Original Link: https://www.anandtech.com/show/2419



As one of the largest computer product companies in the world, Dell was of course present at CES with a large booth and plenty of new items to show off. They also brought us up to their hotel suite to give us the lowdown on some other products and not-yet-realized display concepts, but we can't discuss most of that stuff… yet. Let's start with their latest display models.

Dell Displays



At the lower end of the spectrum, we have the new SP2208WFP. This is a 22" LCD that looks like the 2707WFP's younger brother. While it has all of the attractive styling, however, it does not sport the same feature set. Specifically, it lacks the ability to rotate into portrait mode, and it includes HDMI, DVI, and VGA video inputs. Since this is a display built more for the home market, it does add an integrated webcam to offset the lack of other amenities. It also has a TN panel, just like every other 22" LCD we've seen. This one is rated at 2ms GTG response times and 2000:1 contrast ratio; it comes with 300 nit, 92% color gamut CCFL backlighting - all good specs. We've been hard on TN panels, and we still prefer S-PVA and S-IPS, but the latest TN panels do look quite good. MSRP is $319 and the SP2208WFP is now available; there's currently an instant rebate that brings the pre-tax price down to $284. If you prefer the styling of the 2407WFP as opposed to the 2707WFP, Dell also offers an UltraSharp 2208WFP that includes height adjustment. MSRP is $339 on that model, but the instant rebate is larger bringing the current price to $275.



We'll cover the other 22" Crystal display below in detail, so let's skip that and talk about the 3008WFP next. Simply put, this is the 30" LCD that a lot of people have been waiting to see. It is a no compromise product that offers everything the display enthusiast could desire. The major technological addition relative to the 3007WFP/3007WFP-HC is a scaler that supports 2560x1600 panels. That allows Dell to add all the other input options that were previously missing - VGA, DVI (with HDCP), HDMI, DisplayPort, Component, S-Video, and Composite connections are present and accounted for! Now you can get a top-end 30" LCD that can still function as an HDTV as well as a console gaming display (sans speakers).

While the scaler is a great technological improvement, it's not the only change. New and improved backlighting now offers 100% of the NTSC color gamut. We'd be hard pressed to notice the difference relative to the 3007WFP-HC, but users of 72% CCFL backlighting should notice the change. We'll try to set up a side-by-side comparison once we can get a unit for a full review. In terms of the LCD panel, contrast ratio has been improved to 3000:1 (from 1000:1), and response time is now listed as 8ms (versus 12ms) – and if you were concerned about a change and panel type, rest easy, as Dell continues to use S-IPS panels in the 3008WFP. The final change is that the 3008WFP now sports the same exterior styling as the 2707WFP - apparently customer feedback on the updated design was very positive, though it does increase the price. MSRP for the 3008WFP is currently $1999, which is quite a jump from the now "outdated" 3007WFP-HC. If you don't need all the extra input options and are merely interested in a 30" LCD, however, you'll be happy to know that the 3007WFP-HC now has a $210 instant rebate, bringing the price to $1189. [Ed: Or not - it looks like the rebate is no longer available, but if you check back at Dell periodically it's sure to return.]

Gallery: Dell Displays


Dell's 22" Crystal "Artwork"



At the other end of the 22" spectrum we have the new Crystal (C22WFP) display. The LCD panel sports the same specs as the SP2208WFP, but the packaging couldn't be more different. Around the panel is a 4mm tempered glass pane, with four integrated speakers in chrome enclosures. Below the panel are five capacitive touch controls to access the OSD. Connectivity is provided by a single cable coming from the back of the display, which breaks out into HDMI (with included DVI adapter - though you would lose the functionality of the speakers if you don't use HDMI), USB, power, and subwoofer-out connectors.



