Why you can trust Tom's Hardware Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.
The PD2770U has 12 total fixed color modes plus three custom memories for user calibrations. Each is labeled according to the standard it supports. You get everything currently in use except for BT.2020, along with DICOM, M-book, Animation and CAD/CAM.
I tested the color modes I would use most, Adobe RGB, sRGB, BT.709 and Display and Cinema P3. They default to specific gamma and color temp settings, which I’ve put into the table below.
Mode | Gamut | Color Temp | Gamma |
Adobe RGB | Adobe RGB | D65 | 2.2 power |
sRGB | sRGB | D65 | 2.2 power |
BT.709 | BT.709 | D65 | 2.4 power |
Cinema P3 | P3 | D63 | 2.6 power |
Display P3 | P3 | D65 | 2.2 power |
Grayscale and Gamma Tracking
Our grayscale and gamma tests use Calman calibration software from Portrait Displays. We describe our grayscale and gamma tests in detail here.
The grayscale and gamma runs from the five tested modes are very consistent. Grayscale errors run a bit cool in the brighter steps, and there is a slight dip in gamma at the 10% step, which is too light. Visually, these are minor errors, but I recommend performing an initial calibration of the PD2770U before putting it to work.
Color Gamut Accuracy
Our color gamut and volume testing use Portrait Displays’ Calman software. For details on our color gamut testing and volume calculations, click here.
The out-of-the-box color results are impressive, with the highest error recorded in sRGB mode, 1.67dE. All five modes are visually perfect with fully saturated primary and secondary colors. I noted very slight undersaturation in 60 and 80% red in some of the charts. This ties to the gamma dip I mentioned earlier. Running a calibration during initial setup takes care of this issue. I also noted that the PD2770U is the first true Adobe RGB monitor I’ve seen in a long time. This gamut has more green than P3, and few monitors, even Quantum Dot ones, can fully render it. BenQ achieves almost 100% coverage here, which makes it a great tool for the creation of printed content.
Grayscale, Gamma and Color Gamut Test Summary
Below is a table with all the results from the five tested modes. The PD2770U is extremely consistent and will deliver accurate color in any of its presets. I recommend an initial calibration to firm up grayscale and gamma tracking.
| Row 0 - Cell 0 | Grayscale Error | Gamma Range | Gamma Average | Gamma Actual | Gamut Error | Gamut Volume |
Adobe RGB | 2.87dE | 0.17 | 0.45% | 2.19 | 1.32dE | 98.93% |
sRGB | 2.87dE | 0.26 | 0.45% | 2.19 | 1.67dE | 104.10% |
BT.709 | 2.78dE | 0.27 | 0.91% | 2.38 | 1.46dE | 100.36% |
Cinema P3 | 2.42dE | 0.34 | 0.45% | 2.59 | 1.38dE | 96.14% |
Display P3 | 2.78dE | 0.254 | 0.45% | 2.19 | 1.46dE | 96.15% |
Test Takeaway: The PD2770U compares extremely well to the other professional screens I’ve reviewed recently from Asus and Dell. There were some slight errors in grayscale and gamma in my sample, so I recommend that new users run an initial calibration using either the OSD or the Palette Master Ultimate app. It is one of the rare displays to fully cover Adobe RGB which makes it a standout choice for print content creation.
MORE: Best Gaming Monitors
MORE: How We Test PC Monitors
MORE: How to Buy a PC Monitor
