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Uncalibrated – Maximum Backlight Level
Gigabyte conservatively rates the GS27FA at 300 nits. I measured over 343 which is plenty of headroom for things like the backlight strobe and HDR. You can turn on dynamic contrast for SDR content but that crushed highlight and shadow detail, so I left it off. Black levels are better than average for IPS monitors, and so is the resulting 1,392.2:1 contrast ratio. In a side-by-side comparison with the Lenovo it is clearly better with more saturated color and a deeper texture to the image.
After Calibration to 200 nits
Calibration doesn’t change the GS27FA’s ranking within this group and the adjustments to gamma give the image more punch and verve. I’ll talk more about those tweaks on the next page, but it suffices to say that calibration clearly has a positive effect.
ANSI contrast is also the best of the IPS screens in the group with a consistent 1,240.2:1 score for the GS27FA. This is excellent performance.
Test Takeaway: The GS27FA is more than bright enough for its intended use. I don’t recommend the dynamic contrast, but the unaltered image has visibly more contrast and depth than most IPS screens can boast. VA is still the best choice for a budget monitor if you want the deepest blacks but viewing angles won’t be as good. The GS27FA strikes a good balance between price and performance in my brightness and contrast tests.
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