LaCie 324 Evaluation
At first blush, the LaCie 324 OSD seems more limited than the options on other LCDs. There are only three main screens, one of which is for PIP. The other two screens are full of useful adjustments, however. LaCie also uses touch-sensitive buttons, and we periodically encountered difficulty with activating the "down" button (i.e. we would press it, move our finger around, etc. all to no avail; exiting the menu and returning would usually correct the problem). We would have preferred tactile feedback, but the overall result wasn't quite as finicky as the Samsung buttons, in part because the six buttons have white labels that are clearly visible.
LaCie provides six color presets, five color temperature settings, and five gamma levels. The last should be of particular interest to those involved with desktop publishing, where the ability to switch between 1.8 and 2.2 gamma can be useful. The 324 also has an "Over Speed" option that is supposed to improve pixel response times. Again, we didn't notice any serious issues with pixel response, but unfortunately the "over speed" mode does not address input lag.
| LaCie 324 Resolution and Input Notes | |||
| DVI | HDMI | VGA | |
| 800x600 | Yes | Wrong AR; Stretches horizontally to fill LCD | Yes |
| 1024x768 | Yes | Wrong AR; Stretches horizontally to fill LCD | Yes |
| 1152x864 | Yes | Wrong AR; Stretches horizontally to fill LCD | - |
| 1176x664 | Poor scaling artifacts | Underscanned 720P | - |
| 1280x720 | Poor scaling artifacts | Yes | Yes |
| 1280x768 | - | - | Sets 1280x800 and clips top and bottom |
| 1280x800 | Wrong AR (1280x960) | Wrong AR; Stretches horizontally to fill LCD | Yes |
| 1280x960 | Yes | Wrong AR; Stretches horizontally to fill LCD | Yes |
| 1280x1024 | Yes | Wrong AR; Stretches horizontally to fill LCD | Yes |
| 1400x1050 | - | Wrong AR; Stretches horizontally to fill LCD | - |
| 1440x900 | Yes | Wrong AR; Stretches horizontally to fill LCD | Yes |
| 1600x1200 | Yes | Wrong AR; Stretches horizontally to fill LCD | Yes |
| 1680x1050 | Always has top/bottom black borders | Wrong AR; Stretches horizontally to fill LCD | Yes |
| 1768x992 | - | Underscanned 1080P | - |
| 1920x1080 | Interference/Static Present; Always has top/bottom black borders | Yes | Clips output to 1680x1050 |
| 1920x1200 | Yes | - | Yes |
There are four scaling options: Real, Smart Zoom, Zoom, and Dx2D. "Real" is the same as what other LCD manufacturers call "1:1". "Smart Zoom" stretches whatever resolution you are running to fill the LCD while maintaining the correct aspect ratio, and "Zoom" fills the entire LCD. We're not at all sure what the "Dx2D" is supposed to do; sometimes it looks the same as "Smart Zoom" and other times it looks like "Real", though in a few cases using it instead of one of the other scaling options will result in fewer scaling artifacts.
For the inputs, HDMI only works properly with 720P/1080P resolutions and should be avoided for most other resolutions if possible; otherwise you get a horizontally stretched image with black borders on the top and bottom. VGA connections work properly except for a couple resolutions, while DVI has scaling errors on several resolutions, including the frequently used 1680x1050. It also seemed as though the VGA input showed more signal interference than on other LCDs, but the cable we were using may have been to blame.
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Scaling on the LaCie 324 looks good when it works properly, as seen here. Just do your best to avoid the problem resolutions/inputs listed in the chart above.
Considering this is a professional LCD, we were definitely interested in seeing what sort of color accuracy LaCie could achieve. If we had looked at the 324 before receiving some of the other monitors, the uncalibrated color accuracy would have been very impressive. As it stands, LaCie does well but professionals will still want to use calibration hardware and software. Color gamut is also good, coming in at 95%.
The question on our minds while reviewing the LaCie 324 is what exactly do users get for the extra ~50% price increase relative to the competition? We can say quite easily that we are not the target market, despite the fact that we do plenty of online publishing. For most users, 10-bit gamma correction and color lookup tables just aren't going to make that big of a difference. After all, Dell manages to achieve better color accuracy according to our measurements. However, the selection of gamma, temperature, and color options within the OSD will likely benefit certain users.
