ViewSonic 19-inch VA1903wb Wide LCD Computer Monitor

List Price: $199.99

Features:

• Display type - 19 color TFT WXGA+ LCD (display area - 16.1 horizontal x 10.0 vertical)
• Resolution - 1440 x 900 (optimum)
• 700 - 1 contrast ratio
• 16 - 9 aspect ratio
• Anti-glare panel surface

Accessories:

3-Year Extended Service Plan - Covers Electronic Items $201-$500 - Repair

Customer Reviews:

Great monitor (for 8 months) then went dead. [Posted on 2007-12-10]
I purchased this monitor just over a year ago. It worked great for about 8 months but one day it just died. No power what so ever. Even the tiny 'standby' power LED was dark. Dead as a doornail. I called Viewsonic for warranty and was instructed to ship the unit to one of their authorized service centers and was told to expect a 2-3 week turnaround time. I waited 3-4-5-6 weeks and not a peep from Viewsonic or their service rep. I then called Viewsonic to find out what was the delay. Well, they informed me that the service center that had my monitor went bankrupt and my monitor was lost forever. Oh joy! Viewsonic offered to send me a replacement as i was still under warranty, however, it was going to be a 'refurbished' unit. I discouragingly agreed. The replacement unit arrived 3 weeks later but the digital DVI cable was missing so yet again another call to Viewsonic. They sent a DVI cable 2 weeks later. So, after 11 weeks of waiting, I was finally back up and running. End of story you ask? To my horror, NO! I was back up and running for approximately 3 months when I went to turn on the monitor(remember, this is unit #2) this morning and guess what? Same damn problem! Dead as a doornail, tiny 'standby' power LED dead, no-go #2! I called Viewsonic to inform them of the defective unit which only lasted 3 months. Well, to my amazement, they informed me I was no longer under warranty as the 2nd unit was only covered under the original warranty of unit #1 purchased 13.6 months ago. HappyHappy-JoyJoy!
I understand I just hit a streak of bad luck with this model as I also have a Viewsonic VA2026w 20" I bought from Amazon as a "2for" sale with this VA1903wb. So here I sit, having paid $225 for a monitor I got 8+3 months use out of, which now sits in the dumpster waiting for pickup.

Just an FYI and a chance for me to vent. good luck with yours.ViewSonic 19" VA1903wb Wide LCD Computer Monitor

Follow-up:
Not one to just sit their and take a beating, I called Viewsonic one last time to argue my case. I've been using Viewsonics product for many years and wanted to give them one last chance to "do me right." I spoke to a supervisor and explained in detail my problems and how patient I had been but something had to give. The supervisor agreed and issued me a return voucher to send back unit #2. (so dumpster-diving I went.) They will ship me a 3rd unit when they receive unit #2. Lets hope I have better luck with unit #3. My luck CAN'T be that bad. (I hope)

Great monitor for the price [Posted on 2007-12-11]
Came out of the box perfect. Hooked up easily. Simple setup. I did not have to use the disc that came with the monitor. I will buy another one soon.

Better options for the price [Posted on 2007-12-12]
If you're looking for a basic monitor, this is a good choice. The picture is sharp and operation is color free. It's relatively inexpensive. But, you can likely find a more up-to-date option at the same or nearly the same price.

The VA1903wb is not a good choice if you're looking for a second monitor or for an external monitor for a laptop. It lacks a DVI input port, a feature standard on current lcd displays, which may limit your ability to hook it up.

Also, the stand that accompanies the monitor is, in a word: cheap. It's short and unadjustable, so if you're tall and using the monitor on a desk or table you may have to put a thick book or the like underneath it to bring it up to a comfprtable eye level. Worse, the monitor is incapable of being rotated to portrait/page display - there's simply no option to attach the stand in any but the standard landscape orientation.

Excellent monitor for the money [Posted on 2007-12-18]
I've owned other ViewSonic monitor, so this was all I expected for a basic, low-cost, flat screen monitor.

Good image, weak fit/finish, mediocre backlighting [Posted on 2008-01-03]
At the time, this monitor was right in the "sweet spot" for consumer-grade, wide-aspect 19" LCD monitors. The image quality is good, although it doesn't come close to either the sharpness or the brightness of Macbook Pro's display or the better Dell LCDs.

On the other hand, the monitor stand has no adjustments for height or rotation, and it is very flimsy--just walking by my desk causes significant wobbling. It doesn't support swivelling to portrait mode, doesn't provide a USB hub, and has very uneven backlighting. I found this rather surprising, given ViewSonic's reputation for excellent CRT monitors.

If you're on a strict budget, then this monitor rates a second look, but if you're at all picky about adjustability or fit-and-finish, you probably want to look elsewhere.

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