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gshulegaard
5
Mar 17, 2017
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To start, mine arrived in a generic cardboard box (i.e. original packaging not included) but it was packaged well and I had no issues "out of the (not original) box".
+ 144 Hz refresh rate and 1 ms GtG + Recessed headphone rest is well constructed and not overly flimsy + USB Hub + On the fly switcher also improves menu navigation so everyone will find it useful even without setting custom profiles
- TN Panel and looks like it - Cable management is not bad, but not good - Older port selection (no TB3)
I am a Software Engineer by day so I have grown accustomed to quality oriented panels rather than performance oriented ones so it was a bit jarring when I first plugged this thing in. The difference between this TN panel and the built-in panel on my Macbook Pro and Razer Blade QHD is fairly obvious. You can tune it but a TN panel is going to ultimately look more washed out and have worse contrast compared to a typical IPS. This is most noticeable with darker colors where light bleed makes blacks appear lighter.
But this is a performance oriented monitor and 144 Hz, 1ms GtG @ 1440p is hard to find. Moreover, the headphone rest's construction was pleasantly surprising. It is positioned well (above the two side oriented USB ports so your headphones can hang over/around extruding USB cables or receivers) and feels solid.
If I could change one thing, I would add USB ports to the back of the panel so plugging in a semi-permanent keyboard and mouse doesn't leave the USB cabling hanging off the left side of the monitor. And as a stretch goal/on a newer model I would like to see some sort of TB3 support.
All in all a compelling piece of performance hardware. Would buy again.
I would also be interested in monitoring BenQ (aka Zowie) for future models for my noted design tweaks and perhaps an OLED (?!) panel in the future.