Used Acer ConceptD CP5 CP5271U 27" 16:9 WQHD 144Hz IPS LED LCD Monitor with Built-In Speakers

2022-06-14T09:01:31

Great monitor, perfect for photo enhancing

STEPHEN C.

2022-05-13T10:24:47

I bought this so I could have a color-accurate display for photo editing. I wasn't concerned about responsiveness for gaming so I didn't review that. I turned off all the HDR and fast frame rate options so I could get the best possible color accuracy. I am using the monitor with a 2016 Macbook Pro via USB-C. QHD resolution is sufficient for me on a 27" display, though not "Retina". 1) Color accuracy/calibration: This display, like other budget wide-gamut displays, achieves 10-bit color depth with 8-bit hardware and 2 bits of FRC. I already owned an iRite iDisplay1 Pro which I used to calibrate the display. First, I tried using Acer's Color Calibration software to do hardware calibration. This tool lets you save the calibration in one of two saved presets on the monitor. It does not run on a Mac, so I had to use my 10-year old Windows 8.1 laptop over HDMI to run it. I only reached 95% sRGB and 93% of Adobe RGB gamuts, as reported by the tool - not sure whether this was because of the old PC, or limitations in the software. Next, I tried doing a software calibration using DisplayCal. I told DisplayCal it had a Quantum Dot backlight. I put the monitor in User mode and tweaked the brightness down (all the way to 9 to reach 120 cd/m2) and also tweaked the Green gain down a little to 45. With this calibration, the display achieved 100% sRGB, 100% Adobe RGB, and 94.7% DCI P3 with average Delta-E (1976) of 0.76 and max of 1.82. 2) Features: The display ships with a hood, which is very helpful for my use case. I found the included stand to be quite good in terms of height, stability, and aesthetics, but I will be using this display on a VESA-mount swing arm. The monitor has USB-3 with power delivery, so you only need a single cable to connect the display (DP-ALT input in the OSD) and provide 65-watt charging. Mac users: do not use the white USB-C charging cable that came with your Macbook! Use the black one that shipped with the display and all will be good. When connected via USB-3, you will also have access to four more USB 3.0 ports on the display. 3) Here are a few things that could use improvement. The On-Screen Display is a bit wonky, and is navigated by a few buttons and a flimsy-feeling plastic joystick on the back. I don't plan on using it a lot, so it's OK. This model doesn't have an Ethernet port, so I'm hooking up an external USB3 dongle to get hardwired Ethernet support over USB-C. The speakers are horrible - just turn them off! The documentation and even specification information is almost non-existent - go to Acer's support site and download what you can. The unboxing experience was subpar, as my unit had what appeared to be paint residue on the power supply and smudges of unknown residue on the rear of the display, which made me wonder if this was actually a used/refurbished unit. Luckily it cleaned up with a damp cloth. Overall: I didn't find anything that could touch this monitor for color accuracy at this price point, with USB-C power delivery/hub. I'm going to knock off one star for lack of documentation and unboxing concerns, but I highly recommend this product for photographers on a budget.

ERIC S.

2021-08-05T08:19:24

Great monitor. I am a design professional and use my setup for a lot of color matching pantone chips for both on product color and graphics applied to fabric / plastic / print / screen. Adjusting the settings to get it exactly as you want for your environment might take a little time but is well worth it. Everything is razor sharp and accurate, and the size is large enough without overwhelming your space. It mounts to an arm easily and is pretty light weight, so no issues there either. The shroud is nice because you done't have to pump up the brightness to battle ambient light as much so it reduces eye strain.

MATTHEW H.