Lenovo ThinkVision L1940p flat panel display review: Lenovo ThinkVision L1940p flat panel display

The 19-inch Lenovo ThinkVision L1940p boasts a full host of ergonomic features, including great performance in movies, 90-degree screen pivoting, and a practical yet elegant design. The monitor includes a screen resolution of 1,440x900, which is a lower resolution than the 1,680x1,050 of its two competitors, the ViewSonic VX1962wm and the Westinghouse L1916HW. The ThinkVision L1940p goes for about $240 online, or roughly $50 more than the ViewSonic and $60 more than the Westinghouse. We recommend the Lenovo ThinkVision L1940p for its gamut of ergonomic features and overall performance. If you're just looking for a cheap 19-incher, however, both the ViewSonic and the Westinghouse are great, low-cost deals.

7.1

Lenovo ThinkVision L1940p flat panel display

The Good

Excellent overall performance; very flexible, with wide screen rotation and screen height adjustment; can pivot between portrait and landscape modes; practically designed chassis.

The Bad

Some jagginess in games, lower resolution and higher price than 19-inch competitors.

The Bottom Line

The Lenovo ThinkVision L1940p costs a bit more than competing 19-inch LCD monitors, but its many ergonomic features and great overall performance could persuade those not shopping on price alone.

Design and features
The Lenovo ThinkVision L1940p shares the same basic design as its two big brothers, the L2440p and the L2440x, albeit on a smaller scale. The L1940p is practically designed and retains the elegant black matte look of the aforementioned larger Lenovo's. The bezel is less than an inch thick on the sides, and the width of the panel measures 17.25 inches. The Lenovo takes up the least amount of desktop real estate--by the smallest of margins--compared with the Westinghouse 1916HW and the Viewsonic VX1916WM, whose displays measure 17.75 and 17.5 in width, respectively. The flat, half-moon-shaped footstand is 11 inches wide and 8 inches deep. This is a wide footstand but we found that if the height of the screen is adjusted to its maximum 4.5 inches, the display will wobble quite a bit when knocked from the sides. When the panel is at its lowest height there is minimal wobbling, however. The screen pivots 90 degrees vertically--a rare feature for a 19-incher and rotates about 50 degrees to the left and right. It tilts back about 20 degrees.

On the back, the connection options--including DVI and VGA--have been placed off to the left side a couple inches away from the neck, making reaching them and connecting cables a simple and quick process. Missing are the three USB ports that were found on the side of the L2440p and L2440x.

Under the neck of the stand, on the back panel, is a strap used to route the power and video cables to the center of the display. You can then use the included plastic covering, which attaches to the back of the stand, and will then funnel the cables in a neat and orderly fashion.

The On Screen Display (OSD) array is located in the lower right-hand corner of the bezel and comprises four buttons. Brightness and contrast controls are included as are color options. You can change the color temperature based on the four presets, which include Reddish, Bluish, Neutral, and SRGB. Conversely, the OSD allows you to access and change the values for red, blue, and green directly.

The features we really appreciate are the specific controls that allow you to customize the OSD directly. Being able to set the menu position and how long it stays on screen before disappearing can be useful tools when calibrating. Each OSD button is thin, but wide enough--actually slightly wider than the L2440's buttons--so that if calibrating in a dark room you'll be able to run your fingers over them without easily overshooting the button you're looking for. You'll have to memorize the button placement though, since the only illumination you'd have in a dark room is the single green LED to the right of the power button.

Performance
The Lenovo ThinkVision L1940p received an 87 in CNET Labs' DisplayMate-based performance tests. The monitor was well ahead of the Viewsonic and the Westinghouse, which posted respective scores of 79 and 81. Where the L1940p excelled the most was in our color and grayscale tests. The L1940p was able to display more shades of the same color than either of its 19-inch competitors could. This indicates that--color-wise at least--the L1940p would be able to display a more detailed image when watching movies.

The Lenovo ThinkVision L1940p scored a maximum brightness rating of 273cd/m2, compared with the Westinghouse, which had a brightness score of 307cd/m2 and the ViewSonic, which scored 290cd/m2 in maximum brightness. With its bigger brother the L2440p, we noticed when viewing the screen for more than a few seconds our eyes would feel strained. It's worth noting that we did not experience this with the L1940p.

While the Westinghouse and Viewsonic each have a resolution of 1,680x1,050, the Lenovo tops out at 1,440x900. This lower resolution doesn't make any discernable difference in picture quality when doing office apps, but it does add up to less screen real estate. We noticed a small drop in picture quality in World of Warcraft however, thanks to the lower resolution.

World of Warcraft looked great on the L1940p with vivid and accurate colors that were not saturated and had no signs of streaking. At the 1,440x900 resolution, however, we noticed that there was slightly more aliasing than we're used to on the edges of the characters.

In CNET Labs' monitor test room, our lab benches sit higher than a normal desk. Given this, the lower viewing angle of a monitor is immediately noticeable, especially when playing a game. While playing WoW, unless we were at the optimal level to the screen (one-fourth of the screen distance down) there would be visible shadows at the top of the screen, which made details difficult to see. So if you're slouching while Web surfing or gaming, be prepared to have a difficult time seeing the detail. You could always just sit straight up, but in our opinion, you shouldn't have to.

As for movie playback, we watched a few choice scenes in Kill Bill Vol. 1. While the blacks were not as deep as on the Westinghouse, it did deliver a good picture quality for watching movies, thanks to its ability to display accurate colors.

Juice box

Lenovo ThinkVision 1940	Average watts per hour
On (Default Luminance)	17.96
On (Max Luminance)	20.8
On (Min Luminance)	10.56
Sleep	0.4
Calibrated (200 cd/m2)	18
Score	Good
Annual energy cost (@$0.1135/kWh)	$5.63

Find out more about how we test LCD monitors

Service and support
Although we had no problem finding the product page for the L1916HW on Westinghouse's site, unfortunately there were no drivers nor a downloadable manual to be found.

Westinghouse ships the monitor with a one-year warranty that covers the backlight. The company provides toll-free customer service over the phone Monday through Saturday, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. PST. There is e-mail support provided as well.