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(More customer reviews)UPDATE; July 2010: It has been nine months since I have been using the monitor and thought it was time for an update. The monitor has been used heavily; an average of 18 hours per day for work and recreation. Several things have changed; the computer that drives the display was substituted for a new one running at 64 bits with the new Intel I-5 (3.2 GHz) processor. The new graphic cards is a NVIDIA GT 260 with 1.8 GBs of memory and the RAM installed in the computer is 8GBs. The VGA cable was substituted for a DVI and said changes result in a total Windows Experience Index; WEI of 5.9. The limiting factor for such a relatively low number is the HDD since the video card WEI is 7.1. The resolution that the monitor currently has is 1370 x 768 (which is the optimum for my needs of side by side screens). The SyncMaster has not had any problems in spite of such heavy use and it is regularly enjoyed as a second TV. The current price for this device on Amazon is $271.00.
The comments received on the original review have been greatly appreciated and hope that this & other reviews continue being useful to all consumers.
ORIGINAL REVIEW: Samsung's SyncMaster P2570HD offers plenty of inputs, a descent HD-TV monitor, basic speakers, and a remote control with all necessary features. Also, great style and very good performance are included in a panel less than 2" deep. But, no VGA cable included, no height or tilt adjustment and Samsung's website does not have an updated driver for Windows 7. Best for those of us that need (or want) a new big screen monitor that might be also be used as a TV.
It is an LCD Display with 24.6 diagonal inches of screen and I paid $339.00 On Line. After searching on the Internet for reviews on the new Samsung's (not many found), decided on giving a try to this new product. Has multiple inputs; from VGA to HDMI that and an integrated TV tuner, speakers and even the power supply (connects directly to an outlet) in a fairly light device.
Is an attractive device with lots of shine, transparent surfaces and a matte screen. The base is a glossy black oval with hues of red on the perimeter. A transparent glass bluish neck anchors the monitor [pic1]. The aspect ratio is 16:9 which makes it very modern looking when compared to the Apple products. The borders of the screen have a 5/16" clear area [pic4] and on the rear, all input jacks are recessed about one inch and face backwards, not downwards like other monitors/TVs [pic6]. This can make hard flush wall mounting the device. Two small speakers face downward and there is an 18" area on the rear upper part for heat dissipation (remember that the power supply is inside the device).
I tested the monitor with a 2002 Dell XPS running Windows 7 [pic3]. Tried to get an updated driver for the new OS but none yet available. Refresh rate was awesome, colors were bright, blacks were not seen and no distortion or bleeding of the screen was noted. In order to "stress" the video card to its limits (plus the shared RAM), was able to work with eight screens at the same time and even play a DVD trough the WMP-11 and at the same time, play that same movie stored on an External HDD trough VLC [pic5]; no problems!
Then decided to customize the settings for the display and used the remote control for this (instead of the touch sensing buttons on the lower R front area). The Remote [pic5] is quite intuitive and settings were very easy to adjust for optimum viewing. Brightness and contrast had to be decreased to 67% compared with the factory settings which were 80% for both. Something unexpected, when switching from a regular 17 inch LCD monitor to this big screen, the mouse needs more area to properly work. Otherwise, adjustments need to be made for said device but I'll try that later.
After one month of using my Samsung P2570HD solely as a Computer Monitor, I connected it to the cable TV and DVP player to evaluate its performance. Because neither the DVR nor DVD player had more than one HDMI outputs, the comparison needed to be done by stages. The cable from my Cable TV provider [not the DVR/descrambler] was directly connected to the TV input of the Samsung and auto scan was programmed [pic7]. Then, searched for a TV transmission in High Definition [pic9].
Connected the Philips DVD player to the Samsung and to my 40" Sony Bravia LCD. First trough Composite [pic3] and later trough HDMI [pic 10]. Compared picture quality and trough the "custom" setting, tried to make the image of the Samsung as close as possible to the Bravia [pic 11]. The screen adjustments were made using a specific scene from Zefirelli's Traviatta because the only illumination for Violetta's party scene is by candles. On the second configuration [pic12] adjustments were not necessary since the Samsung had been connected through its HDMI input.
Results:
1. As a stand along TV set, the television picture quality is great with plenty of adjustments for us to customize to specific room/ambience[s].
2. The TV itself took about seven minutes to scan the 900 channels of my Cable TV provider and classify them as High Definition or "normal". Worth to mention that the auto scan did not select any inactive or scrambled channels; great!
3. The audio is not the best on the lower frequencies since the speakers are fairly small and face downwards. But, this device is intended to be used mainly as a TV/Monitor with external speakers and supplemental bass boost. So the bass module or subwoofer of your computer's audio devices compensates those modest integrated speakers.
4. Having so many input alternatives, users can select the one (or the best one) for the source device(s) be HDMI, Composite, S-VHS or even the regular three prongs A/V [pic6].
Compared with the LCD Sony Bravia:
1. The screen of this 25 inch (24.6 actually) monitor/TV is almost 2/3 the size of the 40 inch Bravia.
2. As expected, trough Composite, picture quality of the Samsung is lower than the Sony [pic10]but thanks to the many adjustable settings, I was able to almost have the same display in both devices [pic11].
3. Trough HDMI, the Bravia picture is still better [pic12] because of its size and Sony markets the Bravia as a TV, not a TV/computer monitor.
Conclusions:
As a stand along TV, the p2570HD is a great device and will not disappoint anyone as long as they do the proper connections and setting adjustments. As a video playing device it performs excellently especially through its HDMI input. Composite is almost as good but you have to see what output capabilities your specific equipment has. As a computer monitor has been performing in an excellent way, especially with a new inexpensive EVGA GeForce card that increased the WEP from 3.5 to 4.9
Having stated all this I would recommend this device to be used for anyone who wants a great Computer Monitor to be used in a home office that occasionally will become a guest room. Have not mentioned but the Remote is quite handy allowing users to switch between devices and even adjusting picture, contrast and so many other features that will take users to the optimum viewing situation. If you are looking for a TV that can be used as a monitor or hooked to your computer, perhaps, there are some other better alternatives but that was not my need. Pic2 shows you a size comparison with a 10" NetBook and the I-Phone.
In September, read that a specific warehouse was selling this device for $350.00. I called all of them within a 50 mile radius of downtown Seattle and none had it. While you decide on which monitor/TV is best for your needs, here are some photos of the monitor so you can see what it looks like since obviously, you are considering it. As a monitor and DVD playback device, I would give it five stars. As a TV, would give it only four because of the speakers.
Overall, the Samsung p2570HD is a great device and most of the consumers will find a place/setting for its optimum use. And also, works perfectly with Windows 7. Have fun searching for your next Monitor/TV and hope that this review was useful for your selection.
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