Review on IChawk W080PN 592 Inch 1024X768 Built Portable, W080PN-592, HDMI by Kirt Morgan

The first thing to know about iChawk small monitors is that they are actually designed by HannStar Display Corporation and assembled by Shenzhen Qinying Technology Development Company (iChawk Tech) in China. HannStar is the same company that owns Hann.G, which is known for manufacturing gaming monitors. With this, this Taiwanese company definitely has experience in the market. The second thing to know about the small iChawk monitors is their model naming convention. The first set of numbers in the model name determines the screen size, so if you have 097 that's 9.7 inches; If you have 080 then it's 8 inches. Here are some of the most common letters that explain the technical specifications of the monitor: M = metal body, P = plastic body, N = non-touch display, T = (resistive) touch display, R = one-touch resistive display, C = capacitive multi-touch display. -Touch display and D=DVI input. The third thing to know about small iChawk monitors is that their stands are very short, plastic, cheap, and not easy to adjust. They have wide feet, meaning the display doesn't wobble, but they have very little height adjustment. There's a rail on the back of the monitor that the bracket fits into, giving you a couple of inches of adjustment, but no more. There is a ring that you screw in that holds the display to the mount. The bracket attaches to the base where the corner can be secured with a plastic wing nut. Now for the review of the iChawk W080PN-592, I would like to start with the display. It is an IPS panel with 400 cd/m², which I could not verify. The maximum resolution is 1024 x 768 at 75 Hz via HDMI or VGA. My device was bleeding profusely from the backlight and then I noticed the screen wasn't aligned with the frame. The screen probably shifted during shipping, so I had to disassemble the monitor and reconfigure the screen once I first received it. Even after aligning the display, the screen was slightly cropped at the top due to the hole in the frame not being aligned with the screen. I couldn't lower the screen any further because the display control board was in the way. I ended up sanding the top of the hole so no screen was cut off. This has eliminated most of the backlight bleeding, but there is still backlight bleeding at the corners of the screen. Colors are good and not oversaturated on the default picture preset. After selecting the default picture preset, the default brightness was good when navigating the operating system, but I found it too dark when playing the first-person shooter I'm familiar with. I switched to the custom picture preset and increased the brightness to 60 and the picture got brighter, but I noticed a lot of washed out colors that lacked depth. I also have a W097MN-592 which doesn't have this problem when the brightness is set to the same level. Display inputs are decent, with HDMI (preferred), VGA, Composite, and BNC. This gives the display more flexibility for its desired use. I wish the monitor had a 3.5mm audio input in case you want to use VGA with audio. There is also a USB 2.0 port that can be used for USB storage media. It can be used to view text files and images, as well as play music and videos. I tested it and the performance is terrible. It reads discs for a long time and the video stutters at any decent pace. Music through the speakers doesn't sound very good either. The bandwidth for USB 2.0 is not very high and the processor is slow. Sound quality is limited by the internal speakers and there is no headphone jack. The monitor has built-in speakers that sound loud, but they're tinny and have little bass response. It's still nice to have them included for simple tweaks that don't require high audio quality. I tested audio over HDMI and Composite. The buttons on the display are clickable and tactile, but the screen display is slow and not very intuitive. The button functions change after launching the OSD menu and accessing one of its options. This makes no sense and leads to unnecessary learning if you have to change settings regularly. However, switching inputs and adjusting the volume is no problem. Apparently there is a built in feature to update the software, but I couldn't find any new firmware to install on the manufacturer's website. The build quality of the plastic-framed version is okay, but it will come with a fair amount of shock. The screen moves again. The top display vents let the display backlight in from the top, but it takes a lot of effort to find. Although the mount is non-standard, it does support a 75mm x 75mm VESA mount. I'd suggest you get an adjustable stand if you don't want to hunch over trying to look at this small display for desktop use. The package includes a monitor, a stand, and an adhesive pad to stick the stand to the surface. - Standard display mount for the base, HDMI cable, user manual and a small DC power adapter. The manufacturer's box is compact but padded enough to protect the contents during transit. The shipping cost is high, but it only takes about one business week to ship from Shenzhen, China, US Customs Clearance, and ship to East Coast via DHL Express. I give this product 3/5 stars. The plastic frame and build quality are cheap, the screen doesn't like brightness above 50, the on-screen menu is clumsy. It can also use 3.5mm audio input and output. I recommend going with the larger 10-inch display if that size isn't an issue. Just make sure you get the metal framed version. I will now conclude my review by summarizing my opinion on the iChawk W080PN-592. Pros: + Small + Bright IPS panel with good colors at default settings + 75Hz refresh rate + Decent inputs + Speakers included + VESA mount support (75mm x 75mm) Cons: - Questionable build quality with plastic bezel - Increased brightness results in color distortion - Cheap stand - Clumsy OSD - No 3.5mm audio input for VGA users - No pass-through 3.5mm headphone jack - Unusable media playback function Neutral: • Fast but expensive shipping • No DVI-D input • No component input Other Thoughts: • Offer shipping from Revain to save money and time • Improve your monitor's plastic bezel options so the screen doesn't move or obscure the screen • Provide firmware updates if available • Explain the screen type to everyone Your monitors, not only for IPS