform at a friend's place. Not that I could term it mind blowing but neither it was too mediocre. The BenQ on the other hand was routed out as it had poor performance in comparison to Samsung 2233SW. I had no problems in getting the Samsung but then I wanted to go for a bigger monitor preferably an 24 inch one. After some more research, I found out none of the manufacturers to have an 24 inch LCD monitor under Rs.10,000. Samsung P2350(available for around Rs.13,000), a 23.5 inch stylish monitor but it wasn't Full HD ready. This monitor is better than the Samsung 2233SW but I don't understand why on Earth did Samsung left out Full HD resolution. Another choice was the Dell S2409W. This is an 24 inch Full HD LCD monitor with HDMI input in addition to the standard VGA & DVI. The monitor had excellent colour reproduction & contrast ratio which has been a signature of Dell's LCD monitors. The Dell S2409W seemed to fit well but then it was priced at Rs.14,500 well above my budget. I was thrown in a crunch situation & I had two options - 1) Get the Samsung 2233SW like many others and stay happy or 2)Increase my budget to accommodate the Dell S2409W and be future proof. After some convincing to my parents they agreed to increase the budget & I purchased the Dell S2409W at Rs.14,400. I had to shell out more as I needed the monitor right away & ordering from Dell would have taken time. Further I wanted to inspect the monitor with my eyes before purchasing.
Unboxing:
The Dell S2409W came in a huge box. Upon opening the box, the LCD panel was sandwiched between two thermocol supports to prevent damage during transit. The upper thermocol held the stand of the monitor along with VGA, DVI & power cable. I removed them all & found the Installation leaflet and CD at the bottom of the box.
Putting together:
I have gone through the pains of putting the stand on Samsung monitors. Once fixed, I wouldn't think of dis-assembling them ever. To my delight, installing the stand of Dell S2409W was a child's play. One just needs to put the stand & wind the screw at the bottom with hands, that's all. The provided manual will help if you still are so dumb as to not get the assembly right. The stand is sturdy enough for such a huge monitor but the monitor stills wobbles a bit upon imparting shocks to the computer table.
Connectivity:
The Dell S2409W offers input in the form of VGA, DVI & even HDMI. It comes bundled with VGA and DVI cable. Such flexible connectivity options are not only convenient but even future-proof. The Dell S2409W even includes audio ports so you can hook up with your speakers. I found this arrangement better than including tiny speakers on LCD panel which sound like cheap Chinese radios.
Onscreen Menu, Auto Correction & Power Saving:
The onscreen menu is well categorized and has much better aesthetics than those on other brands. The 'Auto Correction' works perfectly & it correctly set the POST characters in place which were running out of the screen. The monitor incorporates power saving feature which will help you in keeping your electricity bills down. If the monitor fails to detect any input or after a brief spell of inactivity, the Dell S2409W automatically goes in power saving mode.
Performance:
Having paid a higher price, I just hoped that the Dell S2409W doesn't perform like any average monitor. To my delight, it didn't. The visual experience was best I have experienced till now on computer monitors. This LCD panel showed rich contrast along with accurate color. There were no signs of over-saturation. The huge 24 inch panel made me feels as if I'm sitting in front of my T.V. In comparison with the LCD panel on my Dell Inspiron 15 laptop, the S2409W beated it with ease. I played 720p videos & they were a treat to watch on such a monstrous screen. Single CD rips look fine but still tearing is highly evident. The two CD rips looked far better & enjoyable. Gaming on this monitor was an absolute delight but I could not try the beasts like Crysis or Grid owing to a weak system. The best out of this monitor will come once I get my new rig. To sum up, the Dell S2409W performs wonderfully at default factory settings. I'm yet to calibrate this monitor which will mean further improvement in visual quality.
General Office Work:
Office work generally includes working with spreadsheets, word processors, browsers etc. The default setting backed by superb contrast ratio made each & every alphabet perfectly legible. But this came with a side effect - My eyes began to water after sometime(Maybe they are too sensitive). Due to this I pulled down the contrast & brightness sliders till I was comfortable. Browsing websites was a treat due to the large screen area. Even the desktop looked far less cluttered due to the huge size of Dell S2409W. I particularly enjoyed using 'Tile' effect in Compiz Fusion on Linux which tiles all the open apps. I don't now feel the need for 'workspaces' as I have enough space to work with many applications, docks, toolbars etc.
Conclusion:
The Dell S2409W performs superbly. Accurate colors and very good contrast ratio make it a perfect choice for your HTPC/Gaming rig. Only gripe is the steep price but still it does justify the stellar performance of this wonderful monitor. Anyone who is in search for a big LCD monitor with multiple connectivity options should take a serious look at Dell S2409W. Highly Recommended!
Pros:
# Superb Performer
# Multiple Connectivity Options
Cons:
# Somewhat Expensive
# Stand could have been better
I had some pre-requisites already thought in my mind for the new LCD monitor. First was, it should be big enough but not smaller than 22 inches. Next was, it had to be a Full HD(1980*1080 pixels) ready. Finally, it should have good color reproduction capabilities along with excellent contrast ratio. With the above criteria & a budget of Rs.10,000, I began my hunt for the LCD monitor.
