Screen/Image quality testing

2D use

Using the Desktop color mode from the screen menu the image reproduced is flawless. The text and icons are razor sharp and every color is displayed accurately. With the help of Displaymate (a monitor calibration/testing utility) we came to the conclusion that the default settings for Desktop mode are near perfect. There was only a slight green tint noticeable on the gray colors which was quickly fixed by manually lowering the amount of green the screen displayed. Playing around with Photoshop we encountered a minor issue with color banding though. To investigate we used 1920x1024 sized horizontal and vertical color gradient pictures and displayed them fullscreen. Much of our fears were relieved when we realized that the banding was only barely noticeable and we would never have noticed it if we weren't looking for it. (The first A00 revision of the monitor is notorious for having very noticeable banding – this was obviously fixed in newer revisions)

After the screen was set up we took a look at some high resolution images and the detail seen was just amazing. All the color transitions were sharp (as you can see in the zoomed out picture we took). We were very impressed with the blacks and grays this screen displayed as we were able to tell even the darkest grays apart from the black colors.

Video playback: DVD

For our DVD testing we switched the color mode to Multimedia after first trying with the default Desktop mode. In both cases the color reproduction was excellent. Using The Matrix as a test for dark colors we were still able to pick them apart with ease. The color mode had no effect here except for causing some banding on the near black colors when set to Multimedia mode. Our next test – Finding Nemo, benefited greatly from the Multimedia mode though - the colors were much more vibrant. This test also made it clear that ghosting is not something we should worry about when using the 2407.

Video playback: High Definition

While DVD playback give us the chance to observe color reproduction, HD videos allow us to truly appreciate the image sharpness seen on this screen. Playing a HD trailer of Over the hedge we were blown away when we paused the video and saw the individual hairs on the backs of the characters. What was even more impressive was that those same hairs were still sharp when in motion, proving again that this screen has a very low response time.

Gaming

Playing an action packed first person shooter at 1920x1200 is an excellent way to test the response time of a screen. It was only here that we were able to notice some (very minor) ghosting. To be honest we can't be sure that the ghosting we saw was not actually our own eyes trying to adjust to the color changes (the human eye and computer screens experience a similar problem when they are faced with quick and dramatic changes). Enabling the Gaming color mode we noticed that the picture became slightly brighter and more opaque, which certainly helped when we needed to spot enemies movements in the distance. Purists will argue that the colors were not accurate, but seeing how this is only an option we don't see any harm in using the feature.

Widescreen gaming

Even today, being deep in the next-gen era a lot of PC games don't natively support widescreen resolutions. Mostly this can be fixed by editing the configuration files but sometimes a game will just refuse to work at the desired resolution. For such occasions the 2407 offers 3 options: shrinking the image to it's original resolution (and thus only using the center of the screen), stretching the image but maintaining the aspect ratio or stretching the image across the whole screen. All three are software independent so even if your video card doesn't support scaling you don't have to worry about a thing.

Synthetic testing

As mentioned before we used the program called Displaymate to test and configure the screen. It should be pointed out that all of our observations are subjective. Our first test was the one seen below (obviously at a higher resolution) which enabled us to compare the various levels of gray. On a perfect screen the 32 rectangles should display different shades of gray. The 2407 passed the test without a problem and we were able to tell the gray rectangles apart from the black background with ease (even the 1st one).

During this test we noticed the aforementioned green tint on some of the boxes which was fixed quickly by adjusting the monitor settings.

After testing the grays we proceeded to test the sharpness and resolution of the screen. The tests we used for evaluating the horizontal and vertical resolution were the following: tightly spaced thin lines, tightly spaced bars and a wedge of lines that converge together. The wedge allows the evaluation of pixel separations across the screen from 1 to 4 pixels. The labels correspond to the width of the gaps. The clarity of the interline gaps is an excellent measure of sharpness.

The 2407 outperformed our expectations with clearly defined lines in all the tests. In the wedge test we were able to see the individual lines which is a good indication of the high resolution of the screen.

On many monitors the image expands in size in areas of the screen that are bright and contracts in areas that are dim. The entire screen may be affected or just portions of it. Examples of where this commonly occurs include bar graphs, Window Title Bars and tiled arrangements of Windows. The contrasting flashing white and black displays also show good power regulation to the screen, any fluctuations when the image is rapidly changing shows a less than stellar power supply to the panel. Also the outer grid lines in some instances could slightly bend on their axis.

Yet again the 2407 passed the above listed tests with flying colors. No visual distortion was noticeable in any of them. There was also no flickering in the bright areas (the effect can be felt as a pulsing and it causes an immense strain on the eyes) resulting from a low refresh cycle.

Because of our initial fear that the screen had color banding issues we were extra careful during the color gradient tests. These tests are a surefire way of exposing any banding issues present, so we were extremely happy when the banding was barely noticeable even in these extreme conditions.

Throughout the entire synthetic testing we were constantly being surprised by how well the 2407WFP was performing. But even though these tests were just that – synthetic – they are still a very good way to test the quality of a screen. In real life situations the monitor impressed us as well, be it during gaming or desktop use. The only minor issue we came across was the barely noticeable banding, but we would have missed it if we weren't looking specifically for it. However it is worth mentioning that other users may find this more apparent. After all everyone’s eyes are different.