B**0
I don't think you can beat this value!
Subtract One Star - For Update(s) See BelowIs that a dead pixel I see? Nope! Just a piece of Styrofoam from the packaging.I have been running two 30's for about five years. I got the Dell's when they were about the only game in town. There really is no other way to go than two side-by-side 2560x1600 displays if you like to build a Powerpoint and want to edit content in another program at the same time. I spent 3x the $$ as this one for each of them. They are still humming away and one has a little bit of burn-in sometimes. Who would have thunk an LCD would do that? Well, my iPad mini does it too, so go figure.I got one of these Yamakasi 30's to add to my work computer and I liked so much I bought another. Note to self, a Dell XPS 8300 mid-sized tower does not come with two DVI-D/I ports and the mother board would not take a PCIe x1 card. Doh! It was sad to see the second display sit in the box for a week while I sorted it out. I finally replaced the stock baby card with the low end EVGA GEFORCE GT740 that has two DVI (one -D, one -I) ports. Both displays run at full resolution 2560x1600 resolution despite the display adapter's max resolution rating being less than the combined resolution of the two displays. 8.2 million pixels! Its a good thing. Maybe the only thing better would be 20 million with five of these mounted vertically in an arc around you? I am going to try that some day. This is not a video card review, but now you know it works. I have yet to stress test it to see if it toasts the little power supply or strange things like artifacts start happening. For those of you who haven't done the math, its definitely not a gaming or 3-D CAD worthy display adapter.The monitor itself is bright, clear and with better color than my old Dell 30's. Not a big deal for me, but it is noticeable. Even when I see this on one day and my home setup on another day I say, "Hmmm, the newer inexpensive ones look better. Oh well, moving on."The look of it is pretty good. I especially like the glass base with four large solid rubber feet. It looks like it has the light sensor on it to dynamically adjust the brightness based on ambient light. That feature doesn't seem to work though.I have had the one for a month and so far so good. Did I mention not a single dead or frozen pixel? 4.2 perfect dots.So all and all, I just don't think you can beat this value! I am very satisfied.Now, on the flipside... I personally don't like a black shiny bezel, and because its rounded it ensures reflection of the office lights in some portion of it. I know a fine steel wool will matte that up perfectly (I mean perfectly, like it looks like its made that way!), but I don't want to do that until the warranty is expired or I get more comfortable they will last. I am also not a huge fan of all the symbols like RoHS, WQXGA, etc. That is a sticker, but there are some other graphics on there I could do without, not to mention "YAMAKASI" punches you in the face! When I that stuff with the steel wool, I am guessing it won't look all that pro. Maybe it will all come off. Not a deal killer for me.Oh, and I would like a thinner bezel. When using in a multi-monitor setup, it makes for a larger seam.One thing that is almost worth deducting a half a star is the limited articulation of the screen from the mount. It only swivels. I am used to swivel, tilt and about six inches of vertical travel. Again, not a deal killer.The controls are limited to on/off and up and down for brightness. There are actually seven buttons of which it seems only those three are used. They all click with a decent tactile feel anyway. There are no onscreen graphics generated by the display when changing the brightness (or pressing any of the other buttons). It might be nice to adjust both displays to the same level, but I guess if I can't tell just by looking at it, it doesn't matter. There is only a single DVI-D port and a DC power port. Do you care if there is a rather large brick for a AC/DC power transformer in line between the plug and the display? I don't, and the last multi-monitor rig I set up with Displayport had some issues with handshake causing the one display to go black and stay that way until a reboot. Oh, and the AC plug looks like a European standard, with the big bulky round thing and two cylindrical prongs. It comes with a plug adapter and I had room for the two plugs on the power strip.So yeah, seems like I have more negatives than positives, but I can't stress how happy I am with them. Hope they last.4/9/2015 Update - The monitor I purchased on 2/5/2015 suddenly went black. It has been a little over 30 days. I swapped the cables at the monitors (I have two identical monitors) and the problem followed the monitor. For laughs I swapped the two power supplies and the problem remains with the monitor. When I power cycle the monitor, it looks like the backlight comes on for a split second and then back off. Found nothing online about this problem after ten minutes of searching.I applied for a return on Amazon and have to wait up to 48 hours for approval from Vendor. Manufacturer does not have a US website. I guess I will just cross my fingers and hope I don't lose the second monitor before I can get a replacement. This is a work computer.12/17/2015 Update - I still have both original monitors. They are both working fine. I have had the problem where one or both monitors blanks out and is not recognized by Windows 10 several times, but it hasn't happened in quite a while. I have done several voodoo combinations of button pushing, cable swapping and graphics driver reloading. I am not 100% sure, but I think I may be on to something. The last time it happened, I powered down the PC, unplugged the power source from the back of the monitor (and probably from the AC source too, don't remember), let it sit for 15 minutes, plugged it back in, powered on PC and voila! I am not 100% sure that I didn't do any button pushing or other voodoo.I have been running with my brightness turned down quite a bit (wish I could tell you what level, but there is no onscreen display for brightness). Since it hasn't happened in quite a while, my theory is this: More brightness draws more power and something is heating up and going into shut-down mode. It then needs to be reset. As the solution, I am leaning toward the plugging/unplugging of the power supply.What is weird is that I would guess the problem would be in the transformer (which is external), but since I have two, I have in the past just swapped the power sources and the problem follows the monitor. I guess it is still a mystery. If it ever happens again, I will try the 15 minute unplug and report.
