NEC MultiSync 24WMGX3 24" widescreen LCD

Features & Build Quality

The first thing that greets you when you pull the NEC MultiSync 24WMGX3 out of the box is its striking looks. Upon first impression, it looks incredibly measured and sophisticated as the 17mm thick piano black bezel shines quite literally.

However, when you look closer you start to pick up on some of the more subtle additions that ultimately add to the overall look, but fit in such a way that doesn't look out of place. Things like the sculpted base, which is also in piano black, and the speaker cut-outs either side of the front panel buttons.

There is a downside to the stunning piano blackness though because the sleek looks are only skin deep – a few weeks of sitting in a dusty room or a session tweaking the monitor's settings using the controls, you'll quickly see your gorgeous-looking display turn into a dust or fingerprint magnet. It would have been a nice touch for NEC to include a lint-free cloth for removing these inevitable blemishes, but sadly there isn't one included.


And while we're passing over the front panel buttons, I'm pleased to say that they're all right despite some of them looking a little clumsy. The four function buttons are well spaced if a little small for our liking and the navigation button is also a little fiddly; they just take a little getting used to and, once you've got over the relatively low familiarisation hurdle, they shouldn't be a problem.

Using the display as a PC monitor, the buttons we found ourselves using the most were the INPUT/SELECT and MENU/EXIT buttons, along with the quad-directional navigation button – but once we'd adjusted the display's colour temperatures to our liking, we didn't find ourselves touching them much more, aside from when we wanted to change inputs. The other two buttons are more useful for when you're not using it as a PC monitor – they allow you to flick through various presets or DV Modes and MP Modes as NEC calls them. We'll come back to these later.

Interestingly, because of the monitor's direction, NEC has included a remote control in the box that enables you to not only switch between modes, but also adjust settings through the OSD without having to be sitting right in front of the monitor. And if you really don't like the buttons, you can just use the remote to fully control your display, including things like input selection, picture-in-picture modes, brightness, audio volume and even colour temperature adjustment. What's more, the remote appears to be of a very high quality – the buttons feel positive and are comfortably placed, while the remote itself is well-sized for a fairly average sized pair of hands.


The stand has a good selection of ergonomic options, but they're not the best we've seen – we'd rather have them than not, though. The MultiSync 24WMGX3 features limited height adjustment along with swivel and tilt functionality. Using the height and tilt adjust functionality is a little stiff and clunky unlike many other displays that offer these features—that's down to the design more than anything—and instead of the stand being an expandable column, it's a spring-loaded arm which means that the panel changes its relative position to the base depending on what height you've adjusted it to.

Specification Summary

• Diagonal: 24 inches
  
• Panel Technology: AMVA TFT
  
• Backlight: CCFL
  
• Native Resolution: 1,920 x 1,200
  
• Contrast Ratio: 1,000:1 / 2,000:1 (dynamic)
  
• Brightness: 500 cd/m²
  
• Pixel Response: 6ms (grey-to-grey), 16ms (black-to-white)
  
• Viewing Angles: 178/178 degrees H/V
  
• Inputs: DVI-D (with HDCP), 2x HDMI, D-Sub, Component, Composite, S-video, 3.5mm audio, 2x phono (L+R)
  
• Outputs: Optical S/PDIF, 3.5mm audio, 3.5mm headphone
  
• Chassis Adjust: Height, Tilt, Swivel
  
• Extras: IR Remote (with 2x AAA batteries), 2x 5W surround sound speakers, Picture-in-Picture functionality
  
• Warranty: Three years (parts and labour), including backlight