Official BenQ FP241W Thread !!! Info, Pictures, Reviews

I bought my monitor last Thursday and have been nothing but happy with it. It's primarily used for my PC so the 1:1 stretching really isn't an issue. I Mostly do video/photo work and the extra space has been excellent. The colour and brightness compared to my 19" CRT is really quite astounding, I didn't think it'd be SO much better.

I also play some FPS and have been for 6 years. I am a bit fussy about certain settings so I was hoping that there wouldn't be any noticable input lag. For me, there isn't and I'm very happy about that. That's the primary reason I bought the BenQ over the 244T, I was scared of having to deal with a super laggy monitor. I don't notice any lag in desktop or in games.

One thing i am a bit curious about is the USB ports. They don't seem to work. Now I'm not sure if you have to install anything from the CD that comes with the monitor or not, but if you do, that's my issue. I forgot it at my girlfriend's house (tax excempt! booya) and will be able to install drivers/whatever this weekend.

I bought the display from Canada Computers (mentioned earlier in the thread) from the Downtown Location. At the North location (Yonge st.) they wouldn't let me buy one because they said it had a faulty DVI connection. I asked to make sure it wasn't just the cable, but the rep (who didn't speak english too well) assured me that their tech crew had gone through it and determined it was the monitor. At least that's what I think he said. So when I bought it from the Downtown location, I asked them to take it out and test it with the DVI just to be sure I didn't get an Fed up one. It was fine, and I couldn't be happier with this monitor.

(Excuse the messy desk!)

PIX
 
If you click (link removed, bandwidth limit) and then download the file 2001FP Blurry, you'll see what my games look like when playing. This is a different monitor (Dell 2001FP, I didn't record the video, found it on the net) but it's the same issue I have with the BenQ. Moving the mouse causes the picture to lose it's sharpness and get blurry. I also notice this on the desktop, like when I'm dragging a window.

I'm new to LCD's, is this normal? Do other people get this as well but it just doesn't bother them?
 
Rayman1968 said:
If you click here, and then download the file 2001FP Blurry, you'll see what my games look like when playing. This is a different monitor (Dell 2001FP) but it's the same issue I have with the BenQ. Moving the mouse causes the picture to lose it's sharpness and get blurry. I also notice this on the desktop, like when I'm dragging a window.

I'm new to LCD's, is this normal? Do other people get this as well but it just doesn't bother them?
Click to expand...

Try turning off SLI and see if that works.
 
DeftonesXP said:
Look at this thread in pages 14 to 20... betweek 21 till 30ish it's ppl whining about stretching and HDMI...

You can also search for post from DangerIsGo, he posted numerous screenshots and info about it :D thanks Danger !!
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DangerIsGo has the FP241W model, im interested in the FP241W Z model

Thanks tho
 
damp81 said:
DangerIsGo has the FP241W model, im interested in the FP241W Z model
Thanks tho
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It's not out yet, they said 2 months after the nonZ version release, but stores don't even have an ETA yet... so it'll probably be in 2007.
 
Crimson Tear said:
You may want to blur those phone numbers or remove the post-it note altogether.
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DUH

Thanks, totally slipped my mind. Mind editing your post with the original link? Thanks.
 
DeftonesXP said:
It's not out yet, they said 2 months after the nonZ version release, but stores don't even have an ETA yet... so it'll probably be in 2007.
Click to expand...


Strange, got a store here in sweden stating that they have the Z model in stock

gonna mail them and ask
 
Rayman1968 said:
If you click here, and then download the file 2001FP Blurry, you'll see what my games look like when playing. This is a different monitor (Dell 2001FP) but it's the same issue I have with the BenQ. Moving the mouse causes the picture to lose it's sharpness and get blurry. I also notice this on the desktop, like when I'm dragging a window.

I'm new to LCD's, is this normal? Do other people get this as well but it just doesn't bother them?
Click to expand...

That doesn't look normal. When you had the problem with the Dell, were you using all of the same hardware that you're using now with the BenQ? If you were, I'd have to guess it's either a driver issue or a hardware issue not related to the monitor itself.
 
damp81 said:
Strange, got a store here in sweden stating that they have the Z model in stock

gonna mail them and ask
Click to expand...

