Monoprice MP27 Zero-G Monitor Review

Reviews
By Christian Eberle
published

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Brightness & Contrast

To read about our monitor tests in depth, please check out Display Testing Explained: How We Test Monitors and TVs. Brightness and Contrast testing is covered on page two.

Most 27” gaming monitors with QHD resolution employ IPS panels, so finding price-competitive monitors is a little difficult. The MP27 is one of the least expensive QHD adaptive-sync monitors out there. The closest one here is AOC’s AG271QX. We'll also compare the AG271QG, Asus PG279Q, Acer BE270U, and ViewSonic XG2703-GS.
Acer BE270U
AOC AG271QG Agon
AOC AG271QX

Uncalibrated – Maximum Backlight Level

Image 1 of 3

The MP27 doesn’t have a backlight strobe, but its high brightness leaves enough headroom for one should Monoprice decide to include the feature at a later date. There’s more than enough output for any potential environment. That results in a black level which is noticeably higher than the rest. And contrast is lower too at only 768.5:1. That is probably the most significant thing you give up when choosing an inexpensive gaming monitor.

Uncalibrated – Minimum Backlight Level

Image 1 of 3

The backlight range is quite wide with output down to 32.0673cd/m2. We’d prefer to see a higher minimum number to enable smaller brightness steps. Each click is around 3cd/m2. That makes precise level-matching more difficult. Contrast stays consistent throughout the luminance range.

After Calibration to 200cd/m2

Image 1 of 2

We were pleasantly surprised to see a higher contrast measurement after calibration. This is extremely rare. Usually it’s a bit lower or, at best, the same. Image depth is significantly better after adjustment mainly because gamma tracking has been improved. See page four for our detailed measurements. This is decent performance and for its cost savings. The MP27 doesn’t give up too much to the other screens here.

ANSI Contrast Ratio

Our instruments indicated a hotspot in the upper-right zones of the screen resulting in a lowered ANSI measurement. Luckily, it’s not visible, and it didn’t affect our uniformity tests. The MP27 has a good quality panel with no visible backlight bleed and reasonable contrast for the price.


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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.

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11 Comments Comment from the forums
  • AgentLozen
    I'm glad you guys thought so highly of this monitor. It's good to know there are inexpensive QHD, 144hz monitors out there to shake up the landscape. This will go well with AMD Vega when it launches sometime between March and May in 2017 like the rumors suggest.

    (I know Vega has a July 30 release date. Wasn't the release date late 2016 when the RX 480 launched? And then early 2017? And now mid 2017. I'm just tired of waiting)
    Reply
  • vinay2070
    The Product of 2560X1440X144HzXAMDCardThatCanDriveIt = 0
    Reply
  • warmon6
    19893905 said:
    The Product of 2560X1440X144HzXAMDCardThatCanDriveIt = 0

    I think the R9 295x2 wants a word with you.....
    Reply
  • coolitic
    The main reason I avoid ips is because the "cheap" ones have poor QC, backlight bleed, and IPS glow.
    Reply
  • 10tacle
    Monoprice is best known for buying A- and B grade panel rejects from the likes of Apple and LG and selling them for much less than the full priced ones from said vendors. So who is the OEM who makes this panel?
    Reply
  • footman
    As always a great review. I'd like to see a review of the new Nixeus 27in EDG 144hz Freesync IPS monitor. Any plans to review this soon?
    Reply
  • cryoburner
    19893905 said:
    The Product of 2560X1440X144HzXAMDCardThatCanDriveIt = 0
    To be fair, this is kind of true for anyone looking to purchase a card right now, since due to cryptocurrency mining, you can't really find any AMD graphics cards in stock that are much more powerful than an RX 560, unless you are willing to pay massively marked-up prices that would defeat any cost-savings of going with a cheaper monitor.
    Reply
  • picture_perfect
    "It’s far more important to keep framerates as high as possible. That will eliminate blur and maintain motion resolution far more effectively than a backlight strobe."

    The motion clarity I get with strobing at 120hz is far better than an uncapped frame rate at 144hz. The math backs that up. Yes there is a slight lag trade off (placebo almost) but well worth it for me. Try before you write it off.
    Reply
  • Jagwired
    I like that there's no logo on the front. If they release a 4K version in the future, I'm in.
    Reply
  • ninjustin
    Can I either get this in G-Sync or have miners stop jacking up the price of AMD cards?
    Reply