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Asus PB287Q 28-Inch 4K Monitor Review: Ultra HD For $650
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1. Asus PB287Q 28-Inch 4K Monitor Review

We kicked off our 4K display coverage at the start of this year with Asus PQ321Q 4K Monitor Review: Top-Shelf Ultra HD For $3500. That was followed by Dell UltraSharp 32 Ultra HD Monitor Review: UP3214Q At $3500. See the pattern so far? At least in the first half of 2014, 4K was a very, very pricey proposition. And it gets worse if you're a gamer trying to push more than 8 million pixels at 60 frames per second. That's a lot of potent graphics hardware.

To be fair, both of the displays we reviewed offered stunning image quality. But they were also saddled with a handful of usability issues that you'd expect from a first-gen, cutting-edge product. In fact, it took AMD and Nvidia some time to optimize their drivers for a more pleasant user experience with Radeon and GeForce cards hooked up to tiled 4K screens. Of course, paying thousands of dollars didn't help make the idiosyncrasies any easier to swallow.

Those displays cost quite a bit less today, though they'll still run you $2500 or so. Fortunately, as the second generation of Ultra HD monitors slowly materializes, we expect significantly lower prices. Earlier this year we heard about a 28-inch panel that Samsung, Dell, and Asus were planning to sell at a surprisingly low price point under $700. We're already on the sample list for Samsung's UD590 and Dell's P2815Q. But Asus surprised us with a brand-new PB287Q, just in time for a pre-Computex review.

Brand
Asus
Model
PB287Q
MSRP
$649
Panel Type
TN Film
Backlight
W-LED, edge array
Screen Size
28-inch
Max Resolution
3840x2160
Max Refresh Rate
60 Hz
Aspect Ratio
16:9
Native Color Depth
10-bit (8-bit with FRC)
Native Gamut
sRGB
Response Time (GTG)
1 ms
Brightness
330 cd/m2
Speakers
2 x 2 W
VGA
-
DVI
-
DisplayPort v1.2
1
HDMI 1.4
2 w/MHL
Audio In
1
Headphone
1
USB
-
Media Card Reader
-
Panel Dimensions
W x H x D w/base
26 x 16.3 x 8.7 in
660 x 414 x 220 mm
Panel Thickness
2.5 in / 64 mm
Bezel Width
.75 in / 19 mm
Weight
17.4 lbs / 7.9 kg
Warranty
One year, Zero Bright Dot; Three years. monitor

A couple of specifications leap out to tell you how Asus got its price so low. Principally, the PB287Q uses TN technology, rather than one of the many flavors of IPS. If you recall our reviews of the 32-inch Ultra HD screens, they are based on an exotic IGZO panel manufactured by Sharp.

The core part here is made by Chi Mei Optoelectronics and sports a pixel density of 157 ppi. Even though its fundamental technology is something of a throwback, there is no skimping on the remaining features. Almost all TN panels achieve 8-bit color depth by using 6-bits plus FRC. This brand-new part achieves 10-bit color by using 8-bits with FRC like many professional monitors we've reviewed. So even though most users will use an all-8-bit signal chain, it will accept 10-bit formats too. And all incoming 8-bit content is upconverted by the PB287Q. The end result is a palette of 1.07 billion colors.

Will that make images more colorful? Not exactly. What the extra bit depth will do is smooth the gradients in subtle color transitions. The best examples are things like blue sky, clouds, or fire. Where an 8-bit panel might show subtle banding or macro-blocking, a 10-bit capable display can reduce or eliminate those artifacts even though it's using FRC to work its magic.

Another feature not mentioned in the spec table is the non-PWM backlight. We have a couple of upcoming reviews of BenQ displays that discuss this in more detail. Essentially, though, pulse-width modulation can result in flicker and eye fatigue for some users. By applying constant current to the backlight and varying brightness at the pixel level, overall intensity can be reduced without introducing flicker. Asus calls its version of the technology EyeCare.

Since the PB287Q is an sRGB display, it’s not specifically aimed at professionals. In fact, the feature set and low price make this more of an enthusiast-oriented monitor. Asus includes some tantalizing features like VividPixel, QuickFit, and GamePlus. Along with the fast response and low input lag endemic to TN panels, it ends up looking best-suited to gamers. Let's take a closer look.

