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Product reviews

Flat-panels are where all the display action is these days. Solution providers with customers who want the very cheapest displays should still recommend CRT-type units, as these can he had for well under S100. But customers who need to save space and desire a more modern-looking office environment will want flat-panel displays. It's also quite likely that these customers won't want to spend a fortune on new displays.

Smaller, 15-inch flat-panel displays now cost less than $200, hut most users have already been spoiled with larger displays. Nineteen-inch flat-panels are a nice size, but they can still be somewhat pricey. That brings us to the 17-inch category. Here we look at five entry-level 17-inch flat-panel displays from BenQ, CTX, Philips, Planar and Samsung. All the vendors offer similar channel programs and margins, hut the CTX unit offers good performance and the best value.

Besides their appearance, these displays have a lot in common. All have a native resolution of 1,280 x 1,024, which is easy on the eyes. All have an internal power supply, so resellers don't have to deal with external power supplies. All are analog-only with no digital DVI input. All have a three-year warranty, and all cost less than $300. The displays were tested for image quality using DisplayMate Multimedia Edition and a Hewlett-Packard desktop system with an Intel 82865G graphics controller.

BENQ FP71G+

BenQ's 17-inch FP71G+ is technologically up to date with an 8ms response time, a horizontal viewing angle of 140 degrees and a vertical viewing angle of 130 degrees. This display costs $299, making it the most expensive unit in the bunch, but there's no reason why it should cost more than the others. The FP71G+ has a standard VESA mount and comes with a snap-on base that tilts; it does not swivel or pivot. The display has a black and silver exterior that looks fancier than the all-black units but doesn't have as good a fit and finish as the CTX unit.

The FP71G+, however, has a good set of on-screen...

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