Dell U2713HM

I'd like to share my thoughts on the U2713HM I bought last week.

Generally I'm pleased with this monitor. Its strength is definitely the large size, as well as the detailed image (high pixel density). I also like the coating, which is indeed semi-matte. Coming from a regularly coated IPS (EA231WMi) I appreciate the lack of any graininess in this type of coating. The difference in coating was immediately evident (even with the monitor powered off). Reflections are more visible, but I think it's a fair compromise. The flicker free (no PWM) backlight is a very good feature. It makes the image appear stable and pleasant to look at.

The model is a July 2012 build (made in China). In term of image quality, it performs similarly to the other reports here. Here are some of my observations:


  • There is a slight yellowish backlight leakage at the left hand corner of the screen. This is minimal though and not visible during "normal" use, nor is it really noticeable when watching movies in a pitch black room.

    The following images show a black screen at 0% brightness from about 2m distance:
    1 sec exposure, 2 secs exposure.

    It may also be worth noting that the monitor used to have more bleed, but I managed to correct 1 specific spot (read more at the end of this post).

  • The backlight is not entirely uniform, as the center is more bright than the corners. Hence, on plain white and light gray surfaces especially the right hand side appears a bit darker. See the following images for uniformity on a gray and white screen (at 0% brightness like the previous pics) 1/20 sec gray, 1/60 sec white, 1/160 sec white). The picture does exaggerate this effect. Uniformity checks on TFTcentral and Prad.de show similar patterns by the way.

  • Image retention can be found using the black and white checkerboard images. During usage, however, this never shows up for me.

  • There is a hint of cross hatching on very light and plain surfaces. Depending on the viewing distance, they can sometimes be seen, but most of the times they blend in.

  • The "Wikipedia buzz" is present and can be noticed in a completely silent room. I didn't find it on any other website and it becomes more quiet when the (browser) window size is decreased. Also, for some reason, making Wikipedia's fonts larger decreases the frequency (lower pitched sound), while making fonts smaller increases the tone height. Altogether, with fond size increased on Wikipedia, the lower buzz is not much of an issue.

  • Edit: I can notice some minor input lag in FPS shooters (such as Battlefield 3).


Despite some of these issues, I think it's a very nice monitor overall. The IPS panel displays nice (and presumably correct) colors and has a wide range of backlight brightness adjustment. The build quality is high and the ergonomic features are excellent. It's definitely a "modern" monitor with USB3 ports and LED backlighting. With this type of panel it appears you need a bit of luck in terms of backlight uniformity and bleed though. I would definitely recommend the monitor to others looking for a quality 27 inch IPS, as long as you take into consideration some of the minor weaknesses that are found.

-------------
On a side note, I was able to get rid of some of the backlight bleed of the panel by exerting pressure on the bezel. First the screen had yellowish bleed coming from about 1/3rd of the bottom left side. This ons spot was specifically bothersome when watching movies in a dark environment. The spot could be moved around by putting pressure on the border (pinching the bezel between thumb and index finder). When the right points were pressurized the bleed disappeared entirely. Now, when keeping a slightly higher pressure at these points for longer than 10 seconds, the bleed didn't reappear when grip was released. Compare before and after images here.

I can't tell if this bleed would have disappeared on its own or if this technique would work for any other kind of bleed. But maybe others would like to try and see if it helps. It's best to try it on a black image with the monitor set at 100% brightness.
 
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Denis said:
I'd like to share my thoughts on the U2713HM I bought last week.

Generally I'm pleased with this monitor. Its strength is definitely the large size, as well as the detailed image (high pixel density). I also like the coating, which is indeed semi-matte. Coming from a regularly coated IPS (EA231WMi) I appreciate the lack of any graininess in this type of coating. The difference in coating was immediately evident (even with the monitor powered off). Reflections are more visible, but I think it's a fair compromise. The flicker free (no PWM) backlight is a very good feature. It makes the image appear stable and pleasant to look at.

The model is a July 2012 build (made in China). In term of image quality, it performs similarly to the other reports here. Here are some of my observations:


  • There is a slight yellowish backlight leakage at the left hand corner of the screen. This is minimal though and not visible during "normal" use, nor is it really noticeable when watching movies in a pitch black room.

    The following images show a black screen at 0% brightness from about 2m distance:
    1 sec exposure, 2 secs exposure.

