Best monitors under $200
Thinking of low-balling it on your next monitor purchase? Sure you are. I'll show you the best monitors under $200.
Dell S2330MX and S2230MX
For some, a monitor is a monitor, and the lower the price, the better. As long as it pumps images from their PCs into their eyes at a reasonable quality, they're good. Thing is, there are cheap monitors and then there are cheap monitors.
And by cheap I mean "the last time I saw my power button was when it went flying past my face immediately after pressing it for the first time." Yes, this actually happened to me some years ago. I pressed the power button on an older monitor, only to have it pop off and nearly take out an eye on its way to some now forgotten crevice in CNET Labs.
Luckily, I've not had that experience with any monitor on this list. At least not yet. The list features the best monitors priced under $200.
The only criterion for the list is that each monitor has to be available from a major retailer for $199 or less. From there, the five best monitors I've reviewed were chosen.
Dig in.
Dell S2230MX UltraSlim
Though missing HDMI, Dell's 22-inch (or 21.5-inch, if precise measurements are your thing) UltraSlim still offers a lot for its $170 price. For one, Dell makes up for the HDMI oversight by including a DVI-to-HDMI adapter as a consolation. Thankfully, VGA and DVI are smartly placed and face backward, making connecting the monitor a seamless, easy, and nonapoplectic experience.
Overall, movie, game, and general-purpose performance is very good, but the build quality isn't the best, and the narrow foot stand firmly establishes new meaning to the word "wobbly." Still, very smartly priced. Read the full review.
Dell S2330MX UltraSlim
With a 1.5-inch larger screen, the big brother of the S2230MX still hits that sub-$200 price. Currently priced about $10 more than the S2230MX, the S23330MX makes the grade at $180. Both monitors achieve thin profiles, and like its little brother, the S2330MX skips HDMI, but an DVI-to-HDMI adapter is included.
Again, a low-priced, well-performing monitor that at only $10 more is a better value than the 21.5-inch model unless having less screen real estate is something you desire. Read the full review.
Samsung SyncMaster S23A550H
Barely making the cut with a $199 price, this Samsung has one of the best features ever. The Trees Saved feature is conscious, cute, and somehow nostalgically reverent to old PC games, at least aesthetically.
However, to say the connections and cable management system are a pain in the rear to access is an understatement of the highest order. Because they are. A pain, that is.
Good movies and games performance round out what the best-looking monitor on the list has to offer. Read the full review.
ViewSonic VX2450wm-LED
It's rare to see a 24-inch monitor at a $180 price. Well, it's rare to see a good one at least. Sub-$200, 24-inch monitors are about as rare as 50-year-old male Twilight fans. Not that there's anything wrong with that, of course. I'm just saying it's not something you see every day...what?
Anyway, the VX2450wm's performance isn't the best, and there's no HDMI, but for general use, the price-to-screen-size ratio can't be beat. Read the full review.
HP 2311x
The last monitor on the list is the first to include the connection trifecta of DVI, VGA, and HDMI, also has super-deep black levels, providing movies with a particularly cinematic look. Unfortunately, the screen gets a bit too dark when in movie or game mode and some details are lost.
That said, for its current low price of $160, it's hard to dismiss a well-performing 23-inch monitor with this number of useful connections. Read the full review.
Looking for specs and pricing? Compare these monitors head-to-head.
