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Samsung S27B971D 27-Inch QHD Monitor, Reviewed
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1. Samsung S27B971D: High-End Luxury At A High-end Price

A little more than a year ago, I wrote VP2770-LED Vs. S27B970D: 27" Monitors At 2560x1440, reviewing Samsung's flagship S27B970D at $1200. It offered high-end luxury, slick styling, a large feature set, and factory calibration. After a handful of tweaks and a $200 price reduction, the follow-up S27B971D is ready for our suite of display tests.

QHD monitors, with a native resolution of 2560x1440, are becoming more commonplace on enthusiast desktops, despite the fact that they still start north of $600. There are a few gray-market exceptions. For example, Auria's EQ276W remains a terrific value at around $400. At the other end of the spectrum, a few manufacturers distance themselves from the pack by adding features and improving performance at a correspondingly higher price point. Atop the price ladder sits the Samsung S27B971D.

Any display selling for four figures needs to offer lots of pixels, a long feature set, or, preferably, both. Top-end performance goes without saying. The only other screen we’ve tested that includes a factory calibration is Asus’ PA279Q, which also boasts a CMS and selectable color gamuts. The PA279Q sells for $850. So, we want to know how Samsung justifies that extra $150.

Brand
Samsung
Model
S27B971D
MSRP
$1000
Panel Type
PLS
Backlight
W-LED, edge array
Screen Size
27-inch
Max Resolution
2560x1440
Max Refresh Rate
60 Hz
Aspect Ratio
16:9
Response Time (GTG)
5 ms
Brightness (cd/m2)
300 High Bright, 220 Standard
Speakers
Yes
VGA
-
DVI
1
DisplayPort
1
HDMI
1
Audio In
via HDMI or DP
Headphone
-
USB
1 up, 2 down
Panel Dimensions
W x H x D w/base
25.4 x 18.4-22.3 x 9.7 in
645 x 467-567 x 247 mm
Panel Thickness
.9 in / 23 mm
Weight
16.5 lbs / 7.5 kg
Warranty
Three years

On paper, the S27B971D's specifications don't necessarily explain why the display is so expensive. It’s not terribly bright, nor does it have the higher refresh rate that would make it attractive to gamers. What we can see is that it's aimed squarely at graphics professionals. Samsung touts factory calibration and out-of-box accuracy as the main selling points. And there's one feature it offers that no other company does: the ability to interface a calibration instrument directly with the monitor’s internal look-up table.

We’ve discussed LUTs in the past. This is best way to add functionality to a monitor’s OSD so you can arrive at a more precise calibration than would be possible otherwise. Samsung eliminates the need to add expensive software and pattern sources to your graphics toolkit. Its application, Natural Color Expert, is included in the package, along with support for all meters commonly in use today like the X-Rite i1Pro and Display2 products. Not only does this software address the usual calibration parameters, but it adds screen uniformity correction to the mix.

During the course of today's review, we'll run through NCE’s entire process. You'll also see us calibrate using more conventional steps. Samsung isn't a company we know to cut corners; however, our tests will show whether it comes up short in any particular metric to achieve that $200 price reduction.

2. Packaging, Physical Layout, And Accessories

The S27B971D ships in a large box with substantial blocks of Styrofoam to keep everything in place. The carton is single-layer corrugate, which I consider to be a little weak for standing up to abusive handling; double-corrugate would be better. Included cables are HDMI/MHL, DVI, USB, and DisplayPort. The power supply is a small brick with a thin cable that connects to the monitor, and a detachable power cord featuring a right-angle plug. Also in the box are a microfiber cleaning cloth and a CD containing the manual, drivers, and Natural Color Expert software.

Product 360

The S27B971D is almost identical to its predecessor, the S27B970D. The only real difference is the anti-glare panel. Whereas the 970 had an additional layer that was flush-mounted edge to edge, the 971 does away with extraneous glass, favoring a traditional matte screen surrounded by a fairly wide bezel. The net result is slightly better contrast, reduced glare, and increased image clarity. Otherwise, the chassis is unchanged.

The base cannot be removed due to its integrated inputs and monitor controls. The only ergonomic adjustments are four inches of height and about 15 degrees of tilt. There is no swivel or portrait mode rotation.

Here’s a close-up of the control panel. The buttons are touch-sensitive and take a committed press to activate. After a few seconds, the panel goes dark and must be touched to reactivate. It takes a little getting used to, but once you know your way around, the control mechanism is as good as any other monitor can boast. Clockwise from the upper-left are the select, up/volume, down/color mode, power, and menu buttons.

