news@businessmirror.com.ph Sunday, September 12, 2010 | B5

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LG Infinia LX95003D Full-LED TVGet ready to have your boots rocked. the LG Infinia LX9500 brings the 3D experience to your living room like never before. the full-LeD LG Infinia LX9500 is set to redefine your viewing experience, whether it’s traditional full-HD movies and video, or cutting-edge 3D Blu-ray titles. Its extremely thin profile makes it the perfect centerpiece to any living room, and the wireless connectivity gives it more functionality than just being a gigantic 55-inch LeD tV. If you love sports and lightning-fast action scenes, the LX9500’s truMotion 480Hz is the ultimate feature. It virtually eliminates motion blur from fast-paced scenes and delivers them in crystal clarity.

THe South Korean electronics giant has been making flat-panel displays not only for its own products but for other brands as well for a long time, and it’s only right to think that they’ve gotten the hang of it by now.

Case in point is the PX2370. this particular display is what other LeD monitors want to be when they grow up. Read on to see why. the PX2370 is a slim and sexy beast. the clear neck gives it that simple yet sophisticated look that Samsung’s known for. All the ports are on the back of the monitor, as well as the controls for the OSD. Only the power button is located on the front, where the stand meets the screen. there’s a variety of connections and ports to choose from, from DVI to HDMI. the PX2370 boasts of a multitude of features, like 100-percent sRGB color reproduction; Magiceco, which allows you to reduce power consumption while using the PX2370; and MagicLux, which measures the ambient light and automatically adjust the screen for optimum brightness. Performance-wise, there’s very little to nitpick with the PX2370. Its 100-percent sRGB color reproduction means that it tries to match the color from the original source as closely as possible, a feature that photographers, layout artists and professionals require where color accuracy is important. the picture quality is of particular note, as the PX2370 has a 5,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, ensuring better pictures and blacker blacks. I tested the PX2370 with a 1080p version of Black Hawk Down, and came away impressed. Another feature that endeared me to the PX2370 is its extremely fast 2m response time—while I was playing Battlefield Bad Company 2 there were no signs of input lag or ghosting, making it an excellent display for discerning gamers. the only complaint I have with the PX2370 is the placement of the OSD controls. While there are on screen indicators that show up that correspond to the buttons on the back, it’s still a bit awkward to use, especially if you want to calibrate the monitor.

John Nieves

spEcIFIcaTIonsn Technology LeD LCDn Screen size 23 inches widen Contrast ratio Digital contrast ratio, 5M:1n Physical dimensions (with stand) 21.9" x 17.1" x 9.2" n HD capability Full HD, 100-percent sRGB color reproductionn Connections DVI-I (Digital and Analog) x 1/HDMI x 1/Audio out/Optical out

whaT’s hoTn 100-percet sRGB color reproductionn Incredibly slimn excellent movie performance and viewing angles

whaT’s noTn Adjusting and calibrating the PX2370 is awkward due to button positioning.

boTTom LInEn Looking for a monitor? You won’t do better than a Samsung PX2370.

3D is currently the buzzword of 2010, and it’s not surprising that PC peripheral manufacturers want to get in on the action. Asus has already released

