Panel type
The technology by which the monitor matrix is made.
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TN+film. The oldest and most common technology for manufacturing matrices. The original TN (Twisted Nematic) monitors have a low response time and low cost, but the image quality is average. So, the colour quality is not high, and the perfect black colour cannot be reproduced at all. In addition, the original
TN technology provides relatively small viewing angles. To correct this situation, a special film is applied to the surface of the matrix. These matrices received the name "TN + film". Monitors with such a matrix are widespread and inexpensive. They are well suited for undemanding users both at home and in the office, and gamers will appreciate the fast response time.
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*VA(Vertical Alignment, options: MVA, PVA, Super MVA, Super PVA). A kind of transitional option between expensive and high-quality
IPS and low-cost TN. Provide sufficiently high-quality colour reproduction, including black colour, viewing angles can reach 178°. The main disadvantage of VA matrices is the significant response time (especially for
MVA monitors), due to which such monitors are relatively poorly suited for watching videos and dynamic games. This shortcoming is gradually being eliminated, and the latest models of VA monitors are approaching TN
...+ film in response time.
— IPS. Initially, IPS technology was created for high-end monitors (in particular, "designer"), the key parameters for which were the quality of colour reproduction and a wide colour gamut. With all these advantages, the original IPS matrices also had a number of serious drawbacks — first of all, low response speed and impressive cost. Thus, many modifications of the IPS technology have been developed, designed to compensate for these shortcomings to one degree or another.
— OLED. Monitors with screens using organic light emitting diodes — OLED. Such LEDs can be used both to illuminate a traditional matrix, and as elements from which a screen is built. In the first case, the advantages of OLED over traditional LED backlighting are compactness, extremely low power consumption, backlight uniformity, as well as excellent brightness and contrast ratios. And in matrices, consisting entirely of OLED, these advantages are even more pronounced. The main disadvantages of OLED monitors are the high price (which, however, is constantly decreasing as the technology develops and improves), as well as the susceptibility of organic pixels to burn-in when broadcasting static images for a long time or pictures with static elements (toolbar, clock, etc.).
— QLED. Monitors built using quantum dot technology (QLED). This technology can be used in matrices of various types. It involves replacing a set of several colour filters used in classic matrices with a special thin-film coating based on nanoparticles, and traditional white LEDs with blue ones. This allows you to achieve higher brightness, colour saturation and colour quality at the same time as reducing the thickness and reducing power consumption. In addition, QLED is well suited for creating curved screens. The flip side of these benefits is the high price.
— QD-OLED. A kind of hybrid version of matrices that combine “quantum dots” (Quantum Dot) and organic light-emitting diodes (OLED) in one bottle. The technology takes the best from QLED and OLED: it is based on blue LEDs, self-luminous pixels (instead of external backlighting) and “quantum dots”, which play the role of color filters, but at the same time practically do not attenuate the light (unlike traditional filters) . Thanks to the use of a number of advanced solutions, the creators managed to achieve very impressive characteristics, significantly superior to many other OLED matrices. Among them are high peak brightness from 1000 nits (cd/m²), excellent contrast and black depth, as well as an expanded color gamut (over 120% of the DCI P3 gamut). Such matrices are found mainly in expensive advanced monitors with a large screen diagonal.
— AHVA. A type of matrix created by AU Optronics (a joint venture between Acer and BenQ) as a solution similar to modern IPS. Among the key advantages of this option over analogues is the almost complete absence of colour distortions at all viewing angles.
– PLS (Plane to Line Switching). This type of matrix was developed by Samsung engineers. It is based on the familiar IPS technology. According to some parameters, namely: the brightness and contrast of PLS exceeds IPS by 10%. The main goal of creating a new type of screens was to reduce the cost of the matrix, according to the developer, the production cost was reduced by 15%, which will positively affect the final price of monitors in comparison with IPS counterparts.
— IGZO. Technology introduced by Sharp in 2012. The key difference between IGZO and classic LCD matrices is that for the active layer (responsible for creating the image) it uses not amorphous silicon, but a semiconductor material based on indium gallium oxide and zinc oxide. This makes it possible to create screens with extremely fast response times and high pixel densities, and the technology is considered well suited for ultra-high resolution screens. With all this, the colour rendering characteristics allow the use of IGZO monitors even in the professional field, and the power consumption is very low. The main disadvantage of this option is the high cost.
