AOC Q2770PQU: A fantastic, and surprisingly affordable 27-inch WQHD monitor [Review]

If you’re considering buying a 27-inch monitor, you really need to be looking at one which offers WQHD resolution (2560 x 1440), rather than the standard Full HD (1920 x 1080) found in a lot of models. The pixels per inch difference (108.79 PPI vs 81.59 PPI) will result in a much greater level of detail and clarity which, if you’re working with images, you’ll definitely notice and appreciate.

The problem with buying a 27-inch WQHD screen is cost, but AOC’s offering is a lot more affordable than most -- just £360 from Ebuyer including VAT and delivery -- and it offers an awful lot for the money, including a fully adjustable stand, so you can use the screen in both landscape and portrait modes.

First impressions aren’t immediately favorable, it has to be said. When you get the AOC Q2770PQU out of the box, it feels cheap. Savings have been made, and it’s with the chassis and stand. Both feel plasticky and lightweight. The stand doesn’t seem very stable, and at that point you may be wishing you’d spent a little extra on a different model. However, once it’s all set up (and the process takes seconds), you’ll realize there’s a benefit to the lightweight nature of the stand -- it can be adjusted easily, and there’s a lot of flexibility with positioning, which is important in a large monitor. You can adjust the height by 130mm, tilt and swivel the screen as you like (it tilts from between 5 and 25 degrees), and as I mentioned earlier, you can rotate the screen and use it in portrait mode. It can be wall-mounted as well, if you prefer.

The monitor comes with DisplayPort, Dual Link DVI, HDMI and old-school VGA inputs on the rear, as well as 3.5mm audio input and outputs. There are also two USB 2.0 ports at the back, and two USB 3.0 ports on the right edge, including one with fast charging that you can use to charge a phone, tablet or other USB device when the monitor is on standby. There are two 2w integrated speakers as well. These are passable, but you may not want to listen to a rousing symphony on them.

While the casing might feel cheap, the screen certainly doesn’t. It’s a Samsung Super PLS (Plane-to-Line Switching) panel (which is similar to IPS technology), and offers a bright, sharp display with natural colors and consistency at wide viewing angles. Depending on the environment where you’ll be using the monitor, you may want to make some adjustments to the display settings. The buttons on the underside of the front edge let you switch between inputs, enable and adjust Clear Vision (you can choose from Off, Weak, Medium or Strong), and tweak the luminance, color, picture boost and more. Adjusting the settings is a little tricky, as you have to feel around under the frame to find the buttons and work out what they do, but that’s a minor quibble and you’ll likely only need to do it once or twice.

I had no issues with dead pixels, or back light bleed (BLB), and the color was excellent and uniform across the panel. In fact I have no complaints about the quality of the display at all. Games and movies look fantastic, and it’s great for photo and video editing.

The size of the display is perhaps a little daunting if you're used to smaller screens (I've been using it as part of a three monitor set up, which led to a major workout for both eyes and mouse!) but the bundled Screen+ software lets you split the PC workspace into four self-contained panes, which makes it easier to run and view multiple applications at the same time.

As well as the screen itself, the box contains a UK power cable, USB lead, DVI, VGA and HDMI cables and an audio lead.

Verdict

It took me a while to find the optimal viewing positioning and configure everything to suit my eyesight and environment, but once that was all sorted, I couldn’t be happier with the results. At £359.99, AOC Q2770PQU offers excellent value for money and if you’re in the market for a large WQHD display, this should be at the top of your shopping list.

You can buy it direct from Ebuyer.com.

Specifications