Dell UltraSharp 24" IPS LED Monitor

Most PC monitors these days are 16:9, because manufacturers can steal the panels from HDTV makers for cheap. The problem is 16:9 is a terrible aspect ratio for computing - reading a web page or writing a Word doc is not the same as watching a widescreen movie. The Dell U2412M is a 16:10 monitor - a much more usable aspect ratio for general computing. Those 120 extra pixels really do make a BIG difference. But you usually only see this in more expensive professional monitors because these panels are not used in any other industry. The volume is lower, hence the prices are higher - and that means they're usually relegated to high-end displays. This is one of the few ~$300 16:10 PC displays, and it's a good one. No, it's not perfect - no monitor is, and let me dispense with the monitor's bad points first. Like the (16:9) ASUS PB238Q I traded in for this, mine doesn't have perfect uniformity - one side of the screen is ever so slightly brighter (and bluer) than the other. This is a common problem for LCD's, but most people would never notice it, and even a nitpicker like me only ever really sees it on a solid white or light grey background. The physical look of the monitor is pretty basic and isn't going to win any beauty awards - it has that mid-90's Dell style, with the rounded edges and silver accents they used to use. I actually liked the physical look of my ASUS monitor better, with its industrial style sharp edges and corners and darker black plastic and panel. The Dell doesn't look quite as "professional". But this consideration goes away as soon as you turn the monitor on and start using it. Most of these seem to have a little bit of corner light bleed and mine is no exception, though it's not noticeable at all except on a totally black screen. The only time I ever actually see it at all is when watching letterboxed movies. The bottom right (coincidentally where the power LED is) is the worst offender on mine, although oddly it goes away completely if I look at that corner dead straight-on. But then I'm looking at the rest of the monitor askew. Of course, as cheap as it is and unlike previous Dell UltraSharp monitors, this one is a 6 bit panel that uses interpolation to manage 16.7 million colors, and it's only got an SRGB color gamut. That's by design and not really a criticism, but just be aware of it if you're a photographer. Dell still makes other UltraSharp monitors intended for professionals - this isn't one of them, although it's good enough for me and it should be good enough for anyone not doing critical photo editing. Now for the good stuff. As mentioned, there's the aspect ratio. Already explained that. This monitor's also got an e-IPS panel and has basically plasma-like viewing angles - you can turn it any which way and it looks pretty much the same (except for the corner bleed on dark scenes). It's also *capable* of very accurate colors, although you'll need to calibrate it to get them. Matte screen, and the anti-glare coating is not grainy or otherwise noticeable. It's perfect. No glare, no reflections, no cross-hatch, no graininess. Insist on nothing less than matte! The stand, while not the prettiest, is functionally among the best I've ever seen. It's got height adjustment, tilt, side to side rotation and portrait/landscape rotation - you can basically move it on any axis! My ASUS PB238Q did this too (and so does the PA248Q), but they're some of the only monitors that'll do all this in the lower price ranges. It also feels solid and doesn't wobble, although it does sometimes get a little off-axis on its own, and you have to sort of re-center it. It's BRIGHT! IPS panels are often a little dark - my ASUS actually looked dim at 100% brightness with my blinds open on a sunny day. This Dell ships set to 75% brightness and it's already brighter than that. Most calibrated settings I've seen for this monitor end up with a brightness setting of around 35%. It's DARK! The black level is pretty amazing for an LCD monitor. Granted, the corner bleed kind of screws up the consistency a little bit, but I tested the black level side by side with my ASUS and it was really no contest. The ASUS did have a more consistent "black", with no corner bleed at all, but it was really more of a dark grey across the whole panel. The Dell does have corner bleed where some light comes through, but most of the panel is BLACK. That includes the area where you'd be watching movies or TV shows. Overall I'm cursing Amazon yet again for not letting me give half stars, because this is a 4 1/2 star monitor. It's not perfect and it doesn't have the wide gamut of the 2410 that preceded it, but then it's also about half the price so it's easier to overlook its flaws given all you get for the money. Find me a better 24" 16:10 monitor at this price and I'll buy it.