NEC PA271W - When Accuracy and Consistency Matter
by Chris Heinonen on May 1, 2012 1:55 PM ESTNEC PA271W - Display Uniformity
As we’ve mentioned, NEC goes to great lengths with their PA271W display to make it as uniform as possible. With the sacrifices in maximum light output we hope that we will see a measurable difference on the NEC in both brightness and color uniformity.
The brightness uniformity chart shows results that are far and away the best I have measured to date. The total deviation from the maximum to the minimum value is only 10 nits, and we are used to seeing a swing of 30 or even more nits on this test. The average deviation is only 1.66%, so this is a really fantastic result showing that NEC has managed to engineer a more uniformly bright panel than anyone else.
Measuring the black uniformity is harder, as we have no 200 nits target that the white uniformity has. In this case we wind up with an average black level of 0.35 nits, but a higher standard deviation of 18.7%. The issues fall in the upper-right area of the screen which also had the brightest areas in the white uniformity testing, so there might be a little more light leakage coming in from that area of the panel it seems. Note that this non-uniformity will likely vary by panel as well. Given that the panel is uniformly lit, and that affects the color accuracy to a great deal, I would expect the panel to have a fairly consistent dE across the display.
The NEC delivers here again. We wind up with average and median dE values of 1.84 and 1.81, and a standard deviation of only 0.27 dE. The upper right corner seems to have a bit of an issue again, likely due to that lighting uniformity issue, but the rest of the panel is remarkably close together. The colors are all uniform in error across the screen and the issue seems to be a slight rise in grayscale error as you move away from the center. Compared to any other panel I have reviewed, the NEC is far more uniform and will exhibit less of a color shift across the unit, which is important on a screen this size. It still isn’t perfect by any means, but it’s better than anything else I have tested.
I also realized with this review that the vertical axis here was shifting between each review, so I’m going to keep this at 8 for this review, and then see going forward if that is correct. This will make it easier to compare across different displays.
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doubledeej - Wednesday, May 2, 2012 - link
I'm still not able to figure out why people buy the Apple LCDs... displays from other manufacturers in the same price range have far better specs. If you compare performance to price, the Apple options are at the bottom of the list. They really aren't that good. Sure, they're great compared to a $150 Dell, but next to other options in the 27" size they don't hold up very well.ectoplasmosis - Wednesday, May 2, 2012 - link
They use the same panel as all the other 27" 2560x1440 screens (as far as I'm aware, LG is the only manufacturer making such panels).Apart from backlighting and features, the rest of the differentiation is in the panel manufacturing variance.
I bought mine because it's glossy (huge bonus for me), it looks fantastic and comes with serviceable speakers and a webcam built-in. And the after-sales service means if it goes tits up I can drive 5 minutes down the road and get an instant exchange.
All those things are worth the premium in my eyes.
André - Wednesday, May 2, 2012 - link
It works fine with Mini-DisplayPort to adapters.Not sure where you got the "only works with Thunderbolt" from though.
tzhu07 - Tuesday, May 1, 2012 - link
I've owned the PA271W for over a year now and it's been very great to me. I work as a web developer/designer and everything looks sharp and accurate. Surprised Anandtech just got around to showcasing the monitor.bishop2020 - Tuesday, May 1, 2012 - link
You guys have reviewed the Dell U2711 in the past and it strikes me as the most comparable monitor to the NEC, curious why it would be omitted from the comparison tables while a bunch of smaller panels were included.InterClaw - Wednesday, May 2, 2012 - link
That, and the Dell U3011 as well is strangely missing now.cheinonen - Wednesday, May 2, 2012 - link
Once I get past 15 results in the data, it becomes too hard to read the results. I've been favoring the more recent results since they are done using the i1Pro and not the i1Display2, and so the results are more accurate and more directly comparable. I will see if I can pull in the 27" and 30" numbers for the past displays to replace those that are in there this week.bishop2020 - Wednesday, May 2, 2012 - link
Thanks, looking forward to seeing the numbers side-by-side. In my opinion anytime I see reviews for 2560 res monitors I see them as an entirely different class of monitor and the price especially seems to segregate it from everything else as well. I could see throwing in 1 or 2 of the higher-rated 1920 screens for reference but anyone whose even considering spending $700-$1200 for a monitor probably knows they want a 2560 res monitor for a reason and isn't considering a 1920 at all so the other numbers just add noise to the data they're really looking for. Thanks again :)Veni - Tuesday, May 1, 2012 - link
The NEC's built in KVM/USB switch functionality is very intriguing to me. Does anyone know of any cheaper monitors which have the ability to switch the USB uplink based on the display input?tygrus - Tuesday, May 1, 2012 - link
".. for my use .."Reviews like this should have multiple headings with sections targeted at a different audience. It's OK to include your 'general home use' self but don't forget that there may be others who do graphical/multimedia work or hobby that appreciate some of the more advanced features. Let the reader choose which target audience they are and focus on a different conclusion. Don't discount just because it's not recommended for gamers.