Monoprice Zero-G Slim 27" IPS Monitor Review
by Chris Heinonen on August 26, 2013 12:00 AM ESTOnce again, there isn’t a good lag tester on the market that can do 2560x1440 natively. I’m sticking to using the Leo Bodnar lag tester at 1080p because it is a well-known, reliable test that is easy to duplicate. Most scalers also introduce very little delay now compared to color management and other display features.
Input lag is 22.53ms, which comes in ahead of most 27" displays except for the BenQ that is a native 1920x1080 display. I didn't notice much lag myself, if any, when using the Zero-G. Advanced picture controls like a color management system are more likely to introduce lag than testing at a non-native resolution, but this result still might improve if it were run at 2560x1440 and not 1080p.
Power usage on the Monoprice appears a bit strange. As I discussed, the Brightness control does not control the backlight as it should. Because of that, power usage is basically constant from minimum to maximum brightness.
The gamut on the Monoprice is 74% of the AdobeRGB gamut, which is slightly more than the sRGB gamut size of 71%. Nothing out of the ordinary here.
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Ammaross - Monday, August 26, 2013 - link
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/aoc-q2963pm-ul...There. :)
cheinonen - Monday, August 26, 2013 - link
I always find this funny, since Chris Eberle (who writes the display reviews for Tom's Hardware) and I both handle all the projector and flat panel reviews at Secrets of Home Theater (hometheaterhifi.com).mfenn - Monday, August 26, 2013 - link
Wait a minute. You're saying that it's OK to wait for the Monoprice monitor to go on sale, but not OK to wait for the Dell? How much sense does that make?steven75 - Monday, August 26, 2013 - link
The review seems to conclude that this is a case of getting what you pay for. I agree with that conclusion based on the test results.boozed - Monday, August 26, 2013 - link
"this article is disappointing."I've always been disappointed by honest reportage too.
JlHADJOE - Monday, August 26, 2013 - link
He's probably looking for some affirmation on his recent purchase. I, for one am happy with the honest reporting. Always better to know more about a product before buying it.If i'm going to spend extra over a TN monitor to get IPS because better colors and viewing angles, then it might as well be an IPS that actually gives better colors.
psuedonymous - Monday, August 26, 2013 - link
TFTCentral reviewed the Acheiva Shimian 27" IPS Zero-G (which the Monoprice is a rebrand of), and explained that the weird brightness/contrast issue is due to the backlight being lit at a constant level, and brightness just changing the digital brightness (i.e. lowering brightness lowers dynamic range, raising it too far results in clipping). See: http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews/achieva_27_ips...DanNeely - Monday, August 26, 2013 - link
More interesting is that Acheiva told TFTCentral that they will be replacing the current brightness adjustment with a PWM one. Presumably that means the monoprice model will also be updated.cheinonen - Tuesday, August 27, 2013 - link
I wasn't told that by Monoprice. My impression is that an update isn't forthcoming as it isn't something they have control over.blackoctagon - Tuesday, August 27, 2013 - link
How confident are you that 'this' Monoprice is a rebrand of 'that' Shimian? That Shimian review is very specific about the A-IPS panel from LG used, but neither this AT review nor the Monoprice website specify the panel used in this monitor. We don't even know what subtype of IPS this is, AFAIK.