So I've got an Acer XB270HU which was the OG badass G-Sync IPS monitor (1440p, 144 Hz etc). It's still a great display but I have a couple of issues:
1) I have to run it through a KVM so I can swap between my work machine and personal machine. I have a level1techs DP KVM that does work pretty well, but it's finicky (especially with my work machine, likely due to the garbage DisplayPort signal outputs on that device). I'm done with it. I really want a display with integrated KVM.
2) I'm ready for something a little bigger / higher resolution I think.
3) The IPS glow drives me crazy. I'm a video engineer by profession as well as a serious amateur photographer and so I obsess over this stuff. I've been an OLED guy since 2016 for my TVs as well, so I'm quite spoiled. I'm not in love with VA monitors though...
So... here's what I'd consider my dream display:
- 32 inch, conventional 16x9, non curved
- 3840x2160 at 120+ Hz with G-Sync
- DisplayPort and HDMI (again, KVM required, so multiple USB upstream ports)
- Excellent black levels and uniformity, IPS strongly preferred as long as the black level is good
- Excellent color accuracy, and full sRGB coverage. I'm an expert in calibration so if it's not great out of the box that's fine.
- Non-terrible OSD
- Good latency -- I'm not an esports gamer by any means, but I do really enjoy high frame rate gaming and low latency.
I also really want HDR but recognize that the current state of HDR on the desktop and with gaming monitors in general is absolute crap. If I was able, I'd want the following:
- At least ~600 nits peak brightness
- Either OLED or exceptionally good local dimming LED LCD
- (as close as possible) full coverage of the P3-D65 colorspace and good tracking of the ST2084 EOTF - in other words, good accuracy in HDR.
If I can get a display that really hits all these points I can spend up to $3k, but it has to be really REALLY good.
I might consider a curved display but I don't love them.
1) I have to run it through a KVM so I can swap between my work machine and personal machine. I have a level1techs DP KVM that does work pretty well, but it's finicky (especially with my work machine, likely due to the garbage DisplayPort signal outputs on that device). I'm done with it. I really want a display with integrated KVM.
2) I'm ready for something a little bigger / higher resolution I think.
3) The IPS glow drives me crazy. I'm a video engineer by profession as well as a serious amateur photographer and so I obsess over this stuff. I've been an OLED guy since 2016 for my TVs as well, so I'm quite spoiled. I'm not in love with VA monitors though...
So... here's what I'd consider my dream display:
- 32 inch, conventional 16x9, non curved
- 3840x2160 at 120+ Hz with G-Sync
- DisplayPort and HDMI (again, KVM required, so multiple USB upstream ports)
- Excellent black levels and uniformity, IPS strongly preferred as long as the black level is good
- Excellent color accuracy, and full sRGB coverage. I'm an expert in calibration so if it's not great out of the box that's fine.
- Non-terrible OSD
- Good latency -- I'm not an esports gamer by any means, but I do really enjoy high frame rate gaming and low latency.
I also really want HDR but recognize that the current state of HDR on the desktop and with gaming monitors in general is absolute crap. If I was able, I'd want the following:
- At least ~600 nits peak brightness
- Either OLED or exceptionally good local dimming LED LCD
- (as close as possible) full coverage of the P3-D65 colorspace and good tracking of the ST2084 EOTF - in other words, good accuracy in HDR.
If I can get a display that really hits all these points I can spend up to $3k, but it has to be really REALLY good.
I might consider a curved display but I don't love them.
Last edited: