Samsung Reviewer's Comments
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There is not a monitor out there, especially in the economical price range, which can beat the Samsung SyncMaster 204B—it is fast. This “TopTenREVIEWS Bronze Award” winner touts a response time of 5ms. For gamers, this monitor is perfect; for gamers on a budget, this monitor is Nirvana.
The only monitor that can begin to compete with the Samsung for less than $500 is the LG, but unless they can get their speed up, the Samsung is still the best for games.
Connectivity:
This monitor is digital and analog compatible and will connect to a PC or a Mac.
Display:
This monitor has Magic Speed technology, which makes it extra fast. Gamers should never experience ghosting, blurs or lags with this display; it can even keep up with first person shooter games.
Its contrast ratio is only 800:1, which is the same as the Dell, but the dot pitch is tighter at .255mm so the images should appear crisper than the Dell. Its scanning frequencies are good, with a vertical and horizontal high range of 75–81 kHz. The top three models scan around 5–10 kHz faster, but they cost hundreds more. Its viewing range is only 160 degrees, but most people play games alone any way, so unless you share your monitor, 18 degrees may not make that much difference.
Features:
Although this monitor has an exceptionally fast display, Samsung left out the extras like speakers and pivot technology, but for the price it may be a good option to just add your own speakers. On the positive, this monitor uses little energy, less than any other monitor we reviewed, at a low 36W and 2W on standby.
Display Adjustments:
Through the front panel, you can access the main menu. The Samsung offers a high level of adjustability; you can adjust the brightness, contrast, gamma, color, sharpness, transparency, fine tune, source, settings and more. To make adjustments easier, this monitor also has Magic Tune, Magic Color and Magic Bright technologies.
Physical Adjustments:
This monitor is ergonomically designed; it can tilt, swivel, pivot and move up and down. There are few monitors that are this flexible, this is the only monitor in this price range that can move like this.
Product Support:
Conveniently, Samsung publishes a complete user manual online as well as other information. You can contact them by email or telephone for technical support; however, they do not offer a chat service.
Summary:
For gamers on a budget, this is the best 20.1–inch flat panel LCD available. It is fast and has a decent display, a high level of display adjustability and it can move. For less than $500, this is an excellent monitor for games.
©2008 TopTenREVIEWS, Inc.