    It may also be worth noting that the monitor used to have more bleed, but I managed to correct 1 specific spot (read more at the end of this post).

  • The backlight is not entirely uniform, as the center is more bright than the corners. Hence, on plain white and light gray surfaces especially the right hand side appears a bit darker. See the following images for uniformity on a gray and white screen (at 0% brightness like the previous pics) 1/20 sec gray, 1/60 sec white, 1/160 sec white). The picture does exaggerate this effect. Uniformity checks on TFTcentral and Prad.de show similar patterns by the way.

  • Image retention can be found using the black and white checkerboard images. During usage, however, this never shows up for me.

  • There is a hint of cross hatching on very light and plain surfaces. Depending on the viewing distance, they can sometimes be seen, but most of the times they blend in.

  • The "Wikipedia buzz" is present and can be noticed in a completely silent room. I didn't find it on any other website and it becomes more quiet when the (browser) window size is decreased. Also, for some reason, making Wikipedia's fonts larger decreases the frequency (lower pitched sound), while making fonts smaller increases the tone height. Altogether, with fond size increased on Wikipedia, the lower buzz is not much of an issue.

  • I don't notice the input lag in the games I play (most notably Battlefield 3).


Despite some of these issues, I think it's a very nice monitor overall. The IPS panel displays nice (and presumably correct) colors and has a wide range of backlight brightness adjustment. The build quality is high and the ergonomic features are excellent. It's definitely a "modern" monitor with USB3 ports and LED backlighting. With this type of panel it appears you need a bit of luck in terms of backlight uniformity and bleed though. I would definitely recommend the monitor to others looking for a quality 27 inch IPS, as long as you take into consideration some of the minor weaknesses that are found.

-------------
On a side note, I was able to get rid of some of the backlight bleed of the panel by exerting pressure on the bezel. First the screen had yellowish bleed coming from about 1/3rd of the bottom left side. This ons spot was specifically bothersome when watching movies in a dark environment. The spot could be moved around by putting pressure on the border (pinching the bezel between thumb and index finder). When the right points were pressurized the bleed disappeared entirely. Now, when keeping a slightly higher pressure at these points for longer than 10 seconds, the bleed didn't reappear when grip was released. Compare before and after images here.

I can't tell if this bleed would have disappeared on its own or if this technique would work for any other kind of bleed. But maybe others would like to try and see if it helps. It's best to try it on a black image with the monitor set at 100% brightness.
Click to expand...

nice quick review on your experiences so far. Some parts of the bezel is tighter than other points thus causing it to bleed light.
 
Bought this display a week ago, it had severe backlighting issues, so I swapped it in for a new one at costco. My new monitor has no bleeding as far as I can tell, because while I notice yellow glow on the left and slight white glow on the right, if I back up 4 feet or so it's gone. First monitor had no other issues, it was a sep. unit, this one is an October unit. Both had slight cross-hatching though. I wonder if they'll ever fix it in a revision, and hopefully there will be some way to get a replacement if they do. That's my only gripe with the monitor currently.
 
While it's possible that some of you may be experiencing backlight bleed, what most of you are seeing is "IPS glow." There are some good posts about this a couple of pages back. Look it up on Google images and video. There's nothing wrong with your monitor, enjoy it!
 
Spoke too soon :(

New monitor has a dead pixel right in the middle. I guess it's on to #3.
 
Those of you getting defective monitors...

when you get the new replacement monitor is it a referb or a brand new monitor?
 
I believe Dell warranty for these higher end displays works so that they bring you a new monitor before taking the old one away.

edit; The product page says

Even if only one bright pixel is found on our select range of monitors, a free panel exchange is guaranteed during the Limited Hardware Warranty period.
Click to expand...

So that might mean panel change, I don't have experience about this, but I've heard people just getting new ones.
 
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I am sure you guys are tired of answering these types of questions but..

I just bought 3 of these dells and I am looking to connect all 3 to 1 card. Could I connect them with 1 of these 2 cards and through these connections while getting the full resolution on all 3?

1. GTX660- Dual link DVI + Dual link DVI + Display port
2. GTX660- Dual link DVI + Dual link DVI + HDMI
3. 7870- Dual link DVI + Mini Display Port w full DP adapter + Mini Display Port w full DP adapter
4. 7870- Dual link DVI+ Mini Display Port w full DP adapter + HDMI

Not really going for gaming although from what I understand the 7870 would be better at this resolution. I just really need to know about the connections. Just making sure that I can go from mini display port to full size with a non powered adapter. Also making sure that a HDMI 1.4 card to a HDMI 1.4 monitor will display the full 1440. These dells are 1.4 hdmi correct? Once I have these answers I can then decide on a card and order the correct cables.