A glance at the back of the S27B971D shows that it looks finished, regardless of the angle you're looking at. The material looks like brushed aluminum, but it is in fact hard plastic. The upright, along with a band that surrounds the panel, are polished metal, however.

Stereo speakers fire downwards through vents on the bottom edge. Like the majority of built-in monitor speakers, they sound small, but are fine for basic entertainment. Unfortunately, there are no options for aftermarket mounting; the picture below shows why.

All of the inputs are in the S27B971D's base, which keeps the panel nice and slim. The rear-facing suite of I/O includes a USB upstream port, along with DisplayPort, DVI, and HDMI/MHL outputs, along with a 14 V DC power connection. One of the sides of the base sports two USB downstream outputs.

3. OSD Setup And Calibrating Samsung's S27B971D

The S27B971D's OSD is identical to the S27B970D. It is almost minimalist in nature, yet still powerful. You get everything you need and nothing you don’t. In fact, the only menu item missing is a wide-gamut option.

Touching the menu icon in the lower-left of the control panel brings up the first screen.

Dynamic Contrast is only enabled in the High Bright picture mode. If you turn it on, you won’t have access to the brightness or contrast sliders. As such, we recommend leaving it off.

Naturally, Brightness modulates the backlight, not the actual black level. This can be set to taste since the overall contrast ratio stays the same no matter what the output level. Contrast clips information at values above 70. Response Time is Samsung’s term for TraceFree. Setting it to Faster reduces motion blur, though in some cases also causes ghosting. HDMI Black Level should be set to Normal for all PC signals, or Low for video signals (such as those coming from a Blu-ray player).

The second sub-menu is called Color and contains a standard set of calibration controls.

To enable the RGB sliders, you need to be in the Standard or Cinema Color Mode. You can choose a preset color temp based on Kelvins, or set the option to Custom and adjust yourself. We’re happy to see the sliders start in the middle of their range. This makes dialing in the white point much easier. And 100-step resolution means a very precise calibration is possible. The gamma presets range from 1.6 to 2.7, and they measure accurately. The correct choice is 2.2.

Next up are the aspect and menu position controls.

For PC signals, there are two aspect ratio choices: Wide and Auto. Wide stretches a lower-than-native resolution signal to fill the screen, while Auto maps the source image in a 1:1 ratio. So, for example, a 1920x1080 signal would be shown windowed in the center of the screen without any scaling.

This menu also contains controls for positioning the OSD. You can place it anywhere, which is particularly convenient for viewing test patterns.

These are the remaining ergonomic features in the Setup & Reset menu:

Turning on Eco Saving reduces the monitor’s power consumption, along with its light output. Menu Transparency is an on/off option. Language offers 14 choices. PC/AV mode is designed to make the S27B971D more compatible with sources other than computers by changing the aspect ratio and color mode options. Ultimately, the best bet is to stay in PC mode and make sure the signal from your video sources (optical disc player, DVR) is in PC mode also. If you are forced to connect a video-mode only device, change the HDMI Black Level option to Low to have the correct dynamic range.

The final screen reports the horizontal and vertical refresh rates, in addition to the input resolution.

Samsung S27B971D Calibration

There are two ways to calibrate this monitor, either through the OSD or with Natural Color Expert, which is provided at no charge by Samsung. For our testing, we used the OSD. But I also ran through the procedure in NCE using an X-Rite i1Pro spectrophotometer.

I settled on Standard mode as the best starting point for my OSD-based calibration. The other modes lock out different controls and limit adjustment (sRGB mode, for instance, locks out everything, including brightness and contrast). And unfortunately, none of them are terribly accurate out of the box. In fact, this monitor takes a slight step backwards from its predecessor in that regard.

The most glaring flaw we found is that the HDMI Black Level is set to Low by default, which, as it turns out, is incorrect for PC-level signals. If you don’t change it to Normal, blacks get crushed and the overall gamma curve ends up quite far off of the 2.2 standard. Once you change this setting, flat grayscale tracking is only a few clicks away. There are no adjustments for the color gamut, but it tracks sRGB fairly well. A more notable omission is an option for Adobe RGB 1998. Any display aimed at professionals, especially at this price point, should include presets for both gamuts.

Samsung S27B971D Calibration Settings
Brightness
74
Contrast
70
Sharpness
60
Color Mode
Standard
Color Temp
Custom
RGB
Red 51 / Green 50 / Blue 54
Gamma
2.2
HDMI Black Level
Normal

If you attempt to calibrate with HDMI Black Level set to Low, you will have all sorts of difficulties setting brightness and contrast correctly. Once you change it to Normal, the sliders work as they should. Contrast clips information above a setting of 70. The Sharpness slider softens the picture when set below 60. Any higher and you'll experience edge enhancement.

