Official BenQ FP241W Thread !!! Info, Pictures, Reviews

Problem Present: YES (on rare occasions)
Monitor: FP241WZ
GFX card: BFG 8800GTX 768Mb
Driver Version: 158.24 (Also happens with 158.18)
Operating System(s): Windows Vista Ultimate 32-bit
DVI/VGA/etc cable used: The DVI cable included with the monitor
Power source: Plugged into a Monster Power Centre HTS 2000MkII
Monitor backlight setting: 40%
Problem occurs when: Can occur any time
Temporary fixes/treatments: ...................................
Permanent fixes: One thing I've done is moved the DVI cable from one port to the other.
Having the cable plugged into the port (same side as PCI-E connector of the video card) seems to have resolved the issue for me. I didn't start to have the blackout problem till after I was trying out some stuff and had moved the monitor over onto the 2nd DVI connection.
Other:.....................
 
abeliever said:
Pullen Electronics
Camberwell
Click to expand...

They're my guys too - well, everyone in Victoria's for that matter. I really don't know if anyone knows for sure though.

When I spoke to a guy at Australia's Benq support, he said "Yes, there WILL be a second update, which will fix the overscanning issue. Then I spoke to Pullen Electronics and they said they were aware of a second update, but only that it would fix the HDMI input, and knew nothing about the overscanning.

Then every other time I've spoken to Benq support, the guy I get denies that anyone else would have told me about a second firmware update and tells me the monitor has NO problems at all and that the issues I am having (overscanning, useless HDMI input & signal dropouts) must all be caused by my other hardware and applications. He was not at all willing to accept that the monitor has any issues and would not agree that it might in fact be the monitor with the fault. He kept saying that the monitor has NO problems!

So if anyone wants my opinion, DO NOT BUY THIS MONITOR without testing it in advance.
 
I hope my info helps someone. I have been following this thread from the beginning and finally purchased the monitor after the first firmware update from NCIX. If you need any tests run or other info,just pm me.
Below is my info,

Problem Present: Has occurred once or twice when i received the monitor, but hasn't occurred since.
Monitor: FP241W
GFX card: EVGA 8800GTX 768
Driver Version: 158.22
Operating System(s): Windows XP SP2 With all updates installed
DVI/VGA/etc cable used: the one included with the monitor
Power source: cheapo surge protector
Monitor backlight setting: brightness-50, Contrast-30, Sharpness-3
Problem occurs when: when it did occur it was when switching inputs
Temporary fixes/treatments: no idea
Permanent fixes: wish i could help out more here
Other: nada mas
 
With all due respect to the Pullen electronics techs they all don't know what's going on hence obsucre answers. They acknowledged that the overscanning/cropping problem was on the HDMI port so I guess they just didn't know the specifics of it.

I'll probably end up calling Benq next week and threaten legal action if I don't get a definitive answer. I've had the consumer affairs complaint forms printed out a while ago...

PS: I think the key here is to persist, however a damned inconvenience it is.

iamjohnsname said:
They're my guys too - well, everyone in Victoria's for that matter. I really don't know if anyone knows for sure though.

When I spoke to a guy at Australia's Benq support, he said "Yes, there WILL be a second update, which will fix the overscanning issue. Then I spoke to Pullen Electronics and they said they were aware of a second update, but only that it would fix the HDMI input, and knew nothing about the overscanning.

Then every other time I've spoken to Benq support, the guy I get denies that anyone else would have told me about a second firmware update and tells me the monitor has NO problems at all and that the issues I am having (overscanning, useless HDMI input & signal dropouts) must all be caused by my other hardware and applications. He was not at all willing to accept that the monitor has any issues and would not agree that it might in fact be the monitor with the fault. He kept saying that the monitor has NO problems!

So if anyone wants my opinion, DO NOT BUY THIS MONITOR without testing it in advance.
Click to expand...
 
abeliever said:
With all due respect to the Pullen electronics techs they all don't know what's going on hence obsucre answers. They acknowledged that the overscanning/cropping problem was on the HDMI port so I guess they just didn't know the specifics of it.

I'll probably end up calling Benq next week and threaten legal action if I don't get a definitive answer. I've had the consumer affairs complaint forms printed out a while ago...

PS: I think the key here is to persist, however a damned inconvenience it is.
Click to expand...

I spoke with Benq tech support in Uk a couple of weeks ago. they confirmed there IS a second firmware update being worked on. they didnt say what it would fix though.
 
abeliever said:
I'll probably end up calling Benq next week and threaten legal action if I don't get a definitive answer. I've had the consumer affairs complaint forms printed out a while ago...

