Features and Specifications
As always, we'll start with a disclaimer: Those who are unfamiliar with display technology may wish to consult our short glossary of terms that we use in our display reviews before continuing. Specifications are prone for abuse, though, so just because one display rates higher in terms of contrast ratio or brightness doesn't mean it's actually a better display. (You'll get a prime example of this in a moment.) As usual, we will do our best to separate the reality from the hype in our reviews.
| Samsung 245T Specifications | |
| Video Inputs | Analog (VGA) DVI with HDCP support HDMI Component S-Video Composite |
| Panel Type | S-PVA (Samsung SAM02F5) |
| Pixel Pitch | 0.270mm |
| Colors | 16.7 million (8-bit) |
| Brightness | 300 cd/m2 |
| Contrast Ratio | 1000:1 Static 1500:1 Dynamic |
| Response Time | 6ms GTG |
| Viewable Size | 24" diagonal |
| Resolution | 1920x1200 |
| Viewing Angle | 178 vertical/horizontal |
| Power Consumption | <130W max stated 92W max measured |
| Power Savings | <2W |
| Power Supply | Built-in |
| Screen Treatment | Matte (non-glossy) |
| Height-Adjustable | Yes - 3.75 inches |
| Tilt | Yes - 25 degrees back/5 degrees forward |
| Pivot | Yes |
| Swivel | Yes |
| VESA Wall Mounting | 200mmx100mm |
| Dimensions w/ Base (WxHxD) | 22.1"x17.1"x9.8"
(lowered) 22.1"x20.8"x9.8" (raised) |
| Weight w/ Stand | 19.4 lbs. |
| Additional Features | (4) USB 2.0 - left (USB connection to PC required) |
| Audio | Audio out connection (for HDMI) |
| Limited Warranty | 3 year parts and labor (original owner only) |
| Price | MSRP $799 Online starting at ~$635 |
Like many of the latest high-end LCDs, the 245T comes with a backlight that offers an improved color gamut. Whether your eye can actually see the difference is a bit more difficult to say; even with an older 24" LCD sitting next to the 245T, it would be difficult for us to say that one of them looks clearly better/worse than the other. The backlight is also not quite as bright as other models on the market that are capable of 400 or even 500 nits, but we almost never run our LCDs at that brightness level; 200-250 nits is where we prefer to set are LCDs.
In the features department, the Samsung 245T compares favorably with the best 24" LCDs on the market. You get the typical four USB ports as well as a variety of video input options. How useful stuff like S-Video and composite input are varies by individual; we generally don't use either connection anymore. The VGA, DVI, HDMI, and component connections are more important, and you get one port for each. Whether or not the second digital port needed to be HDMI is another topic for debate; it's unlikely you would actually use the audio pass-through capabilities, in which case a second DVI port would have sufficed -- especially since the audio output jack only provides stereo audio. Since you can still use a DVI to HDMI cable, however, this isn't a major concern, and we're happy to have two digital connections.
Samsung provides a three-year manufacturer warranty on the 245T (in the US), which is much better than you get with most other brands. Technical support is available online or through the telephone, though telephone operating hours are not 24/7. You need to call during regular business hours, which is 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. M-F (Pacific Time). We were unable to get any specific answer as to pixel defect policies, though it sounds like if we made enough noise they would repair/replace the monitor even if there was only a single dead pixel. Since we did not experience any actual problems with our LCD (dead pixels or otherwise), we'll leave it at that. Note that the warranty only applies for the original purchaser; it is nontransferable.
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Deusfaux - Thursday, February 7, 2008 - link
I thought Samsung monitors had a 16:9 scaling mode?JarredWalton - Thursday, February 7, 2008 - link
This one doesn't... other Samsung displays might. See the OSD image gallery for details. The only options are "Wide" (fill the whole screen) and "4:3". That means that 5:4 resolutions (1280x1024) will also be distorted no matter what you do. I don't think the minor stretch of 16:9 to 16:10 is terrible, but some people care more about that than I do. Again, though, this is only an issue on non-PC use (or if your drivers don't allow you to correct the scaling).hotdogandchips - Thursday, February 7, 2008 - link
Jarred, can you tell us when the NDA regarding the 2408WFP expires by any chance? ;0JarredWalton - Thursday, February 7, 2008 - link
LOL... actually, no, I can't. Funny thing is that the date isn't set in stone just yet either, which is part of the reason I can't say. It's supposed to be this month, based on what I heard at CES, but it might get moved to early March?AcAuroRa - Thursday, February 7, 2008 - link
According tohttp://www.samsung.com/us/system/consumer/product/...">http://www.samsung.com/us/system/consum.../C070096...
... its a TN.... bah I'm confused -_-.. is it a TN or a PVA?
I actually own a w2408... and I actually like the thing -_-;;...but if there can be some facts straightened out I might go and get a 245T off the 'Egg as it is currently on sale for $650...
JarredWalton - Thursday, February 7, 2008 - link
See above post... the unit I reviewed is most assuredly an S-PVA panel. I believe the PDF is simply erroneous.bobo51 - Thursday, February 7, 2008 - link
I am confused.The article identifies the 245T as having a PVA panel. But I just went to the Samsung website and in their specification PDF for the 245T the panel is stated to be a TN.
Is their website document incorrect?
JarredWalton - Thursday, February 7, 2008 - link
I can absolutely state that the 245T LCD I have is S-PVA (based on how it looks from various angles), and Samsung told me it was S-PVA before I received it. http://www.samsung.com/us/system/consumer/product/...">This states otherwise, so I guess someone just put the wrong information in there. The other possibility is that there are different LCD panels in some of the 245T displays... hopefully not.Most companies do not make a point of stating what sort of technology their panels use. While I can understand that on TN panels, I'd think anyone using a PVA or IPS panel would want to crow about it. Kudos to Samsung for at least putting information on all of their displays in the PDF files; now they just need to make sure the data is correct. :)
I'm going to email my Samsung contact about this and see if there's just an error in the PDF that they can correct.
XrayDoc - Thursday, February 7, 2008 - link
I was all excited about this new display until I read about the limited scaling choices. I can't believe they didn't include a 1:1 or pixel to pixel option! Not everyone has a triple SLI video card setup that can run Crysis well at 1920 x 1200. I'd much prefer to run the game at a lower resolution with black borders and have the "pixels" look sharp, as opposed to stretching the non native resolution to fill the screen and look blurry! Plus automatically stretching 16:9 aspect sources vertically to fill the 16:10 screen is just plain ludicrous. Most people can notice when the aspect ratio is displayed incorrectly. What happens with a 2.35:1 ratio DVD? Does that also get stretched vertically so that you dont' see any black bars at the top or bottom? This single design flaw is a definite deal breaker for me. I hope the upcoming new models from Dell, etc. don't have this same design flaw.yyrkoon - Friday, February 8, 2008 - link
The big question would be; 'why do you need a 24" LCD to play Crysis?' For me personally I cannot see the need for anything much more than a 19" LCD(a good one at that) for gaming. This making current title fly on my C2D system with a 7600GT, and it draws way less power than one of the current higher end cards. Granted I probably wouldnt mind using a 8600 or something that draws slightly more power, and has DirectX 10 capabilities, but I wont go out of my way just yet to purchase another card, especially since I am still using XP Pro.Also I'm noticing complaints about input lag ? I would think this would be an image retouching LCD which doesnt require fast screen refreshes. You can buy cheap fast LCDs that will play games just fine(all day long).