Rejecting the square lines and dreary bezels of its competitors, AOC has made heads turn once again with the bold and stylish Verfino V22 LCD monitor. The fashionable design is supported by good image quality and a well-implemented dynamic contrast function. This monitor is suitable for games, movies and general multimedia use.
AOC appears to have taken design cues from LG's Scarlet LCD TV series with the Verfino V22, blending crimson with gloss black for an appealing bezel surrounded by a transparent border; it's a stylish design that we prefer over LG's Scarlet TVs. The wide bottom frame can be a little distracting during use, but the eye-catching bezel will be appreciated by the fashion-conscious.
The other eye-catching aspect of the Verfino V22 LCD monitor is how thin it is. Thanks to WLED backlighting, AOC has managed to create what it claims is the world's slimmest monitor. It's only 19mm thick, although at the bottom there is a slight bulge, increasing the depth to 27mm in order to accommodate the power and input connections. These connections — which include D-Sub, HDMI, USB and line-in ports — will add significantly to the monitor's overall footprint once used, but the Verfino V22's slim design is certainly appealing. The WLED backlighting also reduces the monitor's power consumption to an average 28 Watts during operation, compared to the 35-40W consumed by most 22in LCD monitors.
The AOC Verfino 22in LCD monitor has a 2ms response rate, a maximum resolution of 1680x1050 and a dynamic contrast ratio of 100,000:1. At 280cd/m2, its brightness is slightly inferior to the 300cd/m2 brightness found on many CCFL-backlit 22in LCD monitors.
AOC has integrated speakers, a microphone and a 1.3-megapixel webcam into the Verfino V22 LCD monitor. The speakers' maximum volume isn't particularly impressive and the webcam's clarity is often poor, but they are still commendable inclusions.
You can configure the monitor by pressing the monitor's power button; a silver ring around the button acts as a four-way navigation pad. The on-screen display provides brightness/contrast, image set up and colour temperature options, as well as the settings for dynamic contrast and AOC's ColorBoost technology. This option alters the individual red, green and blue spectrums to improve skin tones and landscapes, which allows for a more vibrant image in movies. Colour temperature settings include an sRGB preset, though other presets have descriptive labels like "warm" and "cool" rather than industry standard temperature indicators.
AOC's insistence on using glossy panels in its monitors limits their placement in well-lit areas. Provided you do find an adequate position, however, the Verfino V22 LCD monitor produces a good quality image to suit standard office tasks and some movie watching and gaming. Black levels could be better — they proved inconsistent across the display — but colours are vibrant once the monitor properly configured.
Most surprising is the implementation of dynamic contrast. After its initial adjustment, the function provides better contrast levels without noticeably altering backlight settings with every change in image brightness. Dynamic contrast is often poorly implemented in 22in monitors. Movies will benefit from the seamless transition delivered by the Verfino V22's dynamic contrast function.
Motion is handled well, with no noticeable ghosting, tearing or other aberrations. In both fast-paced movies and games, the Verfino V22 LCD monitor is a definite improvement over the AOC Zifas 2218Ph. Though the AOC Verfino V22 LCD monitor doesn't represent the pinnacle of WLED technology, it has low power consumption and a vibrant colour palette. If you're after a monitor that has a little more style than the standard fare, the Verfino V22 monitor offers both an appealing design and decent image quality.