ViewSonic VA2265SMH-S Black 22” Widescreen Monitor

I purchased this sight unseen, and solely to give my eyes a break from the much smaller laptop monitor I had been using. Since others have gone into the technical details (which are also amply described on this page), I'll stick to what I love about it and how I am now using it. The main thing was price. At less than a hundred fifty bucks I took a chance. Hooking it up was super simple: a power cord, a VGA connection to my laptop (using the included cable), and screwing in the VESA adapter from my Mount-It! MI-705, 3-Way Adjustable Tilting Desk Mount Bracket took literally ten minutes. This comes with a pedestal base that is more than adequate, but I wanted the mount I mentioned to free up desk real estate as well as to make this monitor a grab-and-go solution for a second use, which I'll get into below. If there is one thing that I do not care for, it's the cramped area for connecting cables. The cable adapters for VGA, HDMI and power are inserted vertically, and the VGA and HDMI connections are closer together than necessary. Since I am connecting and disconnecting cables often this is a peeve, but if you plan to install it and leave it in one spot it's not even an issue. The speakers are not the loudest when you are running sound via the HDMI port, but are more than adequate when you directly connect to the audio in port. This monitor comes with a 3.5mm cable for that purpose. For my laptop (an aging ThinkPad) it is literally plug and play. I have finally migrated from XP to Windows 7 and this monitor's model was immediately recognized. My second use is to press this into service as a large sheet music display. I am mirroring the screen using an EZcast 5GHz Wireless HDMI Streaming Media Player to display MobileSheetsPro Music Reader mirrored from a tablet screen. Since this monitor weighs less than ten pounds it is fairly easy to set up at a gig. As a side note, if you do intend to use this on a gig or as a karaoke display this is an excellent mount: Audio2000'S AST420Y Portable Flat Panel TV/Monitor Stand with Foldable Tripod Legs. Do note that the HDMI port will not power devices. For the EZcast dongle I have to use either a battery backup or a small wall wart (the same kind I charge my phone and tablet with), but that is not an issue either. I figured that for the price some corners had to be cut. Although this is designed to be a desktop monitor I do wish there was a remote option for it. When I am using it to extend my laptop display it's perfect. For the screen mirroring use I mentioned a remote would be helpful. The bottom line is I am thoroughly pleased with this monitor and may, in fact, purchase a second one so I am not swapping my laptop monitor out to take on gigs.