Samsung SyncMaster 174v Review (Page 1 of 5 )
When someone talks LCDs, more often than not will the name Samsung come up. Even major OEM, Dell, sells relabeled Samsung LCDs. The image of a Samsung LCD that comes to mind is often that distinct, two-prong, square base, thin bezel flat panel with excellent viewing quality. Samsung LCDs have also been rather pricey, but reasonable since these weren't any budget, bottom of the barrel displays. Times have changed however, and Samsung now makes cheap analog displays, selling them at some of the lowest LCD display prices on the market. Today, we will review one of these analog displays, the Samsung SyncMaster 174v 17" LCD flat panel, which retails at about $460.
The ongoing debate between which is superior, CRT or LCD displays, will always exist. The reason is because choosing one display over another is in the end, purely personal preference. And since personal preference is the final discerning factor, as it should be, there is no one universal answer as to which display is better. As someone who spends hours everyday at his computer, I've understood for a long time a good monitor, something I like, is much more rewarding than an extra 400MHz CPU speed, or a 9800XT over a 9600 Pro. For that matter, shelling out a few hundred bucks for a monitor is by all means perfectly acceptable. Especially when prices have been driven down tremendously in respect to earlier years.
LCD flat panel displays are nothing new. My last display was a 17" LCD, and that was October of '02. A decent 17" analog LCD cost approximately $600 then, and today they can be found for $300-400 after MIRs. As the LCD manufacturing process becomes more efficient, and sales grow accordingly, LCDs become cheaper. And today is the end of that phase, where LCDs have dropped nearly $200. All the major OEMs (Dell, HP, etc.) are selling flat panels with their systems. As anyone who has gone to see displays at a retail store like Best Buy might know, hardly ever do they run the LCDs at their maximum supported resolution, making it very difficult to do legitimate comparisons. So with all the different brands to choose from, Samsung, Viewsonic, Sony, etc., what should you buy?
Samsung is a major LCD manufacturer. When someone talks LCDs, more often than not will the name Samsung come up. Even major OEM, Dell, sells relabeled Samsung LCDs. The image of a Samsung LCD that comes to mind is often that distinct, two-prong, square base, thin bezel flat panel with excellent viewing quality. Samsung LCDs have also been rather pricey, but reasonable since these weren't any budget, bottom of the barrel displays. Times have changed however, and Samsung now makes cheap analog displays, selling them at some of the lowest LCD display prices on the market. Today, we will review one of these analog displays, the Samsung SyncMaster 174v 17" LCD flat panel, which retails at about $460.
Next: Overview of the SyncMaster 174v >>
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