If you have a regular need to work at 1.6 gamma to 2.4 gamma, the LaCie may in fact be the better choice. The 10-bit gamma helps to provide better gradients without banding. Perhaps more important is the warranty that LaCie provides. A 3-year warranty isn't any better than what many of the other companies provide, but an advance replacement policy to minimize downtime is noteworthy. LaCie also sells a bundled package consisting of the 324 LCD with their blue eye pro software and colorimeter, and they state that the software is tuned for their hardware. Finally, LaCie is committed to using the same wide color gamut S-PVA panel on all 324 LCDs, so you won't find different versions with different panels. They test for color uniformity and only use panels that pass their testing, eliminating lower grade panels.
As a whole package, LaCie is clearly targeting professional users, from the LCD and warranty to their blue eye pro software and colorimeter. We did run some initial tests with blue eye pro, and one aspect that is definitely better than competing solutions is that the software and hardware worked under Vista 64-bit -- something we can't say of ColorEyes Display Pro or Optix XR Pro. There were some periodic pauses when we tried to use blue eye pro under 64-bit Vista, but it did successfully calibrate our test monitor.
Given the online price of $900 or more, we are more inclined to stick with one of the LCD alternatives. After all, $900 will get you pretty much any other 24" LCD plus appropriate calibration equipment -- sometimes with change left over. However, there's a reason LaCie is viewed as a professional solution and if that's your line of work, the extra cost should be easy to stomach as a long-term investment.
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Bolas - Friday, July 31, 2009 - link
Anand,Any chance of a 30" monitor roundup for those of us wanting to buy an extreme HD monitor to go along with the new high end gaming computer we're buying around Christmas time?
I'm not sure which is best between the stuff currently on the market (or things coming out in the near future, say by Christmas). I've heard of:
Dell 3007WFP
Dell 3008WFP
HP LP3065
Gateway XHD3000
Samsung Synchmaster 305T
Apple Cinema 30"
Am I missing any 30" monitors currently available? Which is the best, regardless of price? Which is the best in terms of bang-for-the-buck? Which is "future-proof", with good connectivity? I plan to use it to play Starcraft II and Warcraft III and maybe some Everqeust.
I just turned 40, so as part of my mid-life crisis, I'm buying a high end gaming computer, probably a CyberPower Black Mamba or a Digital Storm of some kind, depending on how the stock market does.
Basically an overclocked Core i7 with three-way or quad SLI. My computer budget is $4000 to $6000, not including monitor price, and I can get a nicely configured Cyberpower for about $5400 last I checked. But what to use to display all that computer goodness? I figure to spend $1000 to $2000 on a 30" monitor, but which one?!?
Thanks!
-Bolas
szore - Tuesday, June 23, 2009 - link
I bought this for about $269 free tax and shipping and I love it for gaming.jpp - Monday, September 15, 2008 - link
Hi,First of all a big thank you for these reviews - they are top notch.
I'm currently trying to decise between the Samsung and the Dell. I'm not into gaming, so latency doesn't bother me. Nor for that matter do the plethora of inputs both provide - I'll just be using with the one DVI input at native resolution.
Living in PAL country, I would be delighted if either of these monitors do 50Hz FR. I doubt it very much, but thought it worth asking. I know that my large Samsung 405T wasn't specified at 50Hz, but it is able to do it natively nevertheless which makes for judder free PAL DVD and FTA TV program watching on the screen.
So, apart from this probably undefined/untested aspect, which would be the better choice, given as I say that I am not interested in gaming?
I bring this comparison up here as this review does not list the Samsung in its comparison table. The Dell was the editor's choice, but the Samsung was reviewed after this 24in line up, so I was wondering if it could be included somewhere in the ranking?
Thansk again for the tremendous effort that goes into the testing and reporting.
Phil.
jpp - Monday, September 15, 2008 - link
As I can't edit my previous post, just a correction wrt the timing of the 2 reviews.The Samsung review was done before the 24in panel review, yet it's not listed in this review. That seems a bit odd and I was wondering why that is the case?
billingsgate - Monday, May 26, 2008 - link
I can't find reviews anywhere of Eizo LCD monitors. Eizo has a great reputation, but that's all I seem to be able to go on. A salesman gave me a really good pitch for the Eizo FlexScan S2401W. It's a Samsung TN panel (he claims), but somehow being an Eizo it's much better for color quality than any Samsung in the price range. It seems to be a good candidate for balancing accurate color and minimum input lag. But I can't be sure, since I can't test it in the shop for any of those things, plus the shops where I live are all little cubby holes in computer centers, with minimum choice in each shop, so it's impossible to do any side-by-side comparisons between Eizo, Samsung, NEC, etc., since they're never together in the same place.Any thoughts on Eizo's (relatively) budget line of FlexScans?
