Gateway FPD2185W mini-review

OK, just thought I'd post my initial opinions on this monitor. As I haven't ever owned a monitor of this quality before, don't expect an in depth review, but I'd be happy to answer any questions people wish to direct my way

Anyway, first of all price - the monitor cost £299.99inc VAT, which already places it in a lower cost bracket than a lot of 20" models with only DVI and VGA input. Inital impression upon buying it, at least for poor me [sans voiture] was that I was only hoping there weren't any faults, as it was very heavy and I really didn't want to have to trek back to the store with it. The box is definitely very wide, due to the fact that the stand comes attached and doesn't fold over.



Insides the box there is a short description of the limited warranty, which, at one year, is less than many monitor manufacturers offer. There's some reason to be reassured in that Gateway offer 3-year cover in the US for only an extra $30, although such a deal isn't available in the UK as Gateway (who've only just recently re-opened office in the UK), don't even list the monitor on their website yet.
Also included, aside the monitor itself, is a VGA cable, odd-looking power lead (which, by pure chance, I'd happened to have got the converter for the day before) and a pretty decent, in-depth user guide. Unfortunately there's no DVI cable included and although I've got one hanging around somewhere, I couldn't find it, so initial impressions are made using an existing VGA cable I had.



Upon turning on the monitor and adjusting the resolution, the difference between this and my previous monitor (Acer AL1916WS 19" widescreen - 1440x900) was instantly recognisable; the 1680x1050 widescreen resolution no longer has any disadvantages over the standard 1280x1024. The extra width makes some websites appear a little odd, something which can be resolved using the supplied EZTune software by pivoting the monitor by 90 degrees. Unfortunately [and this would appear to be a common, but not omnipresent, issue] the monitor doesn't actually rotate the full 90 degrees - more like 88/89...although I'm not going to get a spirit level and protracter out to meaure it Personally, I don't find this an issue, as I really can't be bothered to return it and I can't ever see myself using the pivot function at any point in the future, apart from maybe playing Dreamcast shooters in TATE mode, but I understand it could affect some people so should be pointed out.



The monitor has VGA, DVI-D, component, composite and S-video input on the underside...

I've already mentioned that the VGA connection is very good, so next I tested the component connection using a Panasonic Q in progressive scan, which gave decent results (image without any altering of the monitor's settings



I also tested the composite connection using a PS2. I was very interested in how this would turn out, as it would put the monitor's DCDi technology (which is reputed to improve image quality) to good use. This also gave me the chance to play around with the monitor's different image settings, which allow the user to apply a 1:1, stretched, "panoramic" (centre of the image kept 1:1, while the sides are stretched) or zoomed setting. The following pic was taken using the stretched setting.



I was particularly pleased with the quality via composite, because, as I guess many of will know, most 480i sources will never look all that great on an HDTV or monitor without decent upscaling such as that provided by an AV amplifier.

ooh...as I forgot to mention, the monitor has no dead pixels and I'm sure there's other things I forgot to mention that you'll ask me about

DVD playback has been mentioned as being a weakpoint of this monitor, although I was perfectly happy with it. Another great point in terms of future purchasing is that the monitor is one of few at the moment to support HDCP, which although meaning little at the moment, will be rather important once Vista and HD-DVD and Bluray drives are released.

Gateway offer a variety of interesting accesories and cables (which are probably overpriced, mind) on their US site (http://www.gateway.com/programs/lcd/accessories.shtml?cmpid=index*HDLCD21W_features*tab), although who knows if they'll ever start selling them in the UK.

I should be getting a DVI cable in the next few days, as well as an Xbox 360, so I'll post what I think about them then. IN the meantime here are some specs to ponder over:

Panel Size: 21" diagonal
Panel Type: 21" viewable TFT active matrix S-PVA Anti-glare coating
Pixel Resolution : 1680 x 1050 (native) (75Hz)
Pixel Pitch: 0.0106" x 0.0106" (0.270mm x 0.270mm)
Aspect Ratio: 16:10
Brightness: 300 cd/m2
Contrast Ratio: 1000:1
Viewing Angles: 178 horizontal, 178 vertical
Response Time: 8 ms (gray to gray)
Frequency: Horizontal: 31-81 KHz Vertical: 56-76 Hz
Lamp Type/Life: 50,000 hours
Colors: 16.7 million
OSD Languages: English, French, Spanish, Italian, Japanese

Connections and Inputs
• Analog (VGA): 15-pin mini d-sub VGA
• Digital (DVI-D): 24-pin DVD-D (supports 480i, 480p, 720p and 1080i). Includes HDCP (High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection)
• Composite video
• S-Video
• Component Y Pb Pr (supports 480i, 480p, 720p and 1080i)
• AC power input
• USB 2.0 B-type (PC input)
• USB 2.0 A-type (PC input)

Included Cables: 15-pin mini d-sub analog VGA USB A-B Power
Power Consumption: Normal operation: >75 W Off (power-save): 2 W
Power Input: 100-240 VAC, 50/60 Hz (built-in power supply)
Power Management: Energy Star®
Certifications: UL, cUL, FCC Class B, CE VCCI and TCO'99 where applicable
Wall Mount Bracket: VESA 4" x 3.937" (4 x 100mm)

Very interesting that the PS2 looks good via composite. The Dell 2405 struggles a bit here, but is playable. This screen is looking like a very good bet for that HD bedroom setup.

Looks good, nice price for having all those connections too! I suppose it could be cheap because of the 1 year warranty.

Nice review Marmotta - I got mine yesterday and am very pleased with it. Feels well put together and really looks smart.

In fact it arrived at the same time as a Samsung 215TW (same panel), which I paid £80 more for. I ordered the Gateway because it made an appearance just 24hrs after I ordered the Sammy and was cheaper, black and without the speakers - so I thought sod it, I'll have that as well and play around with setting up dual monitors...will regret it, though, when my CC bill arrives..guess I'll look like this..

Just like you I have no dead/lazy pixels, but also a screen that does not quite rotate the full 90 degrees. Like you, that doesn't bother me.

So far I've only had time to try the monitor out with my Xbox360 via both VGA and component connections. The only issue I have, so far, with the Gateway is that through VGA I get a weird looking picture if I select either 1280x720 or 848x480 in the xbox menu. Basically the colour scheme just changes to a hugely saturated and obnoxious looking pink and green combo. Can't figure that one out at all. Anybody know what may be causing it? When you get your 360, it would be good if you could try those resolutions over VGA too see if the same thing happens. Anyway, I'm not too bothered as I'll be using 1280x768 instead.

As to that power lead, I didn't have an adapter to hand, so I just snipped off the US plug and wired a UK one in its place.

As far as performance goes it's great, though I've been using a CRT (use TFT's at work but only for business applications), so can't really compare to other modern screens. My neighbour has a real old tft screen and that is horrible - terrible viewing angles and loads of motion blur. This screen seems to suffer from neither of those traits, though I have only tried it with my 360 so far.

I've done some A:B comparisons with the Samsung and both behave identically to my eyes...after they are adjusted to the same brightness, contrast, colour settings, that is.