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Millions of people have been forced to improve their home office because of the shift to remote work. The most important upgrade is the monitor, and there are many ways to do this.
A monitor is important. You will use it all day, every day, year after year. The monitor you buy today might be the one you use for a decade. My editor and I both have 10-year-old Dell U 2412 monitors.
There are dozens of great monitors to choose from, so it is not a difficult decision. The guide will help you pick the best place to work.
The sweetest spot.
I have reviewed monitors and laptop displays for over a decade. The ideal home office monitor has a 27 inch screen and 4K resolution. It can display 99 percent of the sRGB color gamut and has a brightness of at least 250 nits. There is a port that can deliver enough power to charge a laptop, along with a stand that can adjust for height and a VESA mount.
Noupscale is a file onchorusasset.com.
The 27UP850-W is a 4K monitor that can provide 96W of power and can be used with a laptop.
The image is of a phone.
It won't be difficult to find a monitor that fits most of these boxes. Dell, BenQ, and HP can check them all. The price may be higher than you think, but you will have to pay at least $450 for any of the above.
Different monitors suit different owners. The monitors are expensive, but they are ideal for work. They don't have features you'll want when you're ready to fire up a round of Valorant. This guide will help you find a monitor that is right for you.
The 27 inch is the best for most.
The size is the most important trait of a monitor.
There are three sizes of standard-width monitors: 24 inch, 27 inch, and 32-inch. Bigger isn't necessarily better. A large display is more impressive, but it is not comfortable placed close to my eyes. Practical considerations include perceived density. If you want a bigger monitor to look better than a smaller one, you have to move it further away.
That is the reason I recommend a 27 inch monitor. It is large enough to look impressive on a home office desk. In my experience, 32-inch monitors should only be used for large and deep desks or corner setup where it is possible to position the display four feet away from your face. This is especially true for monitors with a resolution below 4K, which look blurry to me at a distance of three feet.
Noupscale is a file on thechorusasset.com.
The HP 24mh is an entry level monitor.
The image is from HP.
If you have a small, slim desk or bring the monitor closer to your face, it will work better for you. A small monitor will look large because it is so close. They are a great way to save money. You can get a good all-around monitor like the HP 24mh for less than $200. It works in a pinch.
If you mount a VESA-compatible monitor to an arm, you can move it to your preference, including the proper ergonomics. Give it a second thought if you are just doing it to move a large monitor farther away. Why spend more for a larger monitor, and a monitor arm to position it farther away, instead of buying a smaller display to start?
If you want to stretch more screen across your field of view, you might consider an ultrawide monitor. I think the choice is clear, go for a 34 incher.
Smaller models have less space. A 29-inch ultrawide has less display space than a 24inch. Larger models have the same problem. Many are too big for a typical home office desk because of the large stands used to support them. Adding a top-tier monitor arm or rearranging your desk will make it work.
What about the 49-inch Odyssey G9 series? These monitors are a good alternative to a double or triple monitor setup, but you will need to build your setup around it.
Noupscale is a file onchorusasset.com.
You might need to rearrange your entire desk to fit the Odyssey G9.
The photo was taken by Sean Hollister.
4K is great and 1440p is practical.
Resolution is important. A sharper, crisper image can be achieved with a higher resolution. Flexibility is also added by more pixels. You can use scaling features in Windows and MacOS to increase the size of the content, or show more of it at once.
The 4K resolution (3,840 x 2,160) is widely available on 27-inch and 32-inch displays. It is not that expensive. You can get a budget 4K monitor like the Dell S2721QS for $350 or less.
Noupscale is a file onchorusasset.com.
The Dell S2721QS is a good budget choice for a 4K monitor. A version of the computer that works with the internet costs a bit more.
The image is of Dell.
It is possible to save money if you settle for 1440p (2,560 x 1,440). It is disappointing on a 32-inch display, unless you move it far away, but it is workable. If you don't care about having the best picture possible, a 27 inch display is a good choice.
You should probably not use a monitor with a resolution of 1,920 x 1,080. It will look small. It can become difficult to see buttons.
4K is rare, and 1440p is often the premium option on 24 inch monitors. Most of the monitors of this size are in the same resolution. It is not ideal but it is acceptable as decreasing size increases density. A 24 inch monitor is sharper than a 27 inch monitor.
Do you want a 34 inch wide? The resolution is 3,440 x 1,440. A 27-inch monitor has a density of about 112 pixels per inch. Ultrawides with 2,560 x 1,080 resolution are not pleasant to look at. If you want a 4K-equivalent density in a 34 inch ultrawide, you'll typically pay more than $1,000 for the 5K Ultrawide line. Though it might offer more screen, the 38 inch with 3,840 x 1,600 resolution costs more at $1,600 and is equal in size to a 3,440 x 1,440 ultrawide.
