Shortly before going to press Dell sent us ‘new’ versions of its LCDs. As such we tested the new 2007WFP and 2407FPW against the original 2005FPW and 2405FPW. The main benefit of the ‘07’ range is HDCP compliance meaning that Dell’s monitors are the only ones that will display protected high-definition content with Windows Vita. Time will tell how essential this is but it’s good to future proof.
There are a few minor performance improvents with the 20-inch model but the new 24-inch 2407FPW sees a drop in response time from 12ms to just six. Given the fact that this 1920 x 1200 24in LCD from Dell is more than $1200 cheaper than the
Eizo, we weren’t expecting great things, especially considering the 2007WFP’s mediocrity.
There are four USB ports to connect your accessories, even if two are awkwardly placed at the back by the video inputs. The other two are easier to access on the left-hand side of the screen. With them is a USB 2 9-in-4 media card reader, which supports all popular formats with the exception of xD-Picture cards.
The 2407FPW is the only competitor to offer a media card reader, and PIP (picture-in-picture). While gimmicky on smaller screens, it’s genuinely useful on a screen this big. The same can’t be said for the PBP (picture-by-picture) mode, though: two wide-aspect images are laid side-by-side, both ending up too small to be useful. You’ll need to connect two input sources to take advantage of these functions, and there are plenty of options.
Underneath, there are the usual DVI-I and VGA connections, but Dell adds component, composite and S-Video. Even though there’s no Acer-like scart input, you’ll be able to hook up most of your existing AV equipment, making the Dell a realistic option as a replacement TV in a small living room. (An optional soundbar can be added for $76.) The component sockets are a particularly welcome inclusion, giving you the best possible quality from devices without digital connections.
The contrast ratio of 1,000:1 and brightness level of 500cd/m2 are both higher than the 2007WFP, and compare well to the
Eizo S2410W. The sRGB colour setting left us with no desire to make further tweaks. There are plenty of extra adjustments in the OSD.
Our initial worry over quality was unfounded - the picture is superb. The overall saturation is lower than the vivid colours of the
Eizo, but this simply meant more realistic reproduction. This was particularly clear in our movie test, which saw a tremendous level of detail in dark scenes and at no point seemed over-saturated in colourful outdoor scenes. Viewing angles are excellent, easily allowing a group of people to gather around it with no compromise in quality.
The lush greens of Far Cry appeared precisely as they should, and the fast motion resulted in virtually no blurring and juddering. It also handled our scrolling game test well. When viewing photos, there was enough brightness to see detail in the darkest areas of our test images, although it was a little pale in parts - this was its weakest real-world performance. While the 2407FPW is technically brighter than the
Eizo (500cd/m2 to the Eizo’s 450), it didn’t appear that way in practice. The Dell dropped marks on white-screen tests, as whites appeared slightly greyish.
On its own, though, you’d be hard pressed to notice, and would be more impressed with the great contrast. When viewing widescreen content that left black bars at the top and bottom, they blended in nicely with the black bezel rather than being grey and distracting. Our only gripe is that the new model sports noticeable banding in the previously-excellent colour-ramp technical tests. Only very-high end graphics professionals would complain though. Dell’s new stand offers cosmetic and functional improvements over the decent original though the adjustment range is the same; height can be extended by a full 100mm, and it swivels, tilts and pivots to all the angles you’d want.
With all of its features, the 2407FPW’s only real drawback is that it isn’t as stylish as the
Eizo. But considering the superb three-year, next-business-day, on-site warranty (with two week ‘satisfaction guaranteed’ policy as well), the extra inputs, the card reader and bargain price, it wins this Labs by a clear mile. At this price it’s a steal. It’s the best monitor we’ve ever seen both for workers and multimedia buffs alike. Buy one now.
DELL 2407FPW Widescreen LCD - Buy Now
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