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Introduction

It's been about a year and a half since we took an in depth look at ViewSonic's Professional Range VP2770-LED display. Since then the manufacturer have extended this range further with a new model, the VP2772. Like it's predecessor the VP2772 is aimed firmly at semi-professional uses, with a focus on image quality and colour accuracy. With this model the main change is a shift to the latest GB-r-LED backlighting which allows ViewSonic to offer a wide gamut colour space instead of the standard sRGB colour space of the VP2770-LED. Factory calibration, 10-bit colour depth support, a 14-bit LUT and the use of a modern AH-IPS panel round off the features when it comes to high end colour accuracy. The VP2772 is a logical direct competitor to Dell's U2713H screen, so we will try to draw comparisons throughout this review.

ViewSonic's website states: "ViewSonic’s VP2772 is a 27” ultra-high resolution display with 2560x1440 QHD resolution and 10-bit color. Covering 99% of the Adobe RGB color space, the VP2772 meets the high color standards of photographers, graphic designers, video editors, print departments, and other design professionals.

 

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Specifications and Features

The following table gives detailed information about the specs of the screen:

Monitor Specifications

Size

27"WS (68.6cm)

Panel Coating

Light AG coating

Aspect Ratio

16:9

Interfaces

DL-DVI, HDMI 1.4, DisplayPort 1.2, Mini DisplayPort. Plus DisplayPort out

Resolution

2560x 1440

Pixel Pitch

0.231 mm

Design colour

Matte black bezel and stand

Response Time

6ms G2G, 12ms ISO (typ)

Ergonomics

Tilt, 150mm height, swivel and rotate

Static Contrast Ratio

1000:1

Dynamic Contrast Ratio

20 million:1

VESA Compatible

Yes 100mm

Brightness

350

Accessories

Power cable and external power brick. USB, DL-DVI, DisplayPort and HDMI cables.

Viewing Angles

178 / 178

Panel Technology

LG.Display AH-IPS

Weight

Net weight with stand: 8.54Kg

Backlight Technology

GB-r-LED

Physical Dimensions

(WxHxD) with stand
642.6 x 464.8 x 348 mm

Colour Depth

1.07b (8-bit + FRC)
12-bit processing, 14-bit LUT

Refresh Rate

60Hz

Special Features

4x USB 3.0 ports, headphone jack, factory calibration

Colour Gamut

Wide gamut
100% sRGB, 99.3% Adobe RGB, 104% NTSC

The ViewSonic VP2772 offers a full range of connectivity options. There are dual-link DVI, DisplayPort 1.2, Mini DisplayPort and HDMI interfaces provided for video connections which is great to see. There's an additional DisplayPort out interface for daisy-chaining several screens. The digital interfaces are HDCP certified for encrypted content. Cables are provided in the box for DVI, HDMI and DisplayPort, but not Mini DisplayPort. There is no D-sub VGA interface connection provided on this model.

The screen has an external power supply brick which is provided along with the necessary power cable (not a normal kettle lead). There is a built-in 4 port USB 3.0 hub as well on this model and it's nice to see the latest generation of USB featured. There is also an audio jack if you're sending audio to the screen as well. There are no further extras such as integrated speakers, card readers or ambient light sensors on this model.

Below is a summary of the features and connections of the screen:

Feature

Yes / No

Feature

Yes / No

Tilt adjust

DVI

Height adjust

HDMI

Swivel adjust

D-sub

Rotate adjust

DisplayPort

VESA compliant

Component

USB Ports

Composite

Card Reader

Audio connection

Ambient Light Sensor

HDCP Support

Touch Screen

MHL Support

Hardware calibration

Integrated Speakers

Uniformity correction

PiP / PbP



Design and Ergonomics


Above: front views of the screen. Click for larger versions

The VP2772 comes in an all-black design, with matte plastics used for the bezel, stand and base. From the front the screen provides a modest edge with a bezel measuring ~21mm along all sides. A very faint "ViewSonic" logo is in the middle of the lower bezel in a dark grey colour, and the "VP2772" model name is in the top right corner, a little more pronounced in a lighter grey colour. The OSD control buttons and power LED are situated in the bottom right hand corner of the screen, with a thin strip LED glowing blue when the screen is on, and amber in standby. This can also be turned off completely from within the OSD menu if you want.


Above: rear view of the screen. Click for larger versions

The back of the screen is again finished in a matte black plastic colour. There is a large ViewSonic logo etched into the upper section, and the interface connections are provided on the bottom edge of the central section. The stand is attached to the back of the panel out of the box, but you do need to screw on the V-shaped base yourself, which is easy enough to do. If you want to remove the stand completely you can unscrew it from the back of the panel (there isn't a quick release mechanism here) and wall or arm-mount the screen with the VESA 100 compliant holes.


Above: view of the base of the stand and cable tidy clip. Click for larger versions

The base is a rather large V-shaped black plastic piece which provides a wide and deep base for the whole screen. It remains very sturdy as a result and feels secure and firm on the desk, although it is quite chunky looking. It's the same design and stand as used on previous models, including the VP2770-LED. On the back of the lower part of the stand is a useful cable tidy clip as shown above (right). The stand and base felt a bit industrial in design and too chunky.


Above: side view of the screen and 2x USB 3.0 ports. Click for larger versions

From the side you can see the actual panel depth is not that deep, but the stand and base add a lot to the overall side profile. You can see how big and wide the base is here. On the right hand edge of the screen are two easy-access USB 3.0 ports as shown above (right).


 


Above: Full tilt adjustment range. Click for larger versions

The stand offers a very good range of ergonomic adjustments which is great to see. Above you can see the full tilt range which offers smooth movement but is a little stiff to move sometimes. It does allow for a good range of adjustments though to meet your personal viewing position.


Above: Full height adjustment range. Click for larger versions

The height adjustment range is also very good. At the lowest setting the bottom edge of the screen is ~90mm from the top of the desk. At maximum extension it is ~240mm, giving you a total adjustment range of 150mm. Movement is smooth but it is stiff to operate.


Above: full side to side pivot range. Click for larger versions

There is also a side to side pivot function provided, and the base remains stationary on the desk as you move it from side to side. The range is very wide, but again it's stiff to operate.


Above: rotated view show. Click for larger versions

There is also a full rotation function to switch into portrait mode if you desire. This is a bit bumpy to operate and again stiff to move. All in all the range of ergonomic adjustments was very good although we did feel they were a little stiff to move on the most part.

A summary of the screens ergonomic adjustments is shown below:

Function

Range

Smoothness

Ease of Use

Tilt

Yes

Smooth

Bit stiff

Height

150mm

Smooth

Stiff

Swivel

Yes

Smooth

Stiff

Rotate

Yes

Bit bumpy

Stiff

Overall

Good range of adjustments although most are stiff to move

The materials were of a good standard and the build quality felt good as well. There was some slight audible  buzzing noise from the screen when conducting specific tests which can often identify buzzing issues. Not something you'd really notice in normal use unless you're working with a lot of dense text. The whole screen remained cool even during prolonged use as well which was pleasing.

 


Above:
interface connections shown. Click for larger versions

The video interface connections are located on the back of the screen as shown above. On the left hand side there are two more USB 3.0 downstream ports and the upstream port to connect back to the PC. There is also the power brick connection shown here. On the right hand side are the video connections, including the DisplayPort out port for daisy-chaining and headphone jack.



