If you're looking for a big 21" monitor at an affordable price, Nokia
(www.nokia.com) gives you at least two options.
The company's crisp 445xi Plus (tested last fall)
is an Imaging & Document Solutions "Best Buy" award winner that combines high (1,600 x
1,200 @ 88 Hz) resolution with a low ($806) street price. But this monitor lacks one ingredient more
and more business users are demanding — multimedia support.
Nokia
Irvine, TX, 972-894-5000 Model: 445ZA Flat Square 21" CRT Description: Multimedia monitor with built-in amplifier, 5-watt stereo speakers and integrated microphone. Street Price: $899 Dimensions: 19.4" x 20.2" x 19.4" Max Res/Refresh: 1,600 x 1,200 @ 88Hz Optimal Res/Refresh: 1,280 x 1,024 @ 95-100 Hz Horizontal Scan Frequency: 30-110 kHz Pitch: .21mm horizontal USB: None Video Input: 6' Cable, 15-pin min. D-sub Warranty: 3-year limited parts, labor & CRT Strengths: Outstanding geometry, crisp text, absolutely no moiré and a low price. Weaknesses: Lacks color convergence controls. Lacks true, rich blacks.
If audio is an essential part of your computing experience — through telephony applications,
presentation software or heavy use of the Web — you might want to consider the Nokia 445ZA. This
high-res. big-screen has a built-in amplifier, speakers and microphone. With such a big monitor on
your desktop the last thing you'll need is the clutter of separate audio gear.
While the 445ZA
isn't perfect, it delivers outstanding geometry and a moire-free view at an affordable $899
(street price). We tested it using DisplayMate software from Sonera Technologies
(www.displaymate.com). This software lets you
setup and fine-tune monitors and then gauge their
performance using a Video Obstacle Course with 26 different test patterns.
After tuning the 445ZA
with all available controls, we tested its display quality at 1,280 x 1,024 @ 95 Hz. Unlike higher-end
Nokia monitors that feature a handy dial control, the 445ZA has three push-button controls that are a
bit harder to navigate. Many of the usual controls were there — Geometry, Size and Position,
Shape, Sharpness and Color, Brightness and Contrast — but we were somewhat frustrated by the lack
of horizonal and vertical convergence controls.
As we have found with other Nokia monitors, the
geometry and linearity of the 445ZA were outstanding. Clarity was good, with small, 6.8-point type
readable all the way to the edges of the screen with both black-on-white and white-on-black text.
Tones were uniform and there wasn't a trace of moiré — the wavy lines or ripples that
plague some monitors.
The 445ZA had good color overall, but the lack of color convergence controls
left us unable to correct minor misregistration. In addition, the Black Level test revealed a lack of
true, rich blacks and only fair separation between subtle variations of gray. If you want audio
features with your big-screen monitor, the 445ZA gives you respectable high-resolution performance at
an affordable price.