2. Packaging, Physical Layout, And Accessories

Asus packages the PB287Q with an IEC power cord, along with cables for analog audio, DisplayPort, and HDMI. The only printed documentation is a quick-start guide and a warranty card. There’s no CD-based manual in the box, so you’ll have to download supplementary info from Asus' website once the product launches officially. Assembly is fairly simply; it consists of attaching the base to the upright with a single captive bolt.

Product 360

The PB287Q has a relatively thin 19 mm bezel all around, which makes it suitable for multi-screen installations. Thanks to the $650 price tag, it's entirely possible that some enthusiasts will put two or three on their desks.

Asus' anti-glare layer is non-aggressive and picks up reflections fairly easily. You’ll need to exercise some care during setup to make sure no harsh lighting spoils the image. But the treatment is a deliberate attempt at maximizing clarity. When the pixels are this small, that's super important. What you get in return is a stunning picture with superb detail and sharp transitions around text and small icons. At 28 inches diagonal, text in Windows is pretty small. In our tests, however, it remained readable from a typical two- to three-foot viewing distance.

It's tempting to assume that the little lights on the bezel are touch-sensitive controls, but they actually indicate the position of mechanical buttons on the back of the panel. The far right one is the power toggle, and if you aren’t careful, you’ll press it instead of menu, which is the next key. It took us a little time to acclimate.

Once you open the OSD, icons appear on the screen above the indicator lights telling you what each button's function is. In addition to navigating the menus, two of the keys can be used as shortcuts to specific controls, saving you a trip through the main menu.

The PB287Q has a full complement of position adjustments. You can swivel it 60 degrees in either direction, tilt it 20 degrees back or 5 degrees forward, or rotate the panel to portrait mode.

From the side, its thickness is about average for a 28-inch display. There are no USB ports though, which we're not used to. That small hook attached to the upright is for cable management.

There is plenty of ventilation around the monitor’s rear bulge. And you can clearly see where the upright detaches, revealing a 100 mm VESA mount. You can also see the control buttons down in the corner. In addition to the cable hook on the upright, there’s a removable cord cover that hides the input panel for a more finished look.

Stereo speakers are mounted on the top of the bulge, which means they fire upwards. Their soundstage is a little wider than most because they’re not playing down onto your desktop. Gamers will still favor the headphone jack, but these are among the better built-in drivers we’ve heard.

The input panel is minimal as a consequence of the display's 3840x2160 native resolution. There are two HDMI ports, both of which are MHL-compatible, meaning you can plug in a portable device and view its output either full-screen or in a window using the PBP/PIP function. Both HDMI inputs support the PB287Q’s 3840x2160 resolution up to a refresh rate of 30 Hz. If you want full 60 Hz operation, you have to use the DisplayPort input and enable version 1.2 in the OSD. Rounding out the I/O are 3.5 mm jacks for analog audio in and headphone out.

3. OSD Setup And Calibration Of The Asus PB287Q

Signal Handling

Now that we have an Ultra HD-capable pattern generator in our lab, we tested the PB287Q with 3840x2160 RGB-format signals at 30 Hz over HDMI. The monitor accepted them without complaint. To test 60 Hz operation, we connected to an AMD Radeon HD 7770-equipped PC via DisplayPort. After enabling version 1.2 compatibility in the OSD, the Windows desktop appeared and remained stable.

If you’re planning to drive the monitor with an Nvidia-based multi-GPU configuration, a driver update is necessary to support 60 Hz operation. The current version, 337.50, only supports single-stream transport DisplayPort signals at 30 Hz. A new driver, 337.88, should be available by the time the PB287Q goes on sale.

OSD Tour

Pressing any key brings up a Quick menu. The left two buttons can be programmed for other functions besides the ones shown. The QuickFit function is a feature we saw on the ProArt PA279Q display. It superimposes frames in common paper and photo sizes. We checked their measurements and found them to be very precise.

The picture mode, active input, and signal info are always shown in the upper-right corner of all the OSD screens.

