Dell SP2309W Monitor Review

This is an initial overview and brief review of the Dell SP2309W Monitor, I made a brief video which shows what it looks like on the desk as well as direct capture from the in-built webcam. This monitor was bought to replace 2×20” TFT Widesceen (1680×1050) which were attached direct to the wall via a wall mount.

Technical Specification

First let us go through what it can do do and what comes with it:

2048×1152 max resolution – this is higher than any 24” Monitor but not quite 30” Land just yet.

Built in 2Megapixel Webcam – normally only seen in Laptops.

2 x Microphone’s to give true Stereo recordings – these are situated left and right of the webcam.

USB Hub Built in – comes with 2 ports underneath the monitor and 2 to the left for easy access to USB devices such as Pen drive etc.

Out of the box and the stand

The stand is Very big indeed and sturdy – it allows for a wide range of movement apart from up and down. As it is quite big – it pushes the monitor quite a bit forward so you loose some desk space, as I had a big enough desk anyhow, it did not present a big problem to me. I have seen reviews of people saying it was not high enough and they had to use books – personally it was of the right height to me and I did not feel the need to start making it higher than it already was.

On-Screen

Another aspect was people said it was too bright but again I had no trouble with the settings as was, I am using DVI, so I am not sure if this makes a difference. The screen is very Glossy so if you hate that type and prefer Matte – then this is not the monitor for you. Windows 7 picked up the monitor straight away and set the resolution to 2048×1152, going from Dual Screen means I still felt I lost some screen real estate but over time I am sure it will be fine.

What about the webcam?

I had to use the supplied CD to get the webcam installed and by looking at the program that it installed, this webcam is made by Creative. I never seen any of the Motion Blur that I see with my Optiva Pro and the picture was as good if not better but it still cannot match the Logitech 9000 Pro in terms of Quality and so forth.

Microphones

The monitor came with 2 ports – Line-in and Line-Out, I thought this had to do with the Microphone and wired up an audio lead but it turned out that the USB Supplies the Microphone which means they are independent of your sound card. If you wondering how good they are, the first half of the video is recorded via the HD Camcorder and when I move onto the Webcam sections – this is using the in-built dual Microphones from the Monitor.

Conclusion

I could have bought the Samsung for the same price which did the same resolution (been the important aspect) but would have not got the Webcam, Microphone and USB Hub. Going from 2 Monitors to one means I saved on a plug straight away and I could now use the USB Hub instead of a standalone one thus saving another plug. Would I recommend one? Yes indeed without a shadow of a doubt – this is worth the money I Paid.