Dell UltraSharp 1905FP: Setting the Bar for New 19" LCDs
by Kristopher Kubicki on January 29, 2005 12:35 AM EST- Posted in
- Displays
Application Analysis
The core of our LCD benchmarking comes from real application analysis. We play with a lot of monitors and it gets easier for us each time to pick out problems with an LCD just by using the right application. Here are a few quick looks at some demanding full screen applications. We already ran ColorVision's OptiCal software, so all of our monitors are calibrated and adjusted to the same curves.
High Definition Video – We played the WMV9 1080p version of "Under Sea Adventure" to give our monitor a little taste of high definition video. We don't get the full experience, of course, because the monitor is not sized correctly to fit a 1080p signal; there is some cropping. Like the Samsung 193P from the 19" LCD roundup, there was a slight issue with red shift noticeable on blue images.
Click to enlarge.
The Matrix Reload, The Matrix - We use the Matrix series to test full motion video on our LCDs. Since the Matrix isn't the best movie to test color reproduction, we typically only look for motion blur on gray-to-gray transitions or other imperfections in the signal. We noticed no imperfections in the screen regularity; and zero artifacts using the DVI connector. We very briefly used the LCD under the analog connector and did notice problems across the letterbox. Occasional artifacts would crop up near the letterbox borders, but this is undoubtedly due to interference issues with the analog cable.
WarHammer 40K, Dawn of War - When looking for a monitor's response time, we generally only consult first-person shooters for reference. However, those of you who have played a fast-paced game of Warcraft III or NeverWinter Nights will know that scrolling around for hours puts a severe tax on the monitor. We did not notice any significant problems while scrolling on our 1905FP - the game seems perfectly playable to us.
Max Payne 2 - The extreme light and dark transitions in Max Payne still provide us with the sufficient criteria to benchmark transient response time; specifically, we can focus on the light and dark extremes. Again, we get an occasional red shift here and there. Since the monitor does let us adjust the color ever slightly, we modified the color preset a nudge toward blue and green. This compensated for the red issues in most cases.
Halo, Unreal Tournament 2004 - Halo and UT2K4 have very similar results, but now, we are looking for fast motion and color correctness at the same time. After adjusting the color toward blue/green, we had to set it back when playing Halo and UT2K4. Fast motion was on par with what we expected for this game; we certainly didn't notice any motion blur, but if the Dell 1905FP is your first LCD, then you will notice a difference immediately.
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IceWindius - Sunday, January 30, 2005 - link
I"ll wait for SED displays to come out, it will kick OLED's assMrEMan - Sunday, January 30, 2005 - link
Are there people here who actually believe Dell manufactures any components (monitors, drives, motherboards, video cards, etc) in their systems?I would really be surprised if they actually do.
My guess is that the specify which OEM products they want, and then, have them tweaked to make them proprietary.
avijay - Sunday, January 30, 2005 - link
Great review!#31, that lady might get a few extra bucks based on her ratings, and to be honest, those guys try to get as much info as possible, but it doesn't quite work out all the time. I should know, I used to work in a place like that.
BTW, any chance of reviewing the Sony SDM-P234/B 23". I've been trying to find a good review on that LCD for quite a while, but unable to do so. I'd really appreciate it if kristopher can review one and let everyone know the good and the bad about that monitor. Thanks.
najames - Saturday, January 29, 2005 - link
I agree with TwistyKat. I have had enough Dell for a lifetime and I have never even technically ordered from them. I put in a Viewsonic monitor order 1/5 to ship on 1/28, the system was so screwed up my account had somebody elses name attached. After 10 emails, one long call to Mumbai, and another call where the guy basically just sat there didn't answer questions, and said nothing, then cut me off, I gave up and canceled my order on 1/26. They never did get the account fixed so the account linked with the order. It was always my responsibility to fix their problems, including filling out forms for the "webmaster", even though Dell reps could see it was hosed. When I called to cancel the US staff told me my VIEWSONIC monitor was in production at DELL (WTF?), requiring yet another call to Mumbai. The lady in Mumbai did tell me that she wanted me to give her a good rating on service, 1 being poor and 9 being excellent.HeatMiser - Saturday, January 29, 2005 - link
Link to Samsung's panel here: http://www.samsung.com/Products/TFTLCD/Monitors_n_...pxc - Saturday, January 29, 2005 - link
The 1905FP's LCD is 376mm x 301mm, a 5:4 aspect ratio. That fits perfectly with the 5:4 native resolution (1280x1024).http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/monitors/r83...
reactor - Saturday, January 29, 2005 - link
good review, good timing too, was looking at getting a 19" lcd.would like to see a review of the Philips 190S5FB, or an updated roundup, as people on newegg are raving about it.
MAME - Saturday, January 29, 2005 - link
"Fast motion was on par with what we expected for this game; we certainly didn't notice any motion blur, but if the Dell 1905FP is your first LCD, then you will notice a difference immediately."What do you mean by "difference"? Not as good as a CRT?
MadAd - Saturday, January 29, 2005 - link
As well as reviews of other popular models (like the 2005FPW, the HP L2335) are we going to one day get at least *one* set of reliable benchmarks at resolutions up and above 1600x1200 please please!!!!Just a quick roundup of available dx9 cards with mid-high range amd/intel at resolutions up to 1920x1200 - is that too much to ask from your favourite hardware site? :)
Wide screen gaming seems to be taking off and Id really like to know what kind of performance im going to need to run at good frame rates if I do get say the dell, or the hp. Will my 9700pro cut it? Probably not but do I need as much as an xt850?
Go on, I know youd love to do them :)
Thanks
robl - Saturday, January 29, 2005 - link
Great article, thanks! Any chance of reviewing the Apple 30" HD display? I'd love to see how it compares, especially with which video cards support it on a pc. most sites I've seen only talk about it on the apple platform.