OSD Menu


Above: views of OSD operational buttons on the bottom right hand edge of the screen

The OSD menu is controlled from a series of 4 touch sensitive buttons located on the bottom right hand corner of the front bezel, as shown above. There is also an additional touch sensitive power on/off button and to the right on the corner is the power LED. These buttons work well but don't light up or anything, they are just touch-sensitive.

There is quick access to the input selection using the "2" button and also quick access to the 'user setting' menu shown above using the up arrow. Pressing the "1" button brings up the main OSD menu.

Within the main OSD it is split into 8 sections as shown above (left). Navigation is pretty straightforward with the arrow buttons, and the "2" button selects an option, with the "1" button going back. The first section provides you access to the brightness and contrast options as shown above (right).

The input select menu allows you to switch between the video inputs. This part is a bit cumbersome as you have to switch between each in order to get to the one you want. The 'color adjust' menu allows you to switch between the various preset modes, including the sRGB and Adobe RGB emulation modes which we will look at later on in the review.

The information section confirms your active resolution and refresh rate and the model / serial number (left). The 'manual image adjust' section (right) contains the most useful and interesting extra options. There is the dynamic contrast ratio control if you want to use that for gaming or video. The response time control allows you to alter the overdrive setting which we will test later on as well. There is also the pre-defined ECO modes for power saving, the gamma setting and Picture in Picture (PiP) / Picture By Picture (PbP) menu.

The ECO mode and gamma settings are shown above. Note the typo in the spelling of "gentle" for the gamma curve.

The PiP and PbP menu is shown above, and also the final 'setup' section of the OSD.

The factory OSD menu can be accessed by holding the "1" button down while you power on the screen. When you then go into the normal OSD you will see a small "F" at the top which gives you access to the factory menu as shown above. No particularly useful options though here.

All in all the menu software felt a bit old-fashioned and basic, although there were a reasonable set of options to play with. Navigation was mostly ok, and the menu does at least remember which section you were last in when you go back in to it.

 


Power Consumption

In terms of power consumption the manufacturer lists 65.0W typical usage during operation. We carried out our normal tests to establish its power consumption ourselves.

State and Brightness Setting

Manufacturer Spec (W)

Measured Power Usage (W)

Default (100%)

65.0

66.7

Calibrated (28%)

-

36.1

Maximum Brightness (100%)

-

66.7

Minimum Brightness (0%)

-

24.0

Standby

-

0.5

We tested this ourselves and found that out of the box the screen used 66.7W at the default 100% brightness setting. Once calibrated the screen reached 36.1W consumption, and in standby it used only 0.5W. We have plotted these results below compared with other screens we have tested. As you might expect the power consumption (comparing the calibrated states) is very similar to the Dell U2713H which uses the same GB-r-LED backlight system. W-LED backlit units including the VP2770-LED model are a little lower, and CCFL units like the Eizo SX2762W and NEC PA271W for instance are a lot more power hungry.



Panel and Backlighting

Panel Manufacturer

LG.Display

Colour Palette

1.07 billion

Panel Technology

AH-IPS

Colour Depth

8-bit + FRC

Panel Module

LM270WQ3-SLB2

Colour space

Wide gamut

Backlighting Type

GB-r-LED

Colour space coverage (%)

100% sRGB, 104% NTSC, 99.3% Adobe RGB

Panel Part and Colour Depth

The ViewSonic VP2772 utilises an LG.Display LM270WQ3-SLB2 AH-IPS panel which is capable of producing 1.07 billion colours with an 8-bit colour depth and additional Frame Rate Control (FRC) stage (8-bit + FRC). The panel offers support for 10-bit content with a colour depth support for 1.07 billion colours. However,  you need to take into account whether this is practically useable and whether you're ever going to truly use that colour depth. You need to have a full 10-bit end to end workflow to take advantage of it which is still quite expensive to achieve and rare in the market, certainly for your average user. This includes relevant applications and graphics cards as well, so to many people this 10-bit support might be irrelevant. Given the VP2772's position as a professional grade, high-end screen, it's pleasing to see the support included. There is also 12-bit processing and a 14-bit LUT featured in the monitor to help provide smooth gradients and grey scales.

The panel used in the older VP2770-LED for reference offered a standard 8-bit colour depth natively, with an additional FRC stage added by the scaler as opposed to on the panel side. One thing to note is that the VP2770-LED used a Samsung PLS panel as opposed to the LG.Display IPS panel being used here. Both technologies are very similar in performance characteristics at the end of the day and PLS was designed to directly compete with IPS anyway.

The panel is confirmed when dismantling the screen as shown below.


 

Screen Coating

The screen coating on the VP2772 is a light anti-glare (AG) offering as opposed to any kind of glossy coating. However, this is contrary to a lot of other older IPS based screens which usually feature a grainy and aggressive AG solution. It retains its anti-glare properties to avoid unwanted reflections, but does not produce an overly grainy or dirty image that some AG coatings can. There is a very faint cross-hatching pattern visible on the coating, but you really have to know what you're looking for and it is very slight.


Backlight Type and Colour Gamut

The screen uses a GB-r-LED backlight unit offering a wide gamut colour space. With this new type of LED backlight, based on analysis of the detailed panel spec sheet the screen covers 104% of the NTSC reference, 99.3% of the Adobe RGB reference and 100% (and beyond) of the sRGB space. You need to be mindful that the backlight is a wide gamut type as not everyone wants or needs a wide gamut screen, and you do certainly pay a premium to have it. There is also an sRGB emulation mode offered by the screen thankfully which we will look at later on. If you want to read more about colour spaces and gamut then please have a read of our detailed article.
 

Backlight Dimming and Flicker

We tested the screen to establish the methods used to control backlight dimming. Our in depth article talks in more details about a common method used for this which is called Pulse Width Modulation (PWM). This in itself gives cause for concern to some users who have experienced eye strain, headaches and other symptoms as a result of the flickering backlight caused by this technology. We use a photosensor +  oscilloscope system to measure backlight dimming control with a high level of accuracy and ease. These tests allow us to establish

1) Whether PWM is being used to control the backlight
2) The frequency and other characteristics at which this operates, if it is used
3) Whether a flicker may be introduced or potentially noticeable at certain settings

If PWM is used for backlight dimming, the higher the frequency, the less likely you are to see artefacts and flicker. The duty cycle (the time for which the backlight is on) is also important and the shorter the duty cycle, the more potential there is that you may see flicker. The other factor which can influence flicker is the amplitude of the PWM, measuring the difference in brightness output between the 'on' and 'off' states. Please remember that not every user would notice a flicker from a backlight using PWM, but it is something to be wary of. It is also a hard thing to quantify as it is very subjective when talking about whether a user may or may not experience the side effects.


100%                                                                                  50%

 
0%


Above scale = 1 horizontal grid = 1ms

At 100% brightness a constant voltage is applied to the backlight and there is no need for any kind of PWM regulation. As you begin to lower the brightness setting a very low amplitude oscillation is introduced as you can see above. This isn't a full off/on typical pulse width modulation (PWM) operation and the amplitude is very low indeed to the point where it probably wouldn't be a problem to anyone. This also operates at a very high frequency of 17,500 Hz. The screen can't be classified as being completely "flicker free" as a DC method is not being used and there is some very high frequency/low amplitude oscillation evident, but it shouldn't present problems to users because of this so don't be put off.

0% Zoomed In View

Above scale = 1 horizontal grid = 0.25ms
 

Pulse Width Modulation Used

No, but see above

Cycling Frequency

17,500 Hz
(oscillation)

Possible Flicker at

 

100% Brightness

No

50% Brightness

Yes

0% Brightness

Yes

For an up to date list of all flicker-free (PWM free) monitors please see our Flicker Free Monitor Database.

