6 of the best budget monitors for your Mac

The angle from which you view your screen can affect the brightness and cause colours to shift – especially if the angle is too steep. But how steep can you go?

Be sceptical of manufacturers' figures. A stated viewing angle of '170°/160°' means, in theory, you can view the display from anywhere within a 170° arc on the horizontal plane, and 160° on the vertical (180° is the theoretical maximum), but they might deem a significant amount of distortion acceptable before finally drawing the line.

Samsung syncmaster 2233sw

SAMSUNG SYNCMASTER 2233SW

The Asus offers good horizontal angles, but is less accomplished for vertical viewing. The screen loses its brightness soon after moving away from the head-on position, but manages around 100° before the colours degrade.

The BenQ puts in a similar performance, though is marginally better. The Hanns G is less accomplished. The NEC puts in the lowest claim, but it isn't that far behind the pack. The Samsung performs best with the widest angles.

Test 2 results