BenQ XL2730Z 144Hz 1ms 27 inch Gaming Monitor with High Resolution and FreeSync Tech Best for CS:GO Battlefield eSport

PC gaming won’t ever be the same again., August 29, 2014

By 

William Grose (Seattle, WA) – See all my reviews

  

  

With the Playstation 4 and XBOX One battling out for 1080p/60 frames per second, it’s easy to lose track of PC gamers who’ve enjoyed 60fps for years in pretty much every game out there. For many, 60fps is a thing of the past, with higher-refresh monitors in a fairly mature state, and gamers demanding more.

This latest BenQ XL2430T is one such monitor. I never owned its predecessor, the XL2420T, but this model is apparently only upgraded in physical design and features over the last iteration (the screen is still apparently the same AUO M240HW01 V8) . Some of the the differences I could find over the XL2420T include:

1.) A redesigned stand (aluminum – feels really solid),
2.) A redesigned control-box (now called the S-Switch Arc, with an indentation in the base for it to sit).
3.) The base itself is not as wide as the XL2420T.
4.) All buttons are now physical, not touch-sensitive.
5.) The 2-port USB hub is now USB 3.0
6.) Now includes a microphone jack.
7.) Retractable headphone hook is on the left side.

The monitor has the following ports: 2x HDMI 1.4 ports, 1x DisplayPort, 1x DVI, 1x VGA, 2x USB 3.0, 3.5mm headphone, 3.5mm microphone.

Inside the box are the following: The monitor, stand, base, S-Switch Arc, USB 3.0 cable, Dual-Link DVI cable, and a very-high quality screen cover (separate from the standard baggie that it ships in). Peculiarly, the Dual-Link DVI cable is attached to the monitor, probably as a reminder that you need to use Dual-Link DVI and not HDMI to attain 144hz. You can also use DisplayPort for this too, which may be preferable since it can transmit audio to the monitor for using headphones/speakers connected directly to it.

The setup couldn’t be easier, and requires no tools. For my testing, I’ll be using a somewhat unconventional setup, but for those out there that are wondering, this works perfectly!

System: 2012 iMac running Windows 7. Core i7 3.4Ghz, 32GB RAM, Samsung 830 256GB, 2GB Geforce GTX 680MX (overclocked).

Currently, I run most games at 2560×1440 on my iMac’s screen at 60fps (the LCD’s max). This sometimes requires a few details turned down, because 2560×1440 is just under 78% more pixels than 1920×1080. But this depends on the game (Crysis 3, I’m looking at you..). For this lower-res 1080p monitor, my iMac has barely any trouble hitting 144fps to match the BenQ’s output.

In any case, I connected the BenQ XL2430T to my 2012 iMac via a mini DisplayPort (into the iMac’s Thunderbolt port) to DisplayPort cable (into the BenQ), and it was up and running in seconds. Selectable refresh rates include 59hz, 60hz, 100hz, 120hz, and 144hz. Naturally, I went straight to 144hz!

First impressions were incredibly mixed: That’s amazing! – was my first thought. And my second was, what’s wrong with the colors? Because this is a TN panel, it means viewing angle are… non-existent, color reproduction is… non-existent, black levels are.. non-existent etc. Out of the box, the BenQ is set up appallingly. Brightness is set to the MAX 100 setting, and the gamer profile selected in the settings simply didn’t work, doing rather strange things to the color on the screen. I immediately cranked down the brightness to 35, a much more usable setting, switched the picture mode to “Standard,” and adjusted the “Color Vibrance” setting one notch up from 10 to 11. This sorted out the washed-out look tremendously and brought some more warmth to the image, but still, there’s only so much you can do with TN.

The unit I’m reviewing had zero stuck/dead pixels, and zero light bleed, even at the cranked max-brightness setting. Both these things I’m very sensitive to, but your mileage may vary between LCDs due to panel variances. Also to note – this monitor has no high-pitched buzzing sounds at any brightness level, or any unusual sounds, period.

The Gaming:

It’s easy to lose sight of what this monitor is designed for: GAMING. For most hardcore gamers, they won’t care that it’s not an IPS/VA panel, won’t care that it washes out when viewed even slightly off center etc. This is a gaming screen, and my goodness, gaming won’t ever be the same again. I’m ruined. 144hz is just something to be seen. I remember the feeling I had when viewing native 4K material; this is a similar experience, but for refresh rates/frames per second.

