KitGuru KitGuru.net – Tech News | Hardware News | Hardware Reviews | IOS | Mobile | Gaming | Graphics Cards
KitGuru has reviewed many members of the ProArt family over the last 24 months and today we are analysing the 27 inch flagship, the PA279Q.
This screen is part of the Professional range featuring 2560 x 1440 WQHD resolution and 109 pixels per inch, for high image detail. Asus claim the screen ships pre calibrated with 99% Adobe RGB, 100% sRGB and 120% NTSC gamut levels.
The Asus ProArt PA279Q incorporates a 10 bit panel for over one billion onscreen colours with support for a 14 bit internal lookup table. This gives smoother gradations and a more natural transition between hues.
ProArt PA279Q Overview:
- Colour consistency for photographer and retouching with 99% Adobe RGB colour space.
- 10-bit colour for smoother gradations.
- Pre-calibrated right out-of-the box.
- Picture-in-Picture and Picture-by-Picture.
The ASUS ProArt PA279Q Monitor arrives in a colourful package with plenty of details all over the front and back. If you have a hernia be careful lifting, as it weighs 14kg.
Inside the box, you are immediately greeted with a Colour Calibration test report. Each PA279Q is calibrated at the factory. Asus measure ∆E and gamma value and track the gray-scaling. The monitor is stored inside in portrait mode.
The software disc includes ICC profiles for Windows 7 and Windows 8. We didn't attach the hood to the bezel as it uses double sided sticky tape and would be useless after we reviewed the screen. This hood is designed to cut down on ambient light, while improving contrast.
Asus supply a wide list of accessories with the monitor.
They include:
- Cable tie
- Dual-link DVI cable
- Mini-DisplayPort-to-DisplayPort cable
- Audio cable
- Power cord
- DisplayPort cable
- USB 3.0 cable
- Quick start guide
- HDMI cable
- Support CD
- Warranty Card
- Color pre-calibration report
- Monitor hood
The ASUS ProArt PA279Q Monitor ships preassembled, so there is no need to even attach the stand. It can rotate on the stand to offer landscape or portrait modes. The PA279Q weighs 10kg. It is a chunky screen built for the demanding professional market.
Top left of the screen is the ‘ProArt' name, along with text highlighting the WQHD 2560×1440 resolution.
Along the right side of the screen is the control panel which works exceptionally well. We like the 5 way interface key which makes navigating the menu system a lot easier. Asus also include two ‘shortcut' buttons for quick access of specific menu settings.
The PA279Q has a built in multi format SD card slot alongside a six port USB 3.0 hub which offers pass through connectivity. One of the ports is highlighted as it is capable of SuperSpeed Battery Charge (around 40% faster).
The PA279Q has a HDMI, DisplayPort 1.2 and Dual Link DVI-D connector. There are also two 3.5mm audio connectors.
The PA279Q stand is extremely versatile and can be height adjusted between a wide range (127mm).
It also has tilt ( -5°~+20°), swivel (120°) and pivot support.
On this page we present some super high resolution images of the product taken with the 24.5MP Nikon D3X camera and 24-70mm ED lens. These will take much longer to open due to the dimensions, especially on slower connections. If you use these pictures on another site or publication, please credit Kitguru.net as the owner/source.
To test today, we are using a LaCie calibration gun along with specific software to accurately measure the readings. We analyse the 2D elements of the monitor via this test system featuring a reference Nvidia GTX780 Ti graphics card.
We measured Gamut out of the box and the ProArt PA279Q returned a reading of 2.20 which is excellent. We manually adjusted the Gamma to 1.8 and the panel returned a 1.8 result.
The PA279Q incorporates a 27 inch AH-IPS display which presents exceptionally rich colours and excellent grayscale performance. The DisplayMate 64 step Grayscale test returned a perfect result, with all steps accurately produced.
The 10 bit colour accuracy rated at the highest levels with no hue bias available to the naked eye. We analysed the colours and the blue, green and red aspects of the image were close to perfect. In real world terms, the images look vibrant, clean and sharp.
