PW201 questions

[Logical Disconnect]

So I've been looking to get a new monitor with component inputs (of which there seem to be very few!) and the Asus PW201 caught my eye. Problem is, I can barely find any info about it, anywhere. Looking at older threads, it seems like at least a couple of people have one, so I was hoping that they (or anyone else in the know) could answer a couple of quick questions - surprisingly enough, about the component inputs.

1. Is it possible to input 1080i (say, using an XBOX360) and have the monitor scale it down, as some other 20/21 inch monitors do?
2. If I'm inputting a signal into component at 16:9 (1080i, 720p etc.), will the monitor stretch it to 16:10 or will I get black bars at the top and bottom? I read in the manual that there are a few different 'aspect' options (normal, panoramic, full, zoom) but I'm not sure what exactly they do, and I can't find any shop that has the monitor on display to check it out.
3. I guess the main question should be, is the component quality any good? Hopefully someone can offer their impressions!

Last thing: I read somewhere that the PW201 isn't HDCP compliant - does anyone know if this is true (there seems to be no way of contacting Asus) and if so, is it really that big a deal?

It just seems like every monitor I look at between 20 and 24 inches that has component inputs has some major issues, either with them or with something else. I heard the NEC 20-inch is pretty good overall, but the problem is that in Australia we only get DVI and VGA

Thanks!

 

[JohnleMVP]

I was in the same position as you, I wanted a 20" LCD with component input for XBOX 360.

I was also looking into the ASUS. Its a tempting monitor.
1) I'm not sure, but I think it will support 1080i over component. It should line double it.
2) It does not support aspect modes. Everything is stretched to 16:10
3) I dunno about this one, I'd like to know myself.

HDCP, I really don't think think this is a big issue. The majority of people do not own HDCP compliant monitors so I would not expect any movie studio or company to enable it anytime soon. I'm sure there will be a hack/work around device for this in the future too.

I didn't get the ASUS because no local place had it so I couldn't see it before I bought it and most review places claim the horizontal viewing angle is only about 92 degrees because of the gloss treatment ASUS used. I wasn't sure I could live with that and without seeing it in person I didn't want to risk it and the possible 15% restocking fee if I wanted to return it to most online retailers.

I ended up getting the Samsung 215TW which has components but they suck and aren't worth using. I settled on it though because honestly you don't need components for XBOX 360. It looks just as good if not better with the VGA cables. I also have experience with the NEC as my brother has it. Its a great monitor and the vga & component image quality is crispy, but suffers from noise which is noticable on blacks.

 

[JonDoms]

I have one!
I don't know about componant scaling down to 1680 x 1050 for an xbox 360.
Can the XBOX lower the res on the output side?

Viewing angles are fine. I need to get an XBOX360 to answer everyone's question. Maybe I'll make a run over to Blockbuster and rent one for a weekend and try this out.

How would you get sound?

 

[Logical Disconnect]

Thanks for your responses!

I ended up getting the Samsung 215TW which has components but they suck and aren't worth using. I settled on it though because honestly you don't need components for XBOX 360. It looks just as good if not better with the VGA cables. I also have experience with the NEC as my brother has it. Its a great monitor and the vga & component image quality is crispy, but suffers from noise which is noticable on blacks.

Yeah, I was looking at the 215TW as well but, as you say, I read that the components were pretty horrible. I also realise that I might not need components for the 360, but I thought if I'm going to be spending the money, I might as well try to get a monitor that has as many features as possible (that are good quality, of course) if I can. Never know - I might use them in the future!

I have one!
I don't know about componant scaling down to 1680 x 1050 for an xbox 360.
Can the XBOX lower the res on the output side?

Viewing angles are fine. I need to get an XBOX360 to answer everyone's question. Maybe I'll make a run over to Blockbuster and rent one for a weekend and try this out.

How would you get sound?

The 360 can output in 720p as well - but I was under the (probably incorrect) impression that 1080i scaled down would look better than 720p through component.

If you'd like to hire an Xbox to test things out, that would be awesome and I know myself and probably many others would appreciate it (the earlier thread was pretty popular). But don't feel obligated to!

With sound, I'd say you could plug the red/white RCA jacks (attached to the component cable that you'd hopefully get with the 360) into your monitor - if you wanted to use those speakers - or into a sound system if it allows RCA inputs. If your speakers only take 3.5mm connectors, you'd probably have to get an RCA -> 3.5mm adapter or something (only 2 or 3 bucks, I think).

Thanks again, and if anyone else can help, I'd really appreciate it too.