Sony CPD-G520P 21" FD Trinitron CRT Monitor

Rating:
Summary: Nice Looking CRT
Review: I recently went shopping for a 21" monitor to replace my aging ViewSonic 17GA and settled on the Sony G520P. I figured I couldn't really go wrong with a Sony Trinitron. For the most part, Sony has lived up to its reputation, but the G520P isn't without a few small faults.

The first thing you'll notice about the G520P is the two tone silver and gray cabinet. It's probably the most attractive design on the market - certainly an improvement over the original G520.

As far as features go, the G520P is lacking a USB hub and BNC connectors. You'll have to go to the more expensive GDM-F520 model if you require either of these amenities. On the other hand, it does offer dual HD15 inputs, which might be nice if you wanted to hook up two machines at the same time.

Image quality is reasonably good. I found the G520P to be exceptionally bright and colourful, which is great for games and DVDs. Small text was a little on the blurry side, though this could potentially be attributed to my nVidia video card, which isn't really known for its 2d image quality. The monitor can reach resolutions as high as 2048x1536, but I found that 1280x1024 was the most comfortable for my eyes.

The on screen controls aren't bad, but navigation is made awkward by Sony's "Display Mouse". It's nothing more than a button that you push up or down to cycle through the various settings. The difficult part is that you have to push it inwards to activate your selection. It's not a terrible design, but I've certainly seen better.

Overall, I'm fairly happy with the Sony G520P. If you're interested in purchasing a 21" monitor, it's certainly worth a look. I would also recommend checking out some of the Diamondtron monitors - particularly the Mitsubishi 2060u and the Samsung Syncmaster 1200NF.

I hope this has been helpful!

Rating:
Summary: Not quite an Eizo but awsome for the price
Review: This monitor is an outstanding VALUE. Sure, there are monitors with tons of adjustments... but you'll pay a price for it. This monitor has an excellent image quality right out of the box.

I was torn between giving it a 5 star rating for being such an awesome VALUE, and a 4 star rating for it's lack of features.

Rating:
Summary: pricey but I found a cheaper alternative
Review: Well If you are like me, I am on a budget at this point in my life. So much so that I am literally saving the change I find to buy my next monitor. Well I have not acheived my goal but am half way there right now. Well like many others I have also scoured the net for the cheapest price to this wonderful monitor. You wonder why I gave it a 4 without even buying it, well I own 3 Sony monitors(2 TV and other) and they are all flat CRT, plus I have never in my 27 years of existence ran into a problem with any Sony monitor. They are a very functional company with the end use in mind. Anyway back to the price story. After scouring the web, I ran across a sight that you can get it for around $585 with free shipping. That's right F>R>E>E> shipping, but it is ground only though, I am sure that you can upgrade to some other type. Anyway the sight is newegg dot com. Hope this helps.....

Rating:
Summary: pricey but I found a cheaper alternative
Review: Well If you are like me, I am on a budget at this point in my life. So much so that I am literally saving the change I find to buy my next monitor. Well I have not acheived my goal but am half way there right now. Well like many others I have also scoured the net for the cheapest price to this wonderful monitor. You wonder why I gave it a 4 without even buying it, well I own 3 Sony monitors(2 TV and other) and they are all flat CRT, plus I have never in my 27 years of existence ran into a problem with any Sony monitor. They are a very functional company with the end use in mind. Anyway back to the price story. After scouring the web, I ran across a sight that you can get it for around $585 with free shipping. That's right F>R>E>E> shipping, but it is ground only though, I am sure that you can upgrade to some other type. Anyway the sight is newegg dot com. Hope this helps.....