Conclusion
Overall I'm impressed by the LG, both in terms of specification and initial out of the box impressions. The resolution is a fine fit for the overall screen size, 19" CRT owners will tell you that, and its even brightness and pin sharp display with the DVI connector are a pleasure. Colour reproduction, something that's hard to objectively test without expensive hardware or software, seems excellent. Pure white and pure black are the obvious tests in that respect and it falters a little in the pure black test, appearing slightly grey at one corner. Pure white is passed with flying colours.The unit is attractive, the thin bezel and silver colour see to that, the small buttons help too; stylish without being overly so. I'd maybe have preferred a stylised base, a la Hercules, but the LG sits on something solid and unassuming, prevent your gaze being drawn from the excellent panel.
USB ports are a bonus, the cable is supplied and dual display inputs is something never to be sniffed at. It's usefulness will make its presence felt the minute you need a second monitor for whatever reason.
The full motion performance wasn't to be sniffed at either, despite flaws when pushed to its limits with very fact action games. DVD playback was a piece of cake for it.
Price sits at a shade under £460 at the time of writing, from Scan. There's a version of the 1810B above and below too, for more or less money, should you wish to add a TV tuner and speakers, or take away the DVI input. There's an 18.1" LG with the same basic spec for everyone.
With 18.1" panel prices sitting in the low £500 range for the most part, it appears the LG is decent value for money, should you desperately need the size increase over a 17" panel at the same resolution or you enjoy the LG's aesthetic.
To answer my own question at the start of the article, is it worth ~£130 more than the Hercules, even though the latter is 1.1" smaller and possesses only an analogue input? I don't think so, I prefer the gaming performance of the Hercules and it didn't exhibit the subpixel artifacts the LG sample did.
That's not to say the LG isn't a decent performing, stylish panel with some good value added features, it obviously is. It just appears to have some stiff competition for your hard earned.
Score
Pros
Good lookingPerfect size for the resolution
USB ports
Totally even brightness
Dual input
DVI-I capable
Easy to use OSD
Cons
Fast motion performance wasn't flawlessSubpixel bleeding that couldn't be removed
