32"@4K affordable class: Acer B326HK, Asus PA328Q, BenQ BL3201PT

wirk

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None of these monitors are of lesser quality, each has its own strong points but also minor deficiencies. Which of them could be considered best overall?
 
I can chime in and let you know that I have the Acer and came from 4 Dell U3014's

I love this monitor, I just wish it was bigger NCX was nice enough to recommend it and got a great deal for less than $700 on it.

I feel the stand pushes the Acer over the top and there is nothing to say thats negative about it.
 
I can chime in and let you know that I have the Acer and came from 4 Dell U3014's

I love this monitor, I just wish it was bigger NCX was nice enough to recommend it and got a great deal for less than $700 on it.

I feel the stand pushes the Acer over the top and there is nothing to say thats negative about it.

Wow, where did you get it for less than $700??
 
These are conclusions of BenQ review:

Highs:
Plenty of connectivity
Numerous image quality controls
Excellent color accuracy
Affordable for its size

Lows:
Dull design
Wobbly stand
On-screen controls need work
Mediocre contrast and gamma

Conclusions from another Benq review

Pros:
Accurate colors
Sharp Ultra-High-Definition (UHD) image
Fully adjustable stand. Auto pivot

Cons:
Pricey
Dark-gray-scale performance could be better
Odd port placement.

Conclusions from Acer review:

Highs:
Wide sRGB gamut
Plenty of connectivity
Low price for a large 4K display

Lows:
Stand only adjusts for height and tilt
Mediocre color accuracy
Speakers are too quiet

What do you think?
 
I have the Acer also and have loved every minute of it--just wish I'd bought two when Newegg had them for the steal price of $649 or thereabouts for a few days back when. For that price nothing at all touches it.
 
40" was a bit big for me, but 32" I think it may be a good fit.

I've personally only seen the Acer and it was great...

Thanks for the comparison.
 
I have the Acer and love it but I prefer to have something bigger. You cant go wrong with it though.
 
Each of these monitors is undoubtely at least good+ but which is the best? In one of the reports above they mention that Benq has better picture quality than Acer, true?

Does anybody have Asus PA328Q? - this one has HDMI 2.0, not big deal but nice.

I have the Acer and love it but I prefer to have something bigger. You cant go wrong with it though.

I made some experiments and concluded that 40" is too big for me and 34" widescreen format is not to my taste. My conclusion for now is that 32" is optimal.
 
Hey Wirk, input lag should be your biggest concern with these 4k displays, I would get the one with lowest input lag.
 
Hey Wirk, input lag should be your biggest concern with these 4k displays, I would get the one with lowest input lag.

All these monitors have decent input lag, no? Asus ia quoted at 20 ms.
 
All three use the same panel; I'd take the Acer out of the equation because it lacks adjustable overdrive and appears to have noticeable overshoot according to these pictures.

Here's Prad's review of the BL3201PT/PH

I'd also likely choose the BL3201PT over the Asus PA328Q because the former achieved a contrast ratio result of 1058:1 vs =DEAD='s (overclockers.ru) mediocre result of 770:1.
 
The only one I've seen of these in person was the ASUS. It was a good looking display but it was sitting next to 28" TN 4k model. Naturally the 32" IPS monitor looked fantastic by comparison.
 
I love this monitor, I just wish it was bigger

I'm happy to take it from you for free, I'll even pay for shipping :D

I'd also likely choose the BL3201PT over the Asus PA328Q

BenQ, pffftt. Sitting 2-3ft from a 48" VA panel with 120hz PWM and enjoying a very clear and obviously glow and viewing angle issue free gaming experience is so much better. We should be encouraging people to 'cheat the system' and get more for less like one of our fellow [H] members. ;)

-------------

Digital Trends Reviews skips half of the important tests and uses a Spyder 4 which is inaccurate and can't read contrast properly.

Useful review links can be found here.
 
After chewing the available information the following ranking emerges:

1. BenQ BL3201PT
2. Asus PA328Q
3. Acer B326HK

BenQ seems to be the most round overall though other are tough contenders, especially Asus with 10-bit panel and 12-bit LUT for very precise color handling. All have the same panel and all suffer from backlight inhomogeneity.
 
Isn't the Asus in a completely different price category than the other two? I believe US msrp is supposed to be $1750 or something and its currently selling for like $2500 in South Korea.
 
Isn't the Asus in a completely different price category than the other two? I believe US msrp is supposed to be $1750 or something and its currently selling for like $2500 in South Korea.

Indeed, but all three are known to use the same panel and Asus has no definitive advantage in PQ

Recommend looking at my post about the Acer: http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1041526188&postcount=347
Considering the BenQ now, but I may just wait for something better to come along when 4K matures.

It confirms Acer deserves is last position and BenQ is on top. Matured 4K monitors (DP 1.3, >60Hz, sync) are at least one year away.
 
I receive mine on Monday from Amazon... will let you know and plan to compare side-by-side with the Acer.
 
I'm basically considering the acer the benq or the PB287Q, from the reviews ive seen so far the asus has about 20 more PPI than the benq or the aver, though its a tn panel, that being said ive only ever used tn panels so far.

The bigger size, ips panel and lower ppi of the benq and the acer worth it over the asus in terms of image sharpness?
 
It really depends how far you sit from your monitor. I owned the PB287Q as well but returned it.

