Dell G2410H Review: A Green 24" LCD
by Brian Klug on May 7, 2010 1:43 AM ESTIf you’re familiar with the G2410, you’ll find that the G2410H is much the same, with one major difference - a higher-end height adjustable stand. This ergonomic shortcoming was something criticized in its earlier brethren, which many argued sacrificed too much in the way of utility. It's amazing how much importance one can impart to a simple stand.
The G2410H rectifies the matter this time with a height, rotate, and tilt adjustable stand complete with a cable management port square in the back. If you’ve seen other Dell monitors, you’ve probably seen this mount before, as it’s common to the U2410 and myriad others.
In a sea of relatively generic TN panels, the G2410H doesn't stand out immediately, though it does feature WLED backlighting instead of older CCFL technology. As we’ll see later though, this combination isn’t going to set any records for color gamut, as CCFL again usually produces better results in practice. But the real point of using WLED is all about that green cred. It’s apparent that Dell’s aims were more on keeping power consumption down with WLEDs and a few other things.
The G2410 is priced at an MSRP of $339, making it more expensive than similarly sized 24” TN panel-packing monitors, but it packs a bevy of features not found in those other generic displays. That brings us to the details:
| Dell G2410H - Specifications | |||
| Property | Quoted Specification | ||
| Video Inputs |
Dual-link DVI with HDCP VGA |
||
| Panel Type | TN (14K0N9CS346U) | ||
| Pixel Pitch | 0.277mm | ||
| Colors | 16.7 million colors | ||
| Brightness | 250 nits typical | ||
| Contrast Ratio |
1000:1 advertised 1000000:1 Dynamic advertised |
||
| Response Time | 5 ms typical | ||
| Viewable Size | 24" diagonal | ||
| Resolution | 1920x1080 (1080P) | ||
| Viewing Angle | 170 degrees horizontal, 160 degrees vertical | ||
| Power Consumption (operation) |
<20 watts typical 29 watts maximum |
||
| Power Consumption (standby) | <0.15 watts | ||
| Screen Treatment | Matte (anti-glare) | ||
| Height-Adjustable | Yes - 3.94" | ||
| Tilt | Yes | ||
| Pivot | No | ||
| Swivel | Yes | ||
| VESA Wall Mounting | Yes - 100x100mm | ||
| Dimensions w/ Base (WxHxD) | 21.47" x 18.26-14.32" x 7.25" (WxHxD) | ||
| Weight |
8.86 lbs w/o stand 13.33 lbs w/ stand |
||
| Additional Features | Optional speaker bar | ||
| Limited Warranty |
3-year warranty standard 4-year and 5-year extended available |
||
| Accessories | DVI, VGA[c] and power cables | ||
| Price | $339 MSRP | ||
As mentioned before, this is a refreshed G2410 with more attention to ergonomics, but with the same emphasis on keeping the product green.
That greenness starts right out of the box, as packaging foregoes polystyrene foam in favor of an intricately-designed cardboard cladding. The difference is actually more striking than you’d expect out-of-box; removing the monitor from its corrugated cardboard shell is a bit of a puzzle in some ways. It’s well designed however, and there wasn’t any apparent weakness that would lead us to believe it’s more prone to getting damaged during shipping than other packaging. Dell claims that they’re using less plastic in the box as well, which is difficult to quantify, but seems likely considering just how much cardboard is inside.
The display’s components and panel are also eco-friendly - the panel is arsenic, mercury, BFR, CFR, and PVC free. Most surprisingly, the chassis and bezel plastic is made of at least 25 percent post-consumer recycled plastic.
Packaging and construction are one thing, but what really matters to display-shoppers is how well the G2410H sips energy. Dell claims that their energy-sipping power supply draws less than 0.15 watts in sleep mode using VGA input, and under 20 watts at maximum brightness. Of course, this is also the logical reason for opting with WLED backlighting instead of CCFLs; energy consumption is less. There’s also an ambient light sensor, and three power profiles to balance brightness level against power consumption. At the end of the day, Dell claims that adds up to a 60% decrease in power consumption compared to the 50 watt drawing E248WFP.