The first menu is called Splendid, and it's where you find the PB287Q’s eight picture modes. Standard and sRGB are the closest to a correct sRGB color gamut, D65 white point, and 2.2 gamma value. The other modes alter color luminance, color temperature, and gamma to varying degrees, in some cases also limiting brightness. We’ll show you the measurements we took in Game mode later so you can see what we mean.

The Color menu contains the calibration controls. Aside from Brightness (backlight intensity) and Contrast, the only other adjustment available in Standard mode is Color Temp. There are three presets: Cool, Normal, and Warm, along with a User option. That one unlocks the RGB sliders, which have a range of 0 to 100. The Saturation and Skin Tone controls are enabled in certain picture modes, but should be left at their default settings. Surprisingly, there is no gamma control.

When I looked up Smart View in the User Manual, all it said was, “The versatile viewing position with Smart View Technology.” Using various test patterns, I determined that it raises the lowest brightness levels in order to bring out shadow detail. Unfortunately, that happens at the expense of greatly reduced contrast; more on that below.

Here’s what the RGB controls look like.

The sliders default to the top of their range, which means when you make adjustments, contrast is reduced. We really prefer AOC’s approach where the starting point is in the center. Then you can make your changes in a balanced fashion.

Image has five more picture enhancements available. Sharpness adds edge enhancement to high-contrast areas of the image. We prefer to avoid the feature, though some users like the impression of added clarity (even though it actually reduces image resolution).

Trace Free is Asus’ version of overdrive and can help clean up ghosting artifacts that sometimes appear behind fast-moving objects. It has five strength levels. Or, it can be turned off completely.

Aspect Control has Full, 4:3, 1:1, and Overscan options. Full uses the entire screen, regardless of input resolution. Choosing 1:1 maps each input pixel to the screen, meaning that resolutions below 3840x2160 are shown windowed. Overscan zooms in 1.5 percent to remove artifacts from the edges of the image if they're there. The 4:3 option mimics the old square aspect of CRT TVs and monitors. If your video player software handles screen sizing properly, there should be no need to change Aspect Control from Full.

When we tried VividPixel, it looked to us like another form of edge enhancement (Asus says it enhances image outlines). The default setting is the lowest of the four available. Small text in Windows demonstrates obvious white outlines, which reduce resolution. Turning the feature down to zero solved the problem and image clarity was better without it. Gaming seems to be a better application for VividPixel, where perceived sharpness can be improved if used sparingly.

ASCR is a dynamic contrast control. Turned on, it’s fairly aggressive at lowering black levels and raising white levels. Unfortunately, it crushes detail in the process and is better left off.

The Sound menu can control the volume of both the internal speakers and the headphone output. You can mute the signal as well. The Source option chooses between the 3.5 mm analog input or the digital audio carried by HDMI and DisplayPort connections.

With so much resolution available, the PB287Q makes great use of its PIP and PBP abilities. You can display the signal from two different sources simultaneously in either a side-by-side or picture window configuration. The window can be sized small, medium, or large; and placed in the upper- or lower-right part of the screen. You can also change its aspect ratio. Since both of the HDMI inputs are MHL compatible, PBP/PIP is a great way to display content from a phone or tablet while keeping your PC desktop on-screen.

You can select between your signal sources in the Input Select menu or with a hotkey. If you only connect one cable, the PB287Q senses it automatically and locks on quickly.

There are some cool things to be found in the System Setup menu.

SplendidDemo lets you compare two different picture modes in a split-screen image.

Eco Mode limits backlight brightness and locks out the Brightness and Contrast controls to save energy. In practice, it reduces output by about 20 percent.

OSD Setup lets you adjust the menu’s timeout and transparency, but not its position. And if you’re looking for the DDC/CI toggle, it’s hiding out here.

If you want to display the PB287Q’s full 3840x2160 pixel resolution at 60 Hz, you have to select the DP 1.2 option in the DisplayPort Stream menu.

The OSD can be viewed in any one of 21 languages.

Key Lock prevents any OSD or hotkey functions from operating. Pressing the second button from the right for more than five seconds restores control.

