Quality Tests: Dell ST2310F
With factory setup values of 100 brightness, 75 contrast, and “standard” color, Dell’s CCFL-based ST2310F puts out an excessively impressive 254.8 cd/m2 luminance, but dips to a 0.2 cd/m2 minimum and lands spot on at 6500K. The color channels also look respectably straight and evenly overlapping. That’s a strong start.
With calibration, we were able to hit a nearly perfect 120.2 cd/m2 luminance with a brightness of only 41. This was done while leaving the color setting on standard as we still maintained a 6500K temperature. The brightness drop also let us reach all the way down to a 0.1 cd/m2 minimum luminance.
If the ST2310f has a shortcoming, it’s a gamut of only 863 931. As you can see, the display is weak through the blues, but regains some ground through the reds. Does the lower gamut translate into a poor image for the eye? Not as far as we could see.
Dell makes amends on its color accuracy. Problematic blues again show up on this Delta-E graph, spiking two dark blue bars deep into the 3+ range. But the other results are low enough to bring the overall dE average down to only 1.37.
We did have one other complaint that popped up during calibration. Dell opts for a cleaner physical design by having the buttons for the on-screen controls recessed under the bottom of the front bezel. Looking at the monitor straight-on, you don’t see any control buttons. Instead, you have to fumble for the menu buttons to active their labels on-screen, and then you’re still left sort of tapping around trying to find the right spot to press. A clean design is good, but not when it gets in the way of operation.
