Graphic Designers: Do you have a $500 (or less) monitor you love?

[DJinTX]

Hi All,

I am fairly technical on many topics, but computer monitors are not my strong suit. My wife is a graphic designer (photoshop, illustrator, indesign, some after effects), but she is not very technical, which leaves me as the one to research all her purchases. In the next month or so we are about to upgrade her to a new 16 inch MacBook Pro with M1 Pro processor, and since she strongly dislikes her current monitor (Dell SE2717HR) it seems the perfect time to upgrade the monitor as well. It is only a 1080 panel. She had a similar dell at work for awhile which is why we bought this one, but the one we chose must have been much lower specce'd because she complains that she cant see subtle differences in off-white/gray shades like she could on her prior work monitor, and just overall less detail. With that said, I want to help find her a monitor that doesn't break the bank ($500 or less) but is a substantial upgrade to pair with the new MBP.

I'm thinking it should probably be 4K, and she prefers 27 inch. It needs to have high color accuracy, very sharp text, high contrast. Also, the less calibration needed out of the box the better for both of us. A one-cable setup (usb-c or thunderbolt would be nice but not a deal breaker). Here are some I ran across in my research, but either have noted drawbacks, or am having trouble finding trustworthy reviews on the newer panels.

Dell 2722QC - was noted to have low contrast
Asus ProArt PA279CV (apparently very new and not finding reviews, Rtings.com hasn;t reviewed it yet)
LG 27UL850

All in all, if you have a 4k (or higher) monitor you absolutely love using due to its PQ, then I would love to hear about it.


Thanks in advance!
--Derek

 

[satcomer]

on make make sure you get a Monitor that's at least AGM! Also 4k monitors are cheaper now too!

 

[DJinTX]

on make make sure you get a Monitor that's at least AGM! Also 4k monitors are cheaper now too!

What is AGM?

 

[spacedcadet]

Bit old school, here.
Ideally look for an IPS panel, essential for colour consistency across viewing angles, then make sure it's calibrated with something like an i1. Dell actually make decent panels if you can't afford an Eizo/NEC. I'm using a U2713HM (2560 × 1440) which can be found on ebay for under £200. Appreciate this might not be a nice match for a new MBP. The colour accuracy once calibrated, for the print work I do, is great.
Personally, I find the newer 4k and 5k monitors LOOK amazing, but if you do a lot of pixel level editing and judging of photographic sharpness they can be annoying as the detail is too small at 100% so you have to view at 200% which then interpolates pixels in the image for display.