ViewSonic - ViewSonic VX3276-2K-mhd

ViewSonic

ViewSonic VX3276-2K-mhd: a 32 inch Quad HD IPS monitor that goes up to 75 Hz

Aprox. 255€

See specifications

The VX3276-2K-mhd is an interesting 32 inch Quad HD monitor with a reactive IPS panel supporting a wide frequency range, but unfortunately ViewSonic seems to have forgotten compatibility with FreeSync. It remains to be seen whether the image quality is there.

Positive points

Comfortable size / definition ratio.

Good image quality.

Reduced display delay.

Open viewing angles (IPS).

Matt slab.

Wide frequency range from 24 to 75 Hz ...

Bad points

Limited contrast.

Lack of height and rotation adjustment.

No USB hub.

... but FreeSync incompatible.

Our review

Presentation

The ViewSonic VX3276-2K-mhd monitor opts for a 32-inch (≈81 cm) IPS panel displaying Quad HD definition (2,560 x 1,440 px) which is very popular at the moment. IPS technology offers slightly more open viewing angles than a VA panel, but more limited contrast. This monitor is in addition to the 32 inch Quad HD offer currently available, such as the LDLC RS32 also in IPS panel, the Textorm TX32 with a VA panel and the AOC Q3279VWF which completely changed the market with a price below 220 €. The ViewSonic VX3276-2K-mhd therefore has a lot of work to do; for him it has a neat design and a large frequency range between 24 and 75 Hz, but it also has some faults ...

The ViewSonic VX3276 monitor is sold for around € 300.


Presentation

Ergonomics

The design of the ViewSonic monitor is quite successful. The manufacturer opts for a very thin frame and a matt coating that perfectly filters out reflections. The metal foot is simple, but effective.

This monitor offers only one position adjustment: the tilt, which varies from -4 ° to + 15 °. It skips the rotation, the pivot for switching to portrait mode and, more annoying, the height adjustment.

The back of the monitor is very classic. The connectors are oriented downwards and the adjustment buttons are located on the left.

In terms of connectivity, the ViewSonic VX3276-2K-mhd monitor offers two HDMI inputs, a DisplayPort input, a Mini DisplayPort input and a headphone output. This monitor also has two unpretentious little 2 W speakers that will essentially serve as an additional listening system for watching short videos, podcasts or TV shows.

The six buttons located behind the panel give access to the various settings and the change of source. This system is always quite tedious to use and, in addition to the rear, errors are frequent. Worse, the power button is identical to the others and it is not uncommon to turn off the screen in full setting. In short, this system clearly needs to be reviewed. There are several preset modes and you can choose the temperature, but it is not possible to adjust the gamma. The setting of the overdrive is only available within the "Standard" and "Game" presets, which is not very intuitive.

Although operating systems manage Ultra HD monitors better and better by increasing the size of the elements, the Quad HD definition on a 32 inch allows to maintain the native size of the elements without any particular modification, while benefiting from comfort appreciable. With this definition and this screen diagonal, this monitor is very pleasant in everyday life, whether for office, video games or watching a movie. On our standard size desk (140 x 60 cm), the monitor occupies a fairly reasonable space. The size of the monitor is conditioned by its foot which does not exceed 23 cm deep.

With the brightness at 65 to obtain a white at 150 cd / m², the ViewSonic VX3276 screen consumes 27 W, ie a relative consumption of 96 W / m², slightly lower than the average of the monitors tested (100 W / m²). With the minimum brightness (17 cd / m²), consumption drops to 12 W and it reaches a maximum of 37 W (223 cd / m²).


Ergonomics

Colors and contrast

By default, the ViewSonic monitor is already well calibrated. The temperature and gamma curves are stable. The average temperature is measured at 6,950 K, which is fairly close to the reference 6,500 K, and the average gamma is raised to 2.1 - again a value fairly close to the reference 2.2. The average delta E (difference between the actual colors and the displayed colors) is 2.2, below 3, a threshold below which the human eye no longer perceives a difference between the colors requested and the colors displayed. However, it should be noted that the delta E of green and yellow is close to 4 and, above all, that of red takes off to exceed 6, attesting to reds that are not very faithful.

We lowered the brightness to 65 to obtain a white close to 150 cd / m² and we did not find a setting allowing to lower the temperature and to raise the gamma. The setting on the hot temperature results in an average of 5000 K while the change to sRGB mode does not change anything. The figures are very close to those originally obtained. The average Delta E still progresses, to 1.9, but without any improvement on the red, among others.

Calibrating the monitor with an ICC profile makes it possible to obtain perfectly stable temperature and gamma curves on the target values of 6,500 K and 2.2. The average delta E drops to 1.5; that of red finally progresses, although it remains always higher than 4. The profile can be downloaded by following this link.

The contrast of this monitor is good for an IPS model, but quite average in absolute terms. The contrast ratio of the IPS panel does not exceed 1,230: 1. The ViewSonic monitor does not play in the same yard as more contrasting monitors, such as the Textorm RS32 or the AOC Q3279VWF which exceed 4,000: 1.

The average difference in uniformity is 11% over the entire 32-inch slab. We saw slight light leaks in the corners, but no clouding. IPS panel requires, the viewing angles are excellent.


Colors and contrast

Reactivity

The ViewSonic monitor uses Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) to adjust the brightness. There is therefore a risk of flickering when the brightness is reduced. In some rare cases, this modulation can cause eyestrain and headaches. The monitor also offers a blue light reduction mode.

The VX3276-2K monitor supports a refresh rate between 24 and 75 Hz, but is not compatible with FreeSync. By default, it is recognized as a 60 Hz monitor by Windows, but we did manage to push the frequency to 75 Hz by creating a custom definition Quad HD (2,560 x 1,440 px) at 75 Hz. That such an operating frequency range is not exploited with games thanks to FreeSync.

The ViewSonic monitor offers three overdrive settings: standard, fast, ultra fast. In standard mode, moving objects are followed by a slight drag, the famous ghosting phenomenon, which here remains very tenuous and largely bearable. Activating the overdrive on "fast" helps to reduce the ghosting effect. On the other hand, the "ultra fast" setting results in a rather annoying reverse ghosting effect. With the overdrive on fast, we measured the remanence at 10 ms, a good value for an IPS panel. It is quite possible to play with this monitor, even if it is not as responsive as the TN models and the best VA models (Acer Predator Z35P).

We measured the delay in display (input lag) at 10 ms, less than one frame per second. The discrepancy between the action performed with the mouse or the keyboard and its repercussion on the screen is imperceptible.


Reactivity

Conclusion

In the jungle of 32-inch Quad HD monitors, ViewSonic plays with design and finish with the VX3276-2K-mhd. The monitor is very well calibrated - as is often the case with ViewSonic - and offers a few little extras like a Mini DisplayPort input. However, the ergonomics are really limited and the absence of a USB hub is felt, especially in this price range. Also a shame that despite the support of a frequency from 24 to 75 Hz, the monitor does not support FreeSync.


Conclusion

Specifications