The 3DVelocity 'Dual Conclusions Concept' Explained: After discussing this concept with users as well as companies and vendors we work with, 3DVelocity have decided that where necessary we shall aim to introduce our 'Dual Conclusions Concept' to sum up our thoughts and impressions on the hardware we review. As the needs of the more experienced users and enthusiasts have increased, it has become more difficult to factor in all the aspects that such a user would find important, while also being fair to products that may lack these high end "bonus" capabilities but which still represent a very good buy for the more traditional and more prevalent mainstream user. The two catergories we've used are:

The Mainstream User ~ The mainstream user is likely to put price, stock performance, value for money, reliability and/or warranty terms ahead of the need for hardware that operates beyond its design specifications. The mainstream user may be a PC novice or may be an experienced user, however their needs are clearly very different to those of the enthusiast, in that they want to buy products that operate efficiently and reliably within their advertised parameters.

The Enthusiast ~ The enthusiast cares about all the things that the mainstream user cares about but is more likely to accept a weakness in one or more of these things in exchange for some measure of performance or functionality beyond its design brief. For example, a high priced motherboard may be tolerated in exchange for unusually high levels of overclocking ability or alternatively an unusually large heat sink with a very poor fixing mechanism may be considered acceptable if it offers significantly superior cooling in return.

Mainstream User

I have always been pleased with Samsung products and this LCD is no exception. It is well engineered externally and internally and will make quite the conversation piece at the office or home. The ultra-thin screen and it's complete lack of wasted space make this screen a beauty to behold. The Dual-Hinge design is excellent for adjusting the screen height and making it wall-mountable is a big plus. The only issue is the blur effect that I saw with certain text colours and in some games. For regular desktop use it provides a sharp display and bold, beautiful colour. In games you can expect to see no ghosting. The 172X is also priced at a competitive $575.

I would have liked to see a greater height adjustment capability on the dual-hinge and the letters that describes the OSD controls should be more visible.

I wouldn't consider a 12ms model unless you are a gamer because that is the only time when ghosting is any more than a slight distraction, however in the case of the 172X even a 12ms response time wasn't enough due to the screen type and the misleading way response times are calculated.

If gaming isn't a top priority then this is a truly top notch product.

The Enthusiast

All the considerations brought up in the Mainstream conclusion are relevant to the Enthusiast as well. This is a quality LCD that produces excellent picture quality, displays no ghosting under most circumstances, and is a work of art in terms of looks. If you are in the market for an LCD for anything other than high energy gaming then it gets my recommendation.

Editor's note:

I was initially tempted to lower the final score awarded to this monitor due to its tendency to blur during dynamic scenes where motion is fast. This is almost entirely down to the fact that Samsung have opted for a PVA matrix type screen that may well offer super-fast transitions when pixels are switching from one extreme to the other (from white to black for example) but which really begins to slow when it's required to switch incrementally such as from white to gray or from light gray to medium gray and so on.

On the flipside it could be argued that for CAD work, photo editing and other primarily static work the 172X deserves a "Recommended" award. The saturated colours, good contrast and all round solid performance make it a genuinely excellent choice in these scenarios. Video quality is also well maintained under all but the most extreme circumstances and unless you're an avid gamer you'll more than likely find that the 172X is everything you could wish for.

In the end it seems the rating of 90% is probably about right. If you're not an avid gamer then add a mental "Recommended" award after the score. However, if hardcore gaming is the reason you get out of bed in a morning the knock 10% off. It's a great monitor, it's just not a gamer's monitor!