NEC MultiSync 20WMGX2

The NEC MultiSync 20WMGX2 is one of the the most technically sophisticated monitors in this round-up. To begin, NEC is using S-IPS technology, famed for providing incredible color accuracy and reliable pixel refresh ratings. The Achilles heel of S-IPS technology has been poor contrast ratio and relatively poor pixel refresh performance. For the 20WMGX2, NEC claims a 6 ms gray-to-gray pixel refresh performance and the native contrast ratio of 700:1. The excellent contrast ratio is due, in part, to the use of the 400 cd/m2 “gloss-type” anti-reflective polarizer on the surface of the monitor, making it similar to those Sony XBRITE or HP/Compaq BrightView notebook screens. To further boost the contrast ratio, NEC offers an “Advanced Dynamic Video Mode” which increases to as high as 1600:1. When displaying a dark image, the monitor can automatically dim the backlight depending. This technique is used widely by high-end LCD televisions, but NEC is one of the first to offer the feature in a desktop LCD monitor.

If that weren't enough, the 20WMGX2 also features an NTSC tuner, the only monitor in our round-up to do so. While the tuner is appropriate for picture-in-picture use, the video processor isn't up to the level of the Gateway. True interlaced sources show significant loss of a resolution. On the other hand, the video scaling is excellent with Xbox 360 games looking superb.

Anti-Reflective Polarizer vs Anti-Glare Polarizers

All LCD panels need a polarizer for the screen to work, but these polarizers also reflect ambient light. Traditional anti-glare polarizers diffuse the ambient light that hits the monitor screen. This scattering of light decreases contrast ratio and generates a slight haze to the image. Instead of trying to scatter the ambient light, gloss-type polarizers adopt anti-reflective coating technology similar to camera lenses or eyeglasses. Since light has characteristics of a wave, the reflected light bouncing off the surface of the monitor can be cancelled out by another wave in the opposite phase – just like noise canceling headphones. The idea behind anti-reflective coating is to use the reflection from the coating to cancel out the reflection from the glass.

For any given wavelength you can get perfect cancellation of reflection of glass by applying a wavelength divided by 4 thick layer of material that has a refractive index halfway between air and glass. The problem is that light is not made up of one wavelength -- it is a continuous range from 400 to 700 nm. This is where multiple anti-reflective coatings, or multi-coating, comes into play. In practice, the anti-reflective coatings used by most monitors isn’t as sophisticated as that found in high-end camera lenses. Although the NEC 20WMGX2 coating that is less reflective than a typical high-gloss laptop screens, reflections can still be a problem.

The ergonomics of the 20WMGX2 are good, and the monitor adopts the same joystick interface that the older GX series monitors featured. Unusually, the "native" color setting provided better results than the 6500K/sRGB setting.

Picture Quality

The "Advanced Dynamic Video Mode" makes testing of the monitor a bit tougher. Our colorimetry tests rely on a 25% gray background with several patches of color that only make up approximately 1/10 of the screen. In order to test the theoretical peak contrast ratio, we used a full screen white and black image. As a gaming monitor, the NEC 20WMGX2 had a respectable PixPerAn score of 13. At peak brightness, however, the monitor had excellent color accuracy. Although the Samsung 244T edged NEC out in terms of color accuracy, the high contrast and high-brightness of the image made an ideal monitor for gaming. Photographers requiring color-critical work may find the advanced DV mode to be a bit distracting and the standard display to lack sufficient contrast. The 20WMGX2 was clearly designed for gamers rather than photographers.

Performance

PixPerAn Scrolling Text Score: 13

NEC 20WMGX2 Performance
	Color Temperature (White)	Color Temperature (20% Gray)	Black level	White level	delta E	Contrast Ratio
Native	6355 K	6377 K	0.81	560.58	6.32	692:1
Native, Advanced DV enabled	6416 K	6463 K	0.24	517.79	5.46	2157:1
Native, brightness set to 100 cd/m2	6602 K	6555 K	0.29	103.65	7.47	357:1
Native, brightness set to 100 cd/m2, Advanced DV enabled	6618 K	6555 K	0.20	103.81	6.48	519:1

Reference Image

NEC MultiSync 20WMGX2 ADV On

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IMPORTANT: Only the North American NEC 20WMGX2 features HDCP support. In Europe, NEC sells the 20WGX2 (missing the “M” for multimedia). The European models DO NOT support HDCP.

Optimal Settings:
Native Color, Contrast 50%, Brightness to your preference, Advanced DV Mode ON, DV Mode Standard