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Viewsonic VG710s LCD Review

Company:

Viewsonic, www.viewsonic.com

Price:

Average retail price is about $315US.

Ratings

Price:
Install/Setup:
Usability:
Support:
Average Rating:

Pros:

• Good for gaming or just web browsing
• Bright, crystal clear viewing
• Analog and digital inputs

Cons:

• An annoying warning message that pops up when gaming outside the native resolution
• The screen tilts, but it lacks swivel and height adjustment

Getting Started

The Viewsonic VG710s is as good as 17" monitors get. It doesn't have all the characteristics we like to see in monitors, but compared to most 17" monitors, it is well made. The 16ms response time and 1280x1024 native resolution are really what set this monitor apart as far as specifications go. Now days you are seeing some 12ms 17" LCDs, but there is still are large number of manufacturers struggling to get below 20ms response times. The super-fast 16ms video response delivers broadcast-quality full motion video at 62.5FPS.

The 1280x1024 native resolution is quite nice considering the size of the display. One annoying feature though is a pop-up window that comes up if the resolution changes from the native 1280x1024. Really I noticed this when I would load a game and within the game settings I had not change the game video resolution to be 1280x1024. The window has an option to close the message or to disable it. I kept hitting the key to match the disable option, but was never able to get it to not pop-up. A Chaintech 6600GT video card does a good job with high resolution graphics, but with some games like Half-Life 2 it struggled to keep up at a 1280x1024 in-game resolution. So the pop-up message stating that we should be using the displays native resolution was annoying to say the least.

Click on picture to enlarge image

You know that when buying the VG710s you are getting Viewsonic quality and support and warrantee and service that has been tested and proven over the years. A nice feature you don't see often on 17" LCDs is their Multi-mode input technology which supports both digital (DVI) and analog (VGA) signals for ultimate compatibility and configuration flexibility. With a high brightness of 250 nits (typ) and a high contrast ratio of  450:1 (typ), this display brings vivid, true-to-life color to your desktop. We actually found ourselves turning down the brightness levels even when gaming because this thing is so bright.

Physically speaking, the display is stylish. Its lack of swivel and height adjustments is a bit disappointing since you are seeing these features showing up more often on 17" displays. The VG710s does have two built-in 3-watt stereo speakers. Most LDS with speakers only sport 1 or 2 watt speakers. These have a decent sound if you are looking this feature for your LCD. However, it does lack a headphone jack.

Specifications

Adding It All Up

Although the VG710s has some design shortcomings, it has plenty of picture quality and a fast response time to make it worthwhile even for gaming. If you need a quality LCD for work you will be highly satisfied here. If you are looking for something to take to LAN events for gaming, you will still like what you see. We took this LCD with us to PDX LAN and gamed on it for 4 straight days (yes there was a lot of caffeine flowing in our veins). Counterstrike Source and even Need For Speed Underground 2 look spectacular with the high resolutions and color output not to mention the 16ms response time.

The Viewsonic VG710s has as good or better quality picture you will find out there in a 17" LCD. You know with Viewsonic you are getting years of experience backing up what you purchase. You could find a 17" LCD for less money, but you will seriously be sacrificing quality. So why not head out and pick one up for your desk?

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