[PCM2]

Good to have the work appreciated!

Those LG models would certainly be worth considering. If you perform a forum search for those models you’ll see some comments I’ve made on them in other threads (32UL950 and 32UN880). The former isn’t flicker-free and uses a relatively low PWM frequency, so isn’t a model I’d recommend. The latter could be worth a look, but I don’t really have much to say about it. I’m not 100% sold on the panel it uses based on my experiences with other large BOE panels, but I don’t like being too critical of products I haven’t used.

Most of the ASUS ~32″ ‘4K’ models from ASUS focus on complex backlights with local dimming and other higher end features that drag the price up. The PA329C would be a good one to consider. I’ve received positive feedback about that one. It uses an AUO panel which is characteristically more similar to the EW3280U than some of the others. It seems to deliver strong colour consistency and has a good (relatively smooth) screen surface, like the EW3280U. Those were two doubts I had about the BOE panel used in the 32UN880. It’s quite expensive, though, significantly pricier than the LG.

[Pauline]

Thanks for your feedback.

I think I’ll wait for the Philips 279P1 review first as it seems easier to find a good 27″ 4k than a 32″ 4K monitor. I do like the Philips panel and screen surface and colour are also important to me (for photo editing and printing), so the two LG 32″ monitors don’t seem to be a good choice for me.

[PCM2]

The Philips 279P1 review has just been published.

[Pauline]

Thank you for the review! Unfortunately in my region this Philips model is not readily available and the price in Europe is a bit too high as well I think.

I also think I still prefer a 32″ 4K and the BenQ EW3280U has a panel that is nicer on the eyes for some reason. That’s the best monitor for me so far, it’s just unfortunate it’s not yet fully compatible with Apple M1 (and at the moment nowhere available).

I’ve been checking the BenQ website and apparently the BenQ PD3200U is compatible with Apple M1. Is the screen surface of the latter similar to that of the BenQ EW3280U, i.e. very light matte?

From reading about it, it also seems a good monitor for photography in the sRGB space and if text looks good as well, it might be an option …

[PCM2]

Yes, the PD3200U has a very light matte screen surface as noted in the review. And it’s another model I recommend, especially for colour-critical work within the sRGB colour space.

[Pauline]

Thanks, Adam.
I have read the PD3200U review. I just wasn’t sure if the amount of haze and grain of the panel was similar just from reading the description.

[PCM2]

It’s definitely what I’d call ‘very light’ matte, but I couldn’t really say if the graininess (smoothness of screen surface texture) is quite the same as the EW3280U. I tested it too long ago and at the time I was comparing to the BL3201PT (BL3201PH) which had a ridiculously smooth finish to the screen surface. I did notice the PD3200U was somewhat grainier in comparison and that shaped some of the comments I made in the review. But most users find it just great in that respect. It’s just something I’m super sensitive to and I certainly didn’t think the PD3200U was ‘bad’ in that regard at all. 🙂

[mareSLO]

Hey guys, so i’m looking for something that has great srgb/rec709 coverage. 99 or 100% for photo editing and video editing. It’s gotta have a usb-c PD port. Probably gonna buy a mac m1 in the future, or m1x when they come out. Preferably something with at least 60w of power on tap, so it could also recharge the mac. My budget is about 600€ or so, don’t want to pay more. The 3 options i was looking for were the LG 27UN83A (2020 model), 27UL850 (2019 model) and Dell U2720Q. If you have another recommendation for me, that includes all the things mentioned, please let me know. If someone has the monitors mentioned above, let me know how you like em, especially if you are a mac user.

[PCM2]

My recommendations for photo editing and similar colour-critical usage within the sRGB colour space are covered in this thread, which I’ve merged yours with. The Philips 276E8VJSB and 278E1A being key players for the ‘4K’ UHD resolution. However; I also recommend the LG alternatives such as 27UL850 if you’re after specific features, such as the USB-C port.

There’s also the Philips 279P1 which I’d recommend for such uses with USB-C functionality, but only if you have a colorimeter or similar device to profile the monitor with. As it has a wide gamut that extends beyond sRGB but not to any particular wide gamut standard – and the sRGB emulation mode is brightness-locked. It has a less grainy screen surface compared to the LG models and I found it nice and solidly built with some useful additions like the ‘PowerSensor’.

[fernandovnyr]

Hello everyone,

I am having difficulties in choosing my monitor, I want to edit photos and use with 3D modelling softwares.

Even been searching a lot, I still find difficultues because I never saw in person or tested, and where I live is very difficult to see the models unless you buy. This is causing a problem to me because I dont know how the theoric values will matter in the monitor quality.

I am considering a 4K IPS, but I read the VA panels contrast is better.

Do you think the difference in contrast between a IPS and VA will be very noticible? I will be using in a lit room.

[PCM2]

Hi fernandovnyr,

If you read through this thread you’ll see that all my recommendations are of IPS-type panels. That’s because they offer superior colour consistency, a concept explored in our reviews and panel types article. Well worth familiarising yourself with because accurate colour output is far more important than contrast for photo editing. For 3D modelling it’s give or take, but the stronger gamma consistency which is also explored is a benefit to IPS-type options there.

We’ll shortly be expanding our recommendations section to include various sections, including one focusing on photo and video editing. It will include some guidance as well as specific recommendations. But in the meantime, this thread and the section in its current state covers some key models to consider.