GamePlus is something we first saw on the VG248QE. You can activate it from the OSD or with a bezel hotkey. With this feature, you can put a hardware-generated aiming point in the screen center (there are four reticules), or display a countdown timer for use in real-time strategy games. You can’t have both at the same time, though. The timer can be placed on the top, middle, or bottom of the screen’s left side. The available presets are 30, 40, 50, 60, or 90 minutes. Pressing the first control key turns the feature off.

Here are the signal information and remaining System Setup options.

Power Indicator refers to the front bezel LED, which you can disable entirely.

Power Key Lock disables the power button to prevent the PB287Q from being shut off unintentionally.

All Reset returns all settings to their factory defaults. Thankfully, there is a confirmation dialog if you click on it by mistake.

Finally, you can program the two leftmost buttons to activate monitor functions of your choice.

We would definitely set one of the shortcuts to activate the cool and useful GamePlus feature. The other would probably be best used to access the Brightness slider.

Asus PB287Q Calibration

If you’re looking for a fire-and-forget mode, sRGB is your best choice. It offers good color, gamma, and grayscale accuracy, and it has a fixed max output level of around 170 cd/m2. The only caveat is that all image adjustments are locked out. I measured the Game mode, which has access to every control including Saturation and Skin Tone, but found some significant color gamut issues. I’ll detail them on page seven.

The mode with the best accuracy is Standard. The only options you give up are Saturation and Skin Tone. In my opinion, they don't do anything to improve image quality, so that's fine. If you don’t calibrate, set the Color Temp preset to User and adjust Brightness to taste. A value between 70 and 75 will result in a white level of 200 cd/m2.

After experimenting with both Sharpness and VividPixel, I observed that both options introduced edge enhancement that ultimately reduced detail. It was easy to see the white outlines around small text in Windows, making it harder to read. They are best left off.

There is no gamma control on the PB287Q. Fortunately, it isn't really missed. I strongly suggest avoiding the Smart View control. It’s either on or off, and when you switch it on, the feature reduces the panel’s native contrast by an astounding 89 percent. The hit is caused by an extremely elevated black level.

Asus PB287Q Calibration Settings
Splendid Mode
Standard
Brightness
70
Contrast
75
Color Temp User
Red 100, Green 97, Blue 97

The PB287Q comes with its Contrast set to 90 and it doesn't clip detail at that level. It will however, show a slight green tint at 100-percent brightness. Dropping to 75 fixes that grayscale error and doesn’t impact overall contrast too greatly.

4. Measurement And Calibration Methodology: How We Test

To measure and calibrate monitors, we use an i1Pro spectrophotometer, a Spectracal C6 colorimeter, and version 5.2.0.1374 of SpectraCal’s CalMAN software.

The i1Pro is very accurate and consistent measuring color on all types of displays, regardless of the backlight technology used. When we just need a luminance value, the C6 works better, especially in low light.

For patterns, we employ AccuPel DVG-5000 and DVDO AVLab TPG video signal generators. This approach removes video cards and drivers from the signal chain, allowing the display to receive true reference patterns. Connections are made via HDMI.

The AccuPel DVG-5000 is capable of generating all types of video signals at any resolution and refresh rate up to 1920x1080 at 60 Hz. It can also display motion patterns to evaluate a monitor's video processing capabilities, with 3D patterns available in every format. This allows us to measure color and grayscale performance, crosstalk, and ghosting in 3D content via the 3D glasses.

The DVDO generator is a new addition to our lab. It supports resolutions up to 4096x2160. We're using it to verify the proper signal handling of QHD and UHD displays.

The i1Pro or C6 is placed at the center of the screen (unless we’re measuring uniformity) and sealed against it to block out any ambient light. The AccuPel pattern generator (bottom-left) is controlled via USB by CalMAN, which is running on the Dell XPS laptop on the right.

Our version of CalMAN Ultimate allows me to design all of the screens and workflows to best suit the purpose at hand. To that end, I’ve created a display review workflow from scratch. This way, we can be sure and collect all the necessary data with a concise and efficient set of measurements.

The charts show us the RGB levels, gamma response, and Delta E error for every brightness point from zero to 100 percent. The table shows us the raw data for each measurement. And the area in the upper-left tells us luminance, average gamma, Delta E, and contrast ratio. The individual charts can be copied to the Windows clipboard to easily create graphics for our reviews.

