For most desktops, both in the workplace and at home, 26 inches is about as big as you'll want to get. Screens of this size are a much neater alternative to having two smaller displays side-by-side, and allow for multiple windows to be visible simultaneously.

NEC's 26-inch widescreen EA261WM is the latest to arrive on the market, and we've certainly no complaints in terms of aesthetics. The bezel is reasonably thin at 16mm and a detachable rear panel helps keep cables neatly out of the way.

The monitor also scores highly as far as ergonomics are concerned. It's height-adjustable (up to 110mm), can tilt 30 degrees backwards as well as 10 degrees forwards and the base will smoothly turn in almost a complete circle. If you prefer portrait mode as opposed to landscape, you can also swivel the screen 90 degrees clockwise.

Five small buttons sit neatly at the bottom right corner of the bezel. The second button from the left is actually a miniature four-way D-pad (or the NaViKey, as NEC calls it) that's used to work your way around the menus; although the menus themselves didn't cause any problems, we found the small size of this control made using it quite fiddly.

Get the latest Dell Coupons and other computer coupons at CheapStingyBargains.com.

Unlike many other new TFTs, there's no HDMI port. You do, however, get a DVI-D port that supports HDCP, so it can be used to watch protected movies via a compatible Blu-ray player. A VGA port is also available, along with a line-in socket to provide the built-in pair of 1W speakers with an audio signal. Two USB ports sit on the left side, as does a headphone socket.

At 400cd/m2 this display certainly isn't short on brightness, but unless you have little regard for your eyes you'll want to peg it back to around 50 percent brightness when up close. Horizontal viewing angles are good, but vertical angles aren't quite so hot, especially when viewed from above.

Like most other 26-inch screens, the EA261WM has a native resolution of 1,900 x 1,200 and, with a response time of 5ms, the monitor's perfectly capable of showing games in their best light: we didn't notice any ghosting during our tests. Although the contrast ratio of 1000:1 is good, movie buffs may be left wanting deeper blacks. However, text looks extremely sharp and overall we were impressed with the display.

NEC has recognised green computing as being a hot topic and fitted the EA261WM with a carbon footprint monitor. Don't get too excited about this: all it does is calculate the total carbon savings made if you reduce the brightness. With its Eco Mode switched on, brightness is also limited to 50 percent, but this is hardly ground-breaking stuff.

When running at full brightness the monitor draws just under 90W. Pull the brightness down to 50 percent and the power draw drops to around 50W, but this is still fairly high and certainly nothing special in terms of environmental friendliness.

Perhaps the biggest stumbling block for the EA261WM is the price. At £489 it's expensive, especially considering that other 26-inch models, such as the Viewsonic VA2626wm, can now be picked up for under £300.

We're not overly impressed with its supposed green credentials, but there's no doubt the NEC EA162WM is a capable display. The only real problem we have with this screen is its high price.