4. Calibrating The S27B971D With Natural Color Expert

If you’ve worked with a wizard-based calibration package like Datacolor Spyder, Natural Color Expert should be easy to adopt. Rather than the workflow system used by CalMAN, NCE walks you through each image parameter prior to the actual calibration sequence. The only preparation you do after installing the software is connecting Samsung's S27B971D to your PC or Mac using an included USB cable, and then hooking your preferred instrument up to the monitor’s USB port. The supported meters are X-Rite’s i1 Pro, i1Display Pro, and ColorMunki; Datacolor’s Spyder 4; and Minolta’s CA-210 spectroradiometer.

Here is the initial screen.

You can save multiple profiles with NCE, and they're managed here. You can also import and export profiles for use on other systems. The tabs at the top switch between calibration, uniformity, and verification modes.

This is the uniformity control panel:

Computer-based lookup tables don’t always include uniformity compensation. NCE, however, does. If you want fine resolution, you can measure up to 49 points. This routine doesn’t just evaluate and adjust luminance uniformity, but color as well.

We were unable to improve the out-of-box results; the display’s uniformity is already superb (though we also know that not every sample will measure the same).

If you initiate a calibration, this is the next screen you encounter:

When you set the Profile Mode to Advanced, you can access all the parameters on a single screen. In Basic mode, each parameter appears in a separate window with before and after photos so you can see its effect on the image. The process couldn't be any easier. Simply specify maximum brightness, black level, white point, gamma, and color gamut. There are presets for the most frequently-used standards, or you can enter the xyY values yourself for a custom calibration.

Once NCE verifies your meter, the process runs without user intervention. If you are doing a uniformity procedure, you have to move the meter to each measurement point when instructed.

Here’s the result screen:

Clicking the Before/After button toggles between the sample images, illustrating the effects of your adjustments. All of the data is presented in the lower-right corner. When you’re satisfied, save the result and it appears in the profile list.

After experimenting with NCE, we can see that it is quite effective at calibrating the S27B971D. But it doesn't improve on the results you can get through the OSD. Really, its chief benefit is that you can calibrate to a precise standard with only a meter. You don’t need additional software or patterns. It’s also a snap to set custom parameters. And if your particular sample has uniformity errors, you can fix them easily.

5. Measurement And Calibration Methodology: How We Test

To measure and calibrate monitors, we use an i1Pro spectrophotometer and version 5.1.2 of SpectraCal’s CalMAN software.

For patterns, we employ an AccuPel DVG-5000 video signal generator. 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 i1Pro 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, we’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).

6. 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 contrast control past the clipping point. While doing this would increase a monitor’s light output, the brightest signal levels would not be visible, resulting in crushed highlight detail. Our numbers show the maximum light level possible with no signal clipping.

Our comparison group consists of the last four desktop monitors reviewed at Tom’s Hardware, plus Samsung’s previous-generation S27B970D QHD screen.

This is not an exceptionally bright display, but it is bright enough for pretty much any environment we can think of (and it's slightly brighter than Samsung's previous-gen effort). There is more output available in the High Bright mode, though it comes at the expense of clipped detail and a too-cool white point.

The black level results reveal a little surprise.

The S27B971D takes a step backward from Samsung's 970 in our maximum black level measurement. While this mid-pack result isn’t bad, the 971’s black level is higher by more than double. Stick with us though; the outcome it isn’t as bad as you might think.

Here’s the final contrast result:

While the maximum contrast result is around half that of the S27B970D’s, it’s still about average for all the screens we measured in 2013. And as you’ll see, the newer Samsung has much more consistent contrast at all output levels.

We believe 50 cd/m2 is a practical minimum standard for brightness. Any lower and you risk eyestrain and fatigue. Many monitors do register under that level. The S27B971D, specifically, measures 59.8483 cd/m2 when the brightness control is bottomed. That's within a hair of the S27B970D’s result.

Samsung's previous-gen flagship returned a super-low black level of .0145 cd/m2, while the S27B971D once again runs mid-pack with a .0840 measurement. That's still pretty low, falling in line with the newer screen’s more consistent contrast performance.

We wrap up this section with the minimum contrast comparison.

And here's the consistency we’re talking about. From the top to the bottom of the S27B971D’s output range, contrast is pretty much the same no matter where you choose to set it. Since there’s no sweet spot per se, you can set the light output to more precisely match your room’s lighting conditions.

