[monitordude]

Hello there,

I am now working from home because of covid19. I want to upgrade my monitors so I can have better work space and have a better photo editing setup. I currently use a U2414h with a U2312hm. They are connected by displaychain to my work’s laptop with a HD520.. On my personal desktop, I have a RX 580 8GB, so I don’t have a problem with running 2 4k displays. I like sharp text (thank you macbook pro and iphone) and more details for photo editing, so I bought/tried a 27″ 4k display about 1 year ago to pair it with my monitors and windows scaling between monitors was horrible when dragging one window to the other screen. The text gets blurry or windows get bigger (even spotify windows app is not acting correctly) Also, since I can’t use my desktop to work, because I need the laptop’s vpn to connect to my work servers, I can’t just use 2 4k displays at 60hz with the HD520. Also, citrix doesn’t work well with hidpi screens. I am pretty sure downsizing to 1080p will result in a blurry screen.

I was thinking in buying two Dell U2719D, but I just feel like spending more than CDN$1000 for two 1440p monitors with only 60hz is like buying 2012 technology. 1440p will never become mainstream, people will probably just change their 1080p monitors to 4k ones in the next 10 years. Also, 1080p content can be problematic on a 1440p monitor. Also, for photography use, it’s like if I go back to black and white in terms of picture clarity because the monitors won’t show as much details as 4k. I’m not sure what to do next…..I feel like I am stuck with 1080p until I can go back to work at the office and then be able to buy 4k monitors for home only.

As for an ultrawide monitor, I feel like I will be “losing” my windows all the time. I’m not really organized when using a computer. Also, I’m not sure I will like the curve and have more windows on the front screen will probably make me lose more time haha…adhd 🙁

Maybe I am diabolizing 1440p monitors. I have never owned one. I know there is the BenQ PD2705Q coming up which is CDN$399 and is 100%srgb and 10 bit color. I am just afraid of color uniformity problems with cheaper benqs, because it’s not a model in the Photovue series. Also, it seems it doesn’t support displaychain……

Are there scaling problems when using two 4k monitors together? I have heard that some people find the 150% scaling option to render the text blurry compared to 125, but the latter being too small to read comfortably.

Please help me get my thoughts together so I can make a wise decision!

thank you very much for all your work.

[PCM2]

Hi monitordude and welcome,

I think this is an interesting topic and others will be in a similar position. But I think you’re overthinking things, worrying unnecessarily and driving yourself into a tizzy. Easy to do in these current unsettling and uncertain times, of course. The ‘4K’ UHD resolution was first introduced on monitors in 2013, around 7 years ago. Back then people were going through the same thought process, thinking that the resolution would be the only one that would matter going forward and everything else would cease to exist. But the fact of the matter is, that hasn’t happened. A large focus on the 2560 x 1440 (WQHD) market has and will continue to be high refresh rate models. It’s much easier to drive that resolution than ‘4K’ at high refresh rates. Whilst graphics horsepower will continue to improve, it will take a long time for cheaper GPUs to reach a stage where they can comfortably pump out high frame rates at 3840 x 2160. They’re starting to get there for the 2560 x 1440 resolution, but game developers are also making the graphics more complex in games.

There is plenty of demand for the 2560 x 1440 resolution regardless of resolution, though, especially for 27″ monitors. It’s a comfortable resolution for many to use without scaling, the pixel density is decent and so is the amount of ‘desktop real-estate’ you’re given. Whilst scaling support has improved over the years, there are still some elements that don’t scale perfectly. Things that can stand out, especially with relatively high levels of scaling (150% would be considered relatively high). Our article on the topic, which I linked to in the first paragraph, gives some examples of elements that scale ‘cleanly’ and those that don’t. You’ve seen for yourself some examples of this as well! Monitors are all about compromise and many (but not all) are prepared to make this compromise in terms of needing to use scaling and dealing with those imperfections. For those who aren’t, or are simply perfectly satisfied with the WQHD resolution, it really makes little sense to plump for a higher resolution model. The slightly sharper appearance of video content doesn’t usually sway people and if you saw Full HD video content on a WQHD and ‘4K’ UHD model side by side you’d see why. It really isn’t a huge difference in that respect.

For photography or viewing high resolution image content in general, I think it’s a massive exaggeration to suggest that a WQHD model would be like “going back to black and white” in terms of picture clarity. There’s certainly a difference, but it’s probably not as big as you’re thinking in your head. It also depends how close you’re sitting to the monitor, you’re eyesight and how you like to edit photos (zoomed in or seeing them as a whole etc.) I also tend to find 27″ ‘4K’ UHD models have less than optimal screen surfaces. They can be quite grainy compared to many WQHD models with a few rare exceptions such as the Philips 276E8VJSB and 278E1A. A key reason, alongside overall value, we recommend the 276E8VJSB and its cousin in various threads here (example).

