Three 27" IPS LCDs: UltraSharp U2711, DS-277W, And MultiSync PA271W

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Many of you asked for a round-up of 27" IPS-based displays, and here it is. Although these screens feature similar specifications, you might be surprised at how much they differ, both in performance and price. Which of the three is right for you?

27" IPS LCD Roundup: Dell, DoubleSight, And NEC

Any enthusiast spending a significant amount of money on a high-end system should own a display of comparable quality. After all, what good does a pair of GeForce or Radeon cards do you if the most attractive graphics settings are obscured by a lackluster screen?

We really appreciate technologies like AMD's Eyefinity, which make it possible for you to buy a trio of smaller 22- or 23-inch monitors and work across multiple displays. We have several guys doing that in the Tom's Hardware office. But then there are the folks who simply prefer a single workspace and ultra-high resolutions. In those cases, a larger 27- or 30-inch display is the better choice. 

We already covered smaller 22" and 23" TN-based LCDs in Three-Way 22" LED LCD Roundup: Dell, LG, And Samsung and Three-Way 23" LED LCD Roundup: Dell, HP, And Samsung. However, we also received a number of requests that we look at larger screens based on IPS panels.

There's a general perception that IPS-based displays offer superior performance to those based on TN technology, but that isn't always the case. Although in-plane switching does improve the viewing angle issues and color reproduction suffered by twisted nematic displays, not all IPS screens are created equal. Our results in this roundup demonstrate that, even between three different screens, you can end up with a vastly dissimilar experience.

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BrandDellDoubleSightNEC
ModelUltraSharp U2711DS-277WMultiSync PA271W
Panel TypeH-IPSH-IPSH-IPS (P-IPS)
Screen Size27"27"27"
Max Resolution2560x14402560x14402560x1440
Aspect Ratio16:916:916:9
Response Time6 ms6 ms7 ms
Brightness cd/m^2350350300
Contrast Ratio1000:11000:11000:1
SpeakersNoNoNo
VGA12-
DVI-D (HDCP)212
DisplayPort1-1
HDMI11-
TiltYesYesYes
Energy Star QualifiedNoNoNo
Refresh Rate60 Hz60 Hz60 Hz
WarrantyThree-yearThree-yearFour-year
Andrew Ku
58 Comments Comment from the forums
  • terr281
    What monitors to review next?... As many people said in the review of the 22" TN panels from your last review, the next review should include "enthusiast available" ~23" panels. (Instead of just big box "Buy from Best Buy" models.)

    The lowest price of the three 22" TN panel monitors you reviewed was $180. A quick Newegg search shows several similar panels from names such as Acer, Asus, etc. starting at $140. (And, in the gaming, as well as office environments, 2 or 3 monitors are now more common than one single large one.)
    Reply
  • nevertell
    IPS vs VA in gaming.

    Although just a regular sum up of the available 22-24 VA panels would be great.
    Reply
  • Thank you for the excellent and thorough review. Perhaps next time, the new Apple 27" Thunderbolt display can be thrown into the mix. For a lot of video and photography pros like myself, the Apple display is considered to be the "standard" and I would love to see how it stacks up again the competition. Also maybe throw in a professional level Eizo display as well to show the difference between a ~$1000 display and a $3000 display.
    Reply
  • The new Apple Thunderbolt 27" display - would be nice to see if it's worth the money
    Reply
  • 120hz monitors lead the way

    You should review a 2560x1600 120hz IPS monitor.

    Oh wait...
    2560x1600 isn't supported at 120hz over DVI-D (dual link)
    IPS monitors can't do 120hz with today's technology

    Bummer!

    :(

    F
    Reply
  • agnickolov
    I'd recommend the same IPS review applied on affordable 24-26" monitors that most of us would actually potentially buy. It's nice to dream about 27"+ 2560x1440, but let's get back to reality with 24" 1920x1080 and 1920x1200 (if still available) IPS monitors please. (At least until higher resolutions enter mainstream price points.)
    Reply
  • crisan_tiberiu
    I have a 22" Philips LED Backlight monitor and i am very happy with it . I dont see any Philips monitors in any of your reviews, why is that? :)
    Reply
  • boletus
    Nice roundup, it had me measuring what a 26" wide monitor would look like on my desk. However, you need to fix the title block in the table for the NEC monitor on the "Black And White Uniformity" page (it says Samsung S22A350H).
    Reply
  • soccerdocks
    On the "Black And White Uniformity, Viewing Angles" page the 3rd table states that it is for the Samsung S22A350H when it is actually for the NEC.
    Reply
  • Thank you for this comparison, very interesting reading!

    I am somewhat disappointed that 27" monitors nowadays don't use 2560*1600 panels.
    That resolution makes much more sense to me for a monitor that is not targetted at the average consumer.
    Personally I would love a 2560*1920 (or 2048) screen @ 120Hz, but if I understand correctly link speed becomes an issue here.

    Why is it that displays for mobile phones are increasing in pixel density, but desktop displays don't improve in this regard?

    For a next review I would really like to get a better understanding of (high-resolution) 120Hz monitors. What are the (dis)advantages of 120Hz for regular/2D usage, etc...
    Reply