Can you please provide a link so we can have a look..... :)
 
5tharrow said:
That doesn't look normal. When you had the problem with the Dell, were you using all of the same hardware that you're using now with the BenQ? If you were, I'd have to guess it's either a driver issue or a hardware issue not related to the monitor itself.
Click to expand...

I didn't make the video of the Dell. I just found it while researching the problem.
 
How do you turn off sli? I have a 7600 gt and every startup i get the notification in my taskbar that sli mode won't run. It's kinda annoying, makes me feel I didn't build the computer right.

Tried looking but can't find the option to turn it off.
 
Which mobo? It sounds like you have either a physical connection on the mobo (jumper, bracket) set to SLI, or a setting in the BIOS is set to SLI.
 
Detonate said:
How do you turn off sli? I have a 7600 gt and every startup i get the notification in my taskbar that sli mode won't run. It's kinda annoying, makes me feel I didn't build the computer right.

Tried looking but can't find the option to turn it off.
Click to expand...

Don't worry about that. Apparently nVidia added a thing to their new drivers where it pops up to tell you your SLI has been disabled, even if you only have one video card. There is an option to turn it off but it doesn't work! I did manage to get the message to go away but I'm totally spacing on how I did it...

I'm using ForceWare 91.31 which isn't the newest, maybe if you download the latest it'll be fixed.. I'm sure lots of people have complained about this.
 
yeah they fixed that in the newest release.

gatz said:
I'm using ForceWare 91.31 which isn't the newest, maybe if you download the latest it'll be fixed.. I'm sure lots of people have complained about this.
Click to expand...
 
the price on there is converted into $1500US so that would be $300 more than the westy 37 and maybe $600 more than the fp241w model. i don't know but it sounds a bit fishy to me.
 
Kherozene said:
the price on there is converted into $1500US so that would be $300 more than the westy 37 and maybe $600 more than the fp241w model. i don't know but it sounds a bit fishy to me.
Click to expand...


We have 3 swedish shops who sells the "z" model and the average price is $1476


Yea, its abit pricey in sweden on these products, a Dell 2407 costs $1042


sucks to be us
 
I received an email directly from Benq that FP241WZ will be released before end of the year.
 
Do any B&M Shops have these monitors in stock?

Im just trying to validate how BAD this stretching will look. I mean ive taken some wallpapers i have that are 1920x1200, cropped them to 1920x1080 and then stretched them back... and I do see SOME stretching....but I mean I WAS looking for it.

Just trying to figure out if I would be like WOW THIS SUCKS on a daily basis. My main use 90% is PC useage...with the other 10% being hooking up to an HD box and watching my fav. shows. I would like to get an xbox 360 down the road here too... so that might take up a small part of it's useage too.

Its either this or the 37" westinghouse. Granted the 37 would be SWEET. My office just doesnt set up RIGHT to have something that huge. I could manage, but would have to arrange things, etc. to accomidate. Plus the 500.00 price difference could go towards something else, like the xbox, ps3, whatever.

You guys that have this now, and use the xbox 360 or HDTV (preferrably), do you look at it in these modes and easily see the stretching and are frustrated with it, or is it something you have become accustomed with?

Wonder if there is a firmware update they (Benq) could do to fix the lack of 1:1


...ok im done babbling. Thanks
 
Question for the new BenqFP241W owners :
Where is your monitor made/assembled in? I haven't seen it mentioned before in this thread, just curious.
 
Rayman1968 said:
If you click (link removed, bandwidth limit) and then download the file 2001FP Blurry, you'll see what my games look like when playing. This is a different monitor (Dell 2001FP, I didn't record the video, found it on the net) but it's the same issue I have with the BenQ. Moving the mouse causes the picture to lose it's sharpness and get blurry. I also notice this on the desktop, like when I'm dragging a window.

I'm new to LCD's, is this normal? Do other people get this as well but it just doesn't bother them?
Click to expand...

I've always experienced this right after a fresh format and install, but then it's fixed after I install my video card drivers. You might give that a try, either reinstalling your drivers, or if it comes down to, a fresh XP install.
 
karadur:

Do you want to email them again to see if they are going to fix the 1:1 pixel scaling option and/or adding a nice OSD option to fix it?
 
way to much scaling talk here imo,not many comments on how this monitor does in games,does it over heat like many say,how is it in gaming compared to other 24" monitors etc...would be nice to get a mini review from a gamer on these issues,thanks.
 
way to much scaling talk here imo,not many comments on how this monitor does in games
Click to expand...
Lots of talk on scaling means lots of us are intertested how the monitor handles this. You dont see us complaining every time someone mentions gaming on this monitor, so how you just be a little more tolerant if this is what people want to discuss...
 