Sorry for my stupidity. Haven't read up on this stuff in 3-5 years and things have changed. Thanks
 
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I bought mine through Costco so all I have to to do is bring it in for a swap. Costco has a 90 days of no questions refund or replacement policy.
 
I have not seen the HDMI advertised as 1.4 by Dell. I have heard of a driver hack that supposedly enables full resolution from HDMI on the 2711, but no idea if it will work with the U2713HM.
 
kevinsbane said:
It's not a HDMI 1.4 monitor.
Click to expand...

If thats true then that definitely clears things up. I just got that its a 1.4 from another member on overclock and in the manual it states this

"Video input signals
Analog RGB, 0.7 Volts +/- 5%, positive polarity at 75 ohm input impedance
Digital DVI TMDS, 600mV for each differential line, positive polarity at 50 ohm input
impedance
DP1.2/HDMI1.4 signal input support"

So you guys can see the conflicting info out there.
 
xmax126 said:
If thats true then that definitely clears things up. I just got that its a 1.4 from another member on overclock and in the manual it states this

"Video input signals
Analog RGB, 0.7 Volts +/- 5%, positive polarity at 75 ohm input impedance
Digital DVI TMDS, 600mV for each differential line, positive polarity at 50 ohm input
impedance
DP1.2/HDMI1.4 signal input support"

So you guys can see the conflicting info out there.
Click to expand...

The EDID data does not support 1440p. So it may not be the HDMI 1.4 issue. But both TFTcentral and PRAD state that the monitor does not support 1440p over HDMI.
 
kevinsbane said:
The EDID data does not support 1440p. So it may not be the HDMI 1.4 issue. But both TFTcentral and PRAD state that the monitor does not support 1440p over HDMI.
Click to expand...

Ok thats good to know, thank you.

Cutting out HDMI leaves me with these 2 choices, will they work?

1. GTX660- Dual link DVI + Dual link DVI + Display port
3. 7870- Dual link DVI + Mini Display Port w full DP adapter + Mini Display Port w full DP adapter
 
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xmax126 said:
Ok thats good to know, thank you.

Cutting out HDMI leaves me with these 2 choices, will they work?

1. GTX660- Dual link DVI + Dual link DVI + Display port
3. 7870- Dual link DVI + Mini Display Port w full DP adapter + Mini Display Port w full DP adapter
Click to expand...

Not sure about GTX. I know the 7870 will work. I haven't had the opportunity to try 3x 1440p on my GTX 680, so... no guarantees. But it should work.
 
xmax126 said:
3. 7870- Dual link DVI + Mini Display Port w full DP adapter + Mini Display Port w full DP adapter
Click to expand...

I'm not 100% sure about this setup but I think it should work.

But I'm have no idea what do you mean by a "displayport adapter". I live in Middle-Eastern Europe and nearly every computer retailer sells a minidisplayport to displayport cable. I'm using one of these cables right now as I'm writing this post.

It's similar to a miniusb to usb cable, you don't need an adapter to connect your tablet/phone to your pc's/laptop's USB port, just the appropriate cable and you're good to go.

However there is a minidisplayport to DVI adapter if you're using an older monitor but if your monitor and vga has a displayport then you should use displayport as it is a newer and more advanced connector. (an adapter like this was included in my graphic card's box)

I know this isn't a vga card topic but Sapphire has a "Flex" series of cards which are supposed to support Eyefinity in a more variety of ways (not just the standard AMD recommendation), if you're interested, check here.
If I remember correctly, the HD5000 series had cards which had 6 minidp outputs only, not sure if the newer series have such cards.
 
How's the input lag while playing games that require fast reactions? I'm not sure what to think about it, while I've never experienced it ruining my gameplay on any monitor, I still see many people saying that it's too much on current WQHD displays.
 
breakfastcereal said:
How's the input lag while playing games that require fast reactions? I'm not sure what to think about it, while I've never experienced it ruining my gameplay on any monitor, I still see many people saying that it's too much on current WQHD displays.
Click to expand...

I have edited my review post and included that I did notice some minor input lag in FPS shooters. I can't give a definite conclusion, because I don't have the monitor for that long.

