Once upon a time, CRT monitors ruled the land. They were big, they were bulky, and you could easily throw your back out if you ignored your chiropractor's advice to bend at the knees and keep your chin up, when picking up heavy objects. Back in the day, a 19-inch CRT weighed around 40 pounds and dominated your computer desk with all that junk in the trunk. But like everything else in the realm of technology, computer displays evolved.
First came LCDs, and then LCD displays sporting an LED backlight like the S2330 Ultra Slim monitor that Dell sent us. One of the main advantages to using an LED backlight is it takes up less room than the cold cathode fluorescent lamp (CCFL) type backlight found in a regular LCD monitor. That's one of the reasons why computer monitors -- and televisions -- are thinner than ever. For Dell, the S2330 Ultra Slim monitor is the company's thinnest panel ever. We're talking Mary-Kate Olsen thin, only better looking and presumably not plagued with issues. Don't confuse that to mean the S2330MX is the slimmest monitor on the planet, though at less than 0.4 inches at its thinnest point (and up to 1.19 inches at its thickest), it's certainly flatter than the majority of monitors out there and is the thinnest display we've yet reviewed. But is there more to this display than bragging rights over the size of the panel?
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| Dell S2330 Ultra-Slim Monitor with LED |
| Specifications & Features |
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Display Size
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23" Widescreen
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Resolution
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1920x1080
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Aspect Ratio
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16:9
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Brightness
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250 cd/m2 (typical)
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Contrast Ratio
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1,000:1 (static); 8,000,000:1 (dynamic)
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Response Time
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2ms typical overdrive (gray to gray)
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Viewing Angle
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170 degrees (Horizontal), 160 degrees (Vertical)
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Display Type
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TN - Twisted Nematic, non-glare
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| Color Gamut |
82% (CIE 1976) / 72% (CIE 1931) |
Connectors
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VGA; DVI-D with HDCP
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Power Consumption
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25W (Max), 0.1W (Standby)
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Speakers
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No
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Stand
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Tilt
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| I/O Ports |
None
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Dimensions (with stand)
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21.74" x 16.15" x 7.41" (WxHxD)
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Weight
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8.29 lbs
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Included Accessories
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Power cable w/ adapter; VGA cable; DVI-HDMI dongle; CD user's guide; documentation
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Warranty
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1 Year Advance Exchange (up to 5 years available for additional $89)
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So long as you're not turned off by a Twisted Nematic (TN) panel, the S2330MX sports a promising spec sheet. It supports a Full HD resolution (1920x1080), a 2ms response time, and is capable of 82 percent of the color gamut, or so Dell claims. The S2330MX isn't going to threaten a professional grade IPS panel, but it does have the makings of a solid all-around workhorse in a space friendly frame that would be ideal for a college dorm, cramped home office or stylish boardroom setting.