3D-equipped notebooks to the wild and with its latest offering, the VG236, it is set on giving desktop jockeys a taste of 3D. Visually, the VG236 is the complete opposite of contemporary LCD designs. While other models have evolved into curved expressions with anorexic aesthetics, the VG236 is large and boxy, giving a brash statement of power, much like a Hummer or a Land Rover Defender. this 23-inch panel is made for performance and not much else—featuring a 120Hz refresh rate, 1920x1080 resolution, and an Nvidia 3D vision kit that consists of a pair of active LCD shutter glasses, an infrared transmitter base, driver disk and all the assorted cables and wires associated with it. Setup is fast and easy, and the installation of the Nvidia 3D Vision kit is quick and painless. take note, though, that to be able to use the Nvidia 3D Vision kit you’ll need at least a Windows Vista- or 7-equipped PC, Intel Core 2 Duo or AMD Athlon X2 processor, 1GB memory, 100MB of free disk space, and naturally an Nvidia GeForce 9600Gt video card (or better). the controls on the VG236 is pretty straightforward, and is located on the lower right side of the bezel. Connections are plenty, including HDMI, Dual-link DVI and component. take note, though, that if you want to use the VG236 as a 3D monitor, you’ll have to utilize the Dual-link DVI port. I reviewed the VG236 with a reference Nvidia GeForce GtX470 with the latest 3D Vision drivers downloaded from the Nvidia web site. Not all games are able to be rendered perfectly in 3D, and as such Nvidia grades games according to their compatibility: 3D Vision ready, excellent, good, fair, poor and not recommended. Based on prior experience with Nvidia’s 3D Vision tech, only games that have grades of 3D Vision ready and excellent are suitable, as screen artifacts and inaccurate depth scaling are more apparent in lower grades. the review games were Battlefield Bad Company 2 and two Nvidia 3D Vision-ready games: Batman: Arkham Asylum and Metro 2033. the 3D effect is definitely much more pronounced in first person shooters like Battlefield Bad Company 2 and Metro 2033. In BBC2, there’s definitely a distinct depth when looking down iron sights or weapon optics. the added depth takes on a new level in the Metro 2033, with the mutated denizens of Moscow taking on a new and frightening level of intensity. Batman: Arkham Asylum, meanwhile, plays

out like an interactive 3D movie, and the fight scenes are definitely more enjoyable as a result. Lest we forget, the VG236 is also a highly capable standalone monitor. the high refresh rate and fast 2ms response time make it an excellent choice for both non-3D gaming and movie viewing. the colors are a bit saturated at the start, but nothing a bit of calibration can’t fix. the more pressing issue here is price—as of this writing, Asus does not have the local price of this particular monitor yet, but online retailers peg this particular monitor at about P22,448. the price might be a bit steeper than regular monitors, but you do have to take into account that that price includes an Nvidia 3D Vision kit that normally retails for about P8,000. John Nieves

spEcIFIcaTIons

n Technology 3D LCDn Screen size 23-inch widescreenn Contrast ratio 100,000:1n Physical dimensions 550 x 420 x 250mmn HD capability Full HD (1080p)n Connections Dual Link DVI, HDMI, Component

whaT’s hoTn Fully capable of 3Dn 2ms response time, 120Hz refresh raten Includes Nvidia 3D Vision kit

whaT’s noTn Priceyn Its aesthetics may not be for everyone

boTTom LInEn While its price might be off putting to some, the Asus VG236 is actually one of the best complete 3D packages currently out in the market today.

samsung pX2370LED monitor

asUs VG2363D LcD monitor

VIXIa hF m300 TouchscreentHe new HF M300 combines responsiveness and performance to give you an enjoyable shooting experience that’s possible only with the power of touch. Its 2.7-inch touch-panel LCD screen literally puts cutting-edge Canon technologies at your fingertips, giving you access to its 15x HD Video Lens and advanced Smart Auto that automatically selects the best settings for a wide range of shooting scenarios. Delight in the touch and track the feature that lets you select the point of focus with a simple tap on the screen. Video sharing is also hassle-free with the HF M300. Its HD-to-SD Down-Conversion feature via the bundled Pixela Software lets you convert a copy of recorded HD video to standard definition files while safely preserving the original. these standard-definition files are much smaller in size and are more convenient to edit, share or upload online. P49,950

hTc wildfiresmartphonetHeRe’S no denying everybody loves HtC smartphones, but not everyone can afford the premium prices that come with these gorgeous devices. Well, fret not. You can have the same HtC goodness and Sense sensibilities without the hefty price tag with the HtC Wildfire. It has all the Android goodness you’d come to expect from an HtC-built smartphone—the Éclair 2.1, Marketplace access and social-network integration through HtC’s Friend Stream. You can even recommend apps you from the Android marketplace to other people via twitter, text or e-mail.