PS: I think the key here is to persist, however a damned inconvenience it is.
Click to expand...

abeliever,

please keep me updated with whatever action you do take and I'll do the same. The guy that I always speak to at Benq tech support assures me that I am the ONLY person who rings with complaints about the overscanning & non-effective HDMI problem. Are you having those problems too?

If you do take action or discover something, either from Benq or from Pullen, I'd really appreciate it if you'd please let me know via email too: hewat.john.j1@edumail.vic.gov.au

I really want to do something about it but Benq aren't prepared to budge - they just keep telling me the monitor has NO problems.
 
pedrito said:
I spoke with Benq tech support in Uk a couple of weeks ago. they confirmed there IS a second firmware update being worked on. they didnt say what it would fix though.
Click to expand...

Benq support in Australia said ABSOLUTELY NO more firmware updates, however, a revised model would be released eventually, but current owners have no further or future upgrade paths to take with their current monitors. He basically told me we're s**t out of luck.

But even if Benq do release another firmware update, I have to say, if it's as effective as the first one, it's ultimately useless. Forgive my cinicism, but their first effort at a firmware update is a joke, so I have little faith in their second being worth the wait.
 
hey all, first timer here and I've found this thread a very interesting read.

With respect to screen blackouts.

I've had my Benq fp241w since Feb, about 2 weeks after purchase i noticed the screen flickering then blanking out and recovering very quickly on the odd random occasion. i didn't think too much of it and blamed the dvi cable provided.

As the weeks went by i noticed the problem worsening. The screen was still blanking out as random as ever (sometimes going a week or so without fault.), but the length of time the screen was blank (with the power light green) got longer and longer from seconds to minutes. Eventually the screen wouldn't recover until i turned the monitor on and off, sometimes repeatably to remove a flicker "after effect" that still hung around for minutes afterwards.

Having enough i called Benq service in Australia, who then claimed that the issue is well known, and suggested i fork out for a good quality dual dvi cable.

I bit the bullet and got a Belkin PureAV dual dvi cable at a considerable expense, and upon switching cables around and turning on the computer & monitor i was blessed with a whole 3 minutes of desktop use before the screen winked out again.

The irrecoverable black screens only occurred while at the desktop either in XP or Vista 32bit. While gaming, the screen would on random occasion quickly blank out and then instantly recover.

After adjusting the brightness settings, i discovered the monitor would flicker (like a low refresh setting) if my brightness was adjusted below 50%. And i also noticed that after continual use that percentage would creep up and i would even notice the flicker starting to make itself known even at at 90% brightness.

I contacted Benq and they advised me the power unit in the monitor might be faulty, so 2 weeks ago it was sent in for repair at a local repair agent. I don't actually expect to see it back till the end of the month as parts have to be ordered in.
I also asked them to "while there at it" update the firmware (manufacture date OCT 2006).

I'm pretty fecking disgusted. My el cheapo 19" LG 1950S LCD has been going strong over the last few years with out so much of a dodgy pixel. Why is it always the insanely expensive gear that breaks first?

Am i in my rights to demand a new monitor if the guys at the repair place even so much scratch my monitor? Let alone find a brand new dead pixel or two?
 
iamjohnsname said:
abeliever,

The guy that I always speak to at Benq tech support assures me that I am the ONLY person who rings with complaints about the overscanning & non-effective HDMI problem. Are you having those problems too?
Click to expand...

Are you kidding me? that's the lame excuse they gave me 6 weeks ago and then 4 weeks ago when i dropped off the monitor for firmware upgrades.

I'll keep you posted if and when I make a move. Tight schedule...
 
The service centres and representive BenQ support are useless and have conflicting information throughout. The only way ive got information is from benq head office via email which you can find on the BenQ website. IIRC its benq@hecc.com.

The person who I have spoken to there told me about the 2nd firmware and told me what the new firmware would fix, which I posted here a while ago. Though this was quite a while ago though at the time I was told it was in development.

With my past experience with the UK tech support and repair centre I wouldnt believe a word they say anymore as I got messed around big time and they had my monitor for too long for a simple firmware upgrade.


Anyways I came here to post that with the latest Xbox360 dashboard update, the 1080p resolution with VGA cable still does not display correctly.
 
So would you guys say its pretty safe to assume this monitor is about as good as it gets? Looking to buy one and this seems like the solid choice for its size bracket.
 
Cali3350 said:
So would you guys say its pretty safe to assume this monitor is about as good as it gets? Looking to buy one and this seems like the solid choice for its size bracket.
Click to expand...

Sure. Provided random blackouts, cropped video signals and useless HDMI inputs don't matter to you.
 