Does your current monitor have any input lag (based on reviews etc.)? If you come from a monitor with near zero lag, you may notice the increase in certain situations. I noticed it when looking through a sniper scope and moving quickly from one point to another. I wouldn't say it ruins your gameplay in other situations. If you play really fast games that require fast mouse movements, it may be a deal breaker. If you think it would seriously bother you, you may consider the HP ZR2740W (3.6 ms) or the Asus PB278Q (16.6 ms - only slightly less).

In the end, it all about how you experience this. I'm curious to hear what others think of the input lag...
 
Denis said:
I have edited my review post and included that I did notice some minor input lag in FPS shooters. I can't give a definite conclusion, because I don't have the monitor for that long.

Does your current monitor have any input lag (based on reviews etc.)? If you come from a monitor with near zero lag, you may notice the increase in certain situations. I noticed it when looking through a sniper scope and moving quickly from one point to another. I wouldn't say it ruins your gameplay in other situations. If you play really fast games that require fast mouse movements, it may be a deal breaker. If you think it would seriously bother you, you may consider the HP ZR2740W (3.6 ms) or the Asus PB278Q (16.6 ms - only slightly less).

In the end, it all about how you experience this. I'm curious to hear what others think of the input lag...
Click to expand...

My current monitor is Dell U2412MH with response time of 8 ms, which would surely make many TN-panel 2 ms "hardcore players" cringe, but I can't see it. Then again It has smaller measured input lag if I recall correctly. I'll look into the PB278Q.
 
I've had this monitor for about 3 weeks now. Mine is a September unit and doesn't have any bad backlight bleeding except for the IPS glow so to speak of. I noticed the crosshatching a couple of days after I got it and now I can't unsee it. It's been driving me crazy since then. I didn't know what it was called before, but upon stumbling upon this thread, I now realize that I also have the "Wikipedia buzz". Today I contacted Dell and they've agreed to swap mine out. But I'm worried that the new one won't be any better, or possibly be worse.

Has anyone bought one of these recently? Has the crosshatching been fixed? I really don't want to start playing display roulette. I played that game with Samsung on my Galaxy Nexus and I don't really want to play it with Dell.
 
breakfastcereal said:
My current monitor is Dell U2412MH with response time of 8 ms, which would surely make many TN-panel 2 ms "hardcore players" cringe, but I can't see it. Then again It has smaller measured input lag if I recall correctly. I'll look into the PB278Q.
Click to expand...

The U2412 is known to have a very low input lag. I had this monitor for a short time and I did not notice any input lag when playing Battlefield at all.

The difference in input lag can be compared in these reviews:
U2412M
http://www.prad.de/en/monitore/review/2011/review-dell-u2412m-part13.html#Responsiveness
http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews/dell_u2412m.htm

U2713HM
http://www.prad.de/en/monitore/review/2012/review-dell-u2713hm-part9.html
http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews/dell_u2713hm.htm

Looks like such a difference is perceivable in real life (fast FPS) gaming. You may notice a slightly higher delay playing on the U2713HM in some situations.
 
Quality control on the Asus monitor seems to be a problem I had 2 and both had back backlight bleed. I don't know maybe my standards may be a little tough but for $700 I want a monitor with no blacklight bleed, you might want to look into the Dell if there quality-control is better. I think that's the new monitor I'll be buying.

Menace
 
Denis said:
The U2412 is known to have a very low input lag. I had this monitor for a short time and I did not notice any input lag when playing Battlefield at all.

The difference in input lag can be compared in these reviews:
U2412M
http://www.prad.de/en/monitore/review/2011/review-dell-u2412m-part13.html#Responsiveness
http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews/dell_u2412m.htm

U2713HM
http://www.prad.de/en/monitore/review/2012/review-dell-u2713hm-part9.html
http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews/dell_u2713hm.htm

Looks like such a difference is perceivable in real life (fast FPS) gaming. You may notice a slightly higher delay playing on the U2713HM in some situations.
Click to expand...

I haven't sifted through these results yet, but do they perform the input lag tests @ native resolution? I know some other websites do these tests - but do them at 1080p (while the native is 2560x1440/1600) so that would obviously skew results. Non-native res nearly always has significant input lag.
 
So I am entering my final week or so before I cannot return this anymore.

Can someone explain to my why if it's IPS that when I look at it from slight angles it looks somewhat foggy to me? My TN panel was better than this. It must be the AG coat right?

