BenQ EW2420 Monitor Review
by Chris Heinonen on October 13, 2011 12:00 AM ESTBenQ EW2420 Introduction
The EW2420 from BenQ is designed for use as a multi-purpose display. While it has the standard DVI and HDMI port you would expect on a current monitor, it also has an additional HDMI port for another video source like a video game system or Blu-ray player, as well as speakers for the audio from these sources. Of course, if the panel doesn’t perform well then it doesn’t matter how many inputs it has, but the BenQ looks promising with both a VA panel and an LED backlight.
Hardware Impressions
Out of the box, the mounting system for the BenQ was easy to install, but not very robust. It does have the ability to tilt the monitor, but lacks any swivel or height adjustment. There is a small clip for routing your cables through, but to fit a cable through you have to remove it and then reattach it. An HDMI cable or a headphone cable should fit through but it would have been far more useful had they allowed a way to slip a cable in there instead of needing to remove the whole clip to add one. There is an optional headphone holder for the top of the monitor included as well. If you wish to wall mount, or use a different mount than the included one, there is a standard 100mm x 100mm VESA mounting pattern on the back of the display.
The bezel around the display itself is a shiny black plastic, a look that I’m not a big fan of. To me the shiny edge of the screen just attracts fingerprints and can produce a distracting glare in bright lighting conditions, which a matte finish manages to avoid. The controls for the display are set to the right side of the screen and labeled with light gray text on the bezel.
| BenQ EW2420 | |
| Video Inputs | DVI-D, D-sub, 2x HDMI 1.3 |
| Panel Type | VA |
| Pixel Pitch | 0.276 mm |
| Colors | 16.7 Million |
| Brightness | 250 nits (typical) |
| Contrast Ratio | 3000:1 (typical) |
| Response Time | 8 ms (GTG) |
| Viewable Size | 24" |
| Resolution | 1920x1080 at 60 Hz |
| Viewing Angle | 178 degrees horizontal and vertical |
| Backlight | LED |
| Power Consumption (operation) | 53 watts (maximum) |
| Power Consumption (standby) | Less than 1W |
| Screen Treatment | Antiglare with hard-coating 3H |
| Height-Adjustable | No |
| Tilt | -5 degrees to +20 degrees |
| Pivot | No |
| Swivel | No |
| VESA Wall Mounting | Yes: 100 mm x 100 mm |
| Dimensions w/ Base (WxHxD) | 17.32" x 21.91" x 7.05" |
| Weight | 11.24 lbs with stand |
| Additional Features |
USB 2.0 Hi-Speed Hub (1 upstream and 4 downstream ports) 2 x 1.5 watt speakers Headphone and line-in jacks |
| Warranty | 1-Year Limited |
| Accessories |
D-Sub cable 3.5mm audio cable USB cable Power cable Manual and driver CD |
| Price |
Starting at $263 Online $229 from BenQ after Coupon Code: ew2420oct$ |
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Lyrick_ - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - link
They're perfect with swivel, I could not function without it. 16:9 for media consumption and gaming. 9:16 for document reading and developing.16:10 is going away, hopefully forever.
TegiriNenashi - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - link
"16:10 is going away, hopefully forever. "People would eventually get tired looking the world through short embrasure even faster than they got bored with 3:4. Many people living rooms have limited widths to the only way for TVs to go bigger is getting more height.
kmmatney - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - link
16:10 is still better for gaming.TegiriNenashi - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - link
For me ideal AR is 16:11 -- compromise between 4:3 and 16:10. Thank you hollywood for ridiculous letterbox (2.55:1!). F..king "Director Artistic Intent"IceDread - Friday, October 14, 2011 - link
16:10 is superior for work and gaming so yeah.IceDread - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - link
I appreciate anandtech continues testing of screens and that input lag is tested.However, it's really annoying with all these small screens.. I really would like to see more 30" screens on the market! This is of course nothing you can do something about, I'm just frustrated that my dream 120 Hz 16:10 30" is still no where near the market. Not even a small 16:9 30" 120 Hz screen...
JarredWalton - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - link
The market appears to be abandoning 30" now and going for 27" 2560x1440 displays -- and ironically, the 27" panels cost just as much or more than some of the older 30" displays! As for your dream of a 120Hz 30" LCD, that's a difficult thing to provide, as you need more bandwidth than even dual-link DVI can provide. I'm not even sure of DisplayPort can send that much data, but I suppose using two DL-DVI links to drive the panel might be possible. Problem there is that you'd have to have some form of new connector, or use two DVI connectors on a graphics card, and I'm not convinced everything would work out well if we go that route (e.g. driver bugs and such).cheinonen - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - link
Technically DisplayPort 1.2 has just enough bandwidth to do 2560 x 1600 x 30 bits x 120 Hz, but I'm not sure when we would see such a beast. I'd love to get a look at one if someone wanted to make it though. It seems that moving to 16:9 from 16:10 is more cost effective for the manufacturers, even if we aren't really seeing that being passed along to the consumer.ggathagan - Friday, October 14, 2011 - link
The only reason that 16:9 is more cost effective than 16:10 is due to consumers .If buyers stayed away from 16:9 panels, they would not be so prevalent in the market.
This is one of many markets that rely on buyers' lack of discrimination.
Zolcos - Wednesday, October 19, 2011 - link
The most frustrating thing about the lack of higher res 120hz monitors is that the technology has been around for some time now.- Anandtech reviewed a 120hz 1080p LCD over a year ago
- 120hz at resolutions higher than 1200p requires DisplayPort 1.2, and AMD video cards supporting it have been around for a year.
The tech is not only available, but in gamers' rigs right now. If only someone would actually make a true 120hz lcd at some 16:10 or 4:3 resolution greater than 1200p I'd drop 2 grand on it right now, I don't even care about the color accuracy.