Samsung 193P Plus

Do you know what’s wrong with monitor reviews these days?

Do you know what’s wrong with monitor reviews these days? They focus far too much on plain old image quality! I mean, sure, how good your graphics and GUIs look are important, but what about whether or not the monitor will make your pad look slick?

What about software support to enhance the monitor’s settings without having to fiddle with a clunky OSD? OK, OK, stop your howling – we realise that image quality is still of paramount importance, but it’s great to see a monitor like the Samsung 193P Plus which excels in every area.

Take a look at that product shot. Now tell me that this isn’t one super sexy monitor (lookin’ sweet, Logan!) Heck, it even puts Sony hardware to shame in the aesthetic front. The silky smooth facia even rotates so you can set it up in portrait mode – perfect for when you’re playing the zero games that support this mode (we’re sure there’s somebody somewhere in the world who will appreciate it though).

As far as image quality goes, the 193P Plus has a lot going for it. Rich, vibrant colour tones, as well as an even backlight help to make this monitor eye-poppingly good.

With a 0.294mm pixel pitch there’s nary a grain to be seen, and the brightness of 250cd/m² combined with a contrast ratio of 1000:1 helps your images jump right out of the screen. The MagicTune software makes calibrating a breeze, using your PC interface instead of a few chunky buttons.

There’s one sore point with this monitor though, and it’s the 8ms pixel response time, which isn’t quite up to par with the 4ms LCDs now on the market. Yet even though it’s published as having an 8ms response time, motion blur was a very rare occurrence, even during the most hectic BF2 artillery raid. It’s also a rather costly contraption at over a grand. Still, for those who need both excellent image quality as well as an aesthetically pleasing design, the 193P Plus is sex on a monitor stand.