Every primary and secondary color is measured at 20-, 40-, 60-, 80-, and 100-percent saturation. The color saturation level is simply the distance from the white point on the CIE chart. You can see the targets moving out from white in a straight line. The further a point is from center, the greater the saturation until you hit 100 percent at the edge of the gamut triangle. This shows us the display’s response at a cross-section of color points. Many monitors score well when only the 100-percent saturations are measured. Hitting the targets at the lower saturations is more difficult, and factors into our average Delta E value (which explains why our Delta E values are sometimes higher than those reported by other publications).

5. Results: Brightness And Contrast

Uncalibrated

Before calibrating any panel, we measure zero and 100-percent signals at both ends of the brightness control range. This shows us how contrast is affected at the extremes of a monitor's luminance capability. We do not increase the contrast control past the clipping point. While that would increase a monitor’s light output, the brightest signal levels wouldn't be visible, resulting in crushed highlight detail. Our numbers show the maximum light level possible with no clipping of the signal.

For the comparison group, we’re including the other three 4K screens from Dell and Asus reviewed recently, along with two TN displays, AOC’s 144 Hz G2460PQU and BenQ’s 60 Hz RL2460HT.

We hoped to see greater light output from the PB287Q, since it’s a TN panel, but it proved to be less bright than the IPS-based 4K competition. Although gaming is probably this screen's target market, a little more light would be welcome.

The maximum black level result is mid-pack among both the group as a whole and the three TN screens. The best result in our comparison group comes from BenQ's RL2460HT. However, none of the six monitors on our chart can match the .0121 cd/m2 result posted by Asus’ VG248QE gaming monitor.

Maximum contrast comes in at a little under 1000 to 1. That's not a great result for a TN display, though it does beat a couple of other 4K screens.

We believe 50 cd/m2 is a practical minimum standard for screen brightness. Any lower and you risk eyestrain and fatigue. The PB287Q bottoms out at 39.8748 cd/m2, which is a little low for playing games in a dark room. A few clicks of the Brightness control should improve the image to a more usable state.

The above result again puts Asus' PB287Q mid-pack. It looks like some of the inherent black level advantage of TN is lost at 3840x2160. Among competing gaming monitors, however, it’s still a good choice for contrast.

When the final contrast numbers are calculated, Asus' PB287Q appears as the lowest TN-based screen in the group. It does, however, compare quite favorably with the other Ultra HD monitors. Remember that this display is much less expensive than the 4K competition, and it still offers comparable contrast performance.

After Calibration

Since we consider 200 cd/m2 to be an ideal point for peak output, we calibrate all of our test monitors to that value. In a room with some ambient light (like an office), this brightness level provides a sharp, punchy image with maximum detail and minimum eye fatigue. On many monitors it’s also the sweet spot for gamma and grayscale tracking, which we'll look at on the next page. In a darker room, some enthusiasts prefer a 120 cd/m2 calibration. It makes little to no difference on the calibrated black level and contrast measurements, though.

The calibrated black level is about average and doesn’t really rise due to the adjustments we made. It is the lowest of the three TN displays in our chart, though.

The final calibrated ratio is lower because we had to drop the PB287Q’s Contrast control in pursuit of better grayscale accuracy. If you’re willing to compromise a little on the 100-percent white point, raise the slider to 90 and it gets closer to 900 to 1.

ANSI Contrast Ratio

Another important measure of contrast is ANSI. To perform our test, a checkerboard pattern of sixteen zero and 100-percent squares is measured, giving us a somewhat more real-world metric than on/off measurements because it evaluates a display’s ability to simultaneously maintain both low black and full white levels, further factoring in screen uniformity. The average of the eight full-white measurements is divided by the average of the eight full-black measurements to arrive at the ANSI result.

ANSI contrast is lower than we expected, considering the PB287Q is a TN panel. While 781.8 isn’t a bad result, it isn’t as high as the other two TN-based monitors, nor does it beat Dell's UP3214Q 4K screen.

