Comparison Apple Studio Display 27 " silver vs Dell U2723QE 27 " silver

The technology by which the monitor matrix is made.

— TN+film. The oldest and most common technology for manufacturing matrices. The original TN (Twisted Nematic) monitors have a low response time and low cost, but the image quality is average. So, the colour quality is not high, and the perfect black colour cannot be reproduced at all. In addition, the original TN technology provides relatively small viewing angles. To correct this situation, a special film is applied to the surface of the matrix. These matrices received the name "TN + film". Monitors with such a matrix are widespread and inexpensive. They are well suited for undemanding users both at home and in the office, and gamers will appreciate the fast response time.

— *VA(Vertical Alignment, options: MVA, PVA, Super MVA, Super PVA). A kind of transitional option between expensive and high-quality IPS and low-cost TN. Provide sufficiently high-quality colour reproduction, including black colour, viewing angles can reach 178°. The main disadvantage of VA matrices is the significant response time (especially for MVA monitors), due to which such monitors are relatively poorly suited for watching videos and dynamic games. This shortcoming is gradually being eliminated, and the latest models of VA monitors are approaching TN + film in respo...nse time.

— IPS. Initially, IPS technology was created for high-end monitors (in particular, "designer"), the key parameters for which were the quality of colour reproduction and a wide colour gamut. With all these advantages, the original IPS matrices also had a number of serious drawbacks — first of all, low response speed and impressive cost. Thus, many modifications of the IPS technology have been developed, designed to compensate for these shortcomings to one degree or another.

— OLED. Monitors with screens using organic light emitting diodes — OLED. Such LEDs can be used both to illuminate a traditional matrix, and as elements from which a screen is built. In the first case, the advantages of OLED over traditional LED backlighting are compactness, extremely low power consumption, backlight uniformity, as well as excellent brightness and contrast ratios. And in matrices, consisting entirely of OLED, these advantages are even more pronounced. The main disadvantages of OLED monitors are the high price (which, however, is constantly decreasing as the technology develops and improves), as well as the susceptibility of organic pixels to burn-in when broadcasting static images for a long time or pictures with static elements (toolbar, clock, etc.).

— QLED. Monitors built using quantum dot technology (QLED). This technology can be used in matrices of various types. It involves replacing a set of several colour filters used in classic matrices with a special thin-film coating based on nanoparticles, and traditional white LEDs with blue ones. This allows you to achieve higher brightness, colour saturation and colour quality at the same time as reducing the thickness and reducing power consumption. In addition, QLED is well suited for creating curved screens. The flip side of these benefits is the high price.

— QD-OLED. A kind of hybrid version of matrices that combine “quantum dots” (Quantum Dot) and organic light-emitting diodes (OLED) in one bottle. The technology takes the best from QLED and OLED: it is based on blue LEDs, self-luminous pixels (instead of external backlighting) and “quantum dots”, which play the role of color filters, but at the same time practically do not attenuate the light (unlike traditional filters) . Thanks to the use of a number of advanced solutions, the creators managed to achieve very impressive characteristics, significantly superior to many other OLED matrices. Among them are high peak brightness from 1000 nits (cd/m²), excellent contrast and black depth, as well as an expanded color gamut (over 120% of the DCI P3 gamut). Such matrices are found mainly in expensive advanced monitors with a large screen diagonal.

— AHVA. A type of matrix created by AU Optronics (a joint venture between Acer and BenQ) as a solution similar to modern IPS. Among the key advantages of this option over analogues is the almost complete absence of colour distortions at all viewing angles.

– PLS (Plane to Line Switching). This type of matrix was developed by Samsung engineers. It is based on the familiar IPS technology. According to some parameters, namely: the brightness and contrast of PLS exceeds IPS by 10%. The main goal of creating a new type of screens was to reduce the cost of the matrix, according to the developer, the production cost was reduced by 15%, which will positively affect the final price of monitors in comparison with IPS counterparts.

— IGZO. Technology introduced by Sharp in 2012. The key difference between IGZO and classic LCD matrices is that for the active layer (responsible for creating the image) it uses not amorphous silicon, but a semiconductor material based on indium gallium oxide and zinc oxide. This makes it possible to create screens with extremely fast response times and high pixel densities, and the technology is considered well suited for ultra-high resolution screens. With all this, the colour rendering characteristics allow the use of IGZO monitors even in the professional field, and the power consumption is very low. The main disadvantage of this option is the high cost.