I wouldn’t be put off the BenQ PD2705Q because it’s “a cheaper BenQ”. There are no guarantees when it comes to uniformity on monitors of anywhere near this price. And even significantly more expensive models or those that are moderately more expensive, such as the BenQ Photovue series you mention, don’t usually have a guaranteed uniformity spec. Instead, they have a digital Uniformity Compensation setting which can improve colour and brightness uniformity at the expense of contrast. It doesn’t always work all that reliably, either, and things tend to shift over time. So if it’s just a factory-calibrated UC setting it isn’t always a great long-term solution. To me it sounds like you should give one of the 2560 x 1440 models you mention a shot. You can always return it if you’re not satisfied and I think trying it out with that in mind is better than admitting defeat and potentially sticking with a far more limiting Full HD model for the foreseeable future.

Edit: Forgot to mention your comment regarding UltraWides. You certainly shouldn’t dismiss them because you think you’ll “lose Windows”. I’ve heard some weird reasons for not going for a particular resolution or aspect ratio before, but that’s a new one! A 34″ 3440 x 1440 UltraWide isn’t that much wider than a 27″ 16:9 monitor (good visualisation) and it doesn’t take much longer to scan the eyes across it, so I don’t really see the issue.

[monitordude]

Hello,

Thank you for your reply. It is very informative. What I mean by I will “lose windows” (sorry, English isn’t my first language), is that I tend to open windows over windows. I never use multiple desktops nor do I use windows+arrow command.

I think I will try the a 2k monitor. Now, I am not sure which one to get. My plan is to get a pair of 27 inch monitor and try to find a mount for them. Here are the uprunners:

1- BenQ SW2700PT has 99% aRGB Delta E ≤ 2 and LUT hardware calibration. More expensive than the Dell U2719D. I am not sure if I need aRGB right now because I do not print my photos frequently. It comes with a hood. I would probably not buy 2 of them, because it’s not necessary. I would buy a Dell U2719D and daisychain the signal to the SW2700PT. It would

2 – BenQ SW270C seems like the new version of the SW2700PT with thinner bezels, different coating. Would look better in a dual setup with the Dell U2719D for example. It’s more expensive than the SW2700PT by about CDN$300 before tax. As with the SW2700PT, I wouldn’t buy two of them.

3 – Dell U2719D. I would get 2 monitors. It’s the cheaper one. Monitors would be physically identical. Might be better for mounting. It doesn’t support aRGB and it doesn’t have hardware calibration.

On another note, some artist that I follow on youtube reviewed positively the SW2700PT, but he said that if he had the budget, he would get a 32 inch 4k monitor because the level of details is amazing. Others just say like when they make the switch from Apple Thunderbolt display to 4k it’s like they have new eyes. I also saw that since catalina, font rendering in macos with non hidpi screens is problematic because they only use gray anti-aliasing or something like this.

Here are some other questions:

1 – Would buying two different models be a wise choice? I guess I would never be able to calibrate them so they show almost similar colors.
2 – Would working with a 27 inch QHD and a 24 inch 1080p display be annoying if I mount them ? In terms of switching apps from one window to the other because of the size difference?

thank you very much.

[PCM2]

That’s what I thought you meant when you were talking about UltraWides and what I assumed when I replied to you. But I do understand how you might prefer a more ‘compact’ viewing experience. Especially if you feel multiple monitors might appeal. Having support for extended gamuts is nice – you’re right that Adobe RGB is generally preferred for printing as the gamut tends to match printer output more closely and encompasses a lot of shades that many printers can print that the sRGB space is missing. With models like the SW270C you also get good coverage of the DCI-P3 colour space, which some users like to use for digitally distributed content. It’s becoming more popular due to the rise of HDR but some find it a nice colour space to work with for photo editing and suchlike as well. If you’re wanting to view the content on a wide range of have it so people with ‘any old monitor’ could enjoy the works then the sRGB colour space is still the standard to focus on.

I agree that the ~32″ screen size lends itself very nicely to the ‘4K’ UHD resolution. And I certainly make this clear in my reviews when I discuss the experience (example). Such models do indeed come at a significant premium compared to comparable 27″ models with either a ‘4K’ UHD or WQHD resolution. Please avoid using the term ‘2K’ by the way – nothing personal, but it’s a bad way to refer to the 2560 x 1440 resolution.