The conclusion we draw from our luminance tests is that the PB287Q offers comparable contrast performance as other Ultra HD products. Its unique status as a TN-based 4K display doesn’t improve that metric like we thought it might. At least for now, it looks like going with the highest resolution available means giving up a little contrast.

6. Results: Grayscale Tracking And Gamma Response

The majority of monitors, especially newer models, display excellent grayscale tracking (even at stock settings). It’s important that the color of white be consistently neutral at all light levels from darkest to brightest. Grayscale performance impacts color accuracy with regard to the secondary colors: cyan, magenta, and yellow. Since computer monitors typically have no color or tint adjustment, accurate grayscale is key.

We’re showing you the results from both Game and Standard modes.

Most monitors have picture modes optimized for specific applications like Game or Text, so we want to show you what happens in those modes. When you select Game on Asus' PB287Q, the grayscale tracking runs a little cool but isn’t too bad overall. Unlike some other displays, you can adjust the RGB sliders if you want to improve the result. When we get to the gamma and color gamut measurements, you’ll get a better idea of what we’re trying to tell you.

When you select the User Color Temp preset, this is the level of performance you’ll see. There are no visible errors, but our i1Pro says the white point is a little on the cool side. Still, it's pretty much excellent for a measurement right out of the box.

By tweaking the RGB sliders a bit, we improved the tracking slightly. The greatest gains are at the bright end of the luminance scale. We also had to lower the Contrast control to clean up the 100-percent level. We’ve seen better grayscale charts. However, the PB287Q’s result raises no issues worth worrying about.

Back to the comparison group…

An un-calibrated error of 2.27 Delta E is well under the threshold of visibility. We would be perfectly happy using the PB287Q without adjustment. Of course, while it doesn’t need a calibration, we performed one anyway.

A result of 1.49 Delta E represents only a small improvement in grayscale performance. For some, the small reduction in contrast is too great of a price to pay for such a slight gain in accuracy. Remember that if you only adjust backlight intensity, you’ll see around 900 to 1 contrast, rather than the calibrated number of 764 to 1.

Gamma Response

Gamma is the measurement of luminance levels at every step in the brightness range from 0 to 100 percent. This is important because poor gamma can either crush detail at various points or wash it out, making the entire picture appear flat and dull. Correct gamma produces a more three-dimensional image, with a greater sense of depth and realism. Meanwhile, incorrect gamma can negatively affect image quality, even in monitors with high contrast ratios.

In the gamma charts below, the yellow line represents 2.2, which is the most widely used standard for television, film, and computer graphics production. The closer the white measurement trace comes to 2.2, the better.

We’re including three different traces to show the difference between Game and Standard mode, along with the effect of Asus' Smart View control.

In the charts above, you saw that the grayscale performance in Game mode wasn’t too bad. When it comes to measuring gamma, however, there's a clear price to be paid. The large dips at 10 and 90 percent mean detail in those ranges gets crushed. The impact on bright highlights is very obvious in real-world content.

Here is the gamma in Standard mode. It tracks very well and only runs slightly dark. The average value is 2.31, which is a tad higher than the preferred 2.2. The upside is that perceived contrast is a little better. Standard mode, without question, is the right choice for the best image quality.

Here’s what happens when you turn Smart View on:

I mentioned earlier that Smart View raises the black level and cuts overall contrast by 89 percent. The net effect is a flat and washed-out image with medium gray tones where black should be. It looks like Asus wants Smart View to help with shadow detail, but it would be more useful if the feature had four or five different levels rather than on/off.

Let's get back to the comparison group:

Although the gamma is a tad dark, it tracks extremely well. Gamma is nearly as important to image quality as contrast, and the PB287Q gives nothing away here.

We calculate gamma deviation by simply expressing the difference from 2.2 as a percentage.

Because of its 2.31 average value, the PB287Q doesn’t look great compared to the rest of the field. Don't let our result deter you though; it's a relatively minor error you can fix on your own by upping the Contrast control (so long as you don’t mind a little less accuracy in the brightest grayscale points). Whether you calibrate or not, we consider the gamma performance to be more than satisfactory.

7. Results: Color Gamut And Performance

Color gamut is measured using a saturation sweep that samples the six main colors (red, green, blue, cyan, magenta, and yellow) at five saturation levels (20, 40, 60, 80, and 100%), yielding a more realistic view of color accuracy.