— UV2A. An LCD display technology developed by Sharp and introduced in 2009. One of the key features of UV2A matrices is that they are based on liquid crystals that are sensitive to ultraviolet light. And it is UV radiation that is used as a control signal — it ensures that the crystals turn in the right direction to form an image. The technical features of such systems are such that the position of individual crystals can be controlled with extremely high accuracy — up to several picometers (with the size of the crystals themselves about 2 nm). According to the manufacturer, this provides two key benefits: no backlight "leakage" and improved light transmission with "open" crystals. The first allows you to achieve very deep and rich blacks, the second provides excellent brightness with low power consumption, and together these two features make it possible to create screens with a very high static contrast ratio — up to 5000: 1. At the same time, we note that the actual contrast characteristics in UV2A monitors can be noticeably more modest — it all depends on the features of a particular matrix and the characteristics that the manufacturer was able or considered necessary to provide.
— Mini LED IPS. A variation on the theme of the familiar IPS-matrix, which is illuminated by an array of reduced LEDs. The small caliber of individual light sources (of the order of 100-200 microns) makes it possible to form a much larger number of zones of controlled local dimming of the screen. Together, this delivers improved brightness, contrast, colour saturation, and black depth, and raises the bar for High Dynamic Range (HDR) technology.
— Mini LED VA. A variety of VA-matrices with a Mini LED backlight system. It consists of many tiny LEDs, which, due to their number, form many times more local screen dimming zones than standard canvases. As a result, Mini LED VA panels boast improved colour reproduction, impressive black depth, and multiple performance improvements in HDR content.
— Mini LED QLED. Behind the plane of the QLED panel in monitors with a Mini LED backlight system are thousands of miniature LEDs no larger than 200 microns in size, which divide the screen into a great many zones with controlled local dimming. They are individually dimmable, allowing full display of HDR content with bright light and deepest black levels.Surface treatment
Modern monitors can use displays with both glossy and matte screen surfaces.
A matte surface is in some cases more preferable due to the fact that on a
glossy screen, when exposed to bright light, noticeable glare appears, sometimes interfering with viewing. On the other hand, glossy screens offer better picture quality, higher brightness, and richer colours.
Due to the development of technology,
monitors with a special anti-glare coating have appeared on the market, which, while maintaining all the advantages of a glossy screen, creates significantly less visible glare in bright ambient light.
Game Features
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Aim. The ability to display crosshairs on the screen (usually in the centre) — moreover, due to the operation of the monitor itself, regardless of the game settings. This feature can be useful in some "shooters" — for example, if the game itself does not have a traditional crosshair and accurate shooting is possible only when using sights on weapons, or if some types of weapons do not provide crosshairs at all. On many monitors, the shape and/or colour of the crosshairs can be selected from several options.
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Timer. Possibility to display time counter on the screen. This feature is designed mainly for real-time strategy, although it can be useful in other cases — for example, if a gamer tends to get carried away and forget that you need to stop the game in time. Usually, the timer scale is made translucent — this provides good visibility and at the same time does not interfere with the process.
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FPS display. The ability to display the current frame rate on the monitor right during the game. This function allows you to control the load on the video adapter and makes it easier to select the optimal detail settings so that the game does not turn into a “slideshow” and at the same time the picture remains more or less high-quality. Note that the ability to display FPS is available in some games, but for a full guarantee it is better to have suc
...h a tool in the monitor itself.
— Highlighting dark areas. A function that allows you to increase the brightness of certain dark areas on the screen without "highlighting" the rest of the image. One of the most popular ways to use this feature is to detect enemies hiding in dark places.Power consumption
Rated power consumption of the monitor. Usually, this item indicates the maximum power that the device can consume during normal operation — that is, the energy consumption at maximum brightness, the highest volume of the built-in acoustics, etc. Actual power consumption can be noticeably lower, however, when choosing, it is still best to focus on the value stated in the specifications.
In general, the lower the power consumption, the more economical the device in terms of electricity consumption (ceteris paribus). In addition, this characteristic can be useful when selecting an uninterruptible power supply for a PC and in other specific situations when it is necessary to accurately determine the power consumption of equipment.
External power supply
The power supply, made separately, outside the monitor case — usually right on the power cord (similar to how it is implemented, for example, in many laptops).
This arrangement allows you to take out a fairly significant part of the hardware outside the case. Therefore,
monitors with an external power supply are themselves thinner and more elegant than similar models with a
built-in power supply. On the other hand, the need to look for a place for the PSU itself in some situations can cause inconvenience. Therefore, when choosing, it is worth considering the peculiarities of the situation: in some cases, an integrated power supply may well be the best option.
