I've worked on LaCie monitors for a long time due to their colour calibration properties. Screen colour correction is one of the most important elements in graphics work so every colour I edit must be 100% accurate when preparing for print. Preparing for digital output however, there is a lot more leeway when it comes to colour accuracy.
Ideally I want every colour represented perfectly but the moment the image leaves my screen for the newspaper, magazine or client the picture will appear different on their screen. Ultimately the printer at their end will edit the image to suit their particular printing methods and styles anyway but if I'm in the right area they will have little or no work to do.
I started out by adding a HP LP1965 as a secondary monitor but quickly found the colour to be excellent and following the demise of my old LaCie I replaced it with the much cheaper HP model. For screen size I quickly upgraded to the HP L2245w and kept the LP1965 as a secondary screen.
For ease of setting up the L2245w is quick and easy to connect. It comes with a range of software including 'tilt and turn' drivers which run a small program in the background to allow me to rotate the screen and have the applications running rotate to suit.
I quickly found this unneccessary and a drain on background resources so I uninstalled it again.
The base of the monitor is heavy and is designed as a tray which is handy for all those desk items that roll around like batteries and memory sticks. The supporting arm moves smoothly and easily but the screen can be set at exactly the height you choose without any tightening or adjustment of the arm itself, you simply push the screen up or down to suit.
While the screen doesn't tilt forward too far it does go left, right and background ensuring you can get comfortable and avoid glaring lights around you.
If the screen is low to the desk and you reach underneath it you will quickly find yourself hitting the menu buttons, bringing up the on screen menu but this isn't an issue to worry about, I think it says more about my desk space than anything.
The monitor menu (OSD) is quick and fairly easy to use although if you're making a lot of changes it can be a little tiresome to keep going through each option in the menu to get to the exit button.
You can choose the location of the OSD within the menu which is necessary when using a colour meter that attaches to the front of the screen.
Colour calibration is quite good in that you can adjust the RGB channels separately but unlike the high end monitors the range is limited so you may not be able to adjust the channels to keep a colour meter happy.
This is where I resorted to a default of 6500k and let the software of the colour meter do the rest. With the high end monitors you get much more control over the channel range giving you precise colour calibration but equally you can expect to pay around £1000 for a LaCie or more for an Eizo.
The picture is noticably different but if you don't need 100% colour calibration then the facility simply doesn't justify the price. At around £160 direct from HP the L2245w is a superb screen, bright clear and easy to manage on your desk. The menu is a little slow to work through when you're making a lot of changes but once you're setup you won't have to refer back to until your next calibration.
When viewing the screen, brightness and colour don't change dramatically depending on your viewing height so it's quite good for viewing images while editing. Side to side it's not great but this isn't a big issue unless you're getting several people around the screen. In this case the 22" size will allow them all to step back and look over your shoulder.
With a screen resolution of 1680x1050 and a refresh rate of 5ms it's not bad for games but certainly not top of the range. For working with large images, it's a bright and clear screen and easy to use.
Connections are DVI and D-Sub plus 2 USB. The DVI is HDCP compliant so you can play protected Blu-Ray content. The USB ports are a bit fiddly to reach so they're only useful for mainstay items like a card reader or USB speakers.
Lastly, the screen has a power saving function so you can power down the monitor without interrupting workflow by keeping Windows Power Saving turned off.
All in all it's a great screen for the price. You won't have full colour control for high end imaging but with the price you can't complain. It will leave you with plenty of room for tool bars and when combined with a second smaller monitor it's superb for large screen viewing and editing.
Specifications
Display Size: 22in
Resolution: 1,680 x 1,050
Display technology: TN
Brightness: 300cd/m2
Contrast Ratio: 1000:1
Response time: 5ms
Connections: DVI, D-Sub, 2x USB
Adjustments: Tilt, height, pivot, rotate
Dimensions (W x D x H): 20.3 x 11.9in x 14.6in
Power consumption: 65W (max), 2W standby
Speakers: No
Warranty: 3yrs on site
Security: Kensington lock
VESA mounting: Yes
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