Review: LG M228WD TFT 22" Monitor/TV
A TV that's also a monitor - or is it vice versa? Ian Waugh turns on, tunes in and watches...
| Product | M228WD TFT 22" Monitor/TV |
|---|---|
| Company | LG Electronics |
| Web | www.lge.co.uk |
| Price | Around £249 |
| We like | Multi-function TV/monitor, good monitor display |
| We don't like | So-so TV picture, no DVI input |
| Rating | 7/10 |
| Requirements | D-Sub connection for Monitor |
The difference between a TV and a computer monitor is pretty small so it doesn't take a massive stretch of imagination or engineering to combine the two.
That's what LG's done with the M228WD. It looks neat with clean, modern lines, a narrow black bezel running around the screen with a speaker strip along the bottom.
The panel controls are easily accessible on the top and there's a good complement of inputs on the back including Component, two Scart sockets, HDMI, RS232, RGB, plus a PCMCIA slot. If your PC doesn't have a HDMI output you'll need to use the RGB. Unfortunately there's no DVI socket which is a shame.
The screen has a contrast ratio of 3000:1, a response time of 5ms and a resolution of 1680 x 1050 which is par for the course for 22" monitors.
Plugged into a computer, the image is sharp although we had to fiddle with the controls a little to get the best image. There are three picture modes plus two user settings. We couldn't quite match the image of LG's own L226WTQ (opens in new window), even in normal (ie not Movie) mode.
The viewing angle is slightly more sensitive than that of the L226WTQ and, perhaps an oddity but, looking down on the screen reduced the clarity, moreso than on the L226WTQ.
The TV has both analogue and digital tuners and is easy to set up and use. However, we were a little disappointed with the picture. It's not bad but it lacks the quality you associate with a dedicated TV.
The two speakers are small but adequate.
Finally, you can rotate the stand and tilt the monitor although you can't adjust the height.
We did notice that the M228WD gave off rather a lot of heat, more than we'd expect from a pure TFT monitor. Great in the winter but not so good in the summer - whenever that is! Its quoted power consumption is 60W in use (the L226WTQ uses 45W) but a meagre 1W in sleep mode or when off which is good.
