From: mcote@sw.stratus.com (Mike Cote)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.hardware
Subject: E-Machines T16-II Story (long)
Date: 15 Sep 92 13:21:06 GMT
Organization: Stratus Computer, Inc.

I've been holding off replying to the recent requests for opinions about 
monitors and specifically the E-Machines T16-II until I could resolve the
situation.  This is a factual account of my purchase of a T16-II.  I've 
tried to keep my opinions separate.

--

Being in the market for a 16" monitor I did quite a bit of research into 
what was available.   One of the main features I wanted in the monitor was
the ability to support large screen areas (1152 pixels across).   

I settled on the E-Machines T16-II because it supported that resolution and 
because it also had a virtual desktop feature and the resolutions were 
selectable by keystroke on the fly.  I verified with E-Machines and with 
other sales-people that the machine I was going to order in fact supported
the 1152 resolution and checked out the monitor at MACWorld.

I ordered the monitor and DoubleColor LX video card (also from E-Machines) 
from a mail-order house and waited the prescribed 2 days shipping.  The
monitor and card arrived as promised but the instructions did not indicate 
how to configure it for an 1152 resolution.  This monitor would only support
a maximum of 1024 horizontal pixels.  A call to E-Machines determined that 
I had the "old" version that just got replaced by a newer model but the 
designation did not change.

Moral 1: If you order this monitor make sure you know which one you are getting.

After talking to the E-Machines tech-support we determined the situation and
they agreed to send me the new model as a replacement.  Another prescribed 
3 day wait and I had the new monitor. 

Monitor #2 was down-right broken.  It could sync to the higher resolution but
the edges of the MAC desktop rolled off into a bright white line.  No matter
how I adjusted the controls I could not get both the Apple menu icon and the
Multifinder icon to display.  In addition, the monitor was extremely sensitive 
to vibrations and the screen would jitter at the slightest touch.  Another 
call to E-Machines determined that this probably broke in shipping and they'll
send me another one.

Monitor #3 took 1.5 weeks to get because they were out of stock until the 
beginning of September.  When this arrived it still had the same problem 
syncing to the higher resolution but the jitter problem was gone.

Another call to E-Machines and Video Card #2 arrives 3 days later.  Still 
doesn't work.  The edges of the MAC desktop roll off into a bright white line.

Another call to E-Machines determines that they did in fact fix the problem 
with the DoubleColor LX card and the monitor but that now I have to use one
of the reserved settings of the internal selector to get it to work properly.
Anyway, a month later I have a monitor that will display 1152 horizontal pixels.

Moral #2:  If you plan to use the maximum resolution for this make sure you 
are getting Rev 2 of the Double Color LX card.

Moral #3:  If you have any problems with the monitor or card and you ordered
from a mail-order house, work with the E-Machines tech support people.  I 
talked to 3 different people there on numerous phone calls.  They were ALWAYS
pleasant and helpful (although it took awhile to get this resolved).  They 
sent me two replacement monitors and a replacement video card which I still 
have (soon to be shipped back).  My thanks to John, Scott, and Carol.

=============================================================================
Conclusions:

I like the monitor a lot.  The 1152 resolution while very small is still 
quite clear and readable.  I love the ability to switch between resolutions
on the fly.  The color is bright and consistent.  I rarely see any moire 
patterns on the screen except in large areas of gray patterns but even then
the moire is hardly noticeable.

The virtual desktop is pretty neat if you need lots of screen space and 
don't mind doing the panning across the displayed area.  The pan is fast and
smooth although the menu bar flashes a lot during panning.

A couple problems with the monitor.  It is quite deep.  Its hard to keep it 
on the table since it takes up most of the width of the table.  

A note for those of you who plan to switch resolutions on the fly.  You can 
only switch between two resolutions plus 2x each of those resolutions without
having to change a switch setting on the video card.  For example, my setup is
currently switching between 1152x870, 832x624, 576x435, 416x312.  The other 
reasonable alternative would switch between 1024x768, 832x624, 512x384, 416x312.
I find that the 2x resolutions are way to big for any reasonable work.  My 
personal preference would be to set up the monitor to switch between 
1152x870, 1024x768, 832x624 but I don't think that this will happen.


The only other problem I have with the monitor is that occasionally it does 
not properly recall user settings for adjusting the picture when I power-on 
or restart the machine.

If you have any specific questions, I'll be glad to answer what I can.

mpac
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.hardware