I purchased this LCD and it arrived 2 days ago.
I purchased it because of the extra inputs so I could run an upscaling DVD player via component and my Dish in the HDMI port in addition to my PC. Afterall it is marketed as a Multimedia 1080p monitor.

It does indeed strech my TV's 16:9 signal to 16:10 due to the lack of 1:1 pixel mapping. People's heads on TV are all squished and wonky looking. It's driving me nuts to watch and there is no way to fix it.

What on earth if the point of these extra inputs if you can't display a proper 16:9 signal. How can they claim 1080p? 1080p signals are 16:9 are they not?. So frustraiting. I'm thinking about returning this monitor since the HD inputs were the main seller for me.

In addition to this the de-interlacing is very poor. Unless you feed it a progressive signal (720p or 1080p) it will produce a weird blotchy blurry image. So 1080i is out of the question.

As a PC monitor it is nice tho. Poor viewing angles if you aren't dead center but so much screen and so bright. hmmm what to do

:mad:
 
Kherozene said:
the price on there is converted into $1500US so that would be $300 more than the westy 37 and maybe $600 more than the fp241w model. i don't know but it sounds a bit fishy to me.
Click to expand...

The dollar is weak against a lot of European currencies. So the cost appears higher. If you wanted to buy the monitor in Swedish Krona, I think you're going to lose a lot of money in the exchange rate. I don't think that price reflects what the pricing will be in the U.S. The FP241W would also price out higher, if you bought it in Europe and exchanged dollars to do this. And Benq may, I'm speculating, price things differently in different parts of the world, compounding the apparent price hiking effect of the exchange rate.
 
Poor viewing angle? Its specs says 178 degrees, which sounds good to me. That's the same specs as the Dell 2407 and the Samsung Syncmaster 244T, and I haven't heard complaints about either one in regards to viewing angle.

Can you show us a video of how bad the de-interlacing is?
 
Heinz68 said:
Where is this coming from ? I remember only 1 owner had problem with overheating in this thread.
Click to expand...

I got my RMA replacement for the first BenQ that I believe had heat problems, and this one so far seems flawless. I did notice right away there seemed to be less heat pouring out the back of the LCD, but that might only be my perception.

I think that heating issues came from a past post a while back about Acers overheating, and something to the effect that the BenQ has the same AU panel as an Acer. Not sure if they do, but that is what was claimed

I bet my first BenQ just has a mfg. defect, it failed into day 3, I've had the replacement for almost 5 without any problems. Doubtful many others will have the same issue I had.
 
batts said:
I got my RMA replacement for the first BenQ that I believe had heat problems, and this one so far seems flawless. I did notice right away there seemed to be less heat pouring out the back of the LCD, but that might only be my perception.

I think that heating issues came from a past post a while back about Acers overheating, and something to the effect that the BenQ has the same AU panel as an Acer. Not sure if they do, but that is what was claimed

I bet my first BenQ just has a mfg. defect, it failed into day 3, I've had the replacement for almost 5 without any problems. Doubtful many others will have the same issue I had.
Click to expand...
thanks for the info,and yes more then 1 have had the problem,2 others that i know of 1 from canada and 1 from the UK have had that issue,thats why i was worried,and to comment on my "strech remark" im sorry but it wasnt ment as attack on what you wanted to discuss,i was just hoping some ppl would make a bit more comments on how the screen works in games etc....
 
gslice said:
It does indeed strech my TV's 16:9 signal to 16:10 due to the lack of 1:1 pixel mapping. People's heads on TV are all squished and wonky looking. It's driving me nuts to watch and there is no way to fix it.
Click to expand...
Strange stretching. People's head should be slightly elongated not squished, watching 16:9 TV stretched to 16:10, also it should be hardly noticeable unless side by side compared.
 
