Samsung B2330 HD review

Monitor and TV? Something's gotta give...

Samsung B2330 HD
Can TV and PC monitor coexist in the Samsung B2330 HD?

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Samsung b2330 hd

Connectivity options are as vast as they are varied on the B2330HD, but the lack of DVI is the first let down.

DVI can easily be converted to HDMI, of which there are two ports, but there's no adapter bundled in the box. So, unfortunately, many people's first experience with this panel may well be a trip to their local electronics store to pick one up.

The connectivity woes continued when the monitor was first connected to our test PC.

The visuals were frankly shocking, with pixelated text, jagged lines and eye glaring brightness that would have made most people send their Samsung B2330HD on a one way ticket back to the store.

There's a myriad customisable options in the B2330HD's menus, but none of them seemed to fix the problem. It was only when we changed the source name from HDMI to DVI, buried in a confusing menu called 'Change input name', that the full glory of the Samsung B2330HD was finally revealed.

And glorious it was too. Gone were the jagged pixels and blinding brightness, and we were treated to a top class visual experience.

Motion handling, contrast and viewing angles are top notch, and blacks are also deep and well presented. Both as a computer monitor and TV, the B2330HD is one of the best we've seen, and flew through every visual test.

As you might expect, the built-in speakers though were poor, and sound was tinny at high volume. Even at a low volume, voices had an annoying distortion, which helped ruin the TV-watching experience.

Another criticism of the B2330HD is the lack of positional adjustment, and in our tests we were found to be sitting below the optimum height.

Without any height adjustment, something even the most base of bargain-basement screens can offer, this was a problem we could do nothing about.

The technology itself though is impressive and the Picture in Picture feature is excellent, and extremely handy for keeping an eye on the football when you should be doing your work…

However, its poor implementation almost lets it down. You can only display AV channels, so we weren't able to have the second HDMI input displayed.

We liked

Stunning visuals make the Samsung B2330HD a fantastic choice for anyone looking for a medium-sized panel for a space crammed with entertainment.

We disliked

The nightmarish set up is a needless sticking point and so is the colossally awful sound, both of which do their best to ruin a great visual experience.