Samsung's New 760vTFT 17" Flat-Panel Display Is Easy On the Eyes and Your Pocketbook
by Lee H. Goldberg, Senior Technology Editor, ChipCenter

With a street price of $650, Samsung has made it practical to enjoy the benefits of LCD displays at home or office.

One of the toughest parts of being an editor (besides the hours and the pay) is staring at a computer display for nine to twelve hours a day. After a long week of irradiating my optic nerves in the glow of a CRT, I sometimes wonder who slipped those pieces of sandpaper behind my eyelids. That's why I jumped at the chance to take Samsung's new model 760v TFT 17" LCD monitor for an extended test drive. With the an estimated street price of $650 (after a $100 rebate), Samsung has brought the cost of these generously sized screens down to the point where a value-conscious consumer or home-office worker can consider them seriously.

For those on a tighter budget, Samsung also offers a 15" TFT display for $370 (after mfr's rebate).

Specs for both units are posted below this review.

After uncrating the sleek, lightweight unit, the set-up was very easy, with one exception. The cables connected quickly to the docking port of my IBM ThinkPad 600 laptop, and the display was running in no time. The specs for the 760vTFT display say it has a 400:1 contrast ratio—that's about as good as it gets—and an equally impressive brightness of 250 cd/m².

If you don't care about the numbers, you should care that they translate into a very bright and vivid image, with delightfully clear colors that are as nice as any I've seen on a computer display anywhere. I was also pleased to see it had a viewing angle that rivals a CRT. Since I don't do professional graphics or use a color printer, I did not bother to install the professional color-calibration software provided with the monitor. Being the rabid environmentalist I am, I was also pleased to find out that the monitors consume approximately only 30% of the power (25 W for the 15" unit and 40 W for the 17" unit) of a similar-sized CRT monitor.

The only difficulty came when I tried to fine-tune the display to deliver a crisp picture. Although the controls for all display settings were easy to use, I found it difficult to come up with the correct settings to get a well-converged image across the entire display. I am still not sure whether the trouble was in part due to a minor problem with the SVGA graphics card, a problem with the display, or a compatibility issue. Unfortunately, the manual was not very helpful in this situation, and I was forced to spend an hour making educated guesses and fiddling with settings until I got a picture that made me happy.

After all the struggle with adjusting the display, I was not sure whether I'd really produced a much better image than I could get with a $250–$300 CRT, and it was only after a few weeks of daily use that I really made up my mind. One thing that was immediately apparent was that the flicker-free image is much easier on the eyes. I found myself less tired at the end of a long day after using the Samsung display. The other visible benefit was how the unit's small footprint allowed me much more usable space on my cluttered computer desk.

Nevertheless, I could not help wondering if the $300–$500 differential over a 17" CRT was worth it until the day came to ship the unit back. While I had not noticed the difference when I replaced the CRT with the LCD monitor, I was shocked at what I saw when I wrestled the bulky Trinitron display back onto my desk. While the actual "crispness" of the two displays is about the same, the Samsung LCD screen was so much brighter and its colors so much more distinct that using the CRT again felt as if I was watching the screen through a thick film of dust.

I have finally adjusted to my old CRT display, but I miss the damned Samsung a lot—especially after a long day of staring at the screen. I'm now counting the days to the winter holidays to see if Chanukah-Claus leaves me an LCD display under the tree.

Specifications

Samsung SyncMaster™ 760vTFT

MODEL#	760vTFT
Panel Type	TFT-LCD
Size	17"
Pixel Pitch	0.264 mm
Brightness	250 cd/m²
Contrast Ratio	400:1
Viewing Angle (Horizontal/Vertical)	150°/130°
Maximum Color	16.7M
Maximum Resolution:	1280 × 1024 @ 76 Hz
Scanning Frequency	Horizontal: 30–81 kHz Vertical: 56–85 Hz Maximum Pixel Rate: 80 MHz
Controls	Brightness, Contrast, H/V Position, Image Lock (Course and Fine), Auto Adjust (Course, Fine, and Position), Display Size (Expand1, Expand2, Normal), Image Effect (Scaling On/Off, Filtering), Color Control (R/G/B), Color Temperature Select, Recall Geometry, Recall Color, Input Select (13W3 and 15-pin D-sub), Language select, OSD Menu Position, OSD Display Time
Signal Input	Video Input: Analog RGB (0.700 V p-p) Sync. Type: H&V Separate, Composite, SOG Connector: 15-pin D-sub, 13W3
Plug and Play	DDC 1/2B
Wall Mount	VESA 100 mm Standard
Power Consumption	On: 40 W Maximum Off: < 2 W
Power Management	Regulations: EPA, NUTEK
Multimedia	Optional External Speaker (3 W × 2)
Regulations	Safety: UL, CSA, TUV, IEC, NEMKO EMI: NEMKO, CE, RFS, C-TICK, VCCI, BCIQ Low-Radiation: MPR-II, TCO-99
Dimensions W × H × D (with stand)	17.3" × 18.2" × 7.2"
Weight	18.5 lb.
Warranty	3 years P/L; 3 years Backlight
Optional Accessories	USB Hub (1U4D), External Speakers, Ergotron wall mount, and arm options
Price	$799 street price (after rebate)

Samsung SyncMaster™ 570vTFT

Model#	570vTFT
LCD Panel	a-si TFT / TN
Viewable Image Size	15"
Viewing Angle (Horizontal/Vertical)	120°/110°
Active Matrix	Yes
Pixel Pitch	0.297 mm
Brightness	200 cd/m²
Contrast Ratio	250:1
Display Colors	16.7 million
Maximum Resolution	1024 × 768 @ 75 Hz
Scanning Frequency	Horizontal: 30–61 kHz Vertical: 50–75 Hz Maximum Pixel Rate: 80 MHz
On-Screen Display	Yes
Color Temperature Control	Yes
Automatic Adjustment	Yes
Plug and Play	VESA DDC 1/DDC 2B
Power	90–264 V AC, 60/50 Hz
Max. Power Consumption	25 W
VESA DPMS, EPA, Energy Star, Nutek	Yes
TCO	99
Video Input	RGB Analog, 0.7 V p-p
Video Output	Separate H/V Sync. Composite Sync. Sync.-on-Green
Connector Type	15-pin D-Sub
Base	Simple Angle Pivot
Bezel Color	Ivory
USB	Optional USB HUB
Wall Mount	VESA 75 mm
Dimensions (W × H × D)	15.2" × 17.0" × 7.0"
Weight	15 lb.
Warranty	3 years P/L; 3 years Backlight
Price	$369 street price (after rebate)

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