We’re showing you the Game and Standard modes here as well.

Not only are there significant gamma issues in Game mode, but the color gamut results are impacted as well. The biggest issue is the pumped-up luminance levels. At 100-percent saturation, all of the colors are between 34- and 112-percent too bright. In actual content, colors take on a somewhat unnatural glow. There is also a loss of fine detail, since some of the brightest signal information is clipped.

If all you do is switch to Standard, the result improves greatly.

The only issues worth mentioning are the under-saturation of red and over-saturation of blue. The errors are linear as you move from white at the center to the 100-percent level at the edges of the CIE triangle.

Luminance levels are very tight, which gives an excellent overall balance to the image. The PB287Q isn’t quite on the level of a professional display, but its color performance in Standard mode is still excellent.

The effects of grayscale calibration are interesting to observe. The only real improvements are in the hues of magenta and yellow. Note how those colors are now much closer to their targets. But overall luminance seems to take a downturn.

Then again, to a naked eye, these differences are extremely subtle and probably invisible to everyone but the most seasoned pros. As we’ve already said, calibration doesn’t yield significant gains in performance, but rather becomes a six of one, half-dozen of the other proposition.

An average error of 1.99 Delta E is quite low, comparing favorably to most of the higher-end monitors we review. If you need greater accuracy than this, there are only a few screens able to provide it (and they most definitely cost more).

Gamut Volume: Adobe RGB 1998 And sRGB

There are basically two categories of displays in use today: those that conform to the sRGB/Rec. 709 standard like HDTVs, and wide-gamut panels that show as much as 100 percent of the Adobe RGB 1998 spec. We use Gamutvision to calculate the gamut volume, based on an ICC profile created from our actual measurements.

At 3840x2160, Dell’s two displays render the full Adobe RGB 1998 color gamut. The TN panel used in Asus' PB287Q, along with Dell's upcoming P2815Q and Samsung's UD590, is backlit with white LEDs, limiting it to the sRGB gamut. The missing 4.25-percent gamut volume is due to an under-saturated red primary.

8. Results: Viewing Angles And Uniformity

The more monitors we test, the more we can see that off-axis viewing performance is dependent not only on pixel structure (IPS, PLS, TN, etc.) but the backlight technology as well. And we can see that the anti-glare layer makes a difference too.

Ultra HD does not affect off-axis viewing performance in the slightest. The PB287Q clearly suffers from the same issues as other TN-based monitors we’ve photographed, though. If you sit closer than 24 inches, as you might be tempted to do given the pixel density, you’ll see color changes at the sides of the screen, even if you are positioned dead-center. Pulling back to 36 inches resolves those anomalies. Obviously, there is a major shift to red at the sides and a loss of detail in the vertical plane.

Screen Uniformity: Luminance

To measure screen uniformity, zero and 100-percent full-field patterns are used, and nine points are sampled. First, we establish a baseline measurement at the center of each screen. Then the surrounding eight points are measured. Their values get expressed as a percentage of the baseline, either above or below. This number gets averaged. It is important to remember that we only test the review sample each vendor sends us. Other examples of the same monitor can measure differently.

First up is black field uniformity.

We can see minor hotspots at the center and upper-right portions of the screen in the black field pattern. In actual content, even dark material, we saw no issues.

Our white field pattern looks perfect to the naked eye. A 10.37-percent result is right on the borderline of visibility. Our measurements tell us there’s a dim area in the upper-left corner.

Screen Uniformity: Color

To measure color uniformity, we display an 80-percent white field and measure the Delta E error of the same nine points on the screen. Then we subtract the lowest value from the highest to arrive at the result. A smaller number means a display is more uniform. Any value below three translates to a variation that you shouldn't be able to see on your own.

A 1.42 Delta E figure is excellent. In fact, it's the best of all 4K screens we've tested. Like the white field uniformity test, we couldn’t see any problems with our press sample. Of this group, only Dell's UP3214Q has any visible color uniformity issues.