After researching on online forums, I found that Samsung 2233SW & BenQ 2200HD were only two options within my budget. I had seen the Samsung 2233SW perform at a friend's place. Not that I could term it mind blowing but neither it was too mediocre. The BenQ on the other hand was routed out as it had poor performance in comparison to Samsung 2233SW. I had no problems in getting the Samsung but then I wanted to go for a bigger monitor preferably an 24 inch one. After some more research, I found out none of the manufacturers to have an 24 inch LCD monitor under Rs.10,000. Samsung P2350(available for around Rs.13,000), a 23.5 inch stylish monitor but it wasn't Full HD ready. This monitor is better than the Samsung 2233SW but I don't understand why on Earth did Samsung left out Full HD resolution. Another choice was the Dell S2409W. This is an 24 inch Full HD LCD monitor with HDMI input in addition to the standard VGA & DVI. The monitor had excellent colour reproduction & contrast ratio which has been a signature of Dell's LCD monitors. The Dell S2409W seemed to fit well but then it was priced at Rs.14,500 well above my budget. I was thrown in a crunch situation & I had two options - 1) Get the Samsung 2233SW like many others and stay happy or 2)Increase my budget to accommodate the Dell S2409W and be future proof. After some convincing to my parents they agreed to increase the budget & I purchased the Dell S2409W at Rs.14,400. I had to shell out more as I needed the monitor right away & ordering from Dell would have taken time. Further I wanted to inspect the monitor with my eyes before purchasing.
Unboxing:
The Dell S2409W came in a huge box. Upon opening the box, the LCD panel was sandwiched between two thermocol supports to prevent damage during transit. The upper thermocol held the stand of the monitor along with VGA, DVI & power cable. I removed them all & found the Installation leaflet and CD at the bottom of the box.
Putting together:
I have gone through the pains of putting the stand on Samsung monitors. Once fixed, I wouldn't think of dis-assembling them ever. To my delight, installing the stand of Dell S2409W was a child's play. One just needs to put the stand & wind the screw at the bottom with hands, that's all. The provided manual will help if you still are so dumb as to not get the assembly right. The stand is sturdy enough for such a huge monitor but the monitor stills wobbles a bit upon imparting shocks to the computer table.
Connectivity:
The Dell S2409W offers input in the form of VGA, DVI & even HDMI. It comes bundled with VGA and DVI cable. Such flexible connectivity options are not only convenient but even future-proof. The Dell S2409W even includes audio ports so you can hook up with your speakers. I found this arrangement better than including tiny speakers on LCD panel which sound like cheap Chinese radios.
Onscreen Menu, Auto Correction & Power Saving:
The onscreen menu is well categorized and has much better aesthetics than those on other brands. The 'Auto Correction' works perfectly & it correctly set the POST characters in place which were running out of the screen. The monitor incorporates power saving feature which will help you in keeping your electricity bills down. If the monitor fails to detect any input or after a brief spell of inactivity, the Dell S2409W automatically goes in power saving mode.
Performance:
Having paid a higher price, I just hoped that the Dell S2409W doesn't perform like any average monitor. To my delight, it didn't. The visual experience was best I have experienced till now on computer monitors. This LCD panel showed rich contrast along with accurate color. There were no signs of over-saturation. The huge 24 inch panel made me feels as if I'm sitting in front of my T.V. In comparison with the LCD panel on my Dell Inspiron 15 laptop, the S2409W beated it with ease. I played 720p videos & they were a treat to watch on such a monstrous screen. Single CD rips look fine but still tearing is highly evident. The two CD rips looked far better & enjoyable. Gaming on this monitor was an absolute delight but I could not try the beasts like Crysis or Grid owing to a weak system. The best out of this monitor will come once I get my new rig. To sum up, the Dell S2409W performs wonderfully at default factory settings. I'm yet to calibrate this monitor which will mean further improvement in visual quality.
General Office Work:
Office work generally includes working with spreadsheets, word processors, browsers etc. The default setting backed by superb contrast ratio made each & every alphabet perfectly legible. But this came with a side effect - My eyes began to water after sometime(Maybe they are too sensitive). Due to this I pulled down the contrast & brightness sliders till I was comfortable. Browsing websites was a treat due to the large screen area. Even the desktop looked far less cluttered due to the huge size of Dell S2409W. I particularly enjoyed using 'Tile' effect in Compiz Fusion on Linux which tiles all the open apps. I don't now feel the need for 'workspaces' as I have enough space to work with many applications, docks, toolbars etc.
Conclusion:
The Dell S2409W performs superbly. Accurate colors and very good contrast ratio make it a perfect choice for your HTPC/Gaming rig. Only gripe is the steep price but still it does justify the stellar performance of this wonderful monitor. Anyone who is in search for a big LCD monitor with multiple connectivity options should take a serious look at Dell S2409W. Highly Recommended!
Pros:
# Superb Performer
# Multiple Connectivity Options
Cons:
# Somewhat Expensive
# Stand could have been better
