HP w2207 22-inch Widescreen Flat-Panel Monitor Review

Sep 24 2007, 12:00am CDT | by Shane McGlaun

The right LCD display for your computer can make your movies, games and general computer work more enjoyable. Today we are looking at a new display form HP called the HP w2207 22-inch widescreen monitor. This screen is HDCP enabled for HD content playback and has nice specifications. Read on for all the details on the HP w2207 22-inch widescreen monitor.

Gallery

7 images

Benchmarks

Features & Specifications
HP used a BrightView LCD panel for the HP w2207 22-inch widescreen monitor for a superior picture. The screen measures in a 22-inches diagonally and has a native resolution of 1680 x 1050 at 60Hz. The contrast ratio is 1000:1 and the brightness is up to 300 nits. Gamers will appreciate the 5ms response time and the display has integrated speakers as well.

Input options include VGA and a DVI-D port that is HDCP enabled, only the VGA cable is included. The display measures in at 20.61-inches W x 11.38-inches D x 18.95-inches H. The integrated speakers are rear-facing units with 2W x 2 power. The screen rotates from landscape to portrait mode without requiring tools and the base allows for height adjustment as well.

Movie Watching & Gaming
The integrated speakers are rear-facing units so you don’t have to look at speaker grills on the front of your display. The speakers sound good with decent mids and highs, but lack bass for my tastes. The display stand on the HP w2207 22-inch widescreen monitor adjusts for height only. It travels through a range of approximately 4-inches allowing the display to be adjusted for children as well as adults. At about 5’ 10”, I found the display to be comfortable at its highest setting. Users taller than I am may find they have to look down at the screen.

Under the display, the base of the monitor stand has a large flat area for parking your keyboard that makes it easy to tidy up your area after you are done using the computer. HP also uses EasyClip technology on the display, which allows users to clip accessories like photo frames, cameras and other gear to the HP w2207 22-inch widescreen monitor.

In testing, I watched Underworld Evolution, which is a good film for finding problems with black levels on displays. The opening sequence of the movie has lots of bright snow against dark backgrounds and fire that tend to uncover issues with transitions from dark to light colors. The HP w2207 22-inch widescreen monitor performed very well in the movie watching tests. This monitor does a great job transitioning from dark blacks to brighter colors. Pixilation around fire set against black backgrounds was virtually unnoticeable. Skin tones were realistic and colors were vivid and bright. This is a great display for movie watching.

I also used the display to do some gaming with Bioshock. The 5ms response time delivered great gaming with no ghosting, smearing or tearing of on screen images. I could turn and move around the in game environments as fast as I wanted without having display issues of any sort.

The screen is large enough that you can get two documents open side-by-side on the screen. Surfing the web is enjoyable on the display with bright colors and the ability to get multiple browser windows on screen at once. The screen is easy to rotate from landscape to portrait mode and the picture on screen changes automatically to match the new orientation. The only real lacking point with the HP w2207 22-inch widescreen monitor is the issue with display height for taller users.

NOTE: HP let me know that the displays that retail customers buy will ship with a DVI cable, this review has been adjusted accordingly.

Verdict

Conclusion

Pros

Great color quality
No issues with ghosting
HDCP enabled

Cons

Stand may be too low for users near six-feet tall or more

Verdict
Gamers or movie fans looking for a larger screen display with a wide aspect ratio should give the HP w2207 22-inch widescreen monitor serious consideration. It performs well and the MSRP of $360 isn’t bad either.

9.0

where to buy

Buy from Amazon

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Shane McGlaun
Leading our review center, Shane knows technology inside out. His extensive experience in testing computer hardware and consumer electronics enable him to effectively qualify new products and trends. If you want us review your product, please contact Shane.
Shane can be contacted directly at shane@i4u.com.