Panel Linearity rated as superior, with only minor deviation on the edges. This rated in the top 10% of panels we have tested to date.
The sRGB colour gamut rated at 100% of the full range and calibration didn't improve the results at all.
Viewing angles are very good, thanks to the IPS technology. When viewing from both horizontal and vertical angles we didn't notice any drop in luminance, right up to 178 degrees.
Asus rate the panel at 6ms Gray to Gray and we didn't notice any artifacting or smearing when playing fast motion first person shooters such as Battlefield 4. The images looked great – very high contrast with superb colour definition. Again if you are a hardcore gamer with a susceptibility to noticing lag then you might want to aim for a non-IPS screen in the same price zone.
It is worth pointing out that a native resolution of 2560×1440 will place a higher demand on the graphics card, so it is important to factor this when considering a purchase. That said, even modern sub £200 graphics cards from Nvidia and AMD will easily power the latest Direct X 11 games without a hitch.
Black Definition rates in the top 10% of panels we have tested in the last year. Viewing high definition BluRay discs was very enjoyable. There is minimal light leakage across the full width of the panel, rising to around 12% in the extreme corners. One of the best monitors we have tested in this regard actually.
Contrast rated highly on the PA279Q, at almost 1000:1, and this gives high definition movie files a lot of depth, dynamic punch and impact.
There is little pooling at the edges, with bottom corners showing only minor susceptibility. This is very difficult to notice at all with the naked eye. The only negative point we would make is that if you use the PA279Q at maximum brightness then the blacks in the three quarter range will be slightly more gray. We don't think there is a need to use this screen with an excessively high brightness setting thanks to the excellent contrast capabilities, so it can be reduced easily.
White purity is excellent, dropping to between -5 and -10 between the center and corners of the panel. Rating at 310 cd/m2 puts the PA279Q into the top zone of panels.
In real world terms, all the images we viewed looked very clean and it is a perfect partner for a photographer who frequently edits a lot of high contrast images, such as those taken outdoors. Colours are accurately reproduced, green grass looks realistic and blue skies are accurately reproduced with smooth gradients throughout.
The ASUS ProArt PA279Q demands 46 watts under load, dropping to 0.5 watts when idle.
I spent several weeks using the Asus ProArt PA279Q under a variety of circumstances and there is no doubt that it is a fantastic screen. Targeting the professional market, it has a price tag to match – retailing for around the £750 inc vat mark today.
The build quality of the screen is certainly worth mentioning. It could be argued that all Asus screens are well built, but the PA279Q takes things to a new level. The stand is a showcase on how they should be built. Asus ship it pre-assembled and it offers tilt, swivel, pivot and height adjustment. The panel can be rotated into portrait mode for instance, without any effort. The 5 way navigation key system is also an inspired design.
The checklist is impressive. A professionally calibrated AH-IPS 16:9 2560×1440 resolution panel. 100% sRGB and 99% Adobe RGB gamut support. DisplayPort 1.2, DVI and HDMI connectors, six USB 3.0 ports, two customisable user settings, a light hood and a wide selection of cables in the box.
The ProArt PA279Q has a plethora of onscreen options in order to tweak and adjust the image, but default ‘out of the box' calibration is spot on. The colour management system is undoubtedly powerful, but the default sRGB and Adobe RGB picture modes are extremely accurate. This is so often not the case, and ASUS do deserve credit for the excellent ‘out of the box' monitor settings.
Contrast, brightness levels, grayscale, colour and gamma are all right at the top of their respective fields. Photographers and designers are going to love the smooth transition between gradients and the bright, punchy colours that accurately reproduce the content of images.
This is without question one of the finest screens we have tested and earns our MUST HAVE award. You can buy from Amazon currently at a reduced rate, for £681 inc vat.
Discuss on our FACEBOOK page, over here.
Pros:
- clean colours.
- interface is intuitive.
- build quality.
- superb stand design.
- portrait and landscape support.
- calibration ‘out of the box'.
Cons:
- the cost.
- IPS isn't the first choice for hardcore gamers.
Kitguru says: The Asus ProArt PA279Q is one of the finest screens that money can buy.