Super-ultrawides don't offer much choice. All 49-inch super-ultrawides use the same 5,120 x 1,440 resolution which is roughly equivalent to a 27 inch display.
It's an excellent but expensive device.
The majority of monitors have either HDMI or DisplayPort. There is no reason to prefer one over the other. The port you use on your PC is likely to depend on the monitor you choose.
Noupscale is a file on thechorusasset.com.
There are four video inputs, from top left to bottom right, on this monitor.
The image is of a phone.
Is it possible to use HDMI 2.1? Productivity monitors with HDMI 2.1 aren't needed for remote work. The standard could get messy in the future due to its certification. If you want to connect a game console, it is key.
If you have extra cash to spend, you can ignore HDMI and DisplayPort and go for the cheaper option of a computer with a Thunderbolt port. Modern laptops that support the standard can use a single-cable solution with the help of the two technologies. You can send video to the monitor from the laptop while charging it. The best monitors act as a hub with multiple extra ports.
Noupscale is a file onchorusasset.com.
The underside of the Dellusb-c hub monitor is bristling with connections and 90W of charging, but it also has a singleusb-c cable.
The image is of Dell.
Make sure you read the fine print. The standard has power delivery baked in, so look for it. Even the modest ThinkPad E545 I bought a few years back includes those sorts of ports.
You need to make sure the monitor you buy provides enough electricity. If you have a thin-and-light monitor, it might be enough to power a MacBook Pro 16 or a top-spec Razer Blade, even if the power delivery is maxed out at 100 watt. The higher the monitor, the better, but if it doesn't deliver as much power as your laptop's power brick, your battery might only charge when it's not being used.
The monitors are expensive. The benefits add hundreds of dollars to the price of the monitor when compared to a similar one that doesn't have the internet connection. I purchased a Viewsonic VG2455-2K for a sweet one-cable connection to a laptop and found it ideal for quickly connecting my laptop to a larger screen.
The height has it.
Any monitor that is worth your attention will have a stand that adjusts for height, usually along a range from 100 to 150 millimeters. It is possible to stack it on books or buy a plastic riser, but that adds to the hassle.
Some monitors pivot 90 degrees into portrait orientation. It can be useful when a monitor is used as a second display. If you want to do detailed work like editing a photo, you could swing the monitor away from you and face you while doing it. If you have a standing desk, tilt is especially useful as you may need to tilt the monitor up while the desk is standing.
If you want to free up space on your desk or if your monitor doesn't have enough range of motion, you could add a VESA-compatible monitor arm. Look for monitors that have a 100mm x 100mm VESA spacing pattern. This is a common feature in all monitors, and you only need to worry about the 100mm spacing pattern. Others are relevant to other types of displays.
A monitor arm is not often needed, but it is great for multi-monitor setups that place secondary displays around and above your main monitor, or for positioning an especially large and bulky monitor. Monitor arms can be a bit expensive. A basic monitor arm can be found on Amazon for $30 to $50, but I have been burned on their quality before. A good arm will cost around $130.
The 49-inch model of the Odyssey Neo G9 is currently $379 and sold out at the time I wrote this, so it's time for a beefier, more expensive arm.
The gamut and color accuracy.
It's important to have accurate color in image quality. A monitor that is inaccurate will look unnatural, flat, and dull, with strange swings in quality depending on what you are viewing and the precise colors that are inaccurate. Every time you sit down to use the monitor, you will be disappointed.
The good news? Over the last decade, accuracy is the greatest advancement in monitors. I began testing monitors over a decade ago and they were often inaccurate. Most of the monitors today have reasonable accuracy.
:noupscale is a file on thechorusasset.com
If color is important for work, you can buy a calibration tool like this $160 Spyder.
Datacolor is the image.
There is a difference between monitors. The best way to get great color accuracy is to look for a monitor that has a calibration report in the box. It doesn't guarantee color accuracy is perfect, but it shows the company put the monitor through an extra layer of quality assurance. Check reviewers to see if the monitor lives up to its claims.
The color gamut is good enough on most monitors. Most of the content on a computer is in the sRGB color range. Many modern monitors display all of the gamut. There are other gamuts as well. The most advertised is DCI-P3 though you may see other brands as well. If your work requires them, they are important, though I am guessing you know that. If you're concerned about gamut, you should read reviews to make sure the monitor lives up to its claims.
There is a choice between 250 nits or bust.
Light control is probably one of the things your home office has. The ideal brightness for a monitor is dependent on the lighting in your home office. Most monitor calibration tools have a built-in luminance sensor that can be used to recommend a brightness based on ambient light. I have never seen it recommend more than 200 nits.
It is not a big ask, but budget monitors can not always manage it, so be careful if you are shopping on a tight budget. The listed brightness may not always be available because manufacturers tend to choose a best-case scenario. A maximum brightness of at least 250 nits is promised by the monitor.