You don't have to read far into the product brochure to get sense of where Dell is going with Crystal: "Like a precious gem - ethereal and multi-faceted. A mesmerizing vision that breathes light and exudes advanced simplicity." Hyperbole? Almost certainly, but they aren't kidding about the precious gem part: the C22WFP has a current MSRP of $1199. We couldn't determine pricing for the optional subwoofer accessory mentioned in the literature either - possibly because it's not available. The bottom line is that this is a statement monitor. You buy this because it looks awesome in your corporate presentation room or sitting on your desk, or because you want people to come into your house and say, "Wow! That's a sleek looking monitor!" (Or at least think it.)

For the price, we would have liked to see a 24" S-PVA or S-IPS panel, and we're not sure there's a big enough market for this type of product. We also were unable to get a good demonstration of the audio output from the speakers; if Dell is delivering Bose Wave™ type audio from the four small speakers, we could probably overlook the pricing a bit. Then again, maybe the problem is that we're just not the target audience. The display does look quite stunning, but we're heathens (well, I am at least) that tend to go with function over form. Do you want the 27" 2707WFP or 22" Crystal C22WFP? Currently, the latter carries a higher price.



Dell and Alienware Products



We also saw some other Dell products, as well as some items from Alienware shown at the Dell booth. We can't discuss details of everything we saw (yet), but let's just say the XPS 630 is going to be particularly interesting for those gamers that don't want to build their own PC and prefer not to spend a ton of money. Dell would only let us provide this one image for now, but stay tuned later this month for more details. Imagine what we might recommend for a good quality midrange gaming computer, then get that pre-assembled with the attractive canted XPS case shown above and you'll be pretty close to what Dell is releasing later this month. There are some other noteworthy updates with the XPS 630 that we'll discuss as soon as we're able.



Alienware on the other hand caters to those gamers that have wads of cash to blow. We didn't have pricing on the curved display, but let's just say we don't expect it to come cheap. $3000, $4000, more, less? Well, "less" is probably not correct, but the others all seem feasible. Native resolution is 2880x900 (twice that of your standard 19" widescreen displays), and the color and image quality is very good. Somewhat surprising to us is that the display does not use LCD technology, so it's actually quite a bit deeper than you might think looking at the above image. The display shell extends back around a foot. So how exactly do you project a 2880x900 image onto an approximately three foot wide curved display without getting massive distortion at the outer portion of the display? If you're thinking CRT technology, don't feel bad - that was our initial guess as we were looking at the display. In fact, Alienware is using DLP technology with three separate DLP chips to project a clear, distortion-free image. (Yes, I saw the DLP logo on the placard after asking the rep what sort of display it was, thus ensuring that I looked like a complete imbecile.)



Obviously, you're going to need quite a bit of processing power to drive games at that resolution - especially games like Crysis - and Alienware had a desktop system on hand to do exactly that. It was looping the Crysis GPU benchmark, presumably at medium detail settings given the ~80FPS framerate. Despite the horizontal size, it's worth pointing out that 2880x900 only has 63% as many pixels as 2560x1600, or only 12.5% more pixels than 1920x1200. The other real concern of course is game support. Think it can be troublesome trying to get proper aspect ratio support on Battlefield, Bioshock, or some of the other titles out there? Imagine buying a $3000+ display like this only to be greeted by a 90 degree FOV stretched across what should require something like a 160 degree FOV. Perhaps like the Crystal C22WFP, this curved display is something better reserved for specific situations like an impressive product demonstration as opposed to general usage/gaming.

While there's quite a bit of stuff we're still excited to talk about in regards to Dell's latest products, the rest will have to wait another month or two. Certainly a pre-built Dell computer is never going to offer the same user experience as a DIY rig, but there are millions of people that prefer to avoid some of the headaches and pains that can come with PC assembly. Even computer enthusiasts sometimes reach the point where time is a bigger concern than money, at which point a quality OEM setup is the way to go. Outside of systems and laptops (yes, we saw laptops that we will review as soon as they're launched), every home or office computer needs a display, and that's one area where Dell continues to excel. We may not like the higher prices on some of the new models, but Dell has an extensive display portfolio with many great offerings.

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