Acer X193WB LCD Monitor: Cheap Choice for Casual Users

Buying a new computer monitor is a lot less painful than it used to be. Prices are down on flat screen LCD monitors and the quality is generally pretty good.

When the 12-year old 15-inch CRT monitor that I put on my daughter's PC went on the fritz a few weeks ago, I did the internet research schtick and shopped the sales ads in the Sunday newspaper. I decided that we didn't need the latest & greatest technology, a huge screen, or any bells and whistles --- not when affordable 19-inch LCDs were easily available both online and at local retail stores.


Thoughts on the Benefits of LCD Monitors vs. CRT...
I like the looks of flat screens and I was intrigued by whether they might also have a lower total cost of ownership (TCO) than CRT monitors.

Companies selling LCD monitors claim that buyers enjoy lower energy costs versus CRT monitors. The LCD does use somewhat less power, but the difference is not enough for an average home user to recoup the monitor cost in a meaningful period. While a business that operates a monitor 12 to 24 hours per day could pay for an LCD monitor within a 3-year timeframe, a home user with 3-10 hours per day of use would need a decade or more for energy costs alone to pay for the monitor. (Source: gadgetopia.com/post/2438)

Energy costs are only part of the equation though. LCD monitors have longer lifespans than CRT monitors (but my old CRTs have generally lasted 10 years or longer, so again, a decade before you pocket savings).

The real benefits of using the LCD are: 1) the potential improvements in picture quality (resolution, lack of flicker, color representation, etc.), 2) the aesthetics of a flat screen, and 3) the much smaller space requirements with the flexibility to fit monitors in tight spaces, wall mount, or use in other innovative kinds of applications (kiosks, etc).

In my opinion, buy a LCD monitor because you like it for what it is....not because you think it will save you money.


My Experience with the Acer X193WB...
Shopping the different monitors with low price as my primary criterion and 19" as the optimal screen size led me towards the Acer X193WB.
I ended up buying the Acer X193WB at my local Best Buy. I always prefer buying electronics from bricks and mortar stores because: 1) no shipping charges, 2) no risk of shipping damage, 3) you can see display models so you know exactly what you're getting, 4) if the device doesn't work, you can bring it back and exchange quickly and easily, 5) you get your purchased device immediately, and 6) you can pay with the convenience of cash. I really don't know why anybody messes with online stores for electronics purchases --- you don't usually save much and the hassle factor is simply outrageous (not to mention the poor service record of pretty much all online stores plus all the risks of credit card fraud these days).


High Points About the Acer X193WB...
I'm pretty satisfied with the Acer X193WB (sometimes sold as X193W and X193WBD). Here's what's good about it:

* cheap price ($100 at Best Buy)
* easy set up (set the screen in the base, plug in the connector and power cord, switch it on --- 5 minutes, max setup time)
* lightweight
* small footprint on desktop (though not very flexible as far as placement options, due to viewing limitations described in "Low Points")
* bright colors and sharp image quality
* ALL necessary cables are included in box


Low Points About the Acer X193WB...
Though the Acer X193WB lives up to my expectations, I don't think it's a great quality monitor and there are some annoyances with it that might make me consider a different monitor if I end up needing another one. Here's what I don't like:

* inflexible stand: most monitors I've used over the years are fairly easily adjusted for viewing angle -- this one is not, no matter how I pull and tug or push and shove, the thing just wants to stay in one inconvenient position. You can't tilt it up. You can't tilt it down. You can't turn it a bit to the side. Not good. Not good at all...
* weird screen geometry: the desktop looks bizarre with most default display settings, and after using Acer's driver and resetting the display options in Windows, it's still a very odd feeling desktop that I find less inviting than geometries that are closer to square. And while I thought the widescreen would be good for playing widescreen DVDs on my PC, Acer's geometry turns out to not even match the "standard" Hollywood widescreen view --- the Acer monitor still chops off part of the viewing screen! If I were Acer, I'd try to give the new monitors more height and less width. There may be games that exploit this kind of geometry well, but I don't like it for productivity applications, I don't like it for web browsing, and I definitely would never prefer watching a DVD on this monitor vs. the TV in my living room.
* buttons: there's a power-on and a few configuration buttons at the bottom of the display; they are not very well implemented --- they have far too much resistance, poor tactile feedback and they're poorly labeled.
* poor viewing angles: unless you're sitting with your eyes pretty much straight on to the monitor, you'll see images wash out in a flash of satiny gloss, you'll see fast color loss, and you'll be generally an unhappy camper. This is particularly problematic on the Acer X193WB because of the inflexible stand that I mentioned earlier. Though images are sharp and colors well saturated when you're viewing at a perfect straight-on angle, the extremely limited viewing angle makes the Acer LCD monitor considerably less functional than better-designed competitors.
* ho-hum hardware support: a monitor is a monitor and you should have no trouble finding a usable display resolution using whatever OS you like. However, if you do decide to install Acer's software, you'll find that: 1) they only support Vista (lame), and 2) it doesn't really do anything very useful.


Bottom Line...
The Acer X193WB is one of the cheapest LCD monitors you can buy. At right around $100, it's very hard to argue with any monitor that works when you plug it in. The Acer monitor does work, and it actually has a pretty decent screen image. It doesn't take too long or very deep experience with computers to quickly realize that this isn't a particularly high quality device, and it has ample shortcomings. If you really want a low-cost monitor that's easier to live with, there's an Envision 19" widescreen at Office Depot that's a better-built, better-designed monitor --- though at a price about $10-20 higher.

For $100, I got what I paid for. The kids are happy to have a working monitor on their computer again, and I'm happy that it was fast and easy to setup. Probably wouldn't buy one again....but it's not a bad deal.