Why would you want a brighter monitor? If you are viewing SDR content, there is no particular reason other than using a monitor in a very bright room which, though rare, does happen. SDR content at a high brightness can cause image quality issues, such as disappointing dark levels and reduced overall contrast.
High Dynamic Range is a different story. The standard supports a higher range of luminosity than SDR. Peak brightness can be up to 10,000 nits. The content includes additional data that can't be seen on other displays.
:noupscale is a file on thechorusasset.com.
If you're looking for a monitor that's high Dynamic Range, you should know that it's barely high Dynamic Range, but if you're looking for a monitor that's Peak Brilliance, you should know that it's not.
Sean Hollister has a Screenshot.
It can be counter productive to use the PC as a tool for work. A number of monitor controls, including brightness, color gamut, and color temperature settings, can be blocked by turning on the HDR feature in Windows. The resulting image can look bright and you won't have much choice.
Most of the content viewed in Windows or MacOS is not designed for high Dynamic Range. The result will be less accurate if you stuck with SDR.
Entertainment and gaming are where the redemption occurs. Most streaming platforms now offer a way to view HDR content on a PC. Windows 11 has an auto-HDR feature that can be used in games that don't support it. I would recommend leaving HDR off until you clock out, since this makes it a nice addition to a monitor that you will use for work and play.
The office is ruled by the panel type.
The majority of monitors sold today are based on one of three technologies: twisted nematic, in-plane switch, and vertical alignment.
The cheapest monitors use a panel. Avoid them. The image will be displayed on the panel monitors. They look dull next to IPS and have bad viewing angles.
Here is a rough sense of how colors can shift off-angle with a panel.
There is a rough sense of how colors can shift off-angle with a panel.
The photo was taken by James Bareham.
A majority of monitors use the same technology. A wide color gamut and accurate color can be achieved with a monitor that is based onIPS. It can't achieve a convincing shade of black because it struggles with dark scenes. TheIPS glow can look unattractive when watching movies or playing games. Some IPS panels have low response times and high refresh rates, which makes them great for gaming.
What about the VA? The VA panel type has the best contrast ratio and dark scene performance of the three, which makes it a great choice for entertainment and gaming. Modern VA panels have mostly solved the color accuracy and motion smearing issues of past VA monitors.
There is no clear answer to the choice between VA andIPS. You can find the choice made for you when it comes to work. Most productivity monitors use anIPS panel. If you want the high contrast a quality VA panel can provide, you should look for gaming monitors.
There is a compromise between higher and lower refresh rate.
The two companies have convinced the gaming community that a monitor with a high refresh rate is ideal. But what if your day includes more than one activity? The benefits of a higher refresh rate are still being seen.
The reason to buy a monitor with an enhanced refresh rate is gaming. The higher the refresh rates, the smoother the motion. The benefits of refresh rate are not limited to games. Apple's newest MacBook Pro 14 and 16, and many Windows laptops, now offer a refresh rate of 120Hz or more, which is why motion feels more fluid on the desktop.
It is nice to have, but far down on the list of features you need to consider. It isn't much gain over 60Hz for a 75Hz monitor.
The price for a high-refresh gaming display is as low as $200. If you want to trade something away for a refresh rate, you should look for a monitor with a low resolution or an iffy TN panel. It is possible to get a 4K display for a reasonable sum, but you have to look at monitors that cost as much as big TVs.
I haven't seen a gaming monitor that doubles as ausb-c hub. If your work setup involves a lot of wired peripherals, that could be an issue.
There is a mini light and light emitting device.
Most monitors sold today use an LCD panel with an LED backlit behind it, a setup that has been used for decades.
The mini led adds a twist. The backlight is divided into hundreds of zones that can turn on and off independently. Extra brightness and contrast can be obtained in shadowy scenes. The class-leading brightness of the Mini LED makes it an excellent choice for games and movies.
Is it an organic material? The table is flipped using organic elements that create their own light. This provides lighting control that is unparalleled in contrast. There are ways to mitigate burn-in from affecting a display.
:noupscale is a file on thechorusasset.com.
We tried a 48-inch TV as a monitor and it didn't work out.
The photo was taken by Sean Hollister.
You will have to spend thousands to get a monitor with either tech if you work from home. Televisions with MiniLED orOLED technology have their drawbacks as monitors, but you could buy a television with them.
I recommend Mini LED if you want the very best monitor. The PC will display static images more frequently than a television due to the burn-in worries of the OLED. The Mini LED can't match the contrast of the backlit screen, but it's still a major upgrade. The emerging category of QD-OLED screens have not yet been priced.
What about monitors with built-in cameras?
Don't buy a monitor with a built-inWebcam.
Webcams are small, easy to use, and can be used with more than one device. Attaching aWebcam to a monitor removes perks. It also means that you will have to replace the entire monitor if you want to upgrade yourWebcam in the future.
Our guide has several suggestions. Most are less than $100.
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