Shuttle XP17 Preview: A better looking 16ms LCD
by Kristopher Kubicki on July 29, 2004 12:05 AM EST- Posted in
- Displays
Construction
The XP17 strikes us as unique in many ways, just as we take it out of the box. First, its stand-less design, which keeps the monitor extremely thin and light because there is no need for counter weighting at the bottom. The monitor hugs the desk low, but does not offer pivot or rotation of any kind.
Click to enlarge.
The second immediate reaction that we had is the similarity to the AG Neovo S series LCDs, which we looked at almost two years ago. In fact, both the AG Neovo S-18 and the Shuttle XP17 use glass bezels on stand-less designs. We were always appreciative of the glass bezels found on AG Neovo LCDs, so the fact that the XP17 uses one is a plus. Glass bezels not only look sharp and slightly nostalgic, but they also provide reflection damping and color filtering that we cannot get on a normal LCD. The unfortunate pitfalls of glare and weight should be considered, but the XP17 still weighs less than just about every LCD that we have reviewed to date, at 4.3Kg.
Click to enlarge.
The LCD boasts a unique feature that we have not seen on an LCD before as well - a top mounted handle for carrying. Shuttle's XPC small form factors are professional quality PCs, but part of their appeal for so many is their portability. If any of you have been to a BYOB Lan party recently, you know that half the machines there are SFF's of some kind. With that in mind, throwing a handle atop the XP17 makes perfect sense. Our XP17 even came with a carry case, but we are told that this does not come standard with new purchases.
Click to enlarge.
| Shuttle XP17 FPD | |
| LCD | 17" SXGA LCD (Active Matrix) pixel pitch: Anti-glare coating |
| Panel Depth | 6-bit FRC (16.2M Colors) |
| Scanning Frequency | Horizontal: 65KHz Vertical: 56-75Hz |
| Response Time | 16ms (Typical) |
| Contrast Ratio | 450:1 (Typical) |
| Compatibility | 1280 x 1024 (Native) |
| Brightness | 260 cd/m2 |
| Power | Working: 35W Standby/Off: 5W |
| Warranty | 3 years parts and labor |
Like most 16ms LCDs, you will notice that this XP17 comes with a 16.2M color panel. As kind of a dirty hack, LCD panel manufacturers have been opting 6-bit LCD panels over 8-bit LCD panels for high response time applications. 6-bit LCDs are capable of quicker response times due to the smaller amount of circuitry. The 6-bit panels are subjected to some particular method of dithering basically to make the image "appear" like 16.2M colors. Don't be fooled; the color saturation between an 8-bit LCD and a 6-bit one are still night and day for some people. Particularly when the brightness is turned up too low or too high, signals near the extreme lights and darks tend to wash out quickly; an issue that we have talked about before.
Other specifications of the monitor bode well. The 260 nit brightness and 450:1 contrast ratio fall well within something that we would like to see. Our LCD came with zero pixel and zero sub pixel defects.
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marcusgdaniels - Wednesday, September 1, 2004 - link
In light of the claim that there is a new model shipping with better anti-glare coating, I am not encouraged to see that there is a no refund/no return policy on the XP17. It makes one wonder if they are shipping less `perfect' units to overeager buyers...Jyrinx - Friday, August 13, 2004 - link
Oh, yeah, I forgot my point :-) So, do you suppose you'll be amending the review, or does Shuttle only get one chance? (Not sure what your policy is; I'd just like to know if you would think better of the monitors as available now.)Jyrinx
Jyrinx - Friday, August 13, 2004 - link
Hey - I just got word from Shuttle that (contrary to common sense) they sent you a crappier demo than the production units (as agrees with the word on the street), and that the ones shipping have nicer anti-glare/reflection coating on them. Here's the original e-mail:---
Thank you for contacting Shuttle Computer.
That XP17 monitor we sent to reviewer Anadtech was the first demo
product we have, so it is not as perfect as the product we just released
now.
The product we have now has anti-glare coat on each monitor.
If you have any question, please let us know.
Thank you.
Sonic Tseng
Account Executive
Shuttle Computer Group,Inc.
Phone:(626)820-9000 ext.201
Fax:(626)820-5060
Email: sonict@us.shuttle.com
---
Jyrinx
jyrinx@mindspring.com
fragstar - Wednesday, August 11, 2004 - link
refering to your comments that the Neovo monitor didn't have a glare issue, I took the panel off my monitor to show the world how bad viewing the neovo monitor really is.Check out my thread in the video section of the forums for pictures
http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.cfm?catid=...
MadAd - Tuesday, August 3, 2004 - link
Going slighly off topic, I hope you are going to be evaluating the L2335 sometime soon? (16ms 23" tft)Thx Kris
KristopherKubicki - Thursday, July 29, 2004 - link
nullpointerus: Yeah, glare was an issue, but plain old reflection was terrible too - which is probably much worse!Kristopher
KristopherKubicki - Thursday, July 29, 2004 - link
nullpointerus: I like your suggestion. Consider it done for the next review.Kristopher
nullpointerus - Thursday, July 29, 2004 - link
And if you think Max Payne can stress test the glare on a display, you should try running one of the Thief series. You will *kill* your eyes if you don't have the right setup. If glare is such a big issue, maybe someone at Anandtech could incorporate this game into the display articles?nullpointerus - Thursday, July 29, 2004 - link
It sounds like that 17" LCD is just what I'm looking for provided I can eliminate the glare problem. Kinda negates its usefulness as a LAN gaming LCD if you have to tote around an easily-smudged glare filter, though.Just an FYI for Anandtech readers: glare can usually be fixed by removing glare emitting light sources (e.g. putting room darkening blinds over windows, switching to properly angled halogen lights) and by purchasing a decent glare filter (e.g. Fellowes) which can usually be had at a good price on eBay.
CRXican - Thursday, July 29, 2004 - link
Have you guys checked out the price tag? They want $650 for that thing. Rip off!!!