When I first picked up the box for this new
screen from budget monitor moguls AoC, I must confess to groaning at the mix of
27-inch panel and relatively lowly 1080p native resolution. Normally, I'd
prefer a higher resolution to go with my larger screen size, but that's mostly
because I’ve got a graphics card in my rig capable of rendering at stupid
resolutions like that. Most modern graphics cards are more than capable of
shunting pixels and polygons around at 1080p resolutions but will come a
cropper if you make that step up in resolution.
In light of this, it actually makes sense
to have larger screens that still make use of the lower native resolution
instead. That way you still get a lot of screen real estate, but the frame
rates don’t suffer compared to a 22 to 24-inch panel. And when you're comparing
it against those smaller screen sizes it's pretty impressive that AoC can
deliver a 27-inch IPS panel for just $369.6. Not long ago this sort of screen
would have had to cost well north of $480.
Bye bye bezel
It's also impressive that AoC has managed
to create a screen at this price with such a tiny bezel. When I first dragged
the screen from it's box I actually thought I had my hands on something
completely sans bezel - sadly though it's just set flush to the screen and is
invisible when the screen's turned off. Still, the black bezel is only 9mm, so
it's hardly obtrusive.
So, from a distance at least, the chassis
of the i2757FM looks like a very high-end product. With that panel stretching
almost to the limits of the surround and that brushed aluminium base and touch
controls, it looks quite luxurious to the eye.
That's all from a distance though; get up
close and personal and you'll soon see the edges of the matte covering for the
screen, just begging to be picked at.
The aluminium panel at the bottom doesn't
feel like it's that securely attached to the rest of the chassis either.
But it's an AoC screen for a little over
$320, what did you really expect? It's perfectly functional and, as long as you
don't get too close, is rather pretty to look at too. And if you play with the
settings a little you’ll see beautifully clear, crisp and bright imagery
flashing up on your screen.
The IPS panel tech is immediately obvious
from the moment it lights up. The colours are much more vibrant than a standard
TN screen, though the blacks and whites can be broken with the BrightFrame
tech. It's not the best IPS screen, but still better than an equivalent TN.
You can also hook up your MHL-enabled
smartphone to it via the included cable. It's a bit of a gimmick really,
throwing your phone screen onto your PC monitor, but allows you to charge from
the HDMI port at least. For such a bargain price then this is a great monitor,
and you'll be more than pleased with your purchase as it sits on your desk
looking all futuristic. If you don't think your rig will manage with higher
resolutions than 1080p this is a great way of getting a bigger screen without losing
gaming pace.
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Vital statistics
§ Price:
$369.6
§ Manufacturer:
AoC
§ Web:
www.aoc.com
§ Panel
size: 27-inch
§ Panel
technology: I PS
§ Native
resolution: 1,920 x 1,080
§ Response
time: 5ms
§ Inputs:
1xVGA,2xHDMI(inc1xMHL)
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