First, 144hz is not to be confused with that soap-opera look of TVs these days with MotioFlow etc enabled, where the display essentially interpolates (read: guesses) frames in between existing frames to smooth the image out. With the BenQ in 144hz mode, every one of those frames is a REAL frame, and it eliminates a huge amount of the blur that comes from standard 60hz. That means that every game you own (aside from a few finicky ones) can run at frame-rates above 60 and will benefit. Whether you notice a huge difference will…

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Perfect after calibration, a steal for 0!, February 12, 2015

First off, let me just say that this monitor was almost sent back upon plugging it in because for some reason the default “FPS1” profile was selected and had terrible color, just absolutely horrendous. Do not let this fool you, however, the perfect settings are in there somewhere! With the disclaimer out of the way, on to the review!

Pros:

1. After calibration and applying ICC profiles, the screen looks amazing even at 144hz, which is known to ruin color accuracy. Other than viewing angles, this monitor has deeper blacks and less distortion than my IPS display right next to it, granted it is a cheaper IPS from a couple years ago, but the point still stands. Compared to other TN panels, this one is by far the best I have experienced color wise, and while the viewing angles don’t compare to IPS panels it is leagues ahead of comparably priced TN panels. Don’t let these other reviews fool you, it took me all of about 10 minutes to find the right settings and apply the ICC profile, not worth even taking half an egg off.

http://www.digitalversus.com/lcd-monitor/xl2411z-p17975/test.html I used this link to get my colors just right and to get the ICC profile to work. Although I found that setting the Blue to 90 made things just a tad yellow for my taste, so I left it at 95.

2. This monitor uses the same panel and technology as its big brother the 2420G. The 2420G is twice the price of this monitor, and the only real difference is that the 2420G has G-sync. So for 0 you are essentially getting a 0 monitor without G-sync, what a steal!

3. The profiles on this monitor are very handy for switching between different games I play. Though I usually just leave it on my default calibrated setting 90+% of the time, I like having the option to quickly switch profiles without having to take too long.

4. For anyone worried that they won’t be able to reach 144fps in games, do not worry about it! The entire windows experience in 144hz is mind blowing, everything is so smooth and crisp. Typing documents is a pleasure at 144hz, it is hard to describe how superb it looks unless you have seen it for yourself. When I slide windows over to my 60hz IPS panel, everything just seems so laggy and stuttery compared to this monitor. Even if you only hit 70 or 80 FPS in most games you will notice a difference, and the anti strobing effect makes it so I can use the monitor for longer without getting a headache. Explosions and color pop off the screen. Liquid moves at a more fluid and realistic pace making the immersion just that much better. Screen tearing is nearly non existant on this monitor, and I have only noticed it at all in Farcry 4, but that is mostly because Farcry 4 is not programmed very well.

5. The monitor itself is built very well. I prefer the look of this monitor over the other Benq models because it is less in your face with its minimalist design, and I like actual buttons instead of laggy capacitive buttons. The inlaid tray is great for keeping cell phones and the like, I actually have a wireless charging pad I set in there and it fits perfectly. It is awesome being able to rotate the monitor to easily access the ports on the bottom, I’ve never had such an easy time getting the DVI-D cable in. A DVI-D cable is included in the box, and it is required to get 144hz.

CONS:

1. This monitor is bulky, and if you have a 24″ monitor already be prepared for this thing to feel way bigger. The stand, while very sturdy and strong, is hard to adjust vertically because it is a locking mechanism versus the spring loaded version in the 2420G. I didn’t need to adjust my monitor vertically at all, but if some does be warned it can be a bit tricky.

2. No G-sync on this monitor is not a problem for me, but for those that are looking to get G-sync in the future, be warned that this monitor cannot be upgraded to accept the G-sync. I personally think g-sync is a tad unecessary, especially when there is software out there that does nearly the same thing and it is free.

3. This monitor has an HDMI, VGA and DVI-D port only, no display port. This should be a non issue since the only reason to use display port is for g-sync or sound, but this monitor doesn’t have speakers and it doesn’t have g-sync so there shouldn’t be any worries. The DVI-D cable that comes in the box is thick and robust, very well constructed.

OTHER THOUGHTS:

This monitor is the best monitor you can buy for under 0 in my opinion. For 0, you get 90% of the software and features of another monitor that costs twice as much, a TN panel which has great color accuracy and viewing angles compared to others that cost more, a strong and sturdy build quality that is unmatched in this price point, and a gaming experience that will change the way you play. Older games that I haven’t played in a while breathe new life playing at 144hz,…

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