 


Contrast Stability and Brightness

We wanted to see how much variance there was in the screens contrast as we adjusted the monitor setting for brightness. In theory, brightness and contrast are two independent parameters, and good contrast is a requirement regardless of the brightness adjustment. Unfortunately, such is not always the case in practice. We recorded the screens luminance and black depth at various OSD brightness settings, and calculated the contrast ratio from there. Graphics card settings were left at default with no ICC profile or calibration active. Tests were made using an X-rite i1 Display Pro colorimeter. It should be noted that we used the BasICColor calibration software here to record these, and so luminance at default settings may vary a little from the LaCie Blue Eye Pro report.

OSD Brightness

Luminance
(cd/m2)

Black Point (cd/m2)

Contrast Ratio
( x:1)

100

315.86

0.34

929

90

290.62

0.31

937

80

264.95

0.29

914

70

238.50

0.26

917

60

214.22

0.23

931

50

187.80

0.20

939

40

162.08

0.17

953

30

138.07

0.15

920

20

111.18

0.12

927

10

78.99

0.09

877

0

47.39

0.05

948

 

Total Luminance Adjustment Range (cd/m2)

268.47

Brightness OSD setting controls backlight?

Total Black Point Adjustment Range (cd/m2)

0.29

Average Static Contrast Ratio

927:1

PWM Free? 

see panel section

Recommended OSD setting for 120 cd/m2

23

The brightness control gave us a very good range of adjustment. At the top end the maximum luminance reached 316 cd/m2 which was a little shy of the specified maximum brightness of 350 cd/m2 from the manufacturer. There was a large 268 cd/m2 adjustment range in total, and so at the minimum setting you could reach down to a luminance of 47 cd/m2. This should be more than adequate for those wanting to work in darkened room conditions with low ambient light. A setting of ~23 in the OSD menu should return you a luminance of around 120 cd/m2.

We have plotted the luminance trend on the graph above. The screen behaves as it should in this regard, with a reduction in the luminance output of the screen controlled by the reduction in the OSD brightness setting. This was pretty much a linear relationship although the curve seemed slightly steeper for settings of 20% and lower in the brightness menu. It should be noted that the brightness regulation is not controlled by a normal off/on Pulse Width Modulation, but there is a very high 17,500 Hz frequency and low amplitude oscillation detected as opposed to be completely "flicker free". We expect this not to present any problems in practice to most users though.

The average contrast ratio of the screen was 927:1 and it remained stable across the brightness adjustment range as shown above and represented a decent figure for an IPS matrix.



Testing Methodology

An important thing to consider for most users is how a screen will perform out of the box and with some basic manual adjustments. Since most users won't have access to hardware colorimeter tools, it is important to understand how the screen is going to perform in terms of colour accuracy for the average user.

I restored my graphics card to default settings and disabled any previously active ICC profiles and gamma corrections. The screen was tested at default factory settings using the DVI interface, and analysed using an X-rite i1 Pro Spectrophotometer (not to be confused with the i1 Display Pro colorimeter) combined with LaCie's Blue Eye Pro software suite. An X-rite i1 Display Pro colorimeter was also used to verify the black point and contrast ratio since the i1 Pro spectrophotometer is less reliable at the darker end.


Targets for these tests are as follows:

  • CIE Diagram - validates the colour space covered by the monitors backlighting in a 2D view, with the black triangle representing the displays gamut, and other reference colour spaces shown for comparison

  • Gamma - we aim for 2.2 which is the default for computer monitors

  • Colour temperature / white point - we aim for 6500k which is the temperature of daylight

  • Luminance - we aim for 120 cd/m2, which is the recommended luminance for LCD monitors in normal lighting conditions

  • Black depth - we aim for as low as possible to maximise shadow detail and to offer us the best contrast ratio

  • Contrast ratio - we aim for as high as possible. Any dynamic contrast ratio controls are turned off here if present

  • dE average / maximum - as low as possible. If DeltaE >3, the color displayed is significantly different from the theoretical one, meaning that the difference will be perceptible to the viewer. If DeltaE <2, LaCie considers the calibration a success; there remains a slight difference, but it is barely undetectable. If DeltaE < 1, the color fidelity is excellent.



Default Performance and Setup

Default settings of the screen were as follows:

Monitor OSD Option

Default Settings

Brightness

100

Contrast

70

Color Adjust

Native


ViewSonic VP2772 - Default Factory Settings, Native Preset

  

 

Default Settings

luminance (cd/m2)

249

Black Point (cd/m2)

0.34

Contrast Ratio

930:1

 

Out of the box the screen looked very good to the naked eye. Colours felt balanced and the temperature felt good as well. The screen by default operates in an sRGB standard gamut colour space and you could tell this straight away as compared with a wide gamut screen. The screen was far too bright which is normal, and this was at the screens default 100% brightness setting. We went ahead and measured the default state with the i1 Pro.

 

The CIE diagram on the left of the image confirms that the monitors colour gamut (black triangle) in this 'native' color adjust mode is approximately equal to the sRGB colour space, with some slight under-coverage evident in green shades. This was a little unexpected as you would have thought the native mode was designed to cover the native colour space of the backlight? Default gamma was recorded at 2.2 average, leaving it with a very minor 1% deviance from the target of 2.2. White point was measured at 6586k leaving it again with a very minor 1% deviance from our target of 6500k. Note that we are using a spectrophotometer to make these measurements which is not sensitive to the wide gamut backlight as some colorimeter devices can be. When using a standard gamut colorimeter not designed to work with modern backlighting units like W-LED, WCG-CCFL and GB-r-LED there can be a typical deviance of 300 - 600k in the white point measurement which is why some sources may refer to a different white point in this test incorrectly.

 

Luminance was recorded at a very bright 317 cd/m2 which is far too high for prolonged general use. The screen was set at a default 100% brightness in the OSD menu but that is easy to change of course to reach a more comfortable setting. The black depth was 0.34 cd/m2 at this default brightness setting, giving us a very good (for an IPS panel) static contrast ratio of 930:1. Colour accuracy was also good out of the box with a default dE average of 2.0, and maximum of 4.0. The screen carries a factory calibration with target dE of <3 so this is being achieved nicely here. Testing the screen with various gradients showed smooth transitions with no sign of any banding thankfully. There was some slight gradation evident in darker tones as you will see from most monitors. Overall this default setup was very good and all you really need to adjust is the brightness setting to achieve a nice setup which should be fine for most users.

 

Monitor OSD Option

Default Settings

Brightness

n/a

Contrast

n/a

Color Adjust

sRGB


ViewSonic VP2772 - Default Factory Settings, sRGB Preset

 

Default Settings

luminance (cd/m2)

249

Black Point (cd/m2)

0.25

Contrast Ratio

902:1

We switched to the designated sRGB preset mode to test that as well. In this preset the brightness and contrast menu is not available and they are locked at an undefined level. As such you are limited to the default luminance of this preset which is still too high for comfortable use, although lower than the default 'native' mode at least. Gamma was slightly further out from our target now with a 4% deviance, being measured at 2.3 average. White point had strayed from the 6500k target further as well with a 6% deviance now measured at 6094k, being a bit too warm. It is entirely possible that this mode is factory calibrated deliberately to obtain a white point of ~6000k, but that isn't specified in ViewSonic's documentation so we can't be sure. Colour accuracy had improved quite a lot though from the already good 'native' mode, with dE average of only 1.0 now. Colour gradients remained smooth with no sign of banding, only gradation in darker tones. With the brightness locked and a luminance measured at 226 cd/m2, we're not sure whether this mode is of any real practical use sadly.