9. Results: Pixel Response And Input Lag

To perform these tests, we use a high-speed camera that shoots at 1000 frames per second. Analyzing the video frame-by-frame allows us to observe the exact time it takes to go from a zero-percent signal to a 100% white field.

The pattern generator is placed at the base of the monitor so our camera can capture the precise moment its front-panel LED lights up, indicating that a video signal is being received by the monitor. With this camera placement, we can easily see how long it takes to fully display a pattern after pressing the button on the generator’s remote. This testing methodology allows for accurate and repeatable results when comparing panels.

Here’s a shot of our test setup. Click on the photo to enlarge.

The brighter section of the camera’s screen is what actually appears in the video. You can see the lights of the pattern generator in the bottom of the viewfinder. We flash the pattern on and off five times and average the results.

The screen draw time beats any IPS screen we’ve tested. Superior response is half the reason gamers still favor TN panels. AOC's G2460PQU is the only 144 Hz display in our comparison group, hence its much lower result.

Given the bandwidth requirements for Ultra HD, we are pleasantly surprised by the input lag results. AOC is on top again, exactly where you'd expect to find a 144 Hz screen. But for a 4K display to exhibit just 3 ms more lag than an FHD monitor is impressive. We expect gamers to be attracted to Asus' PB287Q based on its price alone, so the added bonus of low input lag is icing on the cake.

10. Asus PB287Q: Ultra HD At An Ultra-Low Price

As with most bleeding-edge technologies, most of the discussion about 4K monitors revolves around price. The first-generation displays hit the market at an eye-watering $3500, and even now are still selling for over $2500.

Thanks to Chi Mei Optronics’ new 28-inch 4K TN panel, we now have the PB287Q available to us at an expected $650, which is about what you'd expect to pay for a mainstream 27-inch QHD display. In the near future, we’ll be reviewing Samsung’s UD590 and Dell’s P2815Q based on the same underlying technology. But for now, Asus owns the day.

Compared to the 32-inch screens we looked at a few months ago, the PB287Q is more refined, especially when it comes to signal handling. Because we're dealing with a single scaler, the dual-HDMI option available on Asus' tiled PQ321Q is no longer available. Rather, if you want to run at 3840x2160 at 60 Hz, you need to use DisplayPort 1.2. I had no problems getting the monitor to work with my Radeon HD 7770 graphics card, which isn't even officially rated to support a resolution that high. If you're using a multi-GPU setup from Nvidia, make sure you have the company's newest driver first.

The monitor's performance is generally good, especially considering Asus' price point. Color, grayscale, and gamma results are on par with other gaming screens and a tad below much more expensive professional displays. Even though contrast is decent compared to the average IPS monitor, we were hoping to see the greater dynamic range offered by the other TN panels we’ve reviewed. Our conclusion for now is that the extra pixel density of Ultra HD seems to lessen the contrast advantage of a TN-based product.

We're glad to see a breakaway from the typical 6-bit with FRC bandwidth limitation of nearly every TN screen out there. The PB287Q uses an 8-bit/FRC panel, which means it can render 1.07 billion colors either by up-sampling an 8-bit signal or passing a 10-bit one. While this feature is of greater interest to photographers and graphics professionals, it's good to know you can have greater bit-depth and greater resolution in one product.

It seems to us that the PB287Q is best suited for gaming. Its most attractive performance attributes surface in the response and input lag tests. Don't expect the PB287Q to match the speeds of a 144 Hz display; however, it competes quite favorably with the 60 Hz BenQ RL2460HT gaming monitor. We also like the inclusion of GamePlus, which we first saw on the VG248QE. Hardware-based aiming reticules are always a handy option, especially when they don’t introduce any processing overhead.

If your gaming rig is well-equipped for high resolutions, but you can't fathom doubling its price (or more) with a first-gen 4K monitor, Asus' new PB287Q has to be looking tantalizing right about now. Really, it represents a new reason to get excited about Ultra HD, which was previously fun to read about, but prohibitively expensive. All of a sudden, testing high-end graphics configurations at 3840x2160 is going to become a lot more important, as the audience previously interested in QHD shifts focus to 4K.

For its unprecedented value and respectable performance, we’re giving Asus' PB287Q our Tom's Hardware Smart Buy award.