Samsung Electronics, a worldwide leader in LCD technology and products, today announced the launch of seven new monitors under its Art Series.

The Art Series comprises of a range of monitors that combine the highest levels of style with quality and all-purpose applications. These models have a rich aesthetic quality and are designed to sit as objet d’art in the homes of style-conscious users.

“The Art Series are monitors that shine even without power,” says Alvin Lam, manager – Monitor Product Marketing, Samsung Electronics Hong Kong. “Today’s consumers don’t purchase’ function;’ they purchase ‘difference’. The Art Series monitors are masterfully designed to make a striking statement about who the owner is as an individual.”

Samsung created the Art Series to appeal to the tastes of discerning modern users. Previously, size was all that seemed to matter with LCD monitors. Today’s consumers, however, do not think that resolution and function should take a back seat to a large screen size. Moreover, they also demand a beautiful design to accentuate the features of the model and complement the decor of their homes and offices. In fact, as the margin of functionality narrows with technological advances, consumers are increasingly looking to style and design as key differentiators.

Nature was the muse that inspired the designers of the Art Series displays; a fact evident in the way their organic lines soothe the eye. The elegant simplicity of their exteriors is made possible by a boltless surface finished in high-glossy ebony-black and ivory-white and set off by a sparkling jewel-like LED power button backlit in translucent-blue. Care has been taken to remove any unnecessary visual distractions from the surfaces of these models. Lettering is absent and controls and cords are hidden to allow them to boldly boast their beauty in the purest minimalist forms.

The 932GW, 2032GW and 2232GW: Crystal Clear Screen for a Crisper and Clearer Picture

Winners of prestigious iF Design awards in 2007, the 19” 932GW, 20” 2032GW, and 22” 2232GW is proud to introduce a revolutionary hinge mechanism that adds freedom, flexibility, and expansive expression. The iF Award winning world’s first elastomer ball hinge system rotates with a graceful, fluid motion, and offers soft, smooth monitor angle adjustment so that you can enjoy elegance and style in every detail. The renowned experts who comprise the International Forum Design Awards recognized these monitors with the 2007 iF Material Award Winner (Gold) and the 2007 iF Product Design Award Winner.

Three of them come with a Glare Panel with Magic Clear coating added for a clearer, crisper image. Even in the brightest light conditions the screen remains crystal clear due to the MagicClear coating on the Glare Panel. This ensures that external light sources do not affect the purity of the picture or the quality of your viewing.

Like their predecessor the 226BW, these displays use high glossy black bezel material, but the curves at the end of the monitors are reminiscent of a wine glass. The stands resemble the stem of a wine glass and the back is also finished in curves, and does not show any unnecessary elements. The electric cord terminal and the dual (D-Sub, DVI) terminals are located so that it cannot be viewed from outside, and the outlets on the top and bottom were finished neatly. The former model had a cover for the terminals, but it could not hide the messiness of the cords, which is probably why you don’t see it on the 932GW, 2032GW and 2232GW. Even the menu located beneath the bezel is mostly hidden. You only see five buttons including the menu, the up down cursors (two buttons), select and auto buttons. The rest, including the indicator, is hidden in the bezel, which you can barely make out. They did use a blue LED to accentuate the power button, which is displayed prominently unlike the others.

The important thing to note here is that the art of concealment did not result in discomfort. Most television consumers try out various color settings when they first buy the product, but end up using the basic settings after a while. The monitor offers the basic OSD, but you can finish its setting by simply pressing the "Auto" button.

The 961BF: Chic Yet Comfortable

Despite its tasteful aesthetics, the streamlined 961BF is designed to make your entertainment and work life more comfortable and it is a double winner of the esteemed iF Design and red dot design awards in 2007. The Dual Hinge feature allows this model to be used as both a stand-up and a tablet monitor, and long with a 170-degree tilt feature enables users to view images with increased flexibility.
Image quality is also a winning feature of the 961BF – an enhanced brightness LCD panel, 2ms response time and 3000:1 contrast ratio determines excellence in the final color expressions and lifelike images. The monitor also supports High Bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP), which allows users to view high resolution video and, with DVI port connections, users can preview HDTV and high-quality films from their DVD players.
Furthermore, the 961BF comes with Samsung's proprietary Response Time Accelerator (RTA) chip that minimizes response time when switching colors. This exclusive Samsung RTA chip has, phenomenally, reduced the time needed for switching between mid-level colors (Gray to Gray) in moving images to 2ms. This viewing solution reduces blurring and is ideal for design professionals who use programs such as CAD and anyone who spends long periods looking at a screen, including entertainment and multimedia aficionados.

The 971P+: The Premium of Style with World Best Dynamic Contrast

Also an iF Design and red dot design award winner, the 971P+ can be curved, flexed and positioned to any height or angle imaginable, giving stunning displays every time. This monitor has a 178-degree viewing angle, both vertical and horizontal, providing wide unrestricted viewing whether the viewer is sitting, standing or walking through the room. The freedom of movement is enhanced further by Magic technology: MagicStand allows the monitor to be raised, lowered, folded and tilted for optimum viewing angles while MagicRotation operates automatically when the monitor is pivoted, providing maximum comfort and visibility.

Beautifully and efficiently designed, the 971P+ is the embodiment of creativity par excellence. Its three-jointed design serves not only to increase flexibility but also to decrease bulkiness. Moreover, the sophisticated look of the monitor is not tarnished by a nest of tangled cords because it has USB and power cord ports neatly tucked away into the base.

This model also comes with MagicBright and MagicTune, and has a 6ms response time (GTG) and world’s highest contrast ratio available – 4000:1 – And Samsung’s exclusive Super Patterned Multiple Domain Vertical Alignment (S-PVA) technology. Samsung’s PVA Panel presents razor-sharp, crisp images, unbeatable viewing angles, and clean and natural color, making it the best choice for both corporate professionals and home entertainment enthusiasts.

The 971P+ also has an RTA chip and received the Windows Vista Premium certification.

The 732N+ and 932B+: Elegant in Style and Movement

Winners of esteemed 2007 iF Product Design Award, the 732N+ and 932B+ are exceptional 17” and 19” monitors. With a revolutionary new ball-hinge mechanism, the elegance of the 732N+ and 932B+ exteriors is reflected in the fluidity of their movements. The world-first elastometer ball allows unprecedented flexibility and freedom for graceful rotation of the monitor.

Although these models could sit comfortably in any art collection, they are also designed to be used. Both the 732N+ and 932B+ offer solid specifications, including a 2000:1 contrast ratio, 5ms response time, and 1280 x 1024 resolution, making them ideal for home entertainment and gaming, as well as SOHO users. These two displays also feature , MagicBright 2, and MagicTune, as well as an auto adjustment feature that automatically optimizes the image for the screen.

For more information about Samsung’s complete line of LCD monitors, please visit www.samsung.com/he/products/monitor, or call the Samsung Customer Services Hotline at (+852) 3698-4698.

About iF Design Award
The iF Design Awards, which were established in 1954, are sponsored by International Design Forum, Hannover, Germany. They are among the world's most prestigious design awards, along with the Industrial Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) of the US. The winning products, selected at year-end, are on display at CeBIT.

For more information, please visit www.ifdesign.de.

About red dot design Award
The red dot design award, whose origin goes back to 1955, is one of the largest most renowned design competitions in the world today. It consists of the different disciplines “red dot award: product design”, “red dot award: communication design”, and “red dot award: design concepts” which has been held annually since 2005 in Singapore. In total, the 2006 competition has received more than 5,000 entries from almost 50 nations.