BenQ EW2420 Monitor Review

BenQ EW2420 Introduction

The EW2420 from BenQ is designed for use as a multi-purpose display. While it has the standard DVI and HDMI port you would expect on a current monitor, it also has an additional HDMI port for another video source like a video game system or Blu-ray player, as well as speakers for the audio from these sources. Of course, if the panel doesn’t perform well then it doesn’t matter how many inputs it has, but the BenQ looks promising with both a VA panel and an LED backlight.

Hardware Impressions

Out of the box, the mounting system for the BenQ was easy to install, but not very robust. It does have the ability to tilt the monitor, but lacks any swivel or height adjustment. There is a small clip for routing your cables through, but to fit a cable through you have to remove it and then reattach it. An HDMI cable or a headphone cable should fit through but it would have been far more useful had they allowed a way to slip a cable in there instead of needing to remove the whole clip to add one. There is an optional headphone holder for the top of the monitor included as well. If you wish to wall mount, or use a different mount than the included one, there is a standard 100mm x 100mm VESA mounting pattern on the back of the display.

The bezel around the display itself is a shiny black plastic, a look that I’m not a big fan of. To me the shiny edge of the screen just attracts fingerprints and can produce a distracting glare in bright lighting conditions, which a matte finish manages to avoid. The controls for the display are set to the right side of the screen and labeled with light gray text on the bezel.