 

Monitor OSD Option

Default Settings

Brightness

100

Contrast

70

Color Adjust

Adobe RGB


ViewSonic VP2772 - Default Factory Settings, Adobe RGB Preset

 

Default Settings

luminance (cd/m2)

249

Black Point (cd/m2)

0.25

Contrast Ratio

899:1

We lastly reverted to the Adobe RGB preset mode to test the default setup in the wide gamut colour space provided by the backlight. This isn't actually the full native gamut, but rather a mode designed to emulate the Adobe RGB reference as closely as possible. You can see that the colour space triangle now extends considerably beyond the sRGB reference, and you can see that green shades are more saturated to the naked eye. The red and blue colour space doesn't really extend beyond sRGB and so it's just green shades which appear noticeably different.

In this mode we were still left with a small discrepancy in gamma with a 2.3 average measured, leaving us a 3% deviance from the target. White point was again close to 6000k which is quite possibly the target for this mode. It was 6% out from our 6500k target we normally measure to. The luminance was too high still with brightness set back at 100%, but the static contrast ratio remained high for an IPS panel at 899:1. Colour accuracy figures should be ignored in this test as they are comparing rendered colours to the sRGB reference. Colour gradients remained smooth with no sign of banding, only gradation in darker tones. If you want to work specifically with the Adobe RGB colour space then this provides a decent enough emulation mode, although you may want to calibrate the screen to tweak the setup perhaps.

 


Colour Temperatures

 

 

The VP2772 features a range of 'colour adjust' presets within the OSD menu as shown above. There are the sRGB, Adobe RGB and native modes we've already tested in detail, but also a few other modes designed to offer differing colour temperatures. We measured the screen with the X-rite i1 Pro spectrophotometer in each of the preset modes to establish their colour temperature / white point. All other settings were left at factory defaults and no ICC profile was active. The results are recorded below:

 

Selected Preset Mode

Measured Colour temperature (k)

sRGB

6094

Adobe RGB

6080

Bluish

8853

Cool

7279

Native

6586

Warm

4901

User Color

6418

 

The colour temperature modes didn't specify a target white point but you can see that the bluish, cool and warm modes behave as they should. It seems that the sRGB and Adobe RGB modes are likely factory calibrated to 6000k deliberately. Good to see the Native and User modes offer a default white point close to the 6500k target as well.

 

 

Calibration

 

We used the X-rite i1 Pro spectrophotometer combined with the LaCie Blue Eye Pro software package to achieve these results and reports. An X-rite i1 Display Pro colorimeter was used to validate the black depth and contrast ratios due to lower end limitations of the i1 Pro device.

 

 

Monitor OSD Option

Calibrated Settings

Brightness

28

Contrast

70

Color Adjust

User Color

RGB

99, 94, 100


ViewSonic VP2772 - Calibrated Settings, Wide Gamut

  
 

 

Calibrated Settings, Wide Gamut

luminance (cd/m2)

119

Black Point (cd/m2)

0.13

Contrast Ratio

910:1

 

We first of all reverted to the 'user color' mode in the OSD menu to allow us access to the individual RGB channels. This preset uses the full native wide gamut colour space of the backlight as well, extending beyond the emulated Adobe RGB mode as well. Adjustments were made during the process to the RGB channels as shown in the table above as well as the brightness control. This allowed us to obtain an optimum hardware starting point and setup before software level changes would be made at the graphics card level. We left the  LaCie software to calibrate to "max" brightness which would just retain the luminance of whatever brightness we'd set the screen to, and would not in any way try and alter the luminance at the graphics card level, which can reduce contrast ratio. These adjustments before profiling the screen would help preserve tonal values and limit banding issues. After this we let the software carry out the LUT adjustments and create an ICC profile.

 

Average gamma had been met at 2.2 average. The target white point was also now achieved at 6494k. Luminance had also been improved thanks to the adjustment to the brightness control and was now being measured at 119 cd/m2. This left us a black depth of 0.13 cd/m2 and retained a very good (for an IPS panel) static contrast ratio of 910:1. Colour accuracy of the resulting profile was excellent, with dE average of 0.3 and maximum of 0.9. LaCie would consider colour fidelity to be excellent. Testing the screen with various colour gradients showed mostly smooth transitions. There was some slight gradation in darker tones but no banding introduced due to the adjustments to the graphics card LUT from the profilation of the screen which was pleasing. You can use our settings and try our calibrated ICC profile if you wish, which are available in our ICC profile database. Keep in mind that results will vary from one screen to another and from one computer / graphics card to another.

 

 

 

Monitor OSD Option

Calibrated Settings

Brightness

23

Contrast

70

Color Adjust

Native

RGB

n/a


ViewSonic VP2772 - Calibrated Settings, Standard Gamut

  
 

 

Calibrated Settings, Standard Gamut

luminance (cd/m2)

120

Black Point (cd/m2)

0.15

Contrast Ratio

777:1

 

We also wanted to calibrate the screen in a mode providing a standard sRGB gamut. The sRGB preset mode we left alone as you cannot adjust the brightness setting at all, and so any attempt to achieve a lower luminance through the calibration process would crush contrast ratio. Instead we reverted to the 'native' preset mode knowing that this offered us an sRGB gamut, and also allowed us to alter the brightness control in the OSD menu.

 

After the profilation of the screen we were still left with a minor 1% deviance in the gamma curve as we'd seen out of the box in this preset mode too. White point had been correctly slightly from the already very good default, but now bringing it to basically spot on our target at 6503k. We had corrected the luminance nicely through the adjustment of the brightness control to 23% in the OSD. One area which did suffer though oddly was the contrast ratio, and it had dropped to 777:1 only (from 930:1 default). Something is happening during the process which is causing the contrast ratio to fall. Colour accuracy had improved to now offer a dE average of 0.7, but maximum of 1.7 so wasn't perfect. It looks like there are some issues perhaps with the colour linearity in the 'native' preset meaning we can't quite correct some shades and also resulting in a crushed contrast ratio when we do. Nothing too major but a bit of a shame if you want to calibrate in a standard colour space. You may actually be better just leaving it at default settings where contrast ratio is higher and colour accuracy is still pretty good.

 

 

 

Calibration Performance Comparisons


 

The comparisons made in this section try to give you a better view of how each screen performs, particularly out of the box which is what is going to matter to most consumers. When comparing the default factory settings for each monitor it is important to take into account several measurement areas - gamma, white point and colour accuracy. There's no point having a low dE colour accuracy figure if the gamma curve is way off for instance. A good factory calibration requires all 3 to be well set up. We have deliberately not included luminance in this comparison since this is normally far too high by default on every screen. However, that is very easily controlled through the brightness setting (on most screens) and should not impact the other areas being measured anyway. It is easy enough to obtain a suitable luminance for your working conditions and individual preferences, but a reliable factory setup in gamma, white point and colour accuracy is important and not as easy to change accurately without a calibration tool.

 

From these comparisons we can also compare the calibrated colour accuracy, black depth and contrast ratio. After a calibration the gamma, white point and luminance should all be at their desired targets.

 

 

Default setup of the screen was very good overall as the screen was factory calibrated. Gamma and white point were both very close to the targets with only a 1% deviance. Colour accuracy was also good with an average dE of 2.0. This was in the default 'native' mode as well, and dE dropped even lower to an average of 1.0 if you switched to the sRGB preset. However, in that mode the brightness was locked and so it wasn't of much use day to day we didn't feel. The default 'native' mode offered a standard gamut colour space and so those wanting to work with normal sRGB content, or those who don't want to contend with colour management complications of using a wide gamut screen should probably stick with this mode. The factory setup was pleasing. The Adobe RGB preset was also pretty good although the white point was set to a 6000k target instead of 6500k.