[fernandovnyr]

Hi PCM2,

Thank you for the help! I started considering IPS because of this forum. I was about to buying a VA monitor, but then choose to wait and look for a IPS one.

In my country I can find the Philips 276E8VJSB and LG 27MU58P for around the same price. Samsung u28r550 for a bit more.

Thankfully to your review, I was able to know what panel were used in the Philips one. The Philips looks very nice for me, but the LG have better ergonomics, height adjust and tilt. Do you know If I can find information about the panel used in the LG model, and have you had experience with that model?

And about the 28″ 4K IPS panels do you have a opinion?

[PCM2]

The LG uses a BOE panel from what I understand and I consider the Philips 276E8VJSB superior. You should consider the 278E1A as well which offers VESA holes for alternative mounting. The 28″ models use an Innolux panel and I’m currently reviewing one of these. They have a wide colour gamut – 90% DCI-P3 specified for the Samsung you mentioned. That’s means they’re not suitable for photo editing within the sRGB colour space. And unless you have a colorimeter or similar device for proper sRGB gamut mapping and profiling you’re better off sticking with a standard gamut (~sRGB) model.

[fernandovnyr]

Unfortunately the 278E1A is not available where I live. I have access to a colorimeter and intend to use when the monitor arrives. I just read the article about gamut emulation and I am wondering If is reliable to create a profile using a colorimeter.

Thats good you are reviewing a monitor with that panel, further I will be able to compare better. I am still tempting to the philips 276E8VJSB, but the VESA support in the samsung is appealing. Do you think the wider color gamut would be helpful in mastering files that go beyond the sRGB?

And do you know another important difference between both panels and monitors?

[PCM2]

A colorimeter will allow you to profile the monitor as described in the article. The gamut is mapped correctly (gamut information is stored in the profile which colour-aware applications can read) and other corrections are made. This means you’ll have correct sRGB colour output when editing photos. But you can also use some of the coverage beyond that if you wish. It’s worth being aware, though, that it doesn’t cover enough of the DCI-P3 or Adobe RGB colour space to make full use of those.

It’s up to you whether you want to make use of some of that extra coverage beyond sRGB – it depends what happens with your photos in the end. If they are going to be viewed on a model with a similar or wider gamut – or simply on this monitor for your own enjoyment – then yes it could work. And the extra gamut could be beneficial in fact, helping capture more of those shades you see in reality. If the photos are going to be digitally distributed, for example to be shared online, then it would usually be better to simply stick with sRGB as that is still the standard for such content. The U28R550 could certainly work well with all of this in mind. The panel itself is a good one when set up correctly from feedback I’ve received. I haven’t tested the 288E2 enough to give further information, the review will help but I don’t think you need to worry about the panel itself being bad for your uses. 🙂

[fernandovnyr]

Thank you for the information.

It really helped me and now I have two good options to consider, I will decide today.

Will be helpful if I share my experience and photos in a forum here when I buy?

[PCM2]

Yes, please feel free to share impressions and photos here with whichever model you purchase.

[fernandovnyr]

Hello Everyone.

My Philips 276E8 monitor arrived last week, and I will share my impressions.

For me, the resolution itself is big gain, I regret not going with 4k before. The crispness of text and level of details are way better. It makes the modeling process better, and its easier to see details in the rendered image. Windows have little problems with 4K (some softwares I use had bugs with the scaling options), but when I change to 100% scale, the problems desapear.

I also liked a lot the viewing angles and colors, and I found the screen overall more pleasing to look compared with my old monitor. I am using the native gamut for modeling and general tasks. And when rendering and photo editing, sRGB emulation.

The contrast was something I was worried about, but in practice it didnt make difference. My old monitor had a good contrast, 3.000:1, the difference is barelly visible in my usage and the advantages I saw with the IPS screen were more relevant than the contrast loss.

One small problem is the white details. They started clipping in the 253 value. 253 is barelly visible, and 254 is indistinguible from the pure white. In OSD options I couldn’t make the 254 value visible. I will try to make in the calibration process. If someone have experience with that problem it would help me.

Overall I am very impressed. Once I calibrate, I will share the results. If I fix the white clipping problem, it would make the perfect monitor.

[PCM2]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the 276E8VJSB, fernandovnyr,

I’m glad you’re happy with the monitor overall and are finding it fine even from a contrast perspective. I assume you’re using the Lagom white saturation test to assess white levels? It isn’t at all unusual for the second last pattern (253) to be difficult to distinguish from the background and the final block indistinguishable or at least very close to that. Not with that model specifically, just speaking more broadly. That isn’t to say it’s an ideal situation to be in for photo editing. The good news is that this sort of thing is usually solved by calibration with a colorimeter or similar device. So hopefully that will do the trick for you. 🙂

Could you also confirm for me whether you can adjust brightness after setting ‘Color’ to ‘sRGB’? Usually you can’t on Philips monitors but I didn’t specifically note this restriction in the review and I’m wondering why that was the case. Might’ve been that I didn’t realise the restriction at the time so I will add that in if it’s confirmed to be brightness-locked.

[fernandovnyr]

Yes, I was using Lagom white saturation test. Good to know that is fixable. I have not much experience with calibration. I hear that is good to calibrate the display frequentlly, is that right?

About sRGB mode, You are right. When I change to sRGB color, the brightness go to 70. If I adjust the brightness, the color mode automatically changes.

I am curious about one thing. I dont know why, but even the pure whites apear more pleasing to look in my new monitor, maybe its personal taste, maybe there is reason.

[Author]

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