A gem in hiding: 27" Benq EW2730v

I just purchased this monitor now and I have a dell u3011 as well so I am used to quality displays. This BenQ even outperforms my dell in the deep dark inky blacks it produces. The screen is so clear and vibrant and poppy. This BenQ has to be the king of contrast ratios and is amazing for full screen gaming and movie watching.

It's also an A-MVA panel the latest generation of them with an improved 8ms response time vs 12ms last generation. Still not as fast as TN but greatly improved and there rly is no annoying ghosting. It's also a true 8 bit panel and not a 6 bit with AFRC. Of course IPS like viewing angles.

And the price, that's why I had to post my thoughts. At only 380 dollars this monitor is a freakin steal. It also has dvi-i/d x1 hdmi x2 vga x1 component x1 RCA audio in x1 headphone out x1 3wx2 speakers

And another great feature is the 24p proper cinema playback as well as the picture in picture and split screen left and right pictures showing 2 sources at once.

The stand tilts swivels and adjusts however you want it to which is another premium feature. The design is beautiful to look at. And a nice 4 port usb hub to top it off. Did I mention literally the blackest blacks of any current monitor i've ever seen? All for 380 dollars. Why aren't more people raving on this monitor? Possibly because its stuck at 1920 x 1080. Yes this might not be the best productivity monitor for squeezing in spreadsheets and the like but for what us normal consumers use it for like movies and gaming, the incredible deep blacks bring a level of clarity no other monitor is bringing to the table and it's doing it on the cheap.

I hope more people will shine a spotlight on this monitor. It deserves it.

Another negative is it uses more power than other panels. Even with this panels LED backlighting it still consumes over 70 watts this is possibly why you dont see VA panels in laptops, they are just power hungry by nature. More so than TN or IPS at least.

 

$380 is pretty steep....

For $20 more you can get 1440p...

(Reviewed) $400 2560x1440 IPS no-AG 90hz+ Achieva Shimian QH270 and Catleap Q270

 

$400 from eBay ship from Korea where buyer pays return shipping? No thanks.

 

this thread not about some weird generic panel with no real reviews

This BenQ is the real deal. I challenge you to find deeper blacks in any lcd monitor. This beats the u2711 this beats apple cinema displays this beats HP zr series. Deep blacks = clear non foggy video crystal clear colors that pop.

I just want to bring this monitor to people attention. Once you see how crystal clear the deep blacks makes everything look you will see what i mean. It may not have the super high rez but for movies and games this picture quality makes them look stunning.

And for the price i mean seriously for 380 this thing is beating $1000+ displays and i mean beating them by like 5x darker blacks a noticeable jump better.

And the VA panel it's made from has a huge improvement on the biggest negative of the VA panel, the response time. It's down to 8ms the previous gen was 12ms this brings it in line with many ips panels now. This VA panel has the same incredible viewing angles and the same response time as the way more expensive ips panels. The only real difference is ips = 10 bit and this only = 8 bit but its true 8 bit not 6 bit + A-FRC just true 8 bit.

People need to be buying this panel, we should encourage this manufacture to keep striding for the incredible black levels it gets compared to EVERYONE else even 4 digit offerings

And whats really cool you can display 2 sources at the same time in equal size side by side. You could easily play a video game on 1 half and have the strategy guide up on the web on the other half and being that it's 27 inch 16:9 each half is decent viewing size. 2x hdmi 1x dvi 1x vga 1x component (yes component nice rare feature for monitors) 1x headphone out 4x usb hub and an rca audio in (red+white) to play audio through the 2 3 watt speakers (upgraded from 2 watt speakers on other models). Fully loaded amount of inputs. And the on screen display loaded with all the picture adjustments you need. Can be calibrated easily with proper equipment.

 

There are many versions of that 27" IPS monitor from Korea. Many suspect it is the same panel as used in HP zr2740w as well as others (maybe Apple and Dell too???). I suspect these Korean companies get the panels that don't make the cut for Western manufacturers. They only replace your monitor if you have more than 4 or 5 dead pixels (can't remember exact number) and backlight bleed is expected as are foreign particles behind glass (only certain models have glass). So the price includes a lot of risk, though even adding in $100 for return shipping (which some have done) still makes a decent deal if you are willing to trade time and hassle. Also, thee do not have AG coating, the lack of which is greatly preferred by some.

Anyway, the Benq looks nice if you want 1080p.

 

knight i promise give it a chance some time. This thing produces blacks that look close to oled black no joke. They make my u3011 blacks look bright gray next to it.

