Review on 🖥️ BenQ SW270C PhotoVue Technology Reproduction Monitor - 2560X1440P, USB Hub, High Dynamic Range, Hardware Calibration, IPS by Kelvin Eledge

Perfect screen and excellent uniformity when tested with offline software. The perfect photo monitor. All advertised features are tested, so I won't go into detail. This is the best you can get for photography without dropping over $5,000. However, if Eizo had had a 32-inch monitor from the 4K CS series back then, I would have chosen that instead. But this BenQ is still close to what it's capable of. First the hardware calibration with the BenQ Palette Master Element. The software is buggy as hell on Windows but works fine on the Mac. I've been working on color calibration software errors on Windows for almost 20 years. This is a common problem, so I'm not sure if it's BenQ's fault. All calibrators seem to have quirks on Windows. I can say that BenQ's hardware calibration is good and long. Unfortunately, it doesn't offer a regularity test. I ran it through the X-Rite software first before diving into the full setup. Part of my problem was that Windows installed the 2017 BenQ monitor driver first, even though I installed the downloadable driver for this monitor before plugging it in. This was fixed after a few reboots while fiddling with the settings. Thinking about it, I think it fixed itself when I switched to a BenQ USB 3.0 A/B cable. Strangely, when I set "Output Dynamic Range" to "Full" in the Nvidia Control Panel, no hardware calibration is performed. When I set it to "Limited" the calibration looks fantastic and at least reports insanely low deltas (0.3 avg, 0.67 max). I'm not sure why I can't use nVidia's "Full" setting panel with this monitor. My other monitor connected to the same Windows machine (ViewSonic VP3881 sRGB+) performs a fine hardware calibration at 10-bit with the output range set to Full. This affects the darkest/lowest range and allows for more near black detail at theoretical full scale. I think I can see more gradation at the bottom end on a cheaper ViewSonic monitor, but I'm not sure. It's okay, but OCD will try again someday. It might not matter, depending on how BenQ handles the hardware and software. Calibration may fail due to a conflict. The BenQ definitely has a wider color gamut than Viewsonic's sRGB+, although I'm not yet sure about the depth of the offering. Although I'm very happy. So far I have typed a lot on this monitor. I would argue that while printing no longer requires a wide gamut monitor as some sRGB+ monitors are that good, it still helps. And it's amazing to look at images from a quality modern camera in the range this BenQ covers. With improved monitors, a 4K workspace and improved depth and quality of RAW images, widescreen editing is more fun than ever. A big step forward compared to 10 years ago. I did some black and white gradation tests in Photoshop and confirmed that we are working in 10bit/30bit mode (3 channels). Neither monitor has the bars you see in 8-bit mode. I'm just not sure if I have the full bit range in BenQ's low-end. I suppose I can test this out by skipping the hardware calibration next time and see what happens when I run the software calibration using the X-Rite software that came with my i1Display Pro Plus. (Please add a comment if you know what's going on here with the "Full" area causing the HW calibration to fail.) The lens hood consists of about 9 parts and is a little onerous when assembled and disassembled for storage. Everything should slide and snap together. A bit awkward. This gets the job done, but a hinge-based solution would be better in my opinion. I'm not the type to use the hood all the time as my room lighting doesn't force me to, but I like the hood during calibration.