BenQ PD2700U 4K HDR Monitor Review: Pro-Level Accuracy, Attractive Price

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IPS 27-incher with reliable colors

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HDR Performance

The PD2700U locks onto HDR10 signals instantly and switches into HDR mode without issue. We missed the extra color afforded by a DCI-P3 gamut, but the mode tracked color points for Rec.709 accurately and hit most of the wide gamut targets.

HDR Brightness & Contrast

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With HDR content, the monitor peaked at just over 400 nits, which is a good level for bold highlights and bright color.

Shadow detail was solid, though it can’t compete with a VA panel or a screen with a full-array backlight.

Our testing revealed HDR sequential contrast to be just 1,212:1, which is only about seven percent higher than the SDR number. A more aggressive dynamic contrast feature would likely have helped.

Grayscale, EOTF & Color

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Luminance tracking is a very important step towards proper HDR-rendering, and the PD2700U checks those boxes. Grayscale runs a tad cool, but errors are not visible until it passes the clip point at 65 percent. The EOTF curve is a little too bright in the blackest parts of the image but quickly snaps to the line up to a soft-clip at 65 percent. Resulting image quality is good with solid contrast and delineation of dark and light objects.

While we missed the DCI-P3 color gamut, the PD2700U manages to track targets in both Rec.709 and DCI well. 709 points are either right on the mark or a little over-saturated, but it’s not a visible issue. The DCI gamut tracks well until the display runs out of color, at which point it adjusts hue for a little deeper red and green. This is the right way to compensate for a smaller color gamut when showing HDR material. We also saw extra color luminance, which makes all hues more vivid.

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Christian Eberle
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.