silvajp - Sunday, May 25, 2008 - link
Today I bought a Samsung 2693HM for $600 - $50 rebate and I am blown away. It looks great - very bright and vibrant. I am wondering if it has the same low input lag as the 2493HM. The resolution is 1920x1200 so at 25.5" it's got bigger pixels which is just fine for my poor tired eyes.billingsgate - Thursday, May 15, 2008 - link
Can someone help me with a recommendation? After reading billions of reviews of monitors I am confused as hell? is there a "best compromise" LCD monitor for both color accuracy and least lag time?I am not a gamer. I am an animation professional, and I heavily use Wacom tablets for drawing, loose and freehand, with Photoshop, Flash, and various professional animation programs. I've always used a CRT monitor and never once have experienced any lag between my stylus movement and lines on screen. I do own a Compaq tablet PC, and when I draw on-screen, the lag is perceptible enough to make the drawing very unnatural and inhibited. I just can't draw freehand that way.
As my beloved, expensive flat screen Samsung CRT monitor is now dying after 7 years of heavy use, I'm in the market for an LCD. In my business I need both excellent color accuracy and zero or minimal lag time for stylus input. Where I live (Hong Kong) there isn't a single shop that would ever allow me to test such a setup, so it's a lottery for me. Plus, their in-store demonstrations for color "accuracy" are geared for Asian tastes, which is heavy HEAVY on oversaturated red (while westerners prefer oversaturated green).
After poring through all the reviews, particularly on this site, I can't even narrow down the choices to 4 or 5 candidates. The Dell 2408 looks amazing except for lag time. The Samsung XL20 (not widescreen, but I don't really care) looks great for color and no lag time, but it has a noisy fan (irritating!) and is a bit smaller than I want.
Can someone seriously help me to narrow the potential choices for something that has good or great color and minimal input lag? I won't ever use it for gaming or for TV or video viewing.
hjkelly - Thursday, May 15, 2008 - link
I'm in a similar spot - into editing photos and watching movies. I was almost set on the Dell 2408, but then I found out it has about four frames of lag, which wouldn't be fun for movies (or drawing with a Wacom tablet, I'm sure). I've finally settled on DoubleSight's DS-263N. If you want a quick summary, it's like an Apple Cinema display, but 26" and with a polarizer to get rid of the white haze at wider angles. It's also very fast, less than one frame's delay, I believe. It's around $700, but the catch is that it's hard to find in stock, so you'll have to be on your toes to get one. But isn't that just a sign of quality, really? =)JarredWalton - Friday, May 16, 2008 - link
Surely you know someone over there that can let you borrow an LCD to test out? Honestly, I don't think you'll experience problems with input lag - we're talking about 50ms or so relative to a CRT, so 1/20 of a second. What you've noticed on a tablet PC probably has a lot more to do with the lack of processing power and other differences. All you really need to do is find someone with an S-PVA 24" LCD and you can see if you notice lag. I can game fine on the 2408WFP - the lag is just barely perceptible at times, but not enough to cause me problems. But I'm not a competitive gamer.As for DoubleSight, their 26" LCD is about to be phased out apparently - I asked them for a review sample and they said it was at EOL. It may become even more difficult to find in stock shortly.
Anyway, I hear good things about a few MVA panels (that I haven't ever seen let alone tested), or if money isn't a serious concern just pick up something like the HP LP3065. For professional use, I have a hard time finding anything I would prefer to a nice S-IPS 30" LCD. And the 2560x1600 gaming resolution is nice as well.
billingsgate - Friday, May 16, 2008 - link
Actually, I don't know anyone with an LCD screen to borrow, other than my son's cheap one which is fine for gaming but not even close to being color accurate, so not exactly a good example. I can tell you that I tried a Wacom Cintiq tablet, which is essentially an LCD screen you can draw on. It was connected to a G5 Mac, so no lack of processing power. The lag on that was a fraction of a fraction of a second. But I kept finding my hand slowing down to let the line catch up to the stylus, which sucked all the spontaneity out of my drawing. In other words, for a "sensitive artist", even a small lag is noticeable. With the Cintiq I attribute it to the signal having to travel round trip on a USB connection. But I am now quite concerned about buying the wrong LCD and being stuck with it. This isn't the USA. Once you buy something and leave the shop, there is no such thing as returning it.So, to repeat my question: can you or someone help to recommend a shortlist of monitors that are both good to great for color accuracy, and minimal for input lag?