 

 

 

The panel did well in terms of black depth and contrast ratio for an IPS matrix, with a calibrated contrast ratio of 910:1 measured in the calibrated 'user' mode which used the full wide gamut of the backlight. This couldn't compete with some of the AMVA based screens we've tested which could reach up to 2000:1 static contrast ratios (BenQ GW2760HS) easily. However it was a good result for IPS, achieving more than the Dell U2713H in fact which uses the same LM270WQ3 panel (800:1). The contrast ratio of the VP2772 was slightly behind a couple of other IPS models we've tested like the Dell P2414H (1010:1) but not by much. A good result here from the panel.

 


Viewing Angles


Above: Viewing angles shown from front and side, and  from above and below. Click for larger image

Viewing angles of the VP2772 were very good as you would expect from an IPS based panel. Horizontally there was very little colour tone shift until wide angles past about 45° although the image did get paler from a wide angle. Shifts were slightly more noticeable in the vertical field but overall they were very good, with some slight pink hue introduced as you get to a wide angle. The screen offered the wide viewing angles of IPS technology and was free from the very restrictive fields of view of TN Film panels, especially in the vertical plane. It was also free of the off-centre contrast shift you see from VA panels and a lot of the quite obvious gamma and colour tone shift you see from some of the modern AMVA and PVA offerings. All as expected really from a modern IPS panel.


Above: View of an all black screen from the side. Click for larger version

On a black image there is a characteristics IPS white glow, but in normal working conditions this shouldn't present much problem. In fact like we'd seen on the Dell U2713H, this was not a very pale glow, but appeared more reddish in our photos as you can see here. The above image was taken in a darkened room to demonstrate the white wide angle glow when viewing a black screen. There is no A-TW polarizer on this panel which is rarely used now in the market but was implemented on some older screens to improve the off centre black viewing.

If you are viewing dark content from a close position to the screen you can sometimes see this pale glow on parts of the screen towards the sides and corners because of your proximity to the screen and your line of sight. The edges of the screen are at an angle from your line of sight which means you pick up this white glow to a smaller degree. This disappears as you move backwards away from the screen where the line of sight does not result in a wide angle view of parts of the screen and you can see the screen largely from head on. This glow should not be mistaken for backlight bleeding which would not disappear as you changed your line of sight or angle of viewing.



Panel Uniformity

We wanted to test here how uniform the brightness and colour temperature was across the screen, as well as identify any leakage from the backlight in dark lighting conditions. Measurements of the luminance and colour temperature were taken at 35 points across the panel on a pure white background. The measurements for luminance were taken using BasICColor's calibration software package, combined with an X-rite i1 Display Pro colorimeter with a central point on the screen calibrated to 120 cd/m2. Measurements for colour temperature (white point) were taken using BasICColor software and the i1 Pro spectrophotometer which can more accurately measure the white point of different backlighting technologies. The below uniformity diagram shows the difference, as a percentage, between the measurement recorded at each point on the screen, as compared with the central reference point.

It is worth noting that panel uniformity can vary from one screen to another, and can depend on manufacturing lines, screen transport and other local factors. This is only a guide of the uniformity of the sample screen we have for review.
 


Uniformity of Luminance

The luminance uniformity of the screen was moderate, with some problem areas like the upper portion of the panel which was darker than the lower regions. In the upper corners the luminance dropped down to a minimum of 94 cd/m2 (-28%) as compared with a centrally calibrated point of 120 cd/m2. Around 50% of the screen was within a 10% deviance from the 120 cd/m2 target which wasn't that good. We would have hoped for a bit better performance given the market position of this screen and retail price. There is no uniformity compensation or correction feature on this model, unlike some higher end competing models like the NEC PA series for instance.
 


Backlight Leakage


Above: All black screen in a darkened room. Click for larger version

As usual we also tested the screen with an all black image and in a darkened room. A camera was used to capture the result. There was no obvious backlight bleeding detectable to the naked eye. The camera picked up some clouding in the upper left hand region and in the lower left hand corner. Nothing too severe and nothing you should notice in day to day use.

 


General and Office Applications

The VP2772 feature a massive 2560 x 1440 WQHD resolution which is only just a little bit less vertically than a 30" screen. The pixel pitch of 0.231mm is very small as a result, and by comparison a standard 16:10 format 24" model has a pixel pitch of 0.270mm and a 30" model has 0.250mm. These ultra-high resolution 27" models offer the tightest pixel pitch and therefore the smallest text as well. We found it quite a change coming from 21.5 - 24" sized screens, even those offering quite high resolutions and small pixel pitches.  Some users may find the small text a little too small to read comfortably, and we'd advise caution if you are coming from a 19" or 22" screen for instance where the pixel pitch and text are much larger. I found a 30" screen to be quite a change with text size when I first used one, and this is very similar and even a little bit smaller! I still personally prefer the slightly larger text of a 24" model myself, but I expect I could happily get used to the added resolution on these models given time. The extra screen size also takes some getting used to over a few days as there really is a lot of room to work with.

The massive resolution is really good for office and general use, giving you a really big screen area to work with. It is a noticeable upgrade from a 24" 1920 x 1200 resolution, and it's good to see ViewSonic have opted to stick with the high res panel here rather than reverting to some other 1920 x 1200 / 1920 x 1080 res panel as you may find in other 27" models. For those wanting a high resolution for CAD, design, photo work etc, this is a really good option. The image was very sharp and crisp and text was very clear. With its WQHD display, you enjoy 77% more desktop space than a full HD screen to spread out your windows and palettes.

The light AG coating is also very positive when it comes to these kind of uses and we had been pleased with the coating on this model. The new lighter IPS panel coating ensures that white backgrounds of office documents looked good, and did not suffer from the overly grainy and dirty feel of some competing IPS panels featuring heavy, aggressive AG coating. It also remained free from the reflections you might experience from a full glossy solution so seems to be a good half-way between the two. The slight cross-hatching pattern was only visible if you knew what to look for and was very faint. It's not as obvious as on the Dell U2713HM for instance.

The wide viewing angles provided by the IPS panel technology on both horizontal and vertical planes, helps minimize on-screen colour shift when viewed from different angles. The default setup of the screen was very good overall and should provide a decent reliable setup for those who don't have access to a calibration device of their own. The default mode operates with an emulated sRGB gamut, but there are also the Adobe RGB emulation and the 'user' modes available if you want to work with a wide gamut colour space instead. The contrast ratio was very good for an IPS panel at 910:1 after calibration which was pleasing. The brightness range of the screen was also very good, with the ability to offer a luminance between approximately 316 and 47 cd/m2. This should mean the screen is perfectly useable in a wide variety of ambient light conditions, including darkened rooms. A setting of ~23 in the OSD brightness control should return you a luminance close to 120 cd/m2. The backlight regulation is controlled without needing a normal PWM method (full off/on modulation), but does have a very high frequency/low amplitude oscillation, not a full flicker free DC method.

There was some audible buzzing from the screen, but only when specifically looking for it using test images with a large amount of text at once. This is a similar thing to what we'd seen from the Dell U2713H as well. The screen remains cool even during prolonged use. There is no specific 'text' preset mode available from the menu or anything so you will need to set up one of the other modes to suit your needs. You have the option to save three user defined preset modes as well in the OSD menu, which means you can easily set something up to your liking.

