The VX2025wm is one of ViewSonic's X series of LCD monitors. It's aimed at home users who want something that's high-spec and stylish, and the VX2025 doesn't let you down in the specifications department. However, a bit more thought could have been given to the design.

Most users will be looking to swap to a wider monitor to get the full widescreen film effect, and to be able to work with two or more applications side by side or take advantage of Windows Vista's new graphics interface.

These days a good quality 17-inch LCD screen will allow you to view resolutions up to 1,280 x 1,024. However, when you look at many widescreen 19-inch and even 20-inch monitors, the maximum resolution you get is 1,440 x 900, so although you gain a few pixels on the width you actually lose them vertically.

The VX2025 has a maximum resolution of 1,680 x 1,050, so not only do you get more pixels horizontally but, crucially, you also get more vertically. If you're a serious movie watcher then the extra pixels won't mean much, but if you're planning on getting a wide screen to increase productivity then those extra pixels are essential.

In addition to the extra pixels the display has a fast 8ms response time so it's great for games, and there's no ghosting when you're watching DVDs on it; there are both analogue and digital inputs. Plus there's a very respectable 800:1 image contrast ratio (meaning that the white is 800 times brighter than the black), with a wide, 176-degree viewing angle, which makes it ideal as mini home cinema screen.

The colour is good and you can set it to various different settings; sRGB, 9300K, 6500K, 5400K, or a user-defined RGB. However, in sRGB mode you can't subsequently set the brightness or contrast.

Where the VX2025wm scores few points, though, is in the design and the extras. The five large menu buttons on the front of the screen look quite ugly compared to the rest of the display, and the menu system is a little poor. In addition, the stand, which looks and feels substantial, only allows you to tilt the display a few degrees (5 degrees up and 20 down).

The real let-down, though, is the built-in stereo speaker system: we've heard better and much louder sound on a £5 transistor radio. On this display you have to strain to hear anything even from a few feet away. ViewSonic would have been better off cutting £20 off the price rather than adding speakers to the screen.

Which brings us to pricing. The VX2025wm is expensive, and there are a few cheaper monitors with similar resolutions, however the high contrast ratio, the low power consumption - just 35W, around half the consumption of its competitors - and the colour quality make it worth the extra money.

A 'true' widescreen monitor that will help improve productivity, put the "Wow" into Vista and allow you to watch movies with a few friends. It's expensive but it's worth stretching to. Ignore the built in speakers unless you need an additional set of tweeters.