Samsung 15" 151S LCD Monitor (Black)

Rating:
Summary: Ugly beyond imagination
Review: A very ugly monitor that gives below-average image quality. This is an old model and the contrast, which is difficult to adjust, really hurts your eyes after a few minutes. I think you'll need new glasses if you use this one. There are better products elsewhere (NEC, Kogi, etc.) for the same or better price.

Rating:
Summary: Looking for a gaming LCD? Look no further.
Review: I must confess...after I ordered this, I wondered if I should have just invested in a less expensive CRT, especially since I play a lot of computer games, and LCD's traditionally haven't had the best reputation for gaming, due mostly to technical limitations causing "ghosting" - sort of a temporary after-image. Once this thing arrived and I plugged it in, however, any such notion vanished from my mind.

Bear in mind that I have not had a lot of experience with LCD monitors, as I'm sure most people haven't. I did a bit of research on various sites, including this one. I had it whittled down to a few different choices and I still wasn't entirely sure which monitor I wanted to get. The swing vote came when I stumbled across CNET's recent pick (January) as this as their number one buy for a 15 inch LCD.

The image is bright, it's crisp, and I can see textures that I never even knew were there on my old CRT. I have not one problem gaming with this. I have been playing Warcraft 3, Thief 2, and other games with this thing and they are running smoothly and better than I have ever seen them before. Actually, I should say that at fist, I thought I noticed a slight "ghosting" in Warcraft 3, but I see no such thing now, so make of that what you will; perhaps it was a case of seeing what you expect to see or something. Anyway, I have absolutely no problem playing Serious Sam: The Second Encounter, a somewhat obscure but good first-person shooter, and I notice no ghosting or anything of the sort. You can actually see extremely well in Thief 2, which is saying something since the game is quite dark by design. (I actually had problems with this darkness on my old Compaq CRT.)

Some people have said that text does not show up right or something to that effect. My best guess is that they do not have either the monitor or their computer's display settings set to the native resolution of 1024 x 768, because the text on mine is clearer than I would have ever hoped for, and causes less eye strain than on just about any CRT in my experience. There is also software included to help get the color settings just right.

You do need to have it adjusted to the proper angle in order to have uniform brightness from the top to the bottom of the screen, but I don't see why this should be a problem. Unless you are getting a monitor to watch DVD's on from your couch, you probably do not need a bigger LCD than this. I would even say that any bigger might be too much, unless you are planning on mounting it on a wall or something. Keep in mind that the 15 inches is the actual (diagonal) size of the viewing area, whereas when sizes are used to describe CRT's, the viewing area is less than the stated size...don't ask me why; that's just the way it is. So, if you want to know how big the screen is, get out a tape measurer and measure out 15". That is the distance from the top-left corner of the display area to the bottom-right. That is just the display area - NOT the whole monitor, which is actually slightly bigger. It's probably bigger than you would have thought.

It even comes with a 3 year warranty on parts and labor. Some other companies' warranties, such as NEC's (according to some of the reviews I have read), allow for so many "dead pixels". To the best of my knowledge, Samsung has no such "gotcha" policy.

All in all, I would say this is a great buy if you are in the market for a new monitor and want to jump into the twenty-first century. CRT's are still cheaper though, so it really depends on how much you want to spend.

Rating:
Summary: Image is Everything
Review: The Image quality is very poor on this monitor, I suggest you purchase another brand, or at least, not this monitor. The image is fuzzy, and washed out compared to my old Tube Monitor, so I returned it and purchased another brand.

Rating:
Summary: Samsung is awesome...
Review: This is my first LCD monitor, ever...
And I love this Samsung 151S model..!!!

I wanted to buy a better and more recent model from
Samsung, when I got an extra hundred dollars...
So, I thought I would return this monitor for a better one
when it arrives. But, when I opened it up
and started using it... I didn't see any reason why
I should pay hundred dollars more for another model...
I couldn't part from this monitor after seeing how
bright and sleek it looked on my desk...

One downside to this model is that the response time
of the LCD crystals isn't fast enough...which means
you will see blurring of pixels when something scrolls
or moves along a path... But you get used to it
pretty quickly. Also, certain colors tend to create
cell shading like effect on cartoons, creating lines around where two colors touch. But this is very minor..and really
won't bother you much...although as a person doing
graphics, it catches my eyes...

This monitor has great color...
With high contrast and brightness...I'm seeing more
detail on my past graphic works and also a lot of mistakes
I couldn't see before...

Text is very clear, so don't even worry about that...

Adjustment is easy and simple...but for left-handed people,
I guess it could get irritating trying to get to the control
placed on the right. But who in the world changes their
monitor settings everytime they use their computer?!!

Although some say LCD screens are not suitable for

people who do graphics, I think this monitor is good enough
for any computing needs... It prevents eye-strain when doing
graphic works for hours on straight... And high contrast
all the time means consistant color hues... This monitor does
have a short vertical angle view, although it's the same for
most other competitors... I guess that is the only downside to
this monitor as a graphics person... But the newer Samsung
models have wider angle views and higher contrast ratios, which

should eliminate such small nags... If LCD screen isn't good
for graphics, then why are Macs coming out various LCD screens?
And look at the new imac..!! So don't be afraid if you heard
such words before... LCDs are for everyone...

The final word is...
For the money, this is a steal~!!!
So, if you just have to have a LCD screen now,
but can't afford more expensive ones...but also
don't wanna buy some [rotten] LCD you'll regret buying...

Go right now and buy one~!! Or order from here...
You'll love it... And you'll never go back to CRT...