A reliable screen cleaner, from Monster

Q What is the best way to clean my LCD TV screen? I have a 37-inch model with a matte screen surface.

RICHARD FONG, WOODBURY

A It is easy to scratch or damage the screen if you use the wrong cleaning solutions or a cloth that has any abrasive properties. Even some paper towels have fibers that could scratch your screen. For this reason, I strongly recommend that all TV owners make a small investment in a proper cleaning kit. You can use it to clean your computer monitors, too.

These kits contain a spray bottle of solution and a cleaning cloth, both guaranteed to be safe for the screen. The best kits include a microfiber cloth which is highly absorbent, picks up dust easily, and of course, will not scratch the screen.

As much as it pains me to recommend any Monster Cable product, Monster's ScreenClean kit (or TV CLNKIT) is the best value I know. It lists for $20 and includes a generously sized bottle of cleaning solution and a microfiber cloth of excellent quality. It is fully price competitive with equally functional products -- a good product and a good buy.

As for why it pains me to recommend a Monster Cable product, the company is largely responsible for establishing the silliness of high-priced audio cables and speaker wire, one of the biggest scams on the face of the Earth. It also has a penchant for suing small businesses it doesn't compete with. Just do a Google search under "monster cable lawsuit" as well as "monster cable blue jeans cable" and visit www.monstercable1.com.

Still, despite what I think of Monster and the way it does business, I do not know of a better cleaning kit under $20, or a better one selling for more money. The kit is also easy to find at retail. For these reasons, I feel obligated to tell readers about it, and if you pick one up the next time you are shopping, you got a good deal and did yourself and your TV a favor.

A foreign matter Q I received a DVD from France that was made by transferring a mini videotape to a blank DVD disc. It will not play on my DVD player; the display reads "Not Regional." It will play on my laptop. I was told to find a DVD player that would play foreign DVDs. So far, I haven't had any luck. Any suggestions?

VLADIMIR KUZMA, VINELAND, N.J.

A The key words are "region free DVD player." A Web search under those terms will reveal lots of options.