ITEM PURCHASED:
DELL S2409W WIDE SCREEN MONITOR
SPECIFICATIONS:
- Full HD 1920 x 1080 resolution
- 16:9 dynamic aspect ratio
- HDMI
- Sleek new design
- HDMI/DVI/VGA connectivity
PRICE:
13800 INR (including tax and shipping)
ORDERING AND SHIPPING:
Requested a quotation on the official website. Got a mail, within 12 hours with the following quotation. Mail also explained the payment methods of EFT/DD/or cheque.
*img38.imageshack.us/img38/8337/dellquote.jpg
I did an EFT of the said amount to the designated account and bank. Within 15 minutes received a call from DELL. Confirming my order has been placed. After three days the monitor (Saturday) was delivered to the address I mentioned.
WHAT IS IN THE BOX:
DVI cable
VGA cable
Power cord
Monitor stand
Quick reference manual
Detailed manual
24" monitor
Bill Invoice, and purchase agreement invoice.
Driver CD.
Review:
The monitor took me around 5 minutes to unpack, assemble, and have it up and running. The OS automatically adjusted the resolution to 1980 x 1080. Boy was I surprised to see the desktop. It looked so stretched and huge. Really nice. It looked really nice, with Windows 7 - Ultimate.
Pros:
Overall this is an excellent monitor for the price. I think it is great value for money. You get the DELL sound customer service. Greater than 4 dead pixels is on the spot replacement. I also read some forums, where they replace on the spot if contrast/brightness are not to satisfactory levels. The colors are rich and vibrant. Hardly any pixelation. Once on this resolution, will never work on anything below. The size really impressed me. I had to push back my chair a bit, to see the whole screen. IT IS LARGE. Brings a smile to the face.
The response time is really quick, close to what the site officially designates. Have not got a chance to play many games on the system, but I had benchmarked RE5 on the my 19" and did the same on the 24". With everything on high, and Xfire enabled I face a loss of ~8-9 FPS. So if you go for this size of screen, have a good GPU along side. Though the benchmark showed me at an average of 121 FPS, so no worries here. Yet to install Warhead and run the true acid test.
Overall I am happy about this choice and purchase. Would highly recommend it.
Cons:
The DELL logo is embedded on the bottom bezel. Mine was slightly chipped when I received it. Images below.
The driver CD had no drivers in it. Just some language tutorials. So I updated the drivers from the device manager. But this is no major issues, Win7 embedded drivers are just as good.
The agreement invoice says that I have purchases the ST2410, where as the bill says that I purchased a S2409W. There is no service tag on the back of the monitor, nor on the bill. Have contacted DELL about this.
The control buttons (4 of them), are placed at a really awkward position. They are on the right side of the black frame. So you cannot see them. They have to be used by 'touch and feel'. I am still finding this difficult, in fact really difficult. My previous 19" had them right in front. It is difficult to make out the buttons, I have to crane my neck and back, to 'see' the buttons, else I am guessing. The primary on/off is in the front, and is feather touch. Even an accidental touch, switches the monitor off.
There is no height adjustment. Though angle alignment can be adjusted.
I sit long hours on my system. I do not feel less of eye strain anymore -- but this could be purely psychological too.
Watched some movies (non-HD), and it was great fun. I can now sit approximate 7-8 feet away, and watch the movie comfortably.
There is an issue with brightness levels on the S2409W. It will not pick all the dark objects. This is pretty sad, and discovered this post purchase. It miserably fails the Lagom test. You can check it out
here.
Have any other S2409W users faced this same issue...? Do let me know, if this is a generic flaw.
Overall Feedback:
Great monitor. Nice path to get full HD. Excellent VFM for the cash.
I would rate this: 8.5/10.
Now to some images:
Scale difference between 19" vs 24":
*img708.imageshack.us/img708/1483/image020z.jpg
*Both the left sides are perfectly aligned.
The Desktop in all its glory:
*img215.imageshack.us/img215/934/dsc01063m.jpg
An angle shot, to see the size:
*img46.imageshack.us/img46/4810/dsc01072b.jpg
See the polygons being rendered on Unigine:
*img69.imageshack.us/img69/3485/dsc01082s.jpg
Gaming View:
*img690.imageshack.us/img690/7915/dsc01090v.jpg
And the chipped LOGO:
*img209.imageshack.us/img209/3710/dsc01083cb.jpg
Hope future 24" monitor purchasers can find this helpful.
