ASUS ML248H: Thin for the Win?
by Chris Heinonen on October 27, 2011 12:00 AM ESTColor Uniformity
While the center of the ASUS ML248H screen has a decent dE when we analyze it more carefully, the rest of the screen does not fare as well. Only one other location on the screen manages a dE below 2.0, and two measurements are right around 3.5 dE. If you look at the graph you can see that most of the errors are occurring in the same colors, but when you move away from the center of the display, the quality of the grayscale really goes downhill.
I’m not sure why the grayscale is so close to perfect at the center and then far worse on the rest of the display, but I’d rather see the issues be in colors than in grayscale. If you are a photographer or artist, you likely aren’t considering a TN display anyway, but even for day-to-day office use the color shift in what should be neutral colors can be very annoying. If you don’t care about calibrating your monitor, then you really aren’t going to be too concerned with this, but for everyone else, the fact that only the dead center of the screen can be close to accurate is going to be an issue I would think.
Color Gamut
The color gamut on the ASUS comes in on the low side for an sRGB display, with under 65% of the Adobe RGB colorspace represented. This likely contributes to the dE numbers we are seeing, as many of those values are at the edge of the sRGB colorspace, and the ASUS ML248H might simply not be able to produce them.
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Exodite - Thursday, October 27, 2011 - link
Gladly.Point being that not everyone appreciates, or even sees, the same thing.
Displays are entering an era of holier-than-thou douchebaggery (I just made up a word!) that has long been reserved for audiophiles.
The analogy is apt, I've yet to come across a modern computer where I've considered it worth the money to upgrade from integrated audio solutions.
Same holds for TN vs. IPS, PVA/MVA etc.
Broheim - Thursday, October 27, 2011 - link
lol@"TN is still the best", IPS is superior in every way except for response time, not just color reproduction... and e-IPS is damned cheap.Xajel - Thursday, October 27, 2011 - link
for that price, I think it's okay, but there's better solutions...the most con. - for me - about this other than the quality of TN display is lack of VESA mount, but it's TN quality alone is a good reason to stop me from taking it !!
ProDigit - Thursday, October 27, 2011 - link
I'd be glad if I won it, eventhough it's far from a winner monitor!Right now, I'm more looking into supersized monitors, that are like 38-42in in size for my PC!
rsgeiger - Thursday, October 27, 2011 - link
I logged in just to say that this monitor has the ugliest bezel I have seen in my entire life! It doesn't help if it is thin if the front facing side has no redeemable qualities.I know this didn't offer much to the conversation, and I apologize for that. But i could not in good conscience let this go unchallenged.
mcturkey - Thursday, October 27, 2011 - link
I have to agree with you. I don't understand the fascination with making LCDs any thinner than they already are unless you're also going to reduce the size of the bezel. Show me the 25-30" screens with 1-2MM bezels!cheinonen - Thursday, October 27, 2011 - link
My issue with making these displays so thin is that it necessitates an external power brick for them, which just makes my workspace more of a cluttered mess. With TVs I understand the fascination, since they are far more likely to be wall mounted and you want them to be as unobtrusive as possible, but LED LCD TVs still have room for a regular power supply and IEC power cord instead of an external power brick. I'd rather have a larger display with no external power brick, but perhaps I am in the minority now.ProDigit - Friday, October 28, 2011 - link
I always put my bricks and cabling behind my desk. No worries, no clutter (just between the desk and the wall, where no one sees them).Exodite - Thursday, October 27, 2011 - link
Word.JarredWalton - Thursday, October 27, 2011 - link
The article title is a question, you'll notice, as in, "Does making this a thin monitor actually make it better?" The answer, as you can read in our conclusion, is that there's nothing particularly compelling about this particular monitor. But hey, if someone has a better article title (that isn't outright insulting to ASUS -- no reason to be rude), let's hear it.