New monitor

[PaoloUK]

So after years of the same system I finally built a new one this year, in the past I had two screens, then I got an iMac so the PC went down to one screen but shortly after this new build I sold the iMac so now I want to go back to 2 screens on my PC.

I currently have a 22" Dell one I've had for ages, it's absolutely fine and will simply move over and be my second screen for the time being.

Now I just need to know what to buy as my new main screen. My build is:
Intel Core i5-4670K 3.40GHz
MSI Radeon R9 290 Gaming Edition 4096MB GDDR5
MSI Z97 Gaming 5 Intel Z97
TeamGroup Vulcan 8G BDDR3 PC3-19200C11 2400MHz

My main uses are gaming and web development, I've about £450 to spend on the screen. I don't know if I should be going 4K, go for something else or wait it out a bit. I know nothing about moniters really, the only reason I'm making this thread is I was going to buy this one but then I came on here to have a quick scout and saw something about the panel type having it's drawbacks.

Basically looking for some guidance and help.

Thanks in advance!

 

[GMac11]

IMO you would want to be looking for something that has at least a 2560x1440 resolution as it is a significant step up from 1080p and will suit your web development down to the ground but also make your games pop just that little bit more.

Any of the good 1440p monitors out there are well within your budget. The one I would recommend personally is the Asus PB278Q. It comes with a PLS panel (much like IPS) and produces excellent colours, super black levels and superb viewing angles.

The downside (although I don't see it as such) is that PLS and IPS panels have slower response times (maybe somewhere in the order or 15-25ms) whereas TN panels (which is what the Samsung you linked has) have a response time of 1ms.

Most First person shooter gamers etc swear by the TN panels as this allows for quicker response but the downside to a TN is the colour accuracy is awful and viewing angles are atrocious.

For a point of reference your iMAC and your 22 inch Dell I would be 99% sure in saying are IPS panels so going from them to TN would certainly be a downgrade I think.

 

[PaoloUK]

IMO you would want to be looking for something that has at least a 2560x1440 resolution as it is a significant step up from 1080p and will suit your web development down to the ground but also make your games pop just that little bit more.

Any of the good 1440p monitors out there are well within your budget. The one I would recommend personally is the Asus PB278Q. It comes with a PLS panel (much like IPS) and produces excellent colours, super black levels and superb viewing angles.

The downside (although I don't see it as such) is that PLS and IPS panels have slower response times (maybe somewhere in the order or 15-25ms) whereas TN panels (which is what the Samsung you linked has) have a response time of 1ms.

Most First person shooter gamers etc swear by the TN panels as this allows for quicker response but the downside to a TN is the colour accuracy is awful and viewing angles are atrocious.

For a point of reference your iMAC and your 22 inch Dell I would be 99% sure in saying are IPS panels so going from them to TN would certainly be a downgrade I think.

Thanks a lot, very helpful.

So generally speaking the 4K screens in my price range aren't really worth going with cause they're TN panels? If I want 4K I should look to spend more and get an IPS panel or wait for one to be released/come down to my price range? In another thread someone suggested similar and mentioned this one as one to wait for to be released over here.

And if I'm not going 4K then a 1440p monitor would be perfect for me and my uses?

Thanks again.

 

[GMac11]

Yeah well the current cheaper 4k panels are all TN and personally I wouldn't touch them but there's plenty of people out there that do have them and like them, although I'd hazard a guess and say that not many these individuals have used IPS or PLS for any great length of time before.

The other thing is Windows' inability to scale correctly for 4k, I briefly had a Samsung ativ book that had above retina resolution and the fonts for some applications were microscopic.

The Dell you linked certainly looks good but I find 1440p is the sweet spot for 27 inch monitors, 4k at that size seems overkill.

As mentioned previously I would definitely recommend 1440p over 1080p right now, the difference is pretty big. Then wait for IPS 4k to come down in price over the next year or so - that's my plan of action anyway!

 

[PaoloUK]

Yeah well the current cheaper 4k panels are all TN and personally I wouldn't touch them but there's plenty of people out there that do have them and like them, although I'd hazard a guess and say that not many these individuals have used IPS or PLS for any great length of time before.

The other thing is Windows' inability to scale correctly for 4k, I briefly had a Samsung ativ book that had above retina resolution and the fonts for some applications were microscopic.

The Dell you linked certainly looks good but I find 1440p is the sweet spot for 27 inch monitors, 4k at that size seems overkill.

As mentioned previously I would definitely recommend 1440p over 1080p right now, the difference is pretty big. Then wait for IPS 4k to come down in price over the next year or so - that's my plan of action anyway!

Just a quick bump, I'm looking at the PB278Q you recommended and saw there is a newer model out, PB278QR, is this any better or should I stick to the original?