Heinz68 said:
Strange stretching. People's head should be slightly elongated not squished, watching 16:9 TV stretched to 16:10, also it should be hardly noticeable unless side by side compared.
Click to expand...


hardly noticeable? I took a 1920x1200 wallpaper of some Victoria Secret girls, cropped it to 1920x1080, and then streteched it back to 1920x1200 and thought the stretching was very noticeable.

Are you running an HD set-top box through it? Could you post some pics of the 'stretching' if possible? thanks!
 
thenixhex311 said:
hardly noticeable? I took a 1920x1200 wallpaper of some Victoria Secret girls, cropped it to 1920x1080, and then streteched it back to 1920x1200 and thought the stretching was very noticeable.

Are you running an HD set-top box through it? Could you post some pics of the 'stretching' if possible? thanks!
Click to expand...
Sure it is noticeable if you're looking for it and COMPARING and that is what I said.
Still it doesn't explain the 16:9 signal stretched to 16:10 looking squished when it should be slightly elongated.
 
Heinz68 said:
Sure it is noticeable if you're looking for it and COMPARING and that is what I said.
Still it doesn't explain the 16:9 signal stretched to 16:10 looking squished when it should be slightly elongated.
Click to expand...
I dont know if "squished" is a technical term :D He could mean it looked squished from each side...
 
Nuvian said:
thanks for the info,and yes more then 1 have had the problem,2 others that i know of 1 from canada and 1 from the UK have had that issue,thats why i was worried
Click to expand...
Well I still don't know where the 2 others reported this but 3 is a LONG WAY from MANY reported in your original post.

Just maybe we should be little more carefull what info we post, not much imagination needed to see what BENQ FP241 basher will do with post like yours at other forums.
 
I too am fed up of people constantly complaining about the lack of 1:1 pixel mapping. If you guys are so hung up on this problem - why don't you (a) return it or (b) buy an Nvidia Graphics card which allows you to set the aspect ratio as you like it and sell your ATI graphics card?

This is not rocket science.
 
IsaacS said:
I too am fed up of people constantly complaining about the lack of 1:1 pixel mapping. If you guys are so hung up on this problem - why don't you (a) return it or (b) buy an Nvidia Graphics card which allows you to set the aspect ratio as you like it and sell your ATI graphics card?

This is not rocket science.
Click to expand...

you cant use the nvidia control panel aspect ratio setting when you're using the Component, or HDMI in. The whole NVIDIA thing is good for only PC useage.

Any type of xbox 360/cable box/etc. is still proper fucked.
 
peTeMelster said:
Poor viewing angle? Its specs says 178 degrees, which sounds good to me. That's the same specs as the Dell 2407 and the Samsung Syncmaster 244T, and I haven't heard complaints about either one in regards to viewing angle.
Click to expand...

It is pretty commonly known that manufacturers do not all measure their viewing angles in the same way. And they use some pretty cheesey methods for measuring viewing angles. So the specs are fairly meaningless. Also different types of panels, of course, have different viewing angles. IPS is by far the best, VA panes like the Benq are okay but not nearly as good, TN panels are the worst. In fact, only IPS panels are able to maintain full contrast ratios and therefore not have washed out colors at off center angles.

This page of a review of several monitors shows how different viewing angles can be (http://www.behardware.com/articles/619-17/updated-survey-13-lcd-20-5-6-8-16-ms.html). All of these thirteen monitors, but two, claim viewing angles of 176 degrees or better, from the images it is obvious the differences between the monitors are far greater.

And here is a discussion of the problems with how manufacturers measure viewing angles: http://www.behardware.com/articles/561-7/technique-lcd-overdrive-contraste-angles.html.

I noticed in the images of the FP241W on the Chinese site that the contrast of the image drops off enormously as soon as you move away from a center viewing positions. The image is viewable, but it becomes very washed out very quickly. Full deep colors only seem viewable from straight on. I'm concerned about this because I want to use this monitor, amongst other things, for watching movies. If there's more than one person watching, not everyone can sit directly in front of the monitor.

Also, the Samsung and Dell monitors use a different panel from the Benq. From images on the web site I refer too, the Samsung and Dell appear to have much better viewing angles than a Viewsonic monitor that uses a similar AU Optronics panel to the one found in the Benq.

I'd like to hear more from gslice about the viewing angles and if he could post any images that would be great too.
 
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