Conclusion

When it comes to the Samsung S23A750D display, I’m a bit conflicted in my use of it. I do think that 120Hz panels are the way of the future, as the increased smoothness is visible even on simple tasks like dragging a window around the screen. After using it, I really want my next display to have it. I’m somewhat prejudiced away from TN panels as I’m far more concerned with color quality than I am with being ideal for fast twitch gaming sessions, but I think everyone will want 120Hz once they use it.

However, the hardware interface on the Samsung was very irritating. From not being able to switch inputs at first to always hitting the wrong button, the touch sensitive buttons just have to go. Samsung either needs to space them out more or go to buttons that you can click, as the current implementation is completely style over substance. I thought I was making too big a deal out of it after a couple of weeks, but whenever I had to switch inputs, I was ready to be done with the display.

For 3D, the 60Hz crosstalk numbers on the Samsung were very good, but the implementation inside of games appears to have a lot of artifacts. Both World of Warcraft and Half Life 2 had a lot of visual issues that bothered me, but DiRT 3 fared much better. Perhaps the native HD3D support of DiRT 3, instead of using the TriDef 3D software, is the reason for this and things will improve in the future; Deus Ex: Human Revolution is another title that's supposed to be excellent in HD3D. For watching a movie in 3D over Blu-ray the Samsung was fine, but as Active 3D gives me a headache, I’d recommend that people try it out before buying it if that’s a major use for them.

While I do love the Samsung for both gaming and general use, I have a difficult time giving it my full recommendation due to the interface issues that I kept running into. The $400 online price is similar to what you'll pay for other 120Hz TN displays, but most of those probably don’t suffer from the same interface issues. We also have to give NVIDIA's 3D Vision a clear edge for non-movie use, and right now the S23A focuses more on AMD's HD3D so keep your GPU vendor in mind when considering 3D displays.

Lag and Power Usage
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  • DParadoxx - Saturday, December 17, 2011 - link

    Chris, there is an OCZ 850 PS gallery on page one. I suspect this is unintentional.
  • DParadoxx - Saturday, December 17, 2011 - link

    Spoke too soon, I see it is.
  • Iketh - Saturday, December 17, 2011 - link

    Sorry to be a d**k, but I could only glance through the article. It felt like is was written by a 7th grader. Not AT worthy.
  • MonkeyPaw - Saturday, December 17, 2011 - link

    I'm sure your thoughtful and constructive comment will really be a force for change at AT.
  • Kristian Vättö - Saturday, December 17, 2011 - link

    It's really no use to criticize unless you can be more specific. What is wrong with it? The writing style or the knowledge of the writer? Or something else?

    Haters are always gonna hate. If you want things to change, the way is to provide feedback and tell WHAT IS WRONG.
  • Galcobar - Saturday, December 17, 2011 - link

    The writing style is more juvenile, hyperbolic and chatty than I've come to expect from Anandtech. There are also some grammatical issues which obscure meaning. As a result the reader has to sift the article more carefully for the relevant information.

    Clear, concise writing which conveys the information precisely indicates a greatery mastery of the subject material. The author may have a complete grasp of the issue, but it is not presented in a manner which would lead the reader to trust the author's, erm, authority.
  • MonkeyPaw - Saturday, December 17, 2011 - link

    That's a much better way to put it. Nice ironic twist in there too. :p
  • Reikon - Sunday, December 18, 2011 - link

    Yep. I've been saying recently that AT is going down in quality. These new writers just aren't any good. Their writing style and content just isn't up to the old standards.

    I mean, look at those pictures of the OCZ PSU on the first page. Someone even thought they were included as an error. This isn't a blog. Don't write about how your computer couldn't handle 3D and then detail how you upgraded it to support it. This isn't a case or PSU review. We don't need to know the details of your PSU installation for a monitor review.
  • claytontullos - Sunday, December 18, 2011 - link

    agreed
  • johnf1285 - Monday, December 19, 2011 - link

    I agree with this too. I was thrown off when I was reading through the article, and glanced down to see a photogallery with pictures of a PSU.

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