— UV2A. An LCD display technology developed by Sharp and introduced in 2009. One of the key features of UV2A matrices is that they are based on liquid crystals that are sensitive to ultraviolet light. And it is UV radiation that is used as a control signal — it ensures that the crystals turn in the right direction to form an image. The technical features of such systems are such that the position of individual crystals can be controlled with extremely high accuracy — up to several picometers (with the size of the crystals themselves about 2 nm). According to the manufacturer, this provides two key benefits: no backlight "leakage" and improved light transmission with "open" crystals. The first allows you to achieve very deep and rich blacks, the second provides excellent brightness with low power consumption, and together these two features make it possible to create screens with a very high static contrast ratio — up to 5000: 1. At the same time, we note that the actual contrast characteristics in UV2A monitors can be noticeably more modest — it all depends on the features of a particular matrix and the characteristics that the manufacturer was able or considered necessary to provide.

— Mini LED IPS. A variation on the theme of the familiar IPS-matrix, which is illuminated by an array of reduced LEDs. The small caliber of individual light sources (of the order of 100-200 microns) makes it possible to form a much larger number of zones of controlled local dimming of the screen. Together, this delivers improved brightness, contrast, colour saturation, and black depth, and raises the bar for High Dynamic Range (HDR) technology.

— Mini LED VA. A variety of VA-matrices with a Mini LED backlight system. It consists of many tiny LEDs, which, due to their number, form many times more local screen dimming zones than standard canvases. As a result, Mini LED VA panels boast improved colour reproduction, impressive black depth, and multiple performance improvements in HDR content.

— Mini LED QLED. Behind the plane of the QLED panel in monitors with a Mini LED backlight system are thousands of miniature LEDs no larger than 200 microns in size, which divide the screen into a great many zones with controlled local dimming. They are individually dimmable, allowing full display of HDR content with bright light and deepest black levels.

The native resolution of the monitor. Ideally, the resolution of the video signal should be the same, then the quality of the image on the screen will be maximum.

In general, the higher the resolution, the higher the detail and the more advanced the screen is, but the more expensive it will cost (ceteris paribus) and the more power the graphics card will need to work properly at that resolution. As for specific values, they are quite diverse in modern monitors, but all resolutions can be divided into several general categories:

— HD (720). Screens suitable for HD video with a resolution of 1280x720. Note that this category also includes models with a resolution of 1024x768 — this figure is somewhat less than necessary to display HD in its original size, but the quality of the HD picture on such a screen still turns out to be quite high. The most popular option among HD monitors is 1366x768, there are also models 1280x768, 1280x800 and non-widescreen (5:3) 1280x1024.

— Full HD (1080). Full HD monitors. The classic, most popular version of this resolution is 1920x1080 ( 16:9 format), however, there are other options among monitors, including such specific ones as ultra-widescreen (32:9) 3840x1080, as well as 1600x1200 (a 1920x1080 frame “does not fit into it”) ” in width, but this resolution is still commonly r...eferred to as Full HD). To date, Full HD is a good compromise between image quality, screen cost and graphics card requirements. As a result, it is this format that is most popular among modern monitors.

— Quad HD. A kind of intermediate option between the popular Full HD and advanced demanding Ultra HD 4K. It covers resolutions from 1920x1440 to 3200x2400, although most modern Quad HD monitors fit into a narrower range — from 2560x1440 to 3840x1600. Such a screen can be a good option for those who “Full HD is not enough, but 4K is a lot.”

— Ultra HD (4K). This standard assumes a horizontal frame size of approximately 4000 pixels, but specific resolutions may vary. Popular options found in monitors include 3840x2160, 4096x2160, and 4096x2304. Overall, UHD 4K gives you 4 times more pixels on screen than Full HD; such resolutions are typical for high-end monitors and are most often combined with a large diagonal — from 27 "(although there are exceptions).

— Ultra HD (5K). An even more advanced standard than UHD 4K, which assumes a horizontal frame size of about 5000 pixels — for example, 5120x2160. It is used extremely rarely, mainly in top professional screens.

— 8K. Further, after 5K, the development of HD standards, which provides for a frame with a horizontal size of about 8000 — for example, one of the 8K resolution options in monitors is 7680x4320. Allows you to get extremely clear and detailed images, but such high-resolution monitors are very expensive, and it is not so easy to find a signal source in such a resolution. Therefore, only single models of 8K monitors are currently on the market.

The size of one dot (pixel) on a monitor screen. This parameter is related to the maximum resolution of the monitor and its diagonal size — the higher the resolution, the smaller the pixel size (with the same diagonal) and vice versa, the larger the diagonal, the larger the size of one pixel (with the same resolution). The smaller the size of one pixel, the clearer the image will be displayed by the monitor, the less grainy it will be noticeable, which is especially important on large monitors. On the other hand, a small pixel size creates discomfort when working with fine details and text — this mainly applies to monitors with a small diagonal.