I promise when you are watching a movie or playing a game it produces a much more pleasurable viewing experience than any of those 2560 monitors.

You don't hear many monitors getting their black level touted as a plus. That's because everyone has done an incredibly poor job. This BenQ is unique in a sea of dark gray its a black hole of dark. Unique exceptional performance compared to the crowd usually cost a huge premium, well for only 380 you can own one of the best viewing monitors in existence.

Not to mention it has full swivel tilt height adjustments. Super easy and convenient can place the monitor literally in the exact position that's best for you. That's another feature on this monitor that beats the stands on some of the $1000+ monitors. Once again all for 380. Has a sexy modern look to it to that I really like.

I wonder what the black level of the dreamcolor display is. I know it has nicer color saturation and more accurate colors. But the viewing angles would be equal and i wonder if it can out do the deep blacks of the benq.

Yea I think the dreamcolor display even loses in contrast ratio. The $2500 24 inch professional desktop display has a native 1000:1 CR and the 27" BenQ has over 3000:1 Native CR. This BenQ even bests the amazing HP dreamcolor display. This thing has those deep deep blacks that make video just pop.

For 380 dollars you get the deepest blacks out of any LCD monitor in mass production right now. I haven't seen a single monitor beat it. Only local dimming big screen lcds and high end plasmas beat this black level. And if you didn't know, contrast ratio is the most important spec of a tv, it is what our eyes are most sensitive to and carry the heaviest weight on if a picture looks good.

I know this isn't perfect for everyone. many people would rather have slightly grayer blacks and more pixels to work with because it helps them be more productive at their job. But for all the casual pc users, playing games and watching video and browsing the web, having pure black blacks just makes everything look clearer and more immersive and more real.

I mean this thing will even make the almighty dreamcolor display look like grayish blacks side by side. That's an accomplishment.

The input lag was calculated at 15ms which is a very good speed so gaming feels correct.

I just want to bring this monitor to more peoples attention. It is a dream to game and watch movies on. True cinematic experience especially with the proper ability to display 1080/24p video at the proper refresh rate so no 3:2 pull down is required.

 

I actually just bought a used HP zr24w (1920x1200 ips), though I don't have it yet. I really wanted 1200p for the pixels (for my work). I also wanted an IPS monitor to sit next to my laptop Dreamcolor display.

I think at this point people just expect limited black levels from IPS displays. I have to assume the color accuracy can be better on IPS. The goal of the Dreamcolor Monitor (but not the Dreamcolor laptop panels) was to be the first non-CRT "reference" monitor. So I guess they worked really hard to get perfect color reproduction.

Anyway, for gamers and casual users, I think your Benq sounds great. I probably would be interested it if it was 1440p. It seems there only 2 types of 27" monitors on the market for now. 1080p non-IPS and 1440p IPS. I could settle for 1440p non-IPS if it was as good as you make this Benq sound.

 

oh yeah the ips has more accurate colors thats 100% a given. It just comes down to if you really need the extra pixels for your job and if u rly need 100% perfect color accuracy. Just the fact that a 380 dollar display is destroying virtually every monitor in contrast ratio. Maybe people dont mind ips gray blacks but i do. It's hard to go back to watching video on the dell u3011 when the blacks are gray.

I just adjusted the color and other options by my naked eye for the benq and im sure the color accuracy is far from reference grade but my naked eye can't tell its not like purple looks blue and red looks orange or something everything looks right.

I'd love for someone else who has this monitor to post here. It's just a diamond in the rough.

Also its proven science that contrast ratio effects the perceived quality of an image to our eyes more so than color accuracy.

 

I am thorn between this or a Dell u2711.

Is it ok for gaming? I was a bit put off when I saw BenQ EW2730V Smearing test 2 - YouTube

Also how are the viewing angles? I will have it on a high table so I will be "looking up" at it from an angle.

 

i don't get it.

why do people like 1080p 27"ers?

If you like watching movies, get a cheap 32" TV. If you like being productive, then you get a 1080p 24" or a 1440p 27".

The only way I could see this monitor being a choice for anyone is: it has the right inputs or the panel is better than the small TV panels.

 

Thanks for the reply, but I have decided to go with the Samsung S27A850T when it hits the shelves (the price of that monitor is very competitive here in Sweden).

Prices on Amazon.com
S27A850D (older model) = 1379$
Dell U2711 = 853$
HP ZR2740W = 687$
BenQ EW2730V = not listed, but 380$ is written in this thread.