Two different models could indeed be very difficult to calibrate due to potentially very different backlight designs and capabilities. It can sometimes be difficult enough to get two monitors of the same model to match, but if you throw very different backlights into the equation then there are going to be natural differences in output that can’t ever be fully compensated for. Some people do use multi-monitor setups with models of different size and resolution. It’s not something I would personally get on with, although I tend to prefer single large high resolution monitors over multiple smaller models with a lower resolution. That’s just a personal preference, though, and when I do use multiple displays I feel that having a similar height and pixel density is more pleasing. It certainly feels less disjointed that way when you flow the mouse over from one screen to the other, but some people seem to get on fine with more of a mismatch between monitors.

[monitordude]

Hello there,

I have had health problems in the last weeks (not covid19 related). I haven’t been able to order the monitors until now. I almost completely made my mind to order the u2719d through Amazon but I just have a few quick questions:

About U2719D
1- What is the coating like on the U2719D? I have read that it’s light or medium depending on the review. How do they compare to the coating of the U2414H or U2312HM (please I don’t want this one lol)

2- I have seen people going over 4 replacements because of the backlight bleeding of the u2719d. Is this normal? Image with 2 monitors, it would be like 8 replacements.

3- I am suffering with the U2414h because of the whole “act like a tv ” monitor. When connected to my mac laptop (mdp to displayport), I had to edit the monitor’s edid so it can be seen as a monitor and be sent the whole RGB spectrum. On windows (displayport), I need make sure my RX580 sends the correct signal and in linux (kubuntu 20.04, I can’t even know if the amd card is sending the right signal…on the monitor OSD, it says RGB but I’m not sure if it’s the full or limited spectrum)

Other options
4- Do you know of any new release before the end of the summer that might interest me and have a nice monitor around the same price. I feel the U2719D is quite expensive for what it gives when compared to 1440p gaming monitors with 100% srgb and even 144hz. Would you have one model to recommend me that could be as color accurate as the u2719d but with 144hz? Is it true that even if you do not game, you feel the difference in everyday life?

5- The Asus PA278QV is cheaper by $80 compared to the u2719d. It has freesync up to 75hz, 100% srgb delta 2. It comes with DVI, HDMI 1.4, DP, mDP, but I am not sure it’s possible to do daisychaining. If it were not the case, how can I connect my laptop to 2 screens at full resolutions 60hz (it has one dp out and one vga)?

4- The BenQ PD2700Q is on sale where I am located. Yes, it has thicker bezels (which I have heard might help reduce blacklight bleeding), yes it doesn’t have usb3 and only displayport 1.2, but it’s about $100 less per monitor than the U2719D. It has 100% sRGB vs 99% on the dell. I do have a calibrator i1 pro display.

Thank you very much.

[PCM2]

I’m sorry to hear of your health problems. To address your questions:

1) We always explore screen surface in our relatively recent reviews and the U2719D review is no exception. As explored there it has a medium (could be described as ‘relatively light’) screen surface. It imparts a light ‘misty’ graininess to lighter content, but not an obvious ‘smeary’ or layered appearance. So it’s more like the U2414H than U2312HM (I’m having flashbacks about that model’s screen surface now I’m thinking about it).

2) I’ve received plenty of positive feedback about the U2719D, most of it is positive in fact. The slim bezels do indeed make it somewhat more prone to pressures that would cause or exacerbate uniformity issues than models with more robust bezels. As does the fairly slender nature of the screen. But I don’t consider it significantly worse than average for a modern monitor in that respect and if I did I wouldn’t recommend it.

3) Colour signal issues of that sort are not a concern on 2560 x 1440 (WQHD) monitors or other models with a resolution or refresh rate not shared with TVs.

As for alternatives, I think the BenQ PD2705Q mentioned earlier in the thread is a good bet. Early feedback I’ve received is positive. Same can be said for the ASUS PA278QV so if you’re really not comfortable with the idea of the Dell (which I do understand and appreciate) then I don’t think you’d be unsatisfied with either of those models. I think they both use an AUO panel and have quite a nice screen surface, but I don’t have definitive data on that aspect currently. The PD2700Q is robust with a feature-rich OSD and good calibration. If you’re happy with the heavier build, thicker bezels and the ports then I would certainly consider that one as well. I don’t really think you’ll be disappointed in the core performance of any of these models and once calibrated they’ll offer you similar performance. The 99% sRGB coverage for the Dell only applies to the factory calibrated sRGB emulation, by the way – it offers complete sRGB coverage and you’d be splitting hairs trying to compare it with the PD2700Q in that respect.

I’m not really sure how you’d connect up two monitors to a laptop that has a single DP if the monitor doesn’t have a DP output for daisy chaining. I don’t have experience with adaptors and suchlike, not really my area of expertise. But they’re very unlikely to work flawlessly if at all for what you need.