I really feel that 28" is fairly small for 4K. 32" is amazing for me. It is still extremely sharp, and I sit roughly 2 feet from my monitor... maybe a few inches less.

I didn't like the PB287Q due to how noticeable tearing was in games. Then I tried the 4K TN G-Sync from Acer. TN just looks awful on desktop usage. It is very easy to see color shift from top to bottom on solid colored backgrounds which is a lot of desktop use scenarios. In games, it is not that bad - but IPS always wins.

I would also hold off on the Acer until I post up my impressions of the BenQ. I have the Acer now and the input/response time is so bad I can't stand it. Worst of any display I have ever used, but it looks great in every other regard.
 
Strange that it has much input lag wasn't mentioned in the linus review at all.
 
I was thinking the same thing. Believe me, I'm not crazy. I've used many displays and I know the night and day difference between higher refresh rates vs standard. I've played with setups to no end to try stuff out... and for some odd reason this monitor has just been a nightmare to play any sort of FPS on.

I tried SLI on/off, multiple DP outputs on both cards, clean drivers, custom refresh rates, you name it... but as soon as I plugged my Catleap back in, side by side, the Acer is just so...much...slower...

Maybe mine is defective, but I doubt it. I'm pretty sure this is Acer's fault in the way they put the display hardware together.
 
This monitor is not suitable for gaming. The Acer lagged behind my Catleap in multiple tests as well as overall usage feel, and has done so again against the BenQ BL3201PH.

Today I received a BenQ BL3201PH and I yet again confirmed this. I am positive these panels are the same - the accessories are the same, the panel protective styrofoam is the same, power switch by the AC power cord, bezel design, AG coating... you name it.

The BenQ is LEAPS and BOUNDS ahead though. I believe the factory calibration on the BenQ is good, whereas the Acer is too blue. The OSD on the Acer is a JOKE, but the BenQ is pretty nice with a lot of options. Plus, the ECO sensor is pretty cool! If you look right at it, you can see a quick flash of a red sensor light, but you can't see it when using the monitor. I believe it is 40 seconds after you move away from your PC, it goes into stand-by and then turns back on when you return. Nice! The stand is also better on the BenQ. The Acer could overclock to 78 Hz, but would frame skip at anything above 60 Hz. The BenQ will overclock to 67 Hz, but frame skips above 62 Hz.

Unfortunately my purchase process with Amazon was awful - this monitor was CLEARLY used before. It had the original BenQ tape, but I found an Amazon RMA label right inside the box from the previous owner. There were marks on the screen and the power cord was missing. I will be returning this and either purchasing somewhere else (as Amazon is price gouging currently) or at least trying one of their Warehouse deals for a better price on something I know is open-box. I have one dead pixel way up high too, though you can't notice it in normal use at all.

Now, back to the input lag issue...

I compared the BenQ and Acer side-by-side in duplicated screen mode, just as I did with the Yamakasi Catleap before. The BenQ refreshed before the Acer did EVERY TIME. I then tested the BenQ with the Catleap in the same manner and they were refreshing at the exact same times! I don't blame the panel in the Acer (as it's the same) but their other hardware driving the monitor. It's killing the poor thing with TONS of lag...

BenQ on the right, Acer on the left (both stock settings, but BenQ you can adjust overdrive whereas Acer cannot):

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Comparison of pixel overdrive/motion blur. Acer first, BenQ second:

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BenQ on right, Catleap on left showing frames matching up... BenQ may even be a hair faster on the overdrive:

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Ordered the Benq earlier today, hopefully have it on thursday :)
 
Ordered the BenQ, best bang of all of them and incidentally for the buck too :D.
 
Got a BenQ 3201 yesterday. It is so huge, coming from a 24", and will getting used to.:cool:

Win7's 150% scaling is absolutely rubbish. Tried using the Win10 Preview and it has great scaling I really look forward to it when it gets released.

Now running at 100% only - which is fine.
 
Microsoft could probably fix the scaling in 7 and 8.1 with an update, doubt they'll bother though.
 
Got a BenQ 3201 yesterday. It is so huge, coming from a 24", and will getting used to.:cool:

Read in the Samsung thread how people are gobbling 40" and 48" 4K TVs for use as monitors and showing pictures of their desks. 32" is miniature comparing to those monsters :rolleyes:
 
Ordered the BenQ, best bang of all of them and incidentally for the buck too :D.

Where did you order from? People got them for about $900 before, but the price has gone up it seems.

I just had a stuck pixel pop up on this one... a red one up and right from the center of the display. Plus the dead one all the way up top. Very hard to notice but still... glad this one is going back to Amazon!
 
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Just some pics to share
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Really hoping for Win10 to come our ASAP. Its really a good monitor for the price.
 
I do use Win 7 at 100% as anything else causes problems with some games.

Fonts are just big enough but they are small.

IE/Chrome I run at 150%
 
I think all 4k displays should be using freesync/gsync to help out on the gaming department.

I cant see my self playing anything on these high input lag 4k displays and games running at 30-40fps without freesync/gsync.
 
I do use Win 7 at 100% as anything else causes problems with some games.

Fonts are just big enough but they are small.

IE/Chrome I run at 150%

Dang I was hoping a 32 inch monitor would do better at 100% scaling... I feel that 28 inch at 150 is a lot of wasted space for me.
 
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