Iiyama claims this monitor is perfect for both work and leisure. Using their internal marking system, it gets the maximal mark of 8/8 for both uses. While we agree with Iiyama on the office mark, our gaming tests gave a much different result.

Ergonomics

The E481S features integrated speakers, a front headphones-in, an analog input, a DVI input, an internal power supply and really very wide viewing angles. However, the height can't be adjusted, there's no USB hub, no easy wall-mounting screws and no pivot mode.

Colors

The manufacturer's settings are quite bright but already satisfactory. From nearly black to blank, colors are rendered quiet well. In any case, it's good enough for personal use: editing family photos, Internet browsing, some games... But the screen is not black enough for professional image editing.

A calibration and some tweaking of the available settings let you reduce the brightness up to a level closer to CRT without loosing rendering quality. However, this does not improve black colors.

Interpolation

Iiyama doesn't do better than the others: outside the 1280 x 1024 native mode, the picture loses its sharpness. The further you get from it, the blurrier a still picture will get, which is even worse for a moving image.

Games

The E481 doesn't do any better than other monitors that are built around an IPS panel - fast games are spoiled by an exaggerated afterglow. So even with beautiful colors, clear and enticing still pictures, this monitor can only be used for slow games like Sims or Solitaire.

Movies

Up close, a little flickering can still be noticed, but you'll forget about it from even a one meter distance. From this distance, you'll appreciate the very beautiful colors. While you may notice a slight afterglow, you'll surely be satisfied by the overall result. However, it is still far from what a CRT monitor offers. But as a second TV, the E481S is better than average, thanks mainly to its very wide viewing angles.