[monitordude]

Hello again,

Thank you for your time. The BenQ PD2705Q looks interesting because it has usb-c, but it seems that its 99.9% srgb and is delta 3 and for the u2719D, it’s delta 2. Does it change a lot of things?

If you were me, I assume you’d go with the u2719d and call it a day? I’m just tired of thinking this all the time. I’m tired of seeing blue or red shadows on my text….92 dpi ain’t no fun.

[PCM2]

The average DeltaE is <3 on the PD2705Q and in my experience it can be a lot lower than stated. They just don’t want to over-promise. You also stated you had an i1Display Pro, so I wouldn’t worry too much about factory calibration. But I appreciate you might not want to have to rely on the colorimeter necessarily. I haven’t ever known a BenQ PD series display with a specified DeltaE that was badly calibrated so I don’t think you should worry too much about that aspect.

[monitordude]

Hello there,

I just made a paypal donation to support your good work and show my appreciation for the time you took to answer my thread. So, to keep you informed on my purchase process, I haven’t bought the U2719D after seeing that a lot of people are having problems with backlight bleeding and uniformity problems. I was waiting for a BenQ PD2705Q review and I am still looking for a 4k alternative. This morning, I visited your website and saw that you are reviewing the BenQ. Without giving me all the details, do you recommend me to purchase this monitor? It comes at a good price here. How does it compare to the Dell U2719D (is the anti-reflective coating better?).

Do you think that for productivity, a 32″ 4k display could replace dual 27″ 1440p displays, because buying two 32″ is quite expensive and it would take a lot of space on my desk. Also, if my eyes permit it, I could use it on native resolution and keep my 24 inch 1080p monitor on the side.

I have heard that with amd card, there is a new option for scale integer to resolve the scaling problems in windows. Is this only for games?

Once again, thanks a lot and I hope to hear from you soon especially about the benQ.

Monitordude

[PCM2]

I appreciate your support, monitordude. I can’t comment on integer scaling as I don’t have experience with it and it’s not really my area (GPU rather than monitor feature). As far as I’m aware it applies whenever the monitor is running at a non-native resolution, such as 1920 x 1080. However I’m willing to share a few pointers related to the PD2705Q ahead of review publication, as a little thank you:

– The monitor uses an LG AH-IPS panel with a very light matte anti-glare screen surface. So it’s ‘lighter’ than the Dell U2719D‘s screen surface. I wouldn’t say the surface texture is super-smooth, but it’s not ‘bad’ by any means and I do personally appreciate the ‘very light’ quality and relatively direct light emission that provides.

– The colour gamut is wider than the Dell, especially in the red region. But it doesn’t come close to covering Adobe RGB or DCI-P3.

– The uniformity of my unit is good overall, but it’s only one sample.

– The calibration is… Well, let’s just say not perfect. You’ll have to wait for the review for more on that, but I’d expect most units are a bit better than mine and I got a bit unlucky in that respect. With this or any monitor, full calibration with a colorimeter or spectrophotometer is going to be helpful for colour-critical work. If you don’t own a colorimeter and don’t intend to get one then it’s a tough call as the factory calibration clearly isn’t consistently good. On the Dell all feedback I’ve received suggests that it is and it certainly was on my case. Also keep that ASUS PA278QV in mind as it seems to be a good choice according to user feedback.

As I’ve said in previous posts I am personally a fan of using a single 32″ UHD model and I feel they’re well-suited for productivity. It’s a very personal thing and depends on your preferences and workflow whether a single screen could replace two screens of lower resolution. Ultimately 3840 x 2160 pixels spread across a ~32″ screen could be sufficient. And you gain quite a few vertical pixels (1.5x) compared to your two 27″ WQHD screens as well as gaining the extra physical space. But you’d get ~1.3x the horizontal pixels with the two 27″ WQHD screens. Again, personally preferences dictate which would be the preferred option.

[monitordude]

Hello,

Thank you for your quick reply. Your pointers are interesting. Seems like a good model but without a good factory calibrated profile out of the box. I do have a i1 display pro to calibrate the screen. Let’s hope that the calibration you will be doing for the reviewed unit will improve its color reproduction. If you are able to get 99-100% srgb, then it would be fine for me.

As for the single 32″ UHD, which one do you recommend for photo editing? I don’t have the budget for a high-end eizo etc. Do you know a way I could take a screenshot of my current desktop and resize it to have an idea of how the dpi would look like on 32 inch UHD ?

thank you!