E**Y
Great display, at a great initial price (eventual surcharge), and with a few caveats -- UPDATE
This is hands-down the best in-class monitor, esp at the price. I bought mine for about $440 and the next lowest monitor with comparable specs was at least $150 more.I also want to give a shout out to all the reviewers/owners who answered my pre-purchase questions. Even the seller answered several questions before I placed my order. Thanks to them, I went in knowing EXACTLY what I was getting, and I think that is why I am so pleased with my purchase.This is a great monitor if you set your expectations right.1. Thew monitor does not have any onboard/built-in graphics processor. It is a passive display. So ... make sure you have a compatible GPU in your machine. The list is available on the main product page. I have paired it with Sapphire Radeon HD6670 Ultimate 1GB GDDR5 DVI/HDMI/DisplayPort PCI-Express Video Card 100326UL which delivers a full 2560*1600 via DVI-D and DP (only 1920*1200 via HDMI). I read somewhere that the screen is an OEM LG product, and Yamakasi simply builds a frame around it. I can't confirm this.2. This monitor accepts only ONE type of input. DVI-D. Make sure you are delivering signal via DVI-D only. If you're coming out with DP, you'll need to buy a DP-to-DVI-D cable.3. The monitor has no bells and whistles. IT has an on/off toggle and a brightness adjuster. That's it. No speakers either.4. The monitor is HEAVY. The bezel around the screen and the profile thickness may not be appealing to some. I don't mind at all, because the display is so stunning, I don't even notice the fat bezel. There are no speakers.5. The aspect ratio is supposed to be 16:9, but for some unknown reason, the sticker in the top right corner claims it's 16:10. Just ignore.6. There is some backlight bleed.7. The monitor is VESA compatible. I don't have it mounted like that, but in case you wanted to.8. The instructions manual is practically useless, but you really don't need it. There is very slight assembly required when you first open the box. The monitor comes with a short DVI-D (male-male) cable. For my home office, I use a very long BlueRigger DVI Male to DVI Male Digital Dual-Link Cable (25 Feet, Black) cable. I'm sure there's a bit of a signal loss, but for my purposes, it is impossible to notice or measure it.9. As far as I know, this monitor is not Energy Star rated. So you should develop a habit of turning off the display when not in use.10. Highly recommend that you spend the time and calibrate your display at http://www.lagom.nl/lcd-test/ unless you have a robust calibration software installed. Don't rely on Windows calibration alone.11. Related - the monitor does not ship with drivers or any screen-splitting software. You won't (most likely) need any drivers and Windows 8.1 native screen split is actually pretty good.12. Considering that this monitor was manufactured in S. Korea, is shipped from there, and the manual and box are printed in Korean, the "Spartan Warrior" theme is, quite frankly, just weird. I am unable to take it seriously.In summary, if you do your research, ask the right questions BEFORE you buy, and set your expectations correctly, you will be very happy with this monitor. My use it to read/write emails, spend hours in very large Excel models, and keep an eye on Bloomberg screens. This mammoth display accommodates all that. The Excel use trumps everything else for me. To give you an idea: at 2560*1600 at Excel at 100% zoom, the max cell I can see is AE52. That is a LOT of Excel real estate. My average spreadsheet is 2 or 3 times that size and I think I would've gone nuts using a 1080 display.I have not noticed any flicker or waver while in use. I have sometimes noticed some flicker when the CPU is being powered down.If you're a real person, and not a gamer, this might be the right choice for you.Added bonus: the massive box doubles as a "dog and cat barrier"Update July 2015I still love the display qualities of this monitor, and I haven't noticed a single dead pixel.But...The power supply died after three months of use. This is a big deal because:1. There is quite literally NO ONE standing behind this product. I sent an email to the seller (with no real hope), they responded with some nonsensical reply (English translation: Go pound sand!).2. A replacement power supply costs a minimum of $90. I bought this one UpBright® New Global 4-Pin AC / DC Adapter For LOADUS SQ-15624 SQ-16824 HH10255-11001 HH1025511001 LCD LED TV Power Supply Cord Cable Charger Input: 100 - 240 VAC 50/60Hz Worldwide Voltage Use Mains PSU (which also sucks, read my review).3. To spend a surcharge of $90 on a $400 monitor makes this a less attractive deal.
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