ASUS MX279H Review
Category : Displays
Published by Marc Büchel on 29.04.13
The ASUS MX279H is an attractive display with a very decent, frameless design. With a mere 18 millimeter thick display you get a 27 inch AH-IPS panel, FullHD resolution, a touch sensitive menu bar and the possibility to tilt the panel. Thanks to the AH-IPS panel image quality should be very good and furthermore we're curious whether FullHD is or isn't enough for a 27 inch display.



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When comparing this display with a few more expensive models, like for instance the ASUS PB278Q or the Viewsonic VP2270-LED, then the MX279H has to stick with 1’920 x 1080 resolution instead of 2’560 x 1’440. If you should be sitting relatively close to the panel then the individual pixels become well visible.


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Preview

   


   


   



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Specifications

General
Size 27''
Resolution 1920 x 1080
Contrast 80000000:1
Contrast measured 1100:1
Brightness 250 cd/m2
Brightness measured 290 cd/m2
Horizontal viewing angle 178°
Vertical viewing angle 178°
Response time 5ms
Dimensions 18 x 622 x 225 mm
 

Features
Portrait mode No
Wall mount No
Height adjustable No
Internal speakers Yes
Detachable cables Yes
USB Hub Yes
Internal power supply No
Kensington Lock Yes
Extras 2 x HDMI
VGA In Yes
DVI In No
S-Video In No
Component In No
Composite In No
HDCP Support Yes
Audio Inputs 1 x Mic in / 1 x Headphone in
 

Further Details
Power Consumption Standby < 0.5 Watt
Power Consumption On < 37 Watt
Price
Toppreise.ch
Warranty 1 Year



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Image quality

ASUS equipped the MX279H with a matte finish. Thanks to this surface there are no reflections at all. Even in case there is direct sunlight, text remains readable. Taking a closer look at colors shows, that red, green, and blue are bright but they don’t seem to be vibrant or vivid. When looking at white it appears to be light grey and in case of a black screen one can see backlight bleeding, which means that the background light is shimmering on the edge of the display. Overall the image quality is good and when we’re complaining then we’re doing to on a high level.



Very pleasing, that’s how we describe the contrast ratio. In case of our test pictures, it’s been very easy to distinguish dark and bright areas. The main reason behind the excellent contrast ratio is the AH-IPS panel, where AH stands for advanced high-performance. Compared to standard IPS panels, this one should offer a better contrast ratio as well as higher brightness.

After calibrating the display we measured 97.0 percent of the sRGB color space. In case of this result we were using default settings. For an IPS panel this is standard, which should not be seen as a negative point. When looking at the MX279H from angles, then the promised 178° aren’t reached, but still viewing angles are good.


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Features and connectors

Features

ASUS prepared a few different presets, which all are completely customizable. First of all there is the scenery mode, which plays with the contrast and make pictures look sharper. Second there is the theatre mode, which makes colors a tick more vibrant. Third you get a game mode, which increases the brightness to eliminate shadows. Last but not least, there is a night mode, which decreases brightness and makes it less stressful to look at the display in a dark environment.



Connectors

Taking a closer look at the backside of the MX279H you can find the different connectors. Next to two HDMI Ports, there is a VGA connector as well as two audio in, where one is for a microphone and the other for headphones. At the beginning we thought that it’s a downside, that there is no DVI port, but checking out the delivery showed that there is an HDMI to DVI-D adaptor. Something else that is definitely worth mentioning, when talking about this display, is the integrated speakers. ASUS is allowed to brand their speakers with Band & Olufsen. The puts the bar up high, when it comes to expectations. Although bass is as near as makes no difference, inexistent, the overall sound quality is way better, than what you usually get from loudspeakers which are integrated into a display.




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Conclusion

ASUS’ MX279H isn’t one of the best 27 inch IPS displays we’ve ever come across. But in this case it wasn’t the manufacturers intention. This display is much more about price/performance rather than just price. It’s great that there is an AH-IPS panel but still we think that 1080p is not enough for a 27 inch panel. 1440p is the perfect resolution for such a display and everything that is below is a serious compromise. A display which features excellent design and comes with a “Bang & Olufsen” badge, should be more about performance than just price. Never the less, it’s a really good looking thing and if you want a display that looks very nice on a desktop, that features a decent AH-IPS panel but you don’t care about the FullHD resolution, then the MX279H might be the right monitor for you to choose.