The G2410H is relatively spartan when it comes to onboard ports - the only options are DVI-D and VGA. There isn’t any option for HDMI, USB, or even DisplayPort like we’re starting to see crop up in a surprisingly diverse array of displays. That’s a bit of a letdown, but it isn’t a game-killing omission for the display. If you haven’t gotten the picture yet, this monitor is definitely oriented toward energy-conscious businesses doing office and productivity work before all other.
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TechnicalWord - Friday, May 7, 2010 - link
With AMD video cards you can get rid of black borders all around as follows: bring up the latest CCC, go to Desktops & Displays, RIGHT-CLICK ON THE DISPLAY ICON AT THE BOTTOM under "Please select a display" and choose Configure, then select Scaling Options and set Underscan-Overscan to 0%.strikeback03 - Wednesday, May 12, 2010 - link
Thank you very much! That has been bothering me since I built my HTPC in January. Wonder why AMD set it that way by default.Stokestack - Friday, May 7, 2010 - link
Bring back common sense. Glossy screens are asinine. GJ on that at least, Dell.quiksilvr - Friday, May 7, 2010 - link
Glossy screens are asinine on a laptop you take outdoors. Monitors are usually indoors and it makes sense for them to have some glatte or moss (half gloss, half matte, as seen on LCD TVs) to it. Full gloss really depends on the lighting of where it is.chromatix - Friday, May 7, 2010 - link
Time was a "green screen" meant just that - a text terminal with green phosphor on the front and nothing else. Nowadays you only see them attached to obsolete mainframes.jonyah - Friday, May 7, 2010 - link
I have two of the G2410's (non-H) version that I got with a discount code from dell.com for only $200 each, after shipping. I guess I got really lucky because I watched the price and discounts daily hoping to get more and it never got down that low again. A $140 price hike though for an adjustable stand just isn't worth it. Get these down below $250 and it would be worth it. The screen is really nice, though I wish they'd do a 27" led monitor and/or up the res to 1900x1200 or higher. I do miss that extra 180pixels in height on this screencasteve - Friday, May 7, 2010 - link
I have two of the non-H as well. I missed the $200 sale, but got them for ~$250 last fall. Definately NOT the monitor you want for professional graphics design, but great for mixed use productivity, casual streaming/movies, and gaming (esp. at $250 or less). The auto mode was a little psychotic (brightness would vary in constant room lighting), so I moved to standard mode and manual settings. 15-17W consumption.BernardP - Friday, May 7, 2010 - link
Nvidia Geforce video drivers have the "Create Custom Resolution" and "Use NVidia Scaling" options that allow (with digital output) creating and scaling any custom or missing standard resolution at the correct aspect ratio. The trick is that scaling is done in the videocard, while a native-resolution signal is sent to the monitor. In essence, the monitor is displaying at its native resolution and doesn't "know" it is showing a lower custom resolution.For example, I find it more comfortable to use a custom 1536x960 custom resolution on a 24 inch (16:10) monitor
For my parents' setup, I have created a custom 1080x864 resolution that is comfortably bigger for their old eyes while respecting the 5:4 ratio of their 19 inch LCD.
It's too bad ATI is not offering these options.
Guspaz - Friday, May 7, 2010 - link
I did try that; I have a G2410 (hey, I bought it because it was on sale for dirt cheap at the time) and it's useless for 4:3 games.The G2410 has the annoying tendancy to stretch *ANY* 4:3 resolution that I've tried up to wide. WarCraft 3 doesn't look so hot.
I did mess about with the nVidia drivers to try to create a custom resolution that would let me run 4:3 games at actual 4:3, but didn't get anywhere.
aftlizard - Friday, May 7, 2010 - link
I think it is unacceptable that a new monitor, even if it is just an update on an existing model, to not have HDMI.I use monitors now for my laptop at home and my laptop like many others does not have DVI out but rather VGA and HDMI. I can not use VGA if I am going to watch HDCP movies or use anything that requires HDCP. Sure I could purchase an HDMI-DVI converter but why not just add that extra HDMI spot to give everybody the chance to use their connections straight out of the box without having to purchase an adapter or look for a software solution.