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. It's also good for gamma and grayscale tracking, which we'll look at on the next page. In a darkened room, many professionals prefer a 120 cd/m2 calibration. We find this makes little to no difference on the calibrated black level and contrast measurements.

By now, you know what we're going to say. The calibrated black level is right where it should be to maintain a contrast ratio of just over 700:1. And it’s a tad lower than the S27B970D.

Here are the final calibrated contrast numbers.

The S27B971D’s consistent contrast performance is a vast improvement over the S27B970D’s more varied numbers. Just look at the values: 720.3, 712.2, and 718.9 to 1. That’s amazing! We measured the results at a 120 cd/m2 output level and came up with 717 to 1, with a black level of .1690 cd/m2. Although monitors with greater calibrated contrast do exist, there are none as consistent at multiple output levels.

ANSI Contrast Ratio

Another important measure of contrast is ANSI. To perform this test, a checkerboard pattern of sixteen zero- and 100-percent squares is measured. The result is somewhat more real-world than on/off measurements because it tests a display’s ability to simultaneously maintain both low black and full white levels, and factors 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.

When a display’s ANSI and on/off measurements are this close, we can reasonably draw conclusions about good engineering and the use of high-quality components. It also suggests excellent screen uniformity, which we should be able to confirm on page nine.

7. Results: Grayscale Tracking And Gamma Response

A 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.

Given the S27B971D’s factory calibration and correspondingly-higher price, we are a little disappointed by the screen's out-of-box performance. We measured each picture mode and came up with similar results for all of them. There is a calibration data sheet included in the box. However, we couldn't duplicate those numbers without adjustment. You can see the color temp runs a little green as brightness rises. Errors are visible after the 50-percent mark.

Fortunately, a high-quality calibration is fairly easy.

This is a stupendous result, to say the least. The errors range from .11 to .98 Delta E, proving that a properly designed display can make do with just a single-point white balance control.

Here’s our comparison group again.

At default settings, the S27B971D is below average in grayscale performance. The S27B970D was only a little better.

After calibration, the 971 rockets to the top of the chart, besting its predecessor by almost .30 Delta E. Its .42 value is the best we’ve recorded to date for any display of any type.

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 negatively affects 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 accepted standard for television, film, and computer graphics production. The closer the white measurement trace comes to 2.2, the better.

This graph was generated before we noticed the incorrect HDMI Black Level setting. We're not sure why Samsung has this at Low by default. Not only it hose the gamma curve, but it also crushes both highlight and shadow detail noticeably.

This is the gamma measurement at the Normal setting. It’s even better, if only slightly, than the graph generated by the S27B970D. Aside from a tiny dip at 10 percent, it’s perfect. And that dip represents a measly .33 cd/m2.

Here’s our test group again for the gamma comparisons.

A value range of .14 indicates extremely tight gamma tracking. And that is caused by only a single aberration at 10-percent brightness. As you can see, it doesn’t get much better.

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

Only three other displays we’ve reviewed can match this result: AOC’s I2757FH, HP’s ZR2740w, and Asus’ PB278Q. For all intents and purposes, this is perfect gamma response.

8. 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%), providing a realistic view of color accuracy.

What the S27B971D lacks in the contrast department, it more than makes up for in accuracy. Its chroma numbers are just as good as its grayscale and gamma ones. And it does improve upon the S27970D a little.

Looking at the CIE chart, we see slight oversaturation in red, magenta, and blue, while cyan, green, and yellow are right on target. As you can see on the almost-flawless luminance graph, the oversaturated colors are compensated by slightly lower brightness levels. The end result is vanishingly low errors well below three Delta E.

The S27B971D sets another record by finishing first among the monitors we tested in 2013. Only Pioneer's PRO-111FD plasma has better measured color accuracy at .83 Delta E. The Samsung may be expensive, but that last degree of performance is never cheap.

Gamut Volume: Adobe RGB 1998

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 actual measurements. The chart shows the percentage of both sRGB and Adobe RGB 1998 gamuts.

Samsung claims full coverage of the sRGB color gamut, and our results support that specification with an almost-perfect 100.7-percent result. That .7-percent excess comes from the slight oversaturation we recorded for red, magenta, and blue. If you require precise color accuracy, the S27B971D is a great choice, so long as sRGB is all you need. Unfortunately, there is no provision for the wider Adobe RGB 1998 gamut used in digital photography. It’s hard to ignore the fact that Asus offers both gamuts in its PA279Q, along with a similar level of accuracy, for $150 less.

9. Results: Viewing Angles And Uniformity

PLS and IPS are nearly identical technologies, so we expect similar off-axis viewing performance from both screen types. The S27B971D fares well. You can see a little light falloff in the horizontal plane and less in the vertical. The color shifts slightly towards blue as well. The detail of the darkest steps is almost, but not quite crushed. If you enlarge the photo, the difference between the bottom two brightness levels becomes more apparent.

