14 DAY TRIAL // Nowadays, 4:3 monitors, which used to be the norm at one point, are quite rare compared to 16:9 ones (HD and Full HD), but what some may have forgotten is that there is a type of monitor that is even rarer.
The 4:3 aspect ratio used to be the normal consumer standard, with the resolutions of 1024 x 768 being the most often used.
Then, widescreen films became the rave, and monitors started using the 16:9 aspect ratio more often, with resolutions of 1,366 x 768 (high-definition HD) and, today's so-called standard (1920 x 1080 pixels Full HD).
Through it all, 5:4 displays went by largely unnoticed. Square monitors just never caught on for some reason or other.
Iiyama isn't letting this discourage it though. The company has officially launched the 19-inch E1980SD-W1 and E1980SD-B1 monitors.
They are actually the very same product only with different colors. The former is white and the latter is pitch black.
Both of them have a resolution of 1280 x 1024 pixels and a power draw of only 16W during normal operation, which is owed to LED backlighting and the EcoMode technology.
There are actually three stages of EcoMode. The first once reduces power consumption by 10% (year-on-year), EcoMode 2 managed 20% and EcoMode 3 can cut power draw by 35%.
Owners will have to decide which setting to use depending on ambient light, brightness preferences, etc.
The rest of the specifications are a bit underwhelming, most notably the viewing angles of 85 degrees. They are good for service desks, public PCs and kiosks, but not personal setups.
Iiyama gave its monitors a response time of 5ms, a brightness of 250 cd/m2 (at most), a contrast ratio of 1,000:1 and two video inputs: DVI-D and D-Sub. Sales are already underway, for 14,800 Yen, or $177 / 135.83 Euro.