Cropped signals and "useless" HDMI ports don't matter to me much, but the blackout problems are worrying indeed.

Some people are submitting their information, this might be better in a separate thread with a poll just to see how many people exactly have the problem.
 
I must admit im currently very confused about this monitor. I thought the 1:1 cut off thing people were experiencing with 1080P sources was fixed by selecting Aspect in the OSD menu. Since the correct aspect is in fact the 1080P signal this resulted in no quality loss. Am i incorrect?
 
Could someone with an Xbox 360 and the new spring update give VGA/Component/HDMI another go? In the spring update they did another rework of the display settings for all 3 relating to output to a monitor, and it would be interesting to see the results.

As for the blacking out issue, I myself have it, but nowhere to the degree that other people here have it. Normally it only happens as the monitor is warming up or coming out of sleep. Once it has been on for a while it almost never does it. I am going to take the monitor to BenQ for its firmware upgrade as it is Pre Jan 2007, but I am happy with my purchase because this is primarily a monitor, and it does a great job displaying shit from a PC.
 
for the 360 the same as before,no differces...I don't understand: can we send back our monitor for the second upgrade or not?
 
Erma said:
for the 360 the same as before,no differces...I don't understand: can we send back our monitor for the second upgrade or not?
Click to expand...

They are developing a second firmware update from what others are saying, and when it is complete, we should be able to get it.
 
Cali3350 said:
I must admit im currently very confused about this monitor. I thought the 1:1 cut off thing people were experiencing with 1080P sources was fixed by selecting Aspect in the OSD menu. Since the correct aspect is in fact the 1080P signal this resulted in no quality loss. Am i incorrect?
Click to expand...

You are incorrect.

The firmware update does allow you to select how you view your input, but the all three modes, 1:1, Aspect & Full, all crop about 5% off the sides of the image of video signals from things like PS3s, video cameras, Blu-Ray players.

1:1 means you get black bars on the left and right where 5% of your image should be.

Aspect means they take the cropped image and stretch it until the image's longest edge meets the monitor's edge. So you get what looks like it could be an accurate reproduction of your image, but is, in reailty, a cropped and stretched version, therefore, anything but an exact replication.

Full stretches the image to fill the screen in every direction, invariably distorting the image, rendering it a stupid and pointless option.

Apparently, the second update will 'maybe' fix this. Though the second update is also 'maybe' going to fix the fact that the HDMI input is as useless as a chocolate teapot. So hopefully it fixes both.

But, o yeah, according to Benq Australia, there is no second firmware update. So it's one big cluster f***, and if there's one thing you don't want to do in a cluster f***, it's spend a thousand dollars.

Save it for a monitor that works. If you don't need all that connectivity, save money and buy a monitor that doesn't have it all so you're not spending so much.
 
Problem Present:Yes
Monitor:FP241W
GFX card:Nvidia 7800 GTX
GFX Driver Version:91.36 (I've changed versions at least once with the issue remaining)
Operating System(s):XP Home SP2
DVI/VGA/etc cable used:DVI cable that came with my old Dell display, that never had any blackout issues in over 2 years of use. I'll try switching to the Benq cable as a test.
Power source:UPS
Monitor backlight setting:40
Problem occurs when:Could happen at any time. I notice it 1-2 times a week.
Temporary fixes/treatments:none
Permanent fixes:none
Other:Hi mom. This display was purchased from NCIX with the firmware update.

Posted in the blackout problem thread mentioned earlier. Checked the polarity settings, both are showing positive, so I assume it's not that. My blackouts don't happen as much as others, so it's either just a slow flakey display issue, or a slow flakey cable issue with a cable that's been working fine for 2 years, shrug. Since 99% of my use of this display is with a computer, and the blackouts aren't that common, I'm still happy with this display, the colors are so much better than my 2005FPW.
 
Cali3350 said:
Other then the 5% overscan over component is the image clear and sharp?
Click to expand...

Yep - it looks beautiful.

Just don't make the mistake of thinking you're getting a high definition monitor, because if you want to connect it to a video source, it's not!
 
Anyone have any burn in issues?

I'm running Vista with the clock gadget in the top right hand side in the sidebar.

I noticed today that the is a slight burn in when I closed the sidebar where the clock is usually present.

I do use a screen saver as well which is set to 10 mintues.
 
