I’m in the need for a new monitor for my photography stuff. I was thinking of which criteria (and values) to use to choose a good monitor. I ended up with:
>= 24"-27" diagonal with 2K or 32" with 4K
(27" with 4K needs fractional scaling, that dosen’t work well under Linux yet)
IPS panel
10bit color depth (without FRC)
(seems not to be supported yet by Linux, maybe just to be future-proof)
>= 100% sRGB color space coverage
>= 100% AdobeRGB color space coverage
color uniformity >= 98%?, 99%?
Any important criteria I forgot or which is irrelevant? Any value, that isn’t sensible?
And do you know of any good searchable monitor database?
Using a German price comparison website I ended up with only five hits to above criteria and values and I’m now leaning towards a Dell UltraSharp UP2720Q (for 873€), but have the feeling that I’m missing out many options.
I searched the other monitor search threads here, but couldn’t really find any additional information. Any hint is more than welcome!
Also take a look at Eizo and BenQ.
But those creatures are expensive.
Is hardware calibration hardware/software included?
Is your graphics card able to handle high-quality monitors?
I’ve got an older version of those UltraSharps (the 2017 model) and they do OK. I like the pixel density of a 25" 2K over the 27" though and find myself looking at the new 25" USB-C screen they have but I don’t need it.
Depending on your OS I’d stay away from 4K at that size. I tested a 27" 4K and 2X scaling is too big, 1X is too small and fractional scaling on Linux is a hot mess. If you’re using a Mac or Windows go for the 4K UltraSharp 27 though. I still miss that one, great looking and nicely calibrated. To avoid scaling issues with Linux and 4K I’d say look at >= 32" screens.
Not sure I understand the question, but the big thing you are missing is uniformity. Having used Eizo CG monitors at work for the past 15 years and having used cheaper (but still not bad) monitors at home that is a big difference for me. The 600 euro Benq I have at home right now has terrible gray uniformity (but I got it very cheap).
Eizo’s built in hardware calibration is a blessing, but you will pay the price. On the other hand, flat panel monitors will give you many years of use. If one is willing to spend 2000 euro on a camera without lenses, I think keeping the same camera for a few more years and spending money on a good monitor is a good priority.
As far as UHD resolution is concerned, for still image editing I’ve never wished for anything greater than 2560. I believe all of the 27" Eizo CG monitors are 2560 wide.
Thanks for all the replies! I’ll update my first post with the additional info later, to keep it at one place.
So I’ll have a look at Dell, Eizo, BenQ, and NEC(?). Is there a database to easily find relevant models, or will I need to go through all vendor sites, searching all product details?
My current perspective is, I can borrow a Spider 3 and sooner or later might buy a spectrometer, thus a hardware calibration seems not to be necessary. Software wise, running Linux I’ll go with ArgyllCMS, so no need for any bundles software. Does this sound reasonable, or did I miss anything?
What do you mean with “high-quality”, 10bits? Not yet, but I hope that the monitor will last longer than my current laptop and replacing my laptop sometime, I’ll ensure that it is able to handle high-quality monitors. Indeed I’m wondering if going for 4K is a good idea (or if it will just slow down everything).
Good hint, wasn’t aware of these issues, indeed running Linux over here. I was hoping, that Gnome and all the software can deal with whatever scaling is sensible… So I either should stick with full HD (1920px/2K) at 24"-27" or go for 4K at 32", as far as I understand you.
I have no strong favor for 4K over 2K, quite the opposite I was wondering if the added computation time needed is worth anything.
Thanks! Noted that. What “level” would you think is reasonable to look for? 98%, 99%? Haven’t really found much info about uniformity yet.
Could you elaborate on the benefits over an external calibration (e.g. X-Rite iStudio and ArgyllCMS)? Until now I thought, that hardware calibration wouldn’t be an important feature for me.
Fair point. At that time I bought a Canon EOS 5d Mark III body used for ca. 1.700€. I was now thinking to spend approx. 1-1.5K€ for a monitor. Good ratio, or to little/much?
I indeed do use Linux. I had the feeling that 10bit support is possible by now – and was hoping that the monitor will last for 10 years or more and the 10bit support will mature during that time.
So, wrong hopes? Would it be better to look for a 8bit monitor with other better features at the same price tag?
Usually wide gamut screens can 10bit as well, so you kind of get 10bit “for free”. There are still few programs for all OS that can 10bit. But it does not hurt to be prepared for the future.
I mean… 10bit is possible on Linux but the GUI of most desktop environments still looks a bit strange. Most apps do not fully support 10bit.
Anyway, it’s a feature that probably won’t be usable for now. I mean… I whish 10bit support were mature…
This is the monitor on my shopping list. With a bigger budget I’d probably buy an Eizo, although the 24" Eizo CS 2420 is in similar price range.
One thing to note is Eizo often have slower response times, which is not a problem for photography, but might be if you are working with video. Also, in this price range it might be hard to find true 10 bit. They are usually 8 bit, or 8 bit + 2 bit FRC - but 10 bit is less important than other factors covered, like panel type, uniformity, gamut size, PPI, etc…
I agree 4k is not desirable unless you get at least 32" or bigger.
The ideal monitor would have no difference in luminance/brightness across the whole screen, but of course, monitors are not made so perfect. A max deviation of <5% is desirable.
There can also be colour temperature deviation. It is said a difference of <2 delta E is not really perceptible to human eyes.
Why this statement? A cheap Nvidia Quadro K420, colord, xiccd, an that’s it. KDE is tricky, Gnome 4 with tweaks works as good as xfce.
I’m very interested in this, and to hear from real and actual knowledge. I googled days and days very much - either old, contradictory or just false information.
And, how to use the colors, eg. in Gimp. 400400400, FFFFFFFF for white or what?
I would really appreciate for more information.
For the price, there is no 10-bit-panel on the market, AFAIK.
Don’t know how to prove yourself, still specifications.
I hope, it’s ok to post links, if not, please let me know.
Well, there is no mention about FRC on the European Benq website, in fact it is advertised as real 10bit.
I have also briefly used the screen in 10bit mode and it seems to work.
To avoid scaling issues with Linux and 4K I’d say look at >= 32" screens.
