Dell S2716DG Review
The S2716DG is a great product for the people looking for a classy monitor that includes all of the abilities you can need in a monitor. The monitor is a QuadHD (that equals to 3.68 million pixels), 144Hz, widescreen TN panel monitor that can easily serve as both a professional and a competitive monitor. Dell has also added a number of features that help to improve your overall experience with this monitor. The Dell S2716DG is available for $596 at the time of writing.
So let’s dive into the review.
Specifications
Resolution: 2560 x 1440p | Panel Type: TN | Refresh rate: 144Hz | Aspect Ratio: Widescreen (16:9) | Brightness (Typ.): 350 cd/m² | Color Gamut (Typ.): 16.7 Million colors (8-bit) | Contrast Ratio (Typ.): 1000:1 | Response Time: 1ms | Viewing Angle: 160° (V)/ 170° (H)
Image Quality
The QuadHD, 27 inch monitor makes use of a TN panel, which is surprisingly good quality for a TN panel and the picture quality as well as the contrast ratio don’t disappoint at all. Furthermore the power consumption is also in line with other TN panel monitors out there. The device also features an Anti-glare panel with a 3H hardness, what this means is that the screen offers moderate scratch protection but little impact resistance.
The downside for this panel would definitely be the viewing angles, which is common for TN panels but given the price, they should have definitely been better, as you lose a lot of contrast, if you aren’t directly in front of the screen. This is a very big losing point for Dell as there are 144Hz IPS options available at the same price range, if not less.
Performance
It’s safe to say that the performance won’t let you down.
The 1ms fast response time doesn’t fail to deliver an amazing gaming experience, the combination of the refresh rate along with G-sync equals to a memorable time while playing first person shooter games. This all goes to show how great this product is for competitive gaming due to the presence of G-sync.
Unfortunately this Dell monitor can’t be overclocked, however the 144Hz refresh rate should be enough to fulfill most of your gaming needs. Plus it should be kept in mind that you will need a displayport to run games at 1440p.
If you are looking for a monitor, with a higher refresh rate at a lower price, the best gaming monitor under 300 article would definitely help you out.
Design And Build Quality
From first looks it seems like Dell manufactured this product for the consumers who prefer an elegant, simple look over the whole flashy gaming monitors that we commonly see nowadays. Given that it was intentionally kept simple, there are no lights on the monitor. The great part about having no lights in the product means that it can easily be used as a work monitor as well. The eye catching detail about this product is the edge to edge glass design. The edge to edge glass design as well as the bezels (which are quite thin by the way) are flushed with anti-glare coating, which helps to avoid the glare without making the images fuzzy.
| The stand comes in two pieces inside the box, which are fairly easy to assemble (all it requires is tightening some screws). The stand allows the monitor 26 degrees of tilt, the ability to switch from landscape to portrait mode, 130mm of height adjustment and swivel. The stand thankfully is quite stable, strong and lives up to its expectation. |  |
OSD
Dell has added some physical buttons that can be used to adjust display settings. These buttons are located on the right hand side, beneath the screen, which reveal a small popup when pressed. The small pop-up contains 8 sections which are as follows:
· Brightness/ contrast: allows you to modify the contrast and brightness.
· Input source: allows you to switch between HDMI and Displayport.
· Color: allows you to choose between the three standard color presets warm, standard and cool (the custom option is available as well).
· Display: allows you to mess around with the low motion blur and set a response time as well.
· Audio: allows you to adjust the audio level for the headphones
· Menu: allows you to set transparency on or off the on screen display, the amount of time it should stay on the screen and the ability to change the language if you deem it so.
· Personalize: allows you to assign any two shortcuts.
· Others: allows you to enable or disable the monitor deep sleep.
Connectivity
| Dell S2716DG offers a variety of I/O ports, which includes 1 x HDMI 1.4 connector, 1 x DP 1.2 connector 4 x USB3.0 ports, 1 x Audio Line-out and 1 x Headphone port. You will need to use the Displayport if you wish to use your monitor at 2K resolution. Fortunately Dell does provide a Displayport cable along with a USB upstream and the power cable in the $596 price tag. However you will have to buy the HDMI cable if you wish to use the HDMI port. |  |
Final Remarks
The S2716DG is without any doubt a fantastic product with a wrong price tag. Given the monitors available nowadays that offer a 280 Hz refresh rate and 0.5ms response time at a lower price such as the The ASUS TUF Gaming VG259QM or ASUS VG248QG gaming monitor. If this was available at a lower price, say at $350-$400, it would have been a great buy.
However if you have extra money to spend and prefer a more professional and sophisticated look over the whole flashy gaming monitor look that can fulfill both your work and gaming needs then this is definitely the monitor for you.
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