ASUS PB278Q Review: An IPS Competitor Emerges
by Chris Heinonen on November 19, 2012 11:00 PM ESTASUS PB278Q Introduction and Specifications
Every 27” panel that I have reviewed this year has had two things in common: the panel was IPS based, and it was made by LG. The vast majority of IPS panels are made by LG, and so most high-end monitors use the same panels but have major differences in their electronics and design. In the past two years Samsung has entered the market with an alternative to IPS called PLS, or Plane-Line Switching.
While similar to IPS, PLS is designed to have a advantages over traditional IPS. First, it has a higher level of transmittance, so more light gets through each individual cell. This allows you to use either a lower powered backlight, or to have a brighter display, both of which lower the power output required for a certain screen brightness. Second, as each cell allows more light though, you can pack them tighter allowing for displays with a higher pixel-per-inch count while keeping light output higher. PLS also claims to have better viewing angles for color and contrast in comparison to IPS.
So far Samsung has been the main vendor to use PLS in products, but ASUS has also come out with the new PB278Q panel, which has a 27”, 2560x1440 PLS panel with LED backlighting. The I/O options you would expect to find are present with DSub, DisplayPort, HDMI, and DVI inputs. One annoyance here is there is a lip just below the inputs, so if you have a really thick cable, it can be hard to connect it to the PB278Q in the space provided. The HDMI input is also HDMI 1.4 compatible and with a recent NVIDIA or ATI card you can do the full 2560x1440 resolution with an HDMI cable. There is a 3.5mm audio input for the integrated stereo speakers, and a 3.5mm audio output to use with headphones or speakers.
The design of the ASUS PB278Q is finished off by a nicely adjustable stand that allows for height, pivot, tilt, and swivel adjustments. A small channel on the back of the stand allows for routing cables out of the way as well. Controls for the OSD are located on the lower right of the display and are labeled with white text on black plastic. There are markings around the display for use with ASUS' QuickFit software, which we will look at later. Overall the PB278Q has a very utilitarian look, much like monitors from Dell, and I certainly prefer utility to some of the flashy, ergonomic disasters that other companies have released recently.
The OSD for the ASUS PB278Q is decent but still a bit behind other manufacturers that have been improving in this regard. The main flaw is continuing to use one set of arrows, which move up and down, while having adjustments that go from left to right. Main menu and sub-menu selections are done using Up and Down, but individual adjustments move in a different direction and just add confusion. The labels for the OSD are on the monitor bezel and don’t have labels that pop-up on screen while in use, so adjusting the display in a dark room is difficult unless you have memorized the position of each button.
The OSD menu does contain a good amount of adjustments for end users. There are multiple preset modes, with the sRGB one being the closest to the targets we use for calibration and the one that I selected for initial measurements. The User mode allows for a two point white balance where most displays still only offer a single point, but omits the CMS system that is found in their ProArt monitors. The PB278Q offers more adjustments than most monitors do in the OSD, and overall it was pretty easy to use, but it could still be improved upon.
Looking at viewing angles on the PB278Q, they are very good, much like an IPS monitor. You see some contrast shifts at the extremes, but you aren’t seeing the color shifts that you do with a TN panel. Even set up in portrait mode and working very close to the PB278Q I didn’t notice this shift during real world use, and I can’t imagine that most users would ever notice them unless they are looking at another user's monitor.
ASUS PB278Q | |
Video Inputs | HDMI 1.4, DispayPort 1.2, DualLink DVI, Dsub |
Panel Type | PLS |
Pixel Pitch | 0.233 mm |
Colors | 16.7 Million |
Brightness | 300 nits |
Contrast Ratio | 80,000,000:1 |
Response Time | 5ms GTG |
Viewable Size | 27" |
Resolution | 2560x1440 |
Viewing Angle | 178/178 Horizontal/Vertical |
Backlight | LED |
Power Consumption (operation) | < 60W |
Power Consumption (standby) | < 0.5W |
Screen Treatment | Anti-Glare |
Height-Adjustable | Yes |
Tilt | Yes, +20~-5 degrees |
Pivot | Yes |
Swivel | Yes |
VESA Wall Mounting | Yes, 100mm |
Dimensions w/ Base (WxHxD) | 23.3" x 21.7" x 8.5" |
Weight | 19.4 lbs. |
Additional Features | 3.5mm audio input and output, Kensington lock port, 3W stereo speakers |
Limited Warranty | 3 years, part and labor |
Accessories | DVI cable, VGA cable, Audio cable, DisplayPort cable, HDMI cable, Power cable |
Price | $699 (10/17/2012) |
On paper the PB278Q and its PLS panel seem to offer everything that we need in a 27” display, but can it perform as well as IPS in our testing environment? Let's see how the PB278Q fares.
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Olaf van der Spek - Wednesday, November 21, 2012 - link
HP ZR2740w has low input lag and light AG as well and is more widely available.http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews/hp_zr2740w_v2....
extide - Tuesday, November 20, 2012 - link
HDMI v1.4 support!!!!!mczak - Wednesday, November 21, 2012 - link
It's actually the first time I've seen a monitor claim to support resolutions larger than 1920x1200 over hdmi, so this is indeed very nice.Of course you'll need newest generation graphic card to support it too, but it's about time for monitors...
keitaro - Tuesday, November 20, 2012 - link
Is there any word as to whether or not PLS will come in smaller sizes and resolution? 1080p? 1200p? And what about other PLS users? That 27" resolution is nice and all but doesn't fit well in the triple-monitor budget of mine. Would be nice if other companies will jump on the PLS bandwagon to add variety to the IPS and eIPS market.staticx57 - Tuesday, November 20, 2012 - link
The Galaxy Tab 10.1 uses a PLS panel for what it's worth. PLS certainly does more than a 27" panel if that's what you are wondering.Death666Angel - Tuesday, November 20, 2012 - link
Samsung S24A850D has a 1200p resolution @ 24". They have more PLS stuff as well.Avalon - Tuesday, November 20, 2012 - link
I think there may be an error in the processing lag/total response time graphs. The Asus is stated as 28.2ms on the processing lag chart and that looks roughly accurate on the total response time chart above it.But, the Dell U2412m on the total response time chart looks to be about 16.5ms, but in the processing lag chart is listed as 29.5ms. Not sure if this is an error?
JarredWalton - Tuesday, November 20, 2012 - link
See above: the U2412M was listed twice; this is fixed now with the slower U2713HM correctly labeled. Thanks!wsaenotsock - Tuesday, November 20, 2012 - link
refresh rate?dcollins - Tuesday, November 20, 2012 - link
Dell is selling the U2713HM for $559 right now. At that price, this monitor doesn't have a chance.Dell makes great monitors: I have a 19" that I got in 2005 and it still works fine, though the color has deteriorated slightly over time.