AOC C4008VU8 UHD Monitor Review
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OSD Setup & Calibration
The C4008VU8 sticks to AOC’s tried-and-true menu strip which appears at the bottom of the screen and covers almost its full width. Navigation is very easy with the joystick, which changes fields and selects with a press. It feels high-end with solid feedback and a complete lack of play. This is the way all monitors should be.
The Luminance menu features six picture modes plus a seventh that turns on a uniformity compensation option. Standard is the default and renders the monitor’s full DCI-P3 color gamut. If you’re looking for the sRGB gamut, it’s found in the Color Setup menu with the color temp presets. You'll also find three gamma presets, dynamic contrast, and three overdrive settings. The medium option is the best with minimal ghosting and noticeable motion blur reduction.
The Image Setup menu is only available for analog VGA signals. It lets you tweak the clock, phase, sharpness, and picture position.
Color Setup starts with four temperature presets plus a user mode. The latter has a single-point adjustment with sliders that start at center range. In our tests, we couldn’t improve upon the C4008VU8’s out-of-box grayscale tracking. It’s decent with or without calibration but not quite in professional monitor territory. This menu also has DCB modes that alter color in green, sky, and flesh tones. Finally, there is a low blue light setting with weak, medium, and strong options. It can be used to reduce eye fatigue during long work sessions.
This monitor boasts AOC’s trademark Picture Boost menu, with its ability to highlight a specific area of the image. You can alter the frame size and position, then adjust brightness and contrast within it independent of the surrounding picture.
OSD setup has 16 language choices, timeout up to 120 seconds, menu position, and transparency. You can set a one-hour break reminder if you wish. For compatibility with older video cards, there is a DP 1.1 option. And the HDMI 2.0 port can be set to version 1.4 if needed for certain Blu-ray players.
The C4008VU8 is a perfect display for PIP and PBP. You can view up to four sources at once thanks to the wide variety of inputs. The PIP window can be sized and moved to any corner of the screen. You can also control which source receives audio support.
The Extra menu has an input selector, off timer (up to 24 hours), aspect ratio control, DDC/CI toggle, and a factory reset.
Calibration
Calibrating the C4008VU8 required us to make a few compromises. In Standard mode, grayscale tracking and gamma are quite good except for the brightest parts of the image, which look a little blue. Reducing the contrast control helps with that. Adjusting the RGB sliders produces a slightly different look but no improvement in error levels. We don’t recommend the uniformity compensation, because it cuts brightness and contrast by about half. And our sample didn’t need improvement, it aced our field tests. Also, the only way to reduce the color gamut to sRGB is by selecting the preset of the same name in the color temp menu. Unfortunately, that makes the white point visibly red. We recommend either using the Standard mode with a 10-click reduction in contrast, or performing a full calibration. The resulting numbers are about the same. And you’ll be viewing all content in the DCI-P3 gamut, which is more saturated than sRGB. Here are the settings we came up with.
AOC C4008VU8 Calibration Settings | |
---|---|
Eco Mode | Standard |
Brightness 200cd/m2 | 91 |
Brightness 120cd/m2 | 36 |
Brightness 100cd/m2 | 23 |
Brightness 80cd/m2 | 10 |
Contrast | 40 |
Gamma | 1 |
Color Temp User | Red 50, Green 53, Blue 52 |
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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.
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sargentchimera I have a 43in Sony Bravia X800D TV I bought for ~$650, I bought it specifically for its size and HDR capability. If this had been out 8 months ago I think I would of bought it instead. The review mentioned not all HDR TVs fully benefit from their HDR, I wonder if mine is in that boat... I do notice a difference with it on but perhaps the effect is not as strong as it could be. I wonder if the picture would be better on this monitor.Reply -
JonDol When I saw the title I hoped for a second that the first 4K monitor that is worth the money has arrived. Too bad it isn't it.Reply -
Zerstorer1 40" Samsung KU6300 HDR 4K 4:4:4 60 fps gaming for 399. Been using it for year as my personal desktop screen.Reply -
Zerstorer1 I've been using a Samsung KU6300 for year now. Got it for 399. Heal of deal. Supports 4:4:4 and HDR 60 fps at 4k gaming.Reply -
hannibal Why so? This monitor is very well worth of its money!Reply
It is big and picture quality is nice!
Even 27" 4K monitors cost almost 600-1000$
And if it is any better... it is even more expensive.
Hopefully we will get HDR and freesync version below 1500$ sooner than later. That would be bargain! -
Brian_R170 I bought a Samsung UN40KU6290 40-inch 4K TV last November from Costco for $289 to use as a monitor for my gaming system. There are usually a lot of trade-offs when using a TV as a monitor, and I agree that using a purpose-built computer monitor should always be better. Still, if you can find a TV that meets your own minimum requirements, you can save a LOT of money.Reply -
Brian_R170 Zerstorer1, +1 on the KU6300. Reviews said it's the same as my KU6290 but has a fancy remote. The only thing I miss that a purpose-built computer monitor would have is auto-sensing the inputs to automatically power-on from standby. The KU will automatically go to standby after it senses all inputs are lost for a few minutes, but it doesn't power-on automatically.Reply -
Max_x2 I'm wondering in the warm whites are often a problem with AOC. I returned one couple years because of that, and, you know, it kinda left a bad aftertaste.Reply