The screen offers 4x USB 3.0 ports which can be useful, and it was nice to see the new generation of USB being offered. Two are available on the right hand edge of the screen for easy access which was nice.  There are no further extras like ambient light sensors or card readers which can be useful in office environments. There was a great range of ergonomic adjustments available from the stand allowing you to obtain a comfortable position for a wide variety of angles, although they were a bit stiff to move on the most part so you won't want to be moving the screen around too much. The VESA mounting support may also be useful to some people as well.
 

 
Above: photo of text at 2560x 1440 (top) and 1920 x 1080 (bottom)

The screen is designed to run at its native resolution of 2560 x 1440 and at a 60Hz recommended refresh rate. However, if you want you are able to run the screen outside of this resolution. We tested the screen at a lower 1920 x 1080 resolution to see how the screen handles the interpolation of the resolution, while maintaining the same aspect ratio of 16:9. At native resolution the text was sharp as you can see from the top photograph. When you switch to a lower resolution the text is larger of course but still clear enough with only low amounts of overlap between pixels. The screen seems to interpolate the image well although you of course lose a lot of desktop real-estate running at a lower resolution.



Responsiveness and Gaming

Quoted G2G Response Time

6ms G2G

Quoted ISO Response Time

12ms

Panel Manufacturer and Technology

LG.Display AH-IPS

Panel Part

LM270WQ3-SLB2

Overdrive Used

Yes

Overdrive Control Available to User

'Response Time' setting

Overdrive Settings

Standard, Advanced, Ultra Fast

The VP2772 is rated by ViewSonic as having a 6ms G2G response time and the panel uses overdrive / response time compensation (RTC) technology to boost pixel transitions across grey to grey changes. There is control over the overdrive impulse within the OSD menu using the 'Response Time' option, giving the user some control over the aggressiveness of the overdrive. The part being used is the LG.Display LM270QW3-SLB2 IPS panel. Have a read about response time in our specs section if you need additional information about this measurement.

We will first test the screen using our thorough response time testing method. This uses an oscilloscope and photosensor to measure the pixel response times across a series of 20 different transitions, in the full range from 0 (black) to 255 (white). This will give us a realistic view of how the monitor performs in real life, as opposed to being reliant only on a manufacturers spec. We can work out the response times for changing between many different shades, calculate the maximum, minimum and average grey to grey (G2G) response times, and provide an evaluation of any overshoot present on the monitor.

We use an ETC M526 oscilloscope for these measurements along with a custom photosensor device. Have a read of our response time measurement article for a full explanation of the testing methodology and reported data.



Response Time Setting Comparison

We will first of all look at the differences in response time and overshoot under the different 'Response Time' (overdrive) settings. These settings are accessed via the 'manual image adjust' section of the OSD menu as shown above.

First of all we took a series of measurements with the response time set to 'standard'. Response times were moderate and we achieved an average G2G figure of  13.3ms. On the plus side there was no overshoot at all, and the overdrive impulse was clearly toned down to a very low level here. Some rise times (changes from dark to light shades) were quite a bit slower though at around 19 - 22ms though meaning this setting isn't really ideal for dynamic content or gaming.

We then switched to the 'Advanced' response time setting and took the same measurements. Average G2G response times were much better now at 8ms, and the previously slow transitions were now sped up to around 7 - 10ms which was pleasing. Some overshoot was introduced as a result, particularly affecting those same transitions which had been sped up through the more aggressive overdrive impulse. There wasn't a huge RTC overshoot problem but there were some issues here.

We finally switched to the 'Ultra Fast' setting which boosted G2G response times even further to 7.0ms average. Interestingly some of the transitions which had shown high overshoot before were now better, but some severe overshoot was introduced on transitions to white (x >  255). The overdrive impulse operation seemed to be a bit different in this mode but the overshoot was getting problematic and too noticeable. The slight improvement in response times wasn't worth it we didn't feel. The middle 'Advanced' setting seemed to offer the best balance.

 

If we also carry out some subjective assessment of the screen during gaming and with the use of the PixPerAn moving car tests, we can also see the differences between each 'Response Time' mode easily enough with the naked eye. These images taken of the moving car test support what we've measured with the oscilloscope as well on the most part. With the setting at 'standard' there is a noticeable blur to the moving image as it moves across the screen. You can spot the visual improvement as you switch to the 'Advanced' mode and a lot of the blur is reduced and the moving image becomes sharper. However, some overshoot is introduced in some circumstances. In these specific test photos from PixPerAn you can see there is some slight dark trailing introduced behind the speech bubble and head an some very faint pale trails behind the car too. The Ultra Fast mode remains sharp and less blurry than the 'standard' mode. In these specific transitions shown the overshoot is not manifested, but we know it is there in certain cases from our oscilloscope tests. In fact running some other tests, particularly with changes to and from white we can see obvious halos and colour shadows introduced which are distracting. The 'Advanced' mode seems to be the best balance, but if you find the overshoot at all problematic, the 'standard' mode might still be ok as long as you can live with more blurring.
 



More Detailed Measurements
Response Time setting = Advanced

Having established that the 'Advanced' setting returned the optimum results for pixel responsiveness, we went ahead and measured a wider set of transitions for completeness. The average G2G response time was measured at 8.8ms. The lowest response time we saw was 7.0 and the highest was 10.5 ms. Rise times (changes from darker to lighter shades) were a little slower on average at 9.4ms, compared with fall times (changes from lighter to darker shades) at 8.2ms average. All in all, a good performance for an IPS panel really and about what you can expect from a modern matrix of this type.

If we evaluate the RTC overshoot you can see that on the whole it was at a moderate level, but not too bad. Here, there were a hand full of transitions which had a high level of overshoot, most noticeably when changing from black (0) to darker/medium grey shades. All in all though, it wasn't too severe and we felt that the trade-off to get the fast pixel response times which 'Advanced' mode provided was worth it, as compared with the 'standard' setting.


Transition: 0-50-0 (scale = 20ms)

Above is an example of some of the overshoot we saw on the rise times, here at 17.3%.


Transition: 100-200-100 (scale = 20ms)

Above is a fairly classic example of what we saw for transitions with little to no overshoot being introduced. Rise and fall times were comparable, and there was only some minor overshoot on the rise (2.5%) and fall times (4.8%).


Transition: 150-255-150 (scale = 20ms)

While most of the overshoot seemed to occur on changes from dark to light shades (rise times), above is an example of a transition which showed a higher overshoot on the fall time instead (11.1%).

 


Display Comparisons

As we begin to measure more screens with the oscilloscope system we can begin to plot them on a graph like the above for easy comparison. This shows you the lowest, average and highest G2G response time measurement for each screen. There is also a traffic light style circle mark to indicate the RTC overshoot error for each screen, as the response time figure alone doesn't tell the whole story.

As you can see, the VP2772 performed well compared with the other IPS panels here when it comes to response times. It wasn't as fast as the Dell U2713H which is its nearest competitor (7.2ms G2G average) but the level of overshoot was quite a lot lower, making it more suitable overall for any dynamic content and gaming. Some IPS panels like the Dell P2414H have a better balance still between fast (for IPS) response times and no real overshoot problems. The TN Film models like the BenQ XL2720Z achieve much faster overall response times so if you're looking for a gaming screen you may want to consider TN Film technology.

