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BenQ M2700HD review

Sasha Muller October 6, 2010

£254

Price when reviewed

The moment you lay eyes on BenQ’s M2700HD monitor, it’s clear it’s different to most. The Full HD resolution is par for the course at this price, as is the TN panel, but the sheer number of features has to be seen to be believed.

In fact, it looks more like a TV than a PC monitor. The speakers along the bottom edge mimic the popular sound-bar design found on HDTVs, while the dash of black gloss, silver and transparent plastic make more of a visual impact than you’d expect at the price. There’s even a remote control thrown in.

Delta E

Delta E is a figure that represents the difference between the desired colour and the colour displayed onscreen. Below 1.0 is indistinguishable to the human eye; an experienced viewer may notice differences around 3-4. We measure Delta E with a colorimeter before and after calibration.

At the rear, there’s a wide range of ports and connectors: DVI, VGA, composite, component and two HDMI sockets cover most video standards, and three analogue audio inputs sit next to an optical S/PDIF input. If that isn’t enough, there’s a four-port USB hub and a 3.5mm headphone socket.

Image quality is strikingly similar to the Iiyama ProLite E2710HDSD, and that’s no bad thing. We measured brightness at an almost identical 369cd/m2, and contrast at a similar 821:1.

BenQ M2700HD monitor

Black levels and even backlighting make for a decent amount of shadow detail, and colour reproduction is as good as you’ll see from a TN panel. It achieved an average Delta E of 3.4, which is slightly better than its closest rival, but with the pair side by side it’s almost impossible to tell the two apart.

The BenQ’s real issue is input lag. An average of 58ms via the DVI connection means gamers will find this panel more laggy than the Iiyama ProLite E2710HDSD. Its four 2.5W speakers are no better than average, either. They’re loud, but sound quality is harsh and lacking in bass.

It’s certainly feature-packed, but the BenQ M2700HD ultimately tries too hard. Iiyama’s ProLite E2710HDSD can’t match it for versatility, but it offers almost identical image quality, much lower input lag and a lower price. You’ll have to really want all those video inputs to pay the premium for the M2700HD.

Details
Image quality	4
Main specifications
Screen size	27.0in
Aspect ratio	16:9
Resolution	1920 x 1080
Screen brightness	400cd/m2
Pixel response time	5ms
Contrast ratio	1,000:1
Pixel pitch	0.311mm
Horizontal viewing angle	170 degrees
Vertical viewing angle	160 degrees
Speaker type	4
Speaker power ouput	3W
TV tuner	no
TV tuner type	none
Connections
DVI inputs	1
VGA inputs	1
HDMI inputs	2
DisplayPort inputs	0
Scart inputs	0
HDCP support	yes
Upstream USB ports	1
USB ports (downstream)	4
3.5mm audio input jacks	1
Headphone output	yes
Other audio connectors	Coaxial S/P-DIF
Accessories supplied
Other cables supplied	VGA
Internal power supply	yes
Power consumption
Peak power consumption	44W
Idle power consumption	27W
Image adjustments
Brightness control?	yes
Contrast control?	yes
Colour temperature settings	Blueish, Reddish, Normal, User mode
Extra adjustments	Picture (Sharpness, Gamma (1.8, 2, 2.2, 2.4, 2.6), picture mode (standard, movie, game, photo, eco, sRGB), display mode (overscan, full, aspect, 1:1), audio (audio mode, volume, mute, audio input select, embracing sound preset), system (input, OSD languag
Ergonomics
Forward tilt angle	-5 degrees
Backward tilt angle	20 degrees
Swivel angle	0 degrees
Height adjustment	0mm
Pivot (portrait) mode?	no
Bezel width	29mm
Dimensions
Dimensions	658 x 242 x 517mm (WDH)
Weight	9.500kg