AOC LM729

PRICE $899
SUPPLIER AOC Monitor (02) 9403 5780
INTERNET www.anz.aocmonitor.com
SPECIFICATIONS 17in TFT; 260 cd/m2; 450:1 contrast ratio; 25ms response; D-Sub/DVI-D; 1,280 x 1,024 native resolution; speakers; VESA mounting interface; 5.9kg; 3 year parts and labour warranty.

VERDICT Generous swivel and height adjustment are big pluses for this monitor, performance was less impressive with noticeable image tearing while pixel response seemed slow.

VIBRANT VL5A9PD

PRICE $499
SUPPLIER ADO (02) 9417 5233
INTERNET www.ado.com.au
SPECIFICATIONS 15in TFT; 250 cd/m2; 400:1 contrast ratio; 16ms response; D-Sub; 1,024 x 768 native resolution; speakers; VESA mounting interface; 5.9kg; 3 year onsite warranty including backlight.

VERDICT A great display to rival even the Polyview CMV 1515 (June 2003) this is worth checking out if you're in the market for a cheap and impressive TFT monitor.

If you're space conscious or limited when it comes to your PC set up then no doubt you've already looked at the TFT display option at some point. We've got three new TFT offerings from three companies in the Labs this month, which should give you a good idea of the state of play of the TFT market at the moment.

Vibrant's offering in the VL5A9PD is a 15in display with deceiving but attractive visuals, using a specially designed bezel faceplate to give the illusion of a widescreen LCD on a 4:3 square panel. With a generous level of physical contortion, this unit's stand is able to be folded back 90 degrees allowing you to flush mount it with the desk in a photo frame style stand mode. Wide viewing angles, good colour intensity levels and easily viewable fonts even in small scale makes this a great option for multimedia playback or office usage. Slight blurring in real world game testing was noticeable; although the low 16ms pixel response time helped display fast moving images smoothly.

We've seen some great Sony LCD monitors in the past, including the May TFT roundup Labs Winning SDM-S81R 18 inch display. Sony has gone all out on the design and style of the X93 by removing the traditional fixed height limitation many manufacturers put on their displays. Running on a 10cm track, the panel can be raised or lowered extremely easily, while the sturdy base ensures your monitor won't be twisting or falling off the desk. The OSD (on screen display) controls are unobtrusively mounted on the right hand side of the display, detracting nothing at all from the stylish look Sony has worked so hard to achieve.

Unfortunately what the display gains in looks it lacks in display quality, with noticeable lag whilst testing fast moving images, and with movie playback and game testing we saw severe blurring and jaggies. However, good, high brightness levels, excellent 256-colour ramping and easy to read fonts are ideal for long periods of usage without eyestrain, but ghosting, blur and slow pixel response all brought down our overall rating on this model. For the cost we just don't think it stacks up to what we know Sony is capable of producing.

If you're after a feature packed TFT, AOC's 18in LM729 could be for you. Clocking in just shy of $900 was impressive enough for a monitor of this size, but the range of movement is the kicker. Able to be swivelled like no monitor we've seen, it also features height adjustment via hydraulic lifting and the ability to flip it sideways into marginally elongated portrait mode.

This strange-looking monitor is covered in a silver fascia with black speakers and has its OSD menu buttons tucked away on the right hand side of the chassis for easy access without detracting from the minimalist look of the bezel.
Our model came shipped with only a single D-Sub connection, although we were informed due to market demand the final version will ship with DVI connectivity.

Real world game testing showed plenty of jaggy action and image tearing when moving quickly between objects, lowering its DVD playback score considerably, although still not as poor as the Sony's results. Despite its abundance of swivel and height adjustment, the unit features surprisingly minor levels of tilt to help you avoid glare. Suitable more as an office productivity display, this model has slight blurring issues with smaller scale fonts; for the cost you may want to look at similarly priced BenQ or CMV models.

While all three bring something different to the LCD table in terms of size and pricing, we think the definite contender for your hard-earned money if you're looking to take the plunge is the Vibrant VL5A9PD, offering a great value budget display under $500.