Iiyama's ProLite E435S-B cabinet and stand look unassuming, but its screen packs a punch. Its character-smoothing technology helped it display crystal-clear text, particularly on the Microsoft Word and Excel test screens. In fact, it's the only 17-incher among our current contenders to win a text rating of Outstanding. A strong showing on most graphics tests--and particularly with the reverse type on our Web site screen--helped it tie the Eizo FlexScan L568 professional monitor for the highest score for graphics reproduction. All in all, the E435S-B won top honors in 6 of our 11 tests, and our jury awarded it the highest overall ranking for image quality.
To enhance the screen quality, the E435S-B offers advanced controls like gamma control, plus other useful features such as five color-temperature presets (one of which is user-configurable) and the ability to lock out the controls to prevent meddling in environments where more than one person may have access to the monitor.
We'd have liked to see ergonomic adjustments beyond tilt; the lack of a height adjustment, in particular, can make the E435S-B hard on the neck. The 2.5-watt stereo speakers, though adequate, don't rise above the norm for built-in speakers.
When we tested the E435S-B, Iiyama quoted a remarkably low price of $279. Unfortunately, the monitor was unavailable in the United States at that time, so we couldn't verify the price, and therefore couldn't consider the E435S-B for Best Buy honors.
Iiyama's ProLite E435S-B may be low on frills, but if the screen matters most to you (and the quoted price holds), it's a steal.
Laura Blackwell