 

The screen was also tested using the chase test in PixPerAn for the following display comparisons. As a reminder, a series of pictures are taken on the highest shutter speed and compared, with the best case example shown on the left, and worst case example on the right. This should only be used as a rough guide to comparative responsiveness but is handy for a comparison between different screens and technologies as well as a means to compare those screens we tested before the introduction of our oscilloscope method.


27" 6ms G2G LG.Display AH-IPS (Response Time = Advanced)

In practice the ViewSonic VP2772 showed low levels of blur when set at the optimum 'Response Time' setting of 'Advanced'. There was minimal blurring behind the moving car although some dark overshoot was introduced in places due to the overdrive impulse.


27" 6ms G2G LG.Display AH-IPS (Response Time = Advanced)


27" 6ms G2G LG.Display AH-IPS


27" 12ms G2G Samsung PLS (Response Time = Advanced)


27" 8ms G2G LG.Display AH-IPS


27" 5ms G2G Samsung PLS (Trace Free = 40)


Firstly it is interesting to compare the VP2772 to some of the other popular 27" models we have tested with 2560 x 1440 resolutions and IPS/PLS panels. You can see first of all a comparison against the Dell U2713H which is the other screen using the same LM270WQ3 panel (albeit a slightly different revision), with GB-r-LED backlighting. The motion blur is actually slightly lower on the ViewSonic in these specific tests, but there is some overshoot introduced for these certain colour transitions. We know the Dell U2713H suffers from even more overshoot thanks to our oscilloscope tests but the transitions represented in the PixPerAn software don't show it. That's why it's so useful to have both methods for comparison and completeness. Overall motion clarity remained quite comparable on the VP2772 with the older ViewSonic VP2770-LED model. The Dell U2713HM was a little faster but also remained free from overshoot which was a bonus. The Asus PB278Q was again a little faster than the VP2772 and although it showed a little dark overshoot it was very slight. So the VP2772 remains quite comparable to the older VP2770-LED model, perhaps being a little faster but with a bit of overshoot introduced as a result. It is a little slower than the U2713HM and PB278Q which are more geared towards multimedia and general users.

 


27" 6ms G2G LG.Display AH-IPS (Response Time = Advanced)


27" 4ms G2G AU Optronics AHVA (AMA Setting = High)


27" 8ms G2G Samsung AD-PLS


23.8" 8ms G2G LG.Display AH-IPS

We have provided a comparison of the VP2772 against a few other IPS-type screens. The Dell P2714H and P2414H had impressed us considering their IPS/PLS panel technologies, and represented about the best you can get from a modern IPS panel at the moment for response times, without introducing any significant overshoot problems. In practice they showed a slightly higher blur in these tests than the VP2772, which traded that blur for some dark overshoot artefacts. The BenQ BL2701PT with its AHVA panel technology was slightly slower than the Dell models in practice, and showed a slightly more pronounced blur.
 


27" 6ms G2G LG.Display AH-IPS (Response Time = Advanced)


27" 2ms G2G Chi Mei Innolux TN Film +144Hz (Trace Free = 60)


27" 1ms G2G AU Optronics TN Film + 144Hz (AMA = High)


23.5" 4ms G2G Sharp MVA + 120Hz

We've also included a comparison above against 3 very fast 120Hz+ compatible screens we have tested. The other screens shown here are all aimed primarily at gamers and have various features and extras which make them more suitable overall for gaming. Firstly there is a comparison against the Asus VG278HE with its 144Hz refresh rate and fast response time TN Film panel. This showed very fast pixel response times and smooth movement thanks to its increased refresh rate. You are able to reduce the motion blur even more through the use of the LightBoost strobed backlight which we talked about in depth in our article about Motion Blur Reduction Backlights.

Then there is a comparison against the BenQ XL2720Z with another very fast TN Film panel and 144Hz refresh rate. This showed very low levels of motion blur, but some dark overshoot was introduced as a side-effect as you can see. This screen even includes a native Blur Reduction mode to help eliminate further perceived motion blur.

Lastly there is the MVA based Eizo FG2421 screen with a fast response time (especially for the panel technology being used) and 120Hz refresh rate support. There is also an additional 'Turbo 240' motion blur reduction mode which really helps reduce the perceived motion blur in practice.

While these pixel response tests from PixPerAn show the VP2772 to have pretty fast pixel transitions for an IPS panel and a little overshoot, there is something else going on as well here which can't be picked out by the camera. All of these other gaming models are running at 120Hz (or higher) refresh rates, which allows for improved 120fps+ frame rates and in some cases the support of 3D stereoscopic content as well. This can really help improve smoothness and the overall gaming experience so these screens still have the edge when it comes to fast gaming. Any additional extras to reduce perceived motion blur can also have a real benefit in practical terms, and again not easy to pick out with this camera method.


The overall gaming performance of the ViewSonic VP2772 was pretty good overall. The average G2G response time was about on par with the faster IPS and PLS models we have tested to date, but there was some moderate overshoot introduced in certain transitions. The average 8.8ms G2G response time couldn't of course compete with fast TN Film models, but for an IPS panel it was good. The screen should be able to handle some fairly fast gaming without too much problem, although the overshoot could still be an issue in some cases. This screen certainly isn't aimed at the gaming market and those wanting to play fast FPS or competitive games may want to consider some of the more gamer orientated 120Hz+, TN Film based compatible displays out there, or perhaps something like the Eizo FG2421. Even better still would be models equipped with LightBoost systems or other motion blur reduction backlights for optimum motion blur elimination.

On another note many gamers like to use exaggerated settings to make colours look brighter and more vivid. Wide gamut screens can serve this purpose well as they natively produces more saturated colours. This might not be strictly accurate but a lot of people prefer this more vivid and cartoony appearance and so it's useful that the option is available from the VP2772 from certain preset modes. There is also an sRGB emulation option if you want to revert to standard gamut as well.




Additional Gaming Features

Aspect Ratio Control - The ViewSonic VP2772 has a very limited range of aspect ratio control options through the OSD 'Aspect Ratio' setting in the 'Manual Image Adjust' menu. There are only options for "4:3" aspect or "full". There is no option to simply maintain the source aspect ratio, or offer support for 5:4, 16:10 or any other ratio. There is also no 1:1 pixel mapping option sadly. At least with the screen being a native 16:9 aspect ratio it should handle a lot of content and external devices without much issue, as a lot of content is in the same aspect ratio nowadays anyway. Would have been nice to see more options available though.

Preset Modes - There are no specific gaming preset modes available in the OSD although you can save up to 3 user defined modes, so it would be easy enough to set up a mode to suit your requirements for gaming.




Lag

We have written an in depth article about input lag and the various measurement techniques which are used to evaluate this aspect of a display. It's important to first of all understand the different methods available and also what this lag means to you as an end-user.

Input Lag vs. Display Lag vs. Signal Processing

To avoid confusion with different terminology we will refer to this section of our reviews as just "lag" from now on, as there are a few different aspects to consider, and different interpretations of the term "input lag". We will consider the following points here as much as possible. The overall "display lag" is the first, that being the delay between the image being shown on the TFT display and that being shown on a CRT. This is what many people will know as input lag and originally was the measure made to explain why the image is a little behind when using a CRT. The older stopwatch based methods were the common way to measure this in the past, but through advanced studies have been shown to be quite inaccurate. As a result, more advanced tools like SMTT provide a method to measure that delay between a TFT and CRT while removing the inaccuracies of older stopwatch methods.