[PCM2]

100% sRGB certainly isn’t a problem for the PD2705Q. Given the excellent all-round performance and pricing I’d simply recommend the BenQ EW3280U for photo editing, as a ~32″ UHD model. I don’t see a good reason to pay more, especially as you have a colorimeter and aren’t specifically seeking full or close to full Adobe RGB coverage. The ergonomics (although there are VESA holes) and styling could be reasons to seek an alternative. Relevant topic – https://forum.pcmonitors.info/topic/30-32-4k-for-photo-editing-whats-the-best-choice/.

I don’t know how you’d reasonably be able to ‘preview’ DPI in that way. I guess you would work out the pixel density of the UHD model (32″ UHD = 137.68 PPI) and your current monitor to work out how much greater the pixel density of the UHD model is. That will give you a factor to scale your current monitor by. Your U2414H has a pixel density of 92.56 PPI, so a 32″ UHD screen is near enough 1.5x that pixel density. And things will appear, without scaling, about 1.5x as small. You could use AMD’s Virtual Super Resolution (VSR) feature set to 1.5x to preview the kind of size things will be. Not sure if you can do that with AMD’s VSR without some tweaking, I know Nvidia’s version (DSR – Dynamic Super Resolution) allows this. You could try creating a custom resolution of 2880 x 1620 instead. However you do this, things will look extremely blurry and you’ll get no indication whatsoever of clarity or readability levels.

[monitordude]

Hello there,
Any update on when the review of the BenQ PD2705Q will be released?

[PCM2]

Yes. I don’t like to promise a firm date, but I’d expect earlier next week rather than later.

[monitordude]

Thank you for your review of the BenQ. It was quite interesting. I have seen the ips glow in your video review and it set me off a little as well as the colour calibration. I know it is implified by the camera but still.

As you mentioned in your review, the Asus seems a good option indeed and it has even 75hz support and limited range freesync. I do have a RX 580 8gb so it might be good for the few gaming that I do. However, the BIG problem with the Asus is that it doesn’t support daisychain and even if I can connect both monitors to my personal desktop no problem, it will be a problem for my work laptop which only have 1 dp out and 1 vga. I need both screens to work efficiently because I do work with a lot of excel documents. I guess I won’t be able to get 2560×1440 with the vga output, even if using a vga-dvi adapter right? Also, most DP splitters or hubs are pretty expensive…..I am really torn again….this is an endless circle….

[PCM2]

Yes, the ‘IPS glow’ is certainly exaggerated in the video somewhat. Plus the room is very dim to help highlight it and various other issues related to contrast, in reality you’d have a bit of light in the room which helps curtail it a bit. Aside from the slightly colourful (orange) nature of the glow towards the right side, the ‘IPS glow’ on the BenQ is quite typical really. And as I mentioned in the review, I don’t think the factory calibration of our sample is representative of what you can expect from most of them. I know it’s off-putting to see and it’s a shame ours wasn’t better calibrated! But the calibration is by no means poor and regardless of how good the gamma tracking may be, the colour temperature is still going to need taming and will shift over time as well. So if accuracy is really important then, with any monitor, profiling with your own colorimeter or spectrophotometer is advised.

Best to leave VGA out of the equation, resolution would be one potential issue but simply the noise from the fact it’s an analogue connection is also a worry.

[RSMilward]

I bought an Asus PB278QV a couple of months ago and love it. It’s 27″ IPS 100% sRGB 1440p @ 75Hz with DL-DVI, HDMI, and DP inputs, and a tilt / swivel / rotate (to portrait mode) stand (great for getting to the connectors when swapping cables around). I thought about the comparable 4K version, but it didn’t have DVI or the rotatable mount. Just my $.02!

[PCM2]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on that model, RSMilward. The PA278QV can be thought of as a sort of updated version of that (kind of – different series). So it’s nice to see positive feedback about its ‘predecessor’, so to speak. 🙂 Unfortunately for monitordude it doesn’t support MST Daisy Chaining. He’s rather limited with the inputs available on his system, so this is a feature he would find particularly useful.

[monitordude]

Hi there,

I tried the QHD “Virtual Super Resolution” on my 24 inch 1080p monitor. So, it now shows everything in QHD. Yes, text is blurry because it’s not the native resolution, but I don’t find it to be too small. I actually quite like the dpi. It would be like a Dell P2421DC (which would cost me CAD$375 on sale per monitor). I also thought about the Dell U2520D with a slightly lower dpi of 117, but it’s more expensive. When I am looking between both of the displays, they both support 99% sRGB, but the U2520D also has 95% dci-p3 support. Nevermind, I just saw that the P2421DC is 6 bits + FRC vs 8bits for the U2520D 🙁

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