NEC EA275UHD 27-inch UHD Monitor Review

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Conclusion

We’ve reviewed a variety of NEC displays here at Tom’s and without exception they perform well, look great and impart the feel of a precision-built tool. Whether you choose from the professionally-oriented PA series or an enterprise-ready EA screen, you’ll get high-end quality with performance and factory support to match.

With this new 27-inch IPS category in the Ultra HD realm, users have a good choice that works well from the standpoint of size, image quality and price. They’re more expensive than the 28-inch TN screens but with both the ViewSonic VP2780-4K and NEC EA275UHD, you get more features, a better build and a better overall picture.

Both displays offer excellent contrast, comfortably over 1000:1 which is our preferred standard. Color accuracy is also competitive with more expensive professional screens. And brightness is extremely high with max outputs over 400cd/m2. In fact the only flaw we ran into here was less-than-stellar gamma tracking. And NEC offers a fix for that in the form of SpectraView calibration software.

If you’re interested in Ultra HD for gaming, this monitor doesn’t break any new ground. It’s a 60Hz panel and forgoes both G-Sync and FreeSync. A 60Hz refresh rate at 3840x2160 resolution is likely to be with us until newer DisplayPort and HDMI standards are able to handle the extra bandwidth. And at this writing the only frame-rate-matching-capable UHD screen available is Acer’s XB280HK which offers G-Sync technology.

The EA275UHD therefore is squarely aimed at the enterprise. Pretty much anything NEC makes can be considered luxury business class based on build quality alone. The Ultra HD factor however takes this display to the top of its category.

If you’re looking for the ultimate in performance, check out the PA series. That’s where you’ll find factory-certified calibrations and a menu system that can do just about anything including full color management. Those screens have proven themselves ready for mission-critical work right out of the box. But if you’re looking to save a few bucks, an EA series monitor will satisfy the majority of users regardless of application. The addition of the EA275UHD to that line just creates another excellent choice from both NEC and the Ultra HD category.

For general computing tasks and casual gaming it’s hard to imagine a monitor with the look and feel of an NEC. There are displays of equal performance but the overall package, build quality and all the details that go into its design are hard to find elsewhere. The EA275UHD may not have the lowest price in class but we sure wouldn’t regret buying one. That’s why we’re giving it our Editor Approved Award.

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Christian Eberle
Contributing Editor

Christian Eberle is a Contributing Editor for Tom's Hardware US. He's a veteran reviewer of A/V equipment, specializing in monitors. Christian began his obsession with tech when he built his first PC in 1991, a 286 running DOS 3.0 at a blazing 12MHz. In 2006, he undertook training from the Imaging Science Foundation in video calibration and testing and thus started a passion for precise imaging that persists to this day. He is also a professional musician with a degree from the New England Conservatory as a classical bassoonist which he used to good effect as a performer with the West Point Army Band from 1987 to 2013. He enjoys watching movies and listening to high-end audio in his custom-built home theater and can be seen riding trails near his home on a race-ready ICE VTX recumbent trike. Christian enjoys the endless summer in Florida where he lives with his wife and Chihuahua and plays with orchestras around the state.

  • deuce_23
    This might be the one for me tho i would like a 32inch for gaming but 4k and HDMI cant really complain. It will nicely with my gtx 980ti. Now time to save! Whats that in Australian dollars?
    Reply
  • oyoy
    Nice, nothing special, no serious news really to lighting up 2016. Good sRGB and great uniformity but RGB and color gamut are just faulty, that's a deal breaker ..maybe at $599. Will skip this one, waiting for better performance + price wise (Design + Little gaming here and there).

    Thanks for the review Christian Eberle
    Reply
  • thundervore
    NEC monitors are always great. Beats Dell and HP by a mile when it comes to their quality and performance to price. Even a nice height adjustable stand.
    Reply
  • kartu
    No FreeSync support out of laziness? Meh...
    Reply
  • picture_perfect
    OK for photography & surfing. I don't think they are marketing it as a gaming monitor. Just as well unless you have a $1000 SLI set up to drive this excessive resolution. Low frame rates add persistence blur, stutter and lag,
    Reply
  • epobirs
    I ordered one of these from Newegg today:
    http://www.lg.com/us/monitors/lg-27MU67-B-4k-uhd-led-monitor

    It has Freesync, though the user doesn't go in for the games where the difference would make itself known. It's mainly to fill a gap in a household that has several devices that can drive 4K but no 4K displays on hand. I'm trying not to get my hopes overly high but it seems like a good unit for the price.
    Reply
  • erickw
    I’ve been the proud owner of an Eizo Flexscan 24”HD monitor for over 8 years (another monitor that was not really intended for gaming). Nonetheless, I’ve done a ton of gaming on this workhorse of a monitor (though not much in the way of fast paced shooters), along with many other applications. It has been an absolutely superlative gaming monitor, and I’ve long maintained that it makes virtually every other HD monitor I’ve seen pale in comparison. Depending on one’s specific needs (and pocketbook), monitors like this NEC can be excellent choices; even for gaming. I’m seriously looking at replacing my dearly loved (and hard to part wth) Eizo with this 4k beauty!
    Reply
  • TwoMetreBill
    Keep in mind that for photo/video use, it is a QUADRO and not a GeForce that is needed for highest image quality. The GeForce is for gaming and not photo editing. For AMD I think the equivalent is the Pro series.

    In order to deliver a higher frame rate for gaming, the GeForce cuts off the rendering before it is complete.
    Reply