Prices here in Sweden:
S27A850T (newer model) = ~ 950$
S27A850D = ~ 950$
Dell U2711 = ~ 950$
HP ZR2740W = ~ 930$
BenQ EW2730V = ~ 548$

Seems like the Samsung is the most price worthy over here. The BenQ is probably an awesome screen, but after some research I will be going for the Samsung

Have a great day!

 

Again, I do stress. Buy 2 Catleaps for ~$800. Free international shipping.

 

the dell does better with motion but the benq isnt terrible. And yes the benq has deeper blacks and more contrast than the smaller tv's as well. The only displays that have deeper blacks than this benq are higher end plasmas (benq darker than lg plasmas but brighter than samsung and panasonic plasmas) but plasmas dont come in anything smaller than 42" and you cant use them as a computer monitor unless u want the taskbar burned in. Obviously OLED screens are darker as they are the blackest display tech ever. And Local dimming Full array LED which costs 3000+ and cannot be had in anything under 46".

If contrast ratio is important to you and you like images that have pop there is no 27" monitor that gets even half as black as this one, thats how big the gap is.

Search for monitors checkerboard ANSI CR and i bet you wont find a single 27" monitor as good as this BenQ, I tried as I had a hard time believing this company makes the monitor with the highest contrast ratio but they do, their marketing is really poor and nobody even realizes this monitor has the best contrast ratio of everything.

I can admit when ur used to 2560x1440 and you switch to a 1920x1080 you quickly realize that you took for granted bein able to put 2 1280x1440 screens side by side. 2 websites fit perfect next to each other with 2560 horizontal res and it just doesnt work out nearly as good on a 1920 screen. The main time this annoyed me was when trying to write a paper and use the web for research. The 2560 screen can do both side by side easily but not the 1920 screen.

Like I was saying if you dont care about having the extreme resolution and you dont care about the 100% dead on perfect color accuracy for professional work than this screen has no equal at all. When watching a dark scene in a movie my u2711 looks like there is fog everywhere compared to the clear dark blacks of the benq. And those dee blacks make all the other picture attributes that much better.

http://www.samsung.com/us/computer/monitors/LS27A850DS/ZA-specs

That Samsung has a 1000:1 Dynamic CR if thats true the native CR must be VERY poor. Benq pulls over 3 close to 4 thousand to 1 NATIVE CR. It does have a nice screen with accurate colors but its still going to have very gray looking blacks.

 

I can't say I understand the appeal of a 1920x1080 27", I hate my 23.6" 1080p because it's too large for the screen resolution, IMO.

 

The appeal of the screen isn't the resolution it's the deep inky blacks and the wide viewing angles.

Google "IPS glow". Yes IPS screens have those super high resolutions and high color accuracy but the blacks glow like a Christmas tree, it's just part of the technology. If you use your pc mainly for gaming and media consumption then why do you NEED the extra pixels. I'd rather have blacks that are actually black than the extra pixels on an entertainment and media consumption pc that's used for work on the side occasioanally. And deep blacks dont just affect the black level. It makes the entire picture have more pop and excitement. It also makes the picture look crystal clear instead of foggy.

And all these screens you guys are comparing this to is like 1000 dollars vs 400. This screen less than half the price and has a nicer looking picture. The only downsides to the screen are 8ms response time vs 5ms on ips, not as accurate color as ips but way more accurate than tn and plenty accurate enough for everything except critical commercial work and lower resolution which would be nice if they offered a 600-800 dollar version that had 2560x1440 but for 380-400 1080p is very fair.

Unless you just HAVE to have 2560 resolution it's pretty foolish to spend more than double to get a picture that looks worse unless your job makes having the extra pixels invaluable. And I know for a fact first hand experience a dell u2711 side by side with the benq the dell has an uglier picture the lack of a deep black level isn't very noticeable until you have a completely superior black level next to it. Makes the 1000 dollar dell look like a very dull, sterile picture and just makes the benq really show off it's exciting contrasty picture.

Seems like people dont understand that resolution is actually just a very tiny aspect of what makes a monitor good.

 

so....why a 27" monitor over a 32" TV?

 

I can buy a catleap/shimian korean 27" for $370 2560x1440, same panel as the ACD27 and such. No reason to get a panel like this, 1080 is just too large for this size, needs to be much higher resolutioned to be worth it. U2711 calibrated is a very good monitor, more than enough for the vast vast majority of people out there, and imo if you want a 1080 monitor @ 27+ get a TV.

 

I think using a TV on your desk is a bad idea. TV's are designed for a much longer viewing distance than a computer monitor. I've also read that most TVs have significant input lag which would be bad for gaming. I also wouldn't expect top-shelf performance from a 27" TV in this price range.