In reality that lag / delay is caused by a combination of two things - the signal processing delay caused by the TFT electronics / scaler, and the response time of the pixels themselves. Most "input lag" measurements over the years have always been based on the overall display lag (signal processing + response time) and indeed the SMTT tool is based on this visual difference between a CRT and TFT and so measures the overall display lag. In practice the signal processing is the element which gives the feel of lag to the user, and the response time of course can impact blurring, and overall image quality in moving scenes. As people become more aware of lag as a possible issue, we are of course keen to try and understand the split between the two as much as possible to give a complete picture.

The signal processing element within that is quite hard to identify without extremely high end equipment and very complicated methods. In fact the studies by Thomas Thiemann which really kicked this whole thing off were based on equipment worth >100,1000 Euro, requiring extremely high bandwidths and very complicated methods to trigger the correct behaviour and accurately measure the signal processing on its own. Other techniques which are being used since are not conducted by Thomas (he is a freelance writer) or based on this equipment or technique, and may also be subject to other errors or inaccuracies based on our conversations with him since. It's very hard as a result to produce a technique which will measure just the signal processing on its own unfortunately. Many measurement techniques are also not explained and so it is important to try and get a picture from various sources if possible to make an informed judgement about a display overall.

For our tests we will continue to use the SMTT tool to measure the overall "display lag". From there we can use our oscilloscope system to measure the response time across a wide range of grey to grey (G2G) transitions as recorded in our response time tests. Since SMTT will not include the full response time within its measurements, after speaking with Thomas further about the situation we will subtract half of the average G2G response time from the total display lag. This should allow us to give a good estimation of how much of the overall lag is attributable to the signal processing element on its own.

 

Lag Classification


To help in this section we will also introduce a broader classification system for these results to help categorise each screen as one of the following levels:

  • Class 1) Less than 16ms / 1 frame lag - should be fine for gamers, even at high levels

  • Class 2) A lag of 16 - 32ms / One to two frames - moderate lag but should be fine for many gamers. Caution advised for serious gaming and FPS

  • Class 3) A lag of more than 32ms / more than 2 frames - Some noticeable lag in daily usage, not suitable for high end gaming

For the full reviews of the models compared here and the dates they were written (and when screens were approximately released to the market), please see our full reviews index.

(Measurements in ms)

User Mode

Total Display Lag (SMTT 2)

30.0

Pixel Response Time Element

4.4

Estimated Signal Processing Lag

25.6

Lag Classification

2

 Class 2

We have provided a comparison above against other models we have tested to give an indication between screens. Those shown with blue bars in the bottom half represent the total "display lag" as at the time of review we did not have access to an oscilloscope system to measure the response time element and provide an estimation of the signal processing. The screens tested more recently in the top half are split into two measurements which are based on our overall display lag tests (using SMTT) and half the average G2G response time, as measured by the oscilloscope. The response time is split from the overall display lag and shown on the graph as the green bar. From there, the signal processing (red bar) can be provided as a good estimation.

The screen showed a total average display lag of 30.0ms as measured with SMTT 2. Taking into account half the average G2G response time at 4.4ms, we can estimate that there is ~25.6ms of signal processing lag on this screen. This is quite high and so might not be suitable for fast FPS type gaming for many users. Remember, the screen isn't really geared towards gamers, but this is still quite a high lag.

For more information about the SMTT 2.0 tool please visit:

http://smtt.thomasthiemann.com/index_en.html

 


Movies and Video

The following summarises the screens performance in video applications:

  • 27" screen size makes it a reasonable option for an all-in-one multimedia screen, but being quite a bit smaller than most modern LCD TV's of course.

  • 16:9 aspect ratio is more well suited to videos than a 16:10 format screen, leaving smaller borders on DVD's and wide screen content at the top and bottom.

  • 2560 x 1440 resolution can support full 1080 HD resolution content

  • Digital interface support HDCP for any encrypted and protected content

  • DVI, DisplayPort, Mini DisplayPort and HDMI connections available, offering great connectivity choices for modern DVD players, Blu-ray, consoles etc.

  • Cables provided in the box for DVI, DisplayPort and HDMI which was nice to see.

  • Light AG coating provides clear enough images with no major graininess, and without the unwanted reflections of a glossy solution.

  • Wide brightness range adjustment possible from the display, including high maximum luminance of ~316 cd/m2 and a good minimum luminance of ~47 cd/m2. This should afford you very good control for different lighting conditions. Contrast ratio remains stable across that adjustment range as well.

  • Black depth and contrast ratio are very good for an IPS panel at 910:1 after calibration. Detail in darker scenes should not be lost as a result, and shadow detail should be good.

  • There is no specific 'movie' preset mode available for movies or video but you could set up one of the user defined modes if you wanted to.

  • Good pixel responsiveness which can handle fast moving scenes in movies without issue. Some overshoot issues on some transitions when using the optimum Response Time mode. If they prove distracting in movies, switching it to 'Standard' might be an option worth trying.

  • Wide viewing angles thanks to IPS panel technology meaning several people could view the screen at once comfortable and from a whole host of different angles.

  • No particularly noticeable backlight leakage, although some glow from the left hand corners could be detected in darkened conditions

  • Very good range of ergonomic adjustments available from the stand, so should be easy to obtain a comfortable position for multiple users or if you want to sit further away from the screen for movie viewing. They are a bit stiff to operate though.

  • No integrated stereo speakers on this model but there is a headphone jack if sending sound to the screen over HDMI.

  • Limited range of hardware aspect ratio options with only 4:3 and 'full' being available. At least the screen is natively 16:9 aspect ratio.

  • Picture in picture (PiP) and Picture By Picture (PbP) are not available.

     

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Conclusion

The VP2772 left us with some mixed feelings if we're honest. It was interesting to test another high resolution 27" model using the latest AH-IPS panel and GB-r-LED backlighting and overall we felt there was more good than bad to be said. On the positive side, from a colour point of view the screen performed very well. Default setup was very good and represented a decent factory calibration. There was support for 10-bit content, a 14-bit LUT and wide gamut colour space support from the backlight system for those who need it. The sRGB and Adobe RGB emulation options were also present thankfully. The use of an IPS panel provided the usual wide viewing angles and stable image you would expect from this technology, and even the contrast ratio was very good which was pleasing.

However, it did feel like ViewSonic had come up a little short in some regards, not quite making it a premium screen in all regards. The screen lacked a programmable LUT like most of its competitors (Dell U2713H and NEC PA272W for instance), and so hardware calibration and the control which that offers a user was not an option here. It also missed any uniformity correction feature which would have been useful since the uniformity wasn't great. The sRGB preset mode offered a very low deltaE out of the box, but the locking of the brightness/contrast controls was an odd choice, and meant it wasn't that practical to use this mode. Away from the colour quality analysis the stand offered a very good range of adjustments, but they were quite stiff to use and the stand seemed a bit dated and too industrial in design. The brightness control offered a wide backlight adjustment range and a stable contrast ratio thankfully. The OSD menu software was a bit old-fashioned in design, the aspect ratio control options were very limited and the input lag was also a bit too high for our liking. At least the pixel response times were good and the 'Response Time' setting was useful to have. Connectivity of the screen was also very good with all the options you could need and the additional USB 3.0 ports provided as well.

The VP2772 we would classify as a semi-professional screen and it certainly retails for a lower cost than some high end NEC and Eizo models for instance. It has a few weak areas but if you want a decent wide gamut screen for colour critical and image work, at a modest price point, then this would be worth looking at.
 

Pros

Cons

Good default setup and accuracy

Missing competitor features like hardware calibration and uniformity correction

Very good connectivity options

Limited aspect ratio control

Good pixel response times and overdrive control

Stand is a bit too industrial and chunky

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