LCD monitors come in two main varieties; regular and widescreen. Widescreen devices are intended primarily for those who want to watch movies or TV, or to play games on their machines, as well as to work with normal applications. Regular 4:3 or 5:4 aspect ratio screens take up a lot less width, though, and are usually a better bet for straight business use, particularly for word processing and programming.

The Taiwanese company Hannstar is best known for its range of designer screens, which it markets under the Hannspree brand, but the HANNS.G HC196D is a conventional looking, 19-inch monitor with a number of extras not normally found in a monitor at this price. The first is a toughened front surface, which in this case is acrylic, though that doesn't stop retailers calling it ‘hard-glass'. The covering protects the screen from knocks and is a bit less reflective than glass, so is a welcome feature.

Get the latest Dell Coupons and other computer coupons at CheapStingyBargains.com.

Secondly, it has a Digital Video Interface (DVI) input fitted, as well as the ubiquitous 9-pin analogue VGA connection, though you'll have to buy a DVI cable separately. Monitors with the simpler and higher-quality DVI are usually notably more expensive than VGA-only devices, because they attract consumer electronics rather than computer equipment import duties from the EU.

Thirdly, the monitor has twin, 1W speakers fitted to the fascia under the screen, so can handle audio directly from the output of your PC (an audio cable is supplied). While we wouldn't recommend the sound if you enjoy listening to music, the speakers are adequate for playing back speech from news-clip soundtracks and the like. The sound is tinny, but there's some mid-range response.

As for the display itself, the picture is sharp and clear, though the default colours in analogue mode have a bit too much red in them. Fortunately, as well as Warm, Natural and Cool colour settings, there's a User mode where you can adjust red, green and blue settings individually. With a bit of tweaking here you can obtain a more natural rendering.

Adjustments are available from the display's menu system, which is fairly easy to use, though the four buttons below the screen don't use the same icons as the menu display, which is initially confusing.

If you use DVI, of course, there's less electronics in the way. The digital output from the graphics card doesn't have to be converted to analogue, sent to the monitor and promptly converted back for the digital display. The result is a cleaner, more accurate image so, for the cost of a cable, it would be our connection of choice.

There are lots of 19-inch LCD monitors around, but few under £100 have acrylic screens and DVI built in. This all-digital connection offers quite an improvement to screen image quality, without the need to fiddle with settings or even press the Auto-configure button. Given the monitor's other features and specifications, it gives the HC196D an edge.