Monitor for art/animation as a gift (1440p, colour accurate + 27inch or less)

[arseny22]

Hi!

I am looking for a monitor to give as a birthday gift for my girlfriend. She is very interested in studying and pursuing a career in VFX/Animation.

I did some research and I found that I should be looking at an IPS panel with 100% sRGB, 2560x1440 resolution or better. Also, would be nice to have it be pre-calibrated since I don't think we would be doing that ourselves anytime soon...

The few features I would love to look for are also 10bit colour (8bit + FRC since a real 10 bit is probably too expensive) and a reasonable framerate/input lag since she does enjoy some gaming as well.

In terms of price, I would prefer to stay in the $400-500CAD (up to $400USD) zone. However, as this is an investment into her future, I am open up to $800CAD ($650~USD) if the benefits are well worth it.

Another issue is the size of the monitor. It seems like most models are 27inch+ but anything bigger than a 27inch will be way too big for her setup. Even a 27inch monitor is a stretch so, if there are any good models under that size, this would be even better.

Please help with any advice! Should I reconsider any of my criteria for this use case?

 

Here are a few of my options:
BenQ PD2500Q - Seems like a designer/animation branded monitor but I could not find any reviews on it what so ever.

BenQ PD2700Q - Older but bigger version of the one above. Also, has 8bit+FRC colour but seems like it might have a decent bit of input lag. Not sure if accurate. However, the reviews are pretty positive from the art side of things

BenQ SW2700PT - Seems like one of the all-around favorites online. 99% AdobeRGB and 95% DCI P3 sound very solid. Only one of these that has 14-Bit 3D LUT. Also, definitely expensive. Would this price be justifiable? 

Dell UP2516D - Also a well-reviewed monitor. 100% Adobe RGB and 97% DCI P3 sound even a bit better than the BenQ... Also seems a bit cheaper for some reason... 

Asus MG279Q or PG279Q - Seem to be fairly solid colours and 144hz with Gsync or FreeSync. If perhaps it's not worth stressing over colours?

[Theguywhobea]

Does she have a computer that can even drive a 10-bit panel? I don't think just any GPU will.

[arseny22]

7 minutes ago, Theguywhobea said:

Does she have a computer that can even drive a 10-bit panel? I don't think just any GPU will.

I guess this raises another question. What graphics card would I need to run an 8bit+FRC panel? I thought it would be basically anything since it is not a true 10bit monitor?

We have a laptop with a GTX1070. However, I will also be getting her a PC later down the line so it would be nice to know what I'm getting myself into here =)

[Theguywhobea]

1 minute ago, arseny22 said:

I guess this raises another question. What graphics card would I need to run an 8bit+FRC panel? I thought it would be basically anything since it is not a true 10bit monitor?

We have a laptop with a GTX1070. However, I will also be getting her a PC later down the line so it would be nice to know what I'm getting myself into here =)

I guess that's the limit of my knowledge on the subject. I don't know for sure but I think only Quadro cards support true 10-bit color? I don't really know how much it matters to be honest but it's something you probably want to keep in mind. I'm sure the 1070 will do everything less than 10-bit colors fine though.

[Glenwing]

13 minutes ago, arseny22 said:

I guess this raises another question. What graphics card would I need to run an 8bit+FRC panel? I thought it would be basically anything since it is not a true 10bit monitor?

We have a laptop with a GTX1070. However, I will also be getting her a PC later down the line so it would be nice to know what I'm getting myself into here =)

You would need a Quadro or whatever AMD's equivalent is. 10 bit color is 10 bit color, it's the same from the computer's perspective, just different implementation under the hood once the signal reaches the monitor. The 8 bit + FRC isn't something that's operated by the computer.

 

I use the Dell UP2516D, and I'm pretty happy with it personally.

[arseny22]

Just now, Glenwing said:

You would need a Quadro or whatever AMD's equivalent is. 10 bit color is 10 bit color, it's the same from the computer's perspective, just different implementation under the hood once the signal reaches the monitor. The 8 bit + FRC isn't something that's operated by the computer.

 

I use the Dell UP2516D, and I'm pretty happy with it personally.

2

Alright, then it seems like I won't be chasing a 10bit display after all. That being said, Dell UP2516D is also 8bit + FRC. Do you use a Quadro or do you just not use that functionality? Does that affect anything in reality?

[Glenwing]

Just now, arseny22 said:

Alright, then it seems like I won't be chasing a 10bit display after all. That being said, Dell UP2516D is also 8bit + FRC. Do you use a Quadro or do you just not use that functionality? Does that affect anything in reality?

True 10 bit monitors are thousands of dollars typically.

 

I have a GeForce card, I don't use the 10 bit color it just happens to have it. Color depth isn't really a big deciding factor for me, as it isn't really that important.

[arseny22]

Just now, Glenwing said:

True 10 bit monitors are thousands of dollars typically.

 

I have a GeForce card, I don't use the 10 bit color it just happens to have it. Color depth isn't really a big deciding factor for me, as it isn't really that important.

Sounds good! At least I can stop worrying about that bit... How is Dell UP2516D in terms of input lag though? Have you tried any gaming or noticed anything that would be bothersome?

[Glenwing]

57 minutes ago, arseny22 said:

Sounds good! At least I can stop worrying about that bit... How is Dell UP2516D in terms of input lag though? Have you tried any gaming or noticed anything that would be bothersome?

Nothing I've noticed, though I'm not a big gamer.