Review on BenQ XL2546K - Adjustable Height, Tilt, Pivot; Flicker-Free Gaming Monitor by Herb Fisher

I've been using the display since April 2020 so had plenty of time to get used to it and give it a good shake. Brightness: If you turn DyAc+ on and leave it on, the brightness can be adjusted to the maximum. like 400+ nits. However, if you disable DyAc+, the brightness drops to around 320 nits. Personally, I always leave DyAc+ enabled. 2D image quality at 27 inches: Many people think they see pixelation at 1080p/27 inches, but in my case I don't notice it as I'm sitting about 2 feet away. from the monitor and I hung it on the wall. I used to have a 25" KD25F and found it too small so now this 27" fits perfectly. Remember that the difference between 25 inches at 1080p and 27 inches is 8 pixels per inch. So all you have to do is push back a little 27 inches and you get the same look. 3D games at 27 inches: I got an FPS jump. >30% went from 1440p back to 1080p with this display, which was nice. As soon as I started playing CoD: Warzone I noticed that input lag and motion were significantly better than my old Asus PG278Q with 1ms TN panel but 2014. /D has stepped up and since I bought this monitor I have in Warzone averaged 5-15 kills per match. With my old Asus PG279Q I had a peak and felt input lag. S Switch: what a handy little tool! So far I've set up 2 profiles: one for desktop with black EQ set to 5 and vibration set to 12 and DyAC disabled. When I want to play, I choose a different profile that makes DyAC premium while boosting the brightness and black EQ. A very handy little tool that many other manufacturers should copy. Colors/Sharpness: They're a bit dull out of the box, so I just set them to Custom Definition + Standard and Gamma to 3 and it's looking pretty good now. I also had to increase the sharpness to 8/10. You need to download a color profile for this display and then calibrate it. Because it's a true 8-bit display with almost 100% sRGB color gamut, you get very nice colors that match most IPS displays. lose brightness when switched on. I can confirm that this monitor does not lose brightness with DyAC enabled and actually gets MUCH BRIGHTER (up to 480 nits peak) unlike other competing displays which tend to halve their brightness with BFI enabled. I've read briefly on these forums about changing the vertical totals and since I probably won't get to 240fps even with 9900k @ 5Ghz and 2080 Ti in the games I play (Warzone/Apex Legends) I've messed with VT opted for 182 Hz. from 1350. I tested many different vertical buzzes and 1350 seemed to work the best as the top/bottom of the screen had minimal blur and the center was great. It also runs great at 240Hz with no need for VT adjustment. Additionally, you can enter the service menu of this display and calibrate the range/intensity using the UFO ghost page found on the blasters or their utility. I've done this for my display by setting a custom range/intensity in the service menu and I have virtually NO ghosting (see attached UFO image). Negatives: ------------- Yes, unfortunately the negatives on this display are like any other display on the market. TN: Being a TN display, it has limited viewing angles and you need to be prepared to sit at least 1.5 to 2 feet away from the monitor. I have a monitor installed and sit about 2 feet away from it which is perfect. Color: While the color is fantastic as this is a true 8-bit display, many high-end IPSs have moved to 10-bit and have better sRGB coverage than this, so it doesn't compare to the top-end IPS panels matches. If you want to work professionally, I would recommend getting a separate IPS monitor for that, or if you absolutely can't afford two monitors, buy an IPS monitor instead. Overdrive: This monitor doesn't have dynamic overdrive, which is a shame. This means if you lower the refresh rate the AMA (what Zowie calls Overdrive) only has 3 settings, and you get more double frame at refresh rates below 240Hz as the overdrive doesn't compensate for that. Some newer displays (AOC in particular) have dynamic overdrive that takes this into account, and therefore there is no ghosting/ghosting when playing at a lower refresh rate. While this is by no means a deal breaker, I really want Zowie to include this. Price: Let's face it, this is an expensive panel for 1080p and TN. $650 is a lot to ask, but if you're a serious gamer who wants the best tech, you should pay. Other panels offer similar performance but no DyAc+, which is the main difference. I'd say if you're not keen on DyAc+ you can buy a panel from Asus, for example, which costs $200 less and offers similar performance. Note, however, that Asus reports BFI < 200 nits, which is pretty dim. I hope you found this review helpful. If I had to I would buy this monitor again and am very happy with my purchase and you will be too.