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Review: Samsung 225BW

12.02.06 - 11:16pm

If you are like me, you spend a good portion of your day sitting in front of a computer. I could safely say I spend 6 to 8 hours at my computer on an average day with some days going past 12 hours, sometimes in one sitting. During finals week and before large tests my desk will be stacked inches deep with material to review while my screens are cluttered with PDF files of previous tests and quizzes so having the most screenspace possible is a requirement. With out anymore delay, here is my review of the Samsung 225BW.

This is my first widescreen monitor and I have been pleasantly surprised with how much of a difference it has been over my standard monitors. Prior to owning this monitor I had twin 17 inch monitors which gave me plenty of screen space however each individual monitor was limited to 1280×1024 pixels which if you think about it is rather small. I decided to go for the upgrade to 1680×1050 pixels when I landed a slick deal during Black Friday. If you are concerned about the differences between widescreen and standard 12×10 monitors I implore that you just take the jump and go for a widescreen with your next monitor purchase, you won’t be unhappy.

Initial Impression

On the day that I purchased the monitor I immediately plugged it into a laptop and did some initial testing with websurfing and Microsoft Paint to test how well it represents various colors and text. After verifying there were no dead pixels, I really took an in-depth look at the quality of the screen and I was amazed. For under $300 I was expecting to have some distortion in the color reproduction along with some terrible viewing angles but neither is the case. I watched Batman Begins through a Dell Inspiron laptop with the VGA cable and I was impressed with how black the blacks were and how vibrant the colors were. None of my fears of a cheap panel were true, compared to my aging 4 year old Samsung 17″, the 225BW was leaps and strides ahead in all categories.

Construction

Initially I had planned on dropping nearly $400 for a Dell 2007WFP as I have used them before and I was impressed with the quality of the monitor and stand. The Samsung has a simpler stand compared to the Dell and it doesn’t have support to rotate the monitor however the stand does an excellent job when adjusting the height. Some other widescreen monitors have problems with the monitor slowly sliding back down to the bottom of the base but the 225BW has yet to move an inch since I positioned it on my desk. The monitor is capable of sliding about 4 inches and the monitor can be depressed about 15 degrees and tilted backwards about 35 degrees. The base of the stand itself cannot spin however on my wooden desk there is very little resistance making spinning the monitor a very easy task done with a single hand. The rear of the monitor is a simple affair with a single DVI, VGA, and power input. I wish the monitor had support for component cables but there is little chance of me using this screen directly as a television.

The light part in the upper right corner is due to the background, not a hardware problem.

Interface

The monitor comes with a simple six button interface that discretely sits at the bottom right corner of the bezel. The power button features a dim blue LED within the button which is not bright enough to be a distraction which is good. Besides your standard brightness, sharpness, and contrast options, the monitor gives you the option to have six different configurations that can be quickly selected through with a touch of the button. I find this to be very useful as I rarely like to have my monitor throwing off its full capacity of light. During the day and when I am gaming I find it very useful to have the brightness set to maximum however when I am using the screen for writing or during the night I find it to be less stressful on my eyes to turn the brightness down to 0. Even at 0 the screen illuminates my entire room, I wish 0 was more dimmer as it feels like you only have “bright as the sun” and “bright as the sun on a slightly hazy day”. I guess that is just a testament to the monitor’s construction.

Observations

I’ve had the monitor for a little over a week and I am pretty certain I’ve done just about anything that can be done to a monitor. The thing is a dream to game with due to its reported 5 millisecond response time. It is possible to have two Firefox windows open to browse with with each window getting roughly 800 pixels each, or even more importantly Firefox and a word processor. I haven’t had a problem with any color coming out of the screen incorrectly and it has been an absolute dream watching widescreen movies on it.

My only regret about this monitor was not buying a second one at the time. I doubt I’ll be able to get a twin for under $300 now but I might get lucky. Compared to the competition the 225BW sits around the middle of the pack in regards to cost yet it is a full featured monitor that isn’t lacking in any particular area. If you are in the market for a new monitor check out the 225BW, if you can see it in person then it’ll win you over.

Running caseless with box cooler, always the safe option

Category: Articles, Review