The ASUS VC239H is probably one of the most popular monitors from the brand, primarily due to a combination of a decent feature set and very competitive pricing. Now, ASUS has announced its successor, the VZ239HR, offering all the goodness of its predecessor in an slimmer and more elegant looking body.
ASUS VZ239HR Specs:
- Panel Size: 23.0 inches, 16:9
- Panel Type: IPS
- True Resolution: 1920 x 1080
- Response Time: 5ms (Gray to Gray)
- Signal Input: HDMI, D-Sub
- Voltage : 100-240V, 50 / 60Hz
- Dimensions with Stand (WxHxD): 531 x 387 x 211 mm
Design and Build Quality
At first glance, the VZ239HR looks a lot like the VZ249H, which we reviewed a few months back, except that the front bezel is now in a brushed black metal finish.
What’s so likable about this monitor is how thin it is, not only from the sides, but bezel-wise as well. It’s almost unbelievable how they were able to fit all those components in such a slim shell. It also uses an IPS panel, which means colors appear richer and more lively compared to a TN panel.
At the bottom right are the navigation keys, which you can use to adjust the monitor’s settings. Unfortunately, you won’t know what each button does until you bring up the menu. It might be for cutting down costs, but a joystick like control similar to that of the PG348Q would’ve been better.
At the back, you’ll find a pair of speakers, the Power port, an HDMI port, and a VGA port, which makes it a good option for office PC’s which don’t usually have a dedicated graphics card.
Unfortunately, you don’t have the option of adjusting the height, or swiveling the monitor to the sides, unless you actually carry the entire stand with it, you can however tilt it up and down to adjust your viewing angle. It’s also not VESA mountable, so you’ll have to settle with the stand if you plan on using it on a multi-monitor setup.
Performance
The VZ239HR should be more than enough for most office tasks, such as word processing, spreadsheets and web browsing. Animations are smooth, and switching between apps is fluid. It’s also a good monitor for media consumption, such as watching videos on YouTube and iflix.
For gaming, the responsiveness won’t of course compare to those dedicated gaming monitors with G-Sync and high refresh rates, but the overall experience is still satisfactory across different titles. And hey, we’re talking of a sub PhP10K monitor here., so you really can’t expect that much.
The speakers on the side demonstrate good treble though base isn’t audible. They also fall short in terms of volume. There’s an audio out port at the back, which you can connect to a more “proper” sound system, just in case you really want to run it from the monitor, but I highly suggest that you just use your computer’s own sound port.
Software
Unlike the higher tier models such as the PG27VQ and the PG348Q, the VZ239HR doesn’t have a joystick for navigating the on-screen interface, but uses a set of buttons located at the bottom right. When navigating the menus, a sort of legend will be displayed at the top of the buttons to indicate what each one does. Not the most intuitive way of going through things, but it works.
The OSD gives you access to the basic features such as brightness and contrast adjustment, Splendid gives you the option of changing the overall color temperature of the display depending on what you’re doing. On a personal note, I usually just set it to Game Mode, but of course, to each his own.
You can also change the input settings from HDMI to VGA, adjust the volume on the speakers, and set the transparency for the OSD, among other options.
Verdict
The ASUS VZ239HR is a good monitor both for home and office use, as it has ports that can accommodate PC’s which don’t or do have a dedicated graphics card. It’s also quite well-designed as the thin body makes it look very elegant and would make a good fit for just about any workspace.
In terms of performance, most users who are into productivity and media consumption should find the experience more than satisfying. It’s not the best for gaming, but it’s more than enough for those who are on a budget. The way that you navigate the UI isn’t the most intuitive, but it shouldn’t be a problem once you get the hang of it.
Despite the few downs, it’s a monitor that gives you good value for your money at just PhP8,930, and has just about all you’ll expect and need from a device at its price segment. Nothing more, and nothing less. Just make sure to have an HDMI cable, as it doesn’t come with one.
Emman has been writing technical and feature articles since 2010. Prior to this, he became one of the instructors at Asia Pacific College in 2008, and eventually landed a job as Business Analyst and Technical Writer at Integrated Open Source Solutions for almost 3 years.
