The ViewSonic VX2435wm works in both directions

Get a typical 20in widescreen monitor and you'll probably be disappointed with the lack of display height. The answer is to upgrade to a 24in widescreen model and, along with a wonderfully wide panel, you'll get about an inch more in height compared with a standard, regular aspect ratio 19in monitor.

The newest example on the market is the ViewSonic VX2435wm, which wraps up plenty of smart features beneath its immaculate, piano black exterior.

Like other 24in LCD computer monitors, one of the main joys of the ViewSonic is its impressively high 1920 x 1200 pixel native resolution, while the sheer size of the screen makes text easily big and clear enough to read.

With maximum brightness and contrast ratios of 500cd/m2 and 1000:1 respectively, the monitor is a little over-punchy for regular desktop viewing without reducing the appropriate settings through the on-screen menu, but it's good to have this in reserve in case you want to use the big-screen advantages for display work, to which the ViewSonic is also very well suited.

Multi-connected

The largeness of the screen, with pin-sharp text, makes it great for multi-tasking but that's just the start of the attraction.

To ensure compatibility, with as many devices as possible, the VX2435wm comes complete with analogue VGA, Composite, Component and S-Video connections as well as an HDMI socket.

The latter is also HDCP compliant, so you can hook the screen up to an Xbox 360 HD or PS3, as well as an HD-DVD or Blu-Ray high definition disc player. Getting back to the PC, there's also a DVI-D to HDMI connection cable in the box, for plugging the screen into a PC with a digital video output.

With contrast and brightness levels set to around 50 per cent, our review sample was a little overly livid, while colours were also a little too vivid, perhaps due to ViewSonic's 'smart colour engine', which aims to optimise colour for games, movies, photos and the like.

In S-RGB, things proved more modest, with a more realistic viewing set-up for image editing. Response speed isn't super-fast, but the panel kept pace with fast-moving video in tests, making the ViewSonic a very good choice at the price, especially for those who like bright, punchy colour.

Score

• 4 / 5

For

• Excellent native resolution
• Great connections
• Vivid picture

Against

• A little over-punchy for regular desktop viewing

Verdict

Specification