By Hailey Lynne McKeefry

Artistic minds need to let their imaginations run free. Hitachi's 21-inch Accuvue UX4921 monitor provides a playing field big enough to accommodate flights of fancy. With its 19.92-inch viewable area, the Accuvue UX4921 is ideal for CAD and document-imaging applications as well as sprawling spreadsheets and space-hungry apps such as desktop publishing.

The monitor features Hitachi's UltraColor CRT technology for improved focus, brightness, color and contrast ratio, as well as the UltraFine dot-pitch asymmetric shadow mask design for 0.22mm horizontal and 0.16mm vertical dot pitch. The Accuvue provides resolutions of up to 1600x1200 at 85Hz.

These features contributed to the Accuvue UX4921's fine performance on Sonera Technologies' DisplayMate testing suite. In nearly all test conditions, the monitor's images were clear, sharp and focused even at the screen's edges. Initially, the vertical registration was off, but the degauss button brought the monitor back into clear focus immediately. The only difficulties I found were some rasterization and moiré patterns, which are still common with many monitors.

At 75 pounds, the monitor is no lightweight, but its case (18.5 by 19.7 by 20 inches) is diminutive considering the CRT's size. The front-panel controls are inset about a half inch, which made them a little difficult to see and reach, particularly because the buttons are also quite small.

The Accuvue UX4921's controls include a power switch (to put the unit into power-save mode), degauss, brightness and contrast, and mode select, adjust, store and reset options. Adjusting horizontal centering and width, vertical height and centering, side pincushioning, rotation and color temperature was a snap. However, you must remember to store the adjustments in a profile, or the monitor will return to its default settings.

The color temperature settings include preset options of 6550 or 9300 degrees Kelvin; you can also adjust red, green and blue individually. A dual-function mode switch lets you fine-tune settings and make RGB color balance adjustments. The rear-mounted on/off switch lets you power down the monitor completely, rather than putting it into power-save mode.

The UX4921 is the Accuvue UX family's mid-range model. The UX6821, which costs $2,449 and operates at 30kHz to 103kHz, includes adjustable static convergence controls. The UX4721, the value-priced unit at $1,999, operates at 30kHz to 95kHz.

While the UX4921's image controls are more difficult to use than those on comparable products, its superior image makes it worth the price for graphics professionals looking for a place to let their imaginations wander.

--Info File--
Hitachi Accuvue UX4921
Price: $2,299
Pros: Viewable image
Cons: Controls
Hitachi America Ltd.
800-259-9939, 510-661-0777
WinMag Box Score: 3.0