Screen Uniformity: Luminance

To measure screen uniformity, zero- and 100-percent full-field patterns are used, and nine points are sampled. We’re now comparing the results to other monitors we've reviewed.

First, we establish a baseline measurement at the center of each screen. Then the surrounding eight points are tested, their values 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 in this metric.

First up is black field uniformity.

Screen uniformity is one of the parameters available in the S27B971D’s internal look-up table. You can adjust it using the Natural Color Expert software and an appropriate measuring instrument. Our results are from an out-of-box configuration.

The 8.57 percent result we're showing is excellent, but it would be even better if not for the slight hotspot in the lower-right corner.

Here’s the white field measurement:

Samsung's 1.64-percent result is the best we've ever seen by far for white field uniformity. It even exceeds the values expected from Samsung’s included data sheet! The white field pattern looks absolutely perfect from one corner to the other, with no visible variation in brightness at all.

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 means a variation that is invisible to the naked eye.

Samsung includes color uniformity on its calibration chart, and our result exceeds that factory measurement as well. Remember, values below three are essentially invisible. A .35 Delta E variation is as good as non-existent. The measured errors range from .12 to 1.07 Delta E.

Unfortunately, when we reviewed Samsung's previous-gen S27B970D, we were not recording color uniformity data. So we couldn't include it in this comparison.

10. 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.

This is what our test setup looks like. 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.

Here’s the screen draw result.

Samsung rates the S27B971D at five milliseconds, which is a little lower than the typical six to eight milliseconds of most IPS panels. That shows in our test as well. Moreover, this screen is significantly faster than its predecessor.

Here are the lag results:

Even with the faster screen draw time, overall input lag falls behind the S27B970D by 21 milliseconds (though it's still slightly ahead of the other recently-tested screens). Given the price point of this monitor, your gaming budget is probably better-spent on a faster graphics card or multiple displays with faster refresh rates like Asus' VG248QE

11. New Monitor, New Price: Is The S27B971D A Better Value?

Most of us don't upgrade our monitors very often. If you already own an S27B970D, there is nothing about the newer model that warrants shelling out another $1000. The two main improvements are that contrast, while lower, is more consistent, and the screen’s new anti-glare layer is vastly superior to the old one.

If you’re still shopping for your first 27-inch QHD screen, however, Samsung does offer a few reasons to spend more on its new flagship instead of the competition's best efforts.

Performance is this display's top strength. Its accuracy is second to none. The benchmark results for grayscale, gamma, and color are either the best we've ever recorded or close to them. The only metric where the S27B971D falls short is contrast. But that story requires a deeper analysis. Yes, the raw contrast numbers are lower than some less expensive QHD screens (and even Samsung’s own S27B970D). But overall contrast performance is now much more consistent at all brightness levels. You can set the backlight control anywhere in its range and you’ll see around a 700-to-1 contrast ratio, both on/off and intra-image. Look over the other monitors' numbers, and you'll find that it's rare for a display to maintain its ratio so steadily in every scenario.

The only caveat is that you really need to calibrate in order to achieve peak performance. Samsung advertises a factory calibration and includes a data sheet along with each monitor showing impressive results. Our measurements did not correspond to those figures right out of the box, though. And so, without your intervention, the S27B971D is not significantly better than other QHD displays. It falls within reasonable parameters; errors are barely visible. But for $1000, we expected more accurate results.

We’re finding more monitors at lower price points that offer solid performance without calibration. And paying more doesn’t guarantee greater accuracy, either. You will always get the most out of your display with calibration. But if you don’t invest in the software and instruments, there are value-oriented choices out there too. This is not one of those options.

Samsung aims the S27B971D at professional users. We think it will appeal more to luxury-oriented buyers who attach equal importance to aesthetics as they do to performance. The most likely deal-breaker for Samsung's target market is the lack of a wide-gamut option. Now that Asus includes that feature in its PA279Q, manufacturers without it are at a disadvantage. We applaud Samsung’s price drop compared to last-gen's model. However, the company could still do a better job of improving value.

We hope that the 27-inch QHD segment is hit by a price drop soon. Cost reductions for LCD panels in general have slowed considerably in the past year. But now that the entire Tom's Hardware team is using displays with high pixel densities, we have no intention of stepping back to 1920x1080. Perhaps the inevitable ramp-up of 4K displays will knock QHD down a bit. For now, it remains predominantly high-end tech at a high-end price.