Plus there is a spotlight effect on the bottom which must be what y'all call light bleed.

I also see some after image when moving between light and dark web pages.

And thin light text on dark backgrounds gets rainbow banding from cleartype.

The problem is I don't think there are any other choices if I send this back. 1920x1080 is just too little.
 
menace2society said:
Quality control on the Asus monitor seems to be a problem I had 2 and both had back backlight bleed. I don't know maybe my standards may be a little tough but for $700 I want a monitor with no blacklight bleed, you might want to look into the Dell if there quality-control is better. I think that's the new monitor I'll be buying.

Menace
Click to expand...

I've heard Dell has bad quality control issues too, so it might be no matter which I choose, there's a risk.
 
xoleras said:
I haven't sifted through these results yet, but do they perform the input lag tests @ native resolution? I know some other websites do these tests - but do them at 1080p (while the native is 2560x1440/1600) so that would obviously skew results. Non-native res nearly always has significant input lag.
Click to expand...
Prad.de states that these test were run at native resolution for both monitors. I coudn't find that statement on TFTcentral, but their input lag test program (SMTT 2) is quite advanced, so you may assume they test under the right conditions.

breakfastcereal said:
Looks like it's PB278Q then.
Click to expand...
Seems like a reasonable choice to me. You could also consider the HP ZR2740w if you care for really low input lag. This graphs provides a good summary: http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/images/hp_zr2740w_v2/input_lag1.jpg. The ZR2740w does have slightly more motion blur (see review).
 
vibe said:
So I am entering my final week or so before I cannot return this anymore.

Can someone explain to my why if it's IPS that when I look at it from slight angles it looks somewhat foggy to me? My TN panel was better than this. It must be the AG coat right?

Plus there is a spotlight effect on the bottom which must be what y'all call light bleed.

I also see some after image when moving between light and dark web pages.

And thin light text on dark backgrounds gets rainbow banding from cleartype.

The problem is I don't think there are any other choices if I send this back. 1920x1080 is just too little.
Click to expand...

The glow is known as ips glow, there's a ton of posts on here about it as well as vids on youtube. All IPS and PLS panels have it.
 
breakfastcereal said:
I've heard Dell has bad quality control issues too, so it might be no matter which I choose, there's a risk.
Click to expand...

Is this true!!! Am I about to play monitor merry go round again? This pretty sad to hear, I guess $700 doesn't buy much these days. Somebody tell me they had a easy time with this purchase.


TIA: Menace
 
I've been doing some research, and I could buy U2711 for the same price as PB278Q. I'd really like the Dell's three year zero bright pixel warranty, so that might be a good choice.

Edit;

Right... according to TFT Central U2711 has higher input lag (30 ms), and I thought that it had smaller. Well, crap. I don't know if that really matters, but I want to be sure about where I spend my money.
 
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For users who aren't satisfied with their U2713HM monitor:

Have you checked the new U2713H (not U2713HM) ?

I'm still waiting for a review at Tftcentral. Early owners confirmed it has no cross hatching, it has a different panel than the U2713HM (latter has W-led (white) backlighting, this new one has GB-led (green,blue)), has a feature called "uniformity compensation" (not sure if this is useful, no reviews out there yet) but maybe overkill for average users because it is a wide gamut display therefore it costs more than the U2713hm, not sure about blb, early owners didn't mention anything about this.

It has a displayport output too so my guess is that with a videocard which has one or two displayport outputs, you could still connect more than 2 displays using the displayport v1.2 daisy-chain feature...
 
menace2society said:
Somebody tell me they had a easy time with this purchase.
Click to expand...

I received a perfect monitor, manufactured in September. As I previously posted, there is no backlight bleed, yellowing, dead pixels, image retention, hum or pixel walk. The only thing it has is crosshatching, but that I think is unavoidable, and I sit far enough away that it doesn't bother me.
 
XTF said:
How does one generate red with green and blue leds?
Click to expand...

If you're interested in details, read this article from "Back to the drawing board" section.

From the article:

"...Rather than using a blue diode coated in yellow phosphor, the backlights combine blue and green diodes with a red phosphor. As illustrated below, this creates strong and distinct spectral peaks for blue, green and red rather than giving a blue peak and broad ‘yellow’ region..."
 
I'm seeing it now on amazon for $650, hmmm I do have $210 in gift certificates to spend there...
 
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