To the person who was informed about the new firmware update... have you heard any more? Anyone want to call and make sure they weren't just pulling his leg?
 
bitgod said:
Problem Present:Yes
Monitor:FP241W
GFX card:Nvidia 7800 GTX
GFX Driver Version:91.36 (I've changed versions at least once with the issue remaining)
Operating System(s):XP Home SP2
DVI/VGA/etc cable used:DVI cable that came with my old Dell display, that never had any blackout issues in over 2 years of use. I'll try switching to the Benq cable as a test.
Power source:UPS
Monitor backlight setting:40
Problem occurs when:Could happen at any time. I notice it 1-2 times a week.
Temporary fixes/treatments:none
Permanent fixes:none
Other:Hi mom. This display was purchased from NCIX with the firmware update.

Posted in the blackout problem thread mentioned earlier. Checked the polarity settings, both are showing positive, so I assume it's not that. My blackouts don't happen as much as others, so it's either just a slow flakey display issue, or a slow flakey cable issue with a cable that's been working fine for 2 years, shrug. Since 99% of my use of this display is with a computer, and the blackouts aren't that common, I'm still happy with this display, the colors are so much better than my 2005FPW.
Click to expand...

Does this fix the blackout issue? This was going to be my monitor for my next build and I will be using it for primarily PC games, no consoles. If this blackout issue is something that cannot be fixed then I am going to start looking for another 24" monitor. Please let everyone know if this problem can be resolved.

Thanks

Kmat
 
Sinister Crayon said:
To the person who was informed about the new firmware update... have you heard any more? Anyone want to call and make sure they weren't just pulling his leg?
Click to expand...

emailed them the other day as its been almost a month since I was first told about the 2nd firmware, heres the reply

Thank you for your email, unfortunately at this time the second firmware upgrade is still in development. However, your case is still open in our system and as soon as the upgrade is ready I will be in contact with you to arrange a warranty claim.
Click to expand...
 
My confusion here stems from the excellent review Mr. Jim Robbins gave of this monitor in his showdown. It seems as though Aspect worked perfectly through component with his monitor. I don't see why everyone else has issues.
 
Cali3350 said:
My confusion here stems from the excellent review Mr. Jim Robbins gave of this monitor in his showdown. It seems as though Aspect worked perfectly through component with his monitor. I don't see why everyone else has issues.
Click to expand...

Aspect stretches the overscanned 1080i/p image to fit the screen while maintaining the aspect ratio. It looks really great, trust me, but it could look even better if the monitor actually displayed perfect 1:1 pixel mapping as it should be in 1:1 mode, and not a slightly overscanned image which has borders on all four sides, thus needing monitor to be set in aspect mode.

Also, for some people, aspect mode doesn't even work in VGA with a 1920x1080 source through VGA, it fills the screen entirely.
 
Kmat said:
Does this fix the blackout issue? This was going to be my monitor for my next build and I will be using it for primarily PC games, no consoles. If this blackout issue is something that cannot be fixed then I am going to start looking for another 24" monitor. Please let everyone know if this problem can be resolved.

Thanks

Kmat
Click to expand...

No, the blackout issue is still alive and well. You should not under any circumstances purchase this monitor.

You would be a complete fool if you did...
 
vxyleme said:
No, the blackout issue is still alive and well. You should not under any circumstances purchase this monitor.

You would be a complete fool if you did...
Click to expand...

Roger vxyleme, I am not going to touch it with a ten foot pole. Not to change the discussion but the NEC 24 incher looks to be a good replacement monitor although it does not look as sexy as Benq FP241.

Peace for the middle east

Kmat
 
So i just got my own! I love it so far, and i dont mind the overscan issue's as my Xbox still looks amazing on this thing. I do have a question though, is there any software out there to calibrate a monitor? The display looks very different then my 2005fpw did, but i dont know if its incorrect.
 
Here's my experiences of this screen for anyone that's interested >>

Like a lot of other people on here my FP241WZ blacks out periodically .. but I've only noticed it on my PC.
The blackouts dont bother me too much (they're rare and its like a blink) I much prefer the image quality of the Benq FPWZ over my previous Dell 24FPW.
I also think that with perfect motion switched on, the screen is a bit too dark .. so I used my ATI Control Panel to adjust the Gamma and Brightness. Problem solved ..
I also cannot use any other image mode except 'standard' when at the XP desktop as text becomes blurred and un-readable - however movies and games looks much better in the other modes.
With this montior being one of the only available that can display at 1080p I've had a play around however it's pretty hard work determining if I'm getting 1080p.. but the picture is definitely amazing.
I dont have a HD DVD to test with but the xbox 360 worked perfectly for the <10 hours I've played on it. .
I found the HDMI interface was limiting my desktop to 1920x1080 (not 1900x1200) when using a DVI->HDMI cable in Windows XP.
 
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