The time spent by each individual point on the monitor to switch from one state to another. The shorter the response time, the faster the sensor responds to the control signal, the lower the delay and the better the image quality in dynamic scenes.

Note that in this case, the grey-to-grey method is used (the turn-on time is from 10% grey to 90%). It is worth paying attention to this parameter if the monitor is specially purchased for dynamic games, watching movies and other applications associated with fast movement on the screen. And even in such cases, a reaction speed of 8 ms is quite enough; a further decrease in response time does not affect the quality of the perceived image.

The maximum brightness provided by the monitor screen.

Choosing a monitor with high brightness is especially important if the device is going to be used in bright ambient light — for example, if the workplace is exposed to sunlight. A dim image can be "dampened" by such lighting, making work uncomfortable. In other conditions, the high brightness of the screen is very tiring for the eyes.

Most modern monitors give out about 200 – 400 cd / m2 — this is usually quite enough even in the sun. However, there are also higher values: for example, in LCD panels (see "Type") the brightness can reach several thousand cd/m2. This is necessary taking into account the specifics of such devices — the image must be clearly visible from a long distance.

Static contrast provided by the monitor screen.

This value describes the difference between the brightest whites and darkest blacks that the screen is capable of producing. In this case, unlike dynamic contrast (see below), the difference is indicated on the condition that the brightness of the screen backlight remains unchanged. In other words, this is the contrast that is guaranteed to be achievable within one frame. Static contrast is inevitably lower than dynamic. However, it is she who describes the basic capabilities of the screen.

The minimum static contrast ratio for tolerable image quality is considered to be 250:1, but even the most modest modern monitors give out about 400:1 (and a value of 1000:1 is not the highest class), and in high-end models this figure can reach 2000:1 and even more. .

The colour depth supported by the monitor.

This parameter characterizes the number of shades that the screen can display. And here it is worth recalling that the image in modern monitors is based on 3 basic colours — red, green, blue (RGB scheme). And the number of bits is indicated not for the entire screen, but for each base colour. For example, 6 bits (the minimum colour depth for modern monitors) means that the screen is capable of producing 2 ^ 6, that is, 64 shades of red, green and blue; the total number of shades will be 64 * 64 * 64 = 262,144 (0.26 million). An 8-bit colour depth (256 shades for each base colour) already gives a total of 16.7 million colours; and the most advanced modern monitors support 10-bit colour, allowing you to work with more than a billion shades.

Screens with support for FRC technology are worth a special mention; nowadays, you can find models marked " 6 bit + FRC " and " 8 bit + FRC ". This technology was developed to improve picture quality in situations where the incoming video signal has a greater colour depth than the screen, such as when 10-bit video is fed to an 8-bit matrix. If such a screen supports FRC, the picture on it will be noticeably better than on a regular 8-bit monitor (although somewhat worse than on a full-fledged 10-bit monitor, but “8 bit + FRC” screens are much...cheaper).

High colour depth is important primarily for professional graphics and other tasks that require high colour fidelity. On the other hand, such features significantly affect the cost of the monitor. In addition, it is worth remembering that the quality of colour reproduction depends not only on the colour depth, but also on other parameters — in particular, colour gamut (see below).

Monitor colour gamut Rec. 709 or sRGB.

Any colour gamut is indicated as a percentage, however, not relative to the entire variety of visible colours, but relative to the conditional colour space (colour model). This is due to the fact that no modern screen is able to display all the colours visible to humans. However, the larger the colour gamut, the wider the monitor's capabilities, the better its colour reproduction.

Nowadays, sRGB is actually the standard color model adopted for computer technology; This is what is used in the development and production of most video cards. For television, the Rec. standard, similar in parameters, is used. 709. In terms of the range of colors, these models are identical, and the percentage of coverage for them is the same. In the most advanced monitors it can reach or even exceed 100%; These are the values that are considered necessary for high-end screens, incl. professional.

Colour gamut of the monitor according to the DCI P3 colour model.

Any colour gamut is indicated as a percentage, however, not relative to the entire variety of visible colours, but relative to the conditional colour space (colour model). This is due to the fact that no modern screen is able to display all the colours visible to humans. However, the larger the colour gamut, the wider the monitor's capabilities, the better its colour reproduction.

DCI P3 is a professional colour model used primarily in digital cinemas. It is noticeably more extensive than the standard sRGB, which gives better and more accurate colours. Accordingly, the percentage values are smaller — for example, 115% of sRGB coverage corresponds to approximately 90% of DCI P3 coverage; in the most advanced modern monitors, coverage according to this standard is 98 – 100%. At the same time, DCI-P3 support is not cheap, and therefore it is found mainly in high-end monitors for professional and gaming purposes.