4K Visuals
AOC has ticked a lot of the right boxes when it comes to design and connectivity, but the single most important factor is the image quality, and it needs to be excellent in order to justify the £499 price tag. The good news is that the monitor does live up to its billing... most of the time.
The obvious benefit in terms of productivity is the sheer amount of desktop space. Windows 8.1 is designed with high-res panels in mind and scales better than any previous Windows release. By default, the operating system automatically scales text and other items when the U2868PQU is configured to its maximum resolution. Text appears fantastically sharp, as do images, and being able to have a massive amount of content on screen at any one time is a boon.
It's a great monitor to work with, then? Well, yes and no. The resolution advantage is literally clear to see, however there are a few potential shortcomings in other areas that detract from the overall experience. To begin with, the monitor is overly bright in its out-the-box configuration, resulting in washed-out colours and poor contrast. Lowering brightness and balancing contrast using the on-screen setup tools - which, we should add, are controlled by fiddly touch-sensitive buttons - certainly helps matters, and users will want to spend a bit of time tweaking the options to get the optimal picture.
Once calibrated, contrast is much improved, black levels are decent and colour reproduction is good. The catch? Well, while this is a higher-grade TN panel, it still isn't on par with today's premium IPS options and viewing angles can be problematic. The monitor actually fares well horizontally - the image remains viewable from acute angles - but it isn't as versatile on the vertical plane. Tilt the display forward or backward and colours quickly wash out, meaning this may not be the ideal monitor for professionals who rely on ultra-precise colour accuracy.
As a professional tool the U2868PQU has its pros and cons, however as a gaming accessory it really excels. The 60Hz refresh rate delivers smooth gameplay (though anybody coming from 120Hz will no doubt beg to differ), we didn't experience any deal-breaking input lag during a session of Battlefield 4, and games do look truly stunning at 3,840x2,160. You begin to notice detail you didn't know was there and, in our estimation, the hike in resolution is one of the most visibly rewarding innovations in recent years. PC enthusiasts who enjoy living on the cutting edge will certainly appreciate the tech: PC gaming at 4K makes the Xbox One or PlayStation 4 appear massively outdated in comparison.
Though, gaming with AOC's high-end display also comes with a caveat or two. Games do look mighty impressive, yet the demands of a lofty 4K resolution require a costly ultra-high-end graphics card with a good-sized frame buffer. And a high-DPI mouse comes highly recommended, too, as tracking across this many pixels requires that extra bit of effort.
Summary
We've only been able to spend a short amount of time with the U2868PQU, yet even at this early stage, we come away thinking that this is one of the best 4K monitors we've come across. Pricing makes a whole lot more sense, and with Single-Stream transport the display works effortlessly and circumvents many of the niggling issues that plagued earlier panels.
Ensuring that it has all the basics covered, AOC has included a simple-looking design that incorporates a versatile stand, with tilt, swivel and height adjustment, as well as a Vesa-compliant mount. Some users may lament the lack of design wow factor, though plenty of that is delivered by the on-screen image.
Productivity and gaming are both beneficiaries of the 3,840x2,160 resolution, and right now, we're unlikely to see anything significantly better at around the £500 price point. IPS continues to lead the way in terms of colour accuracy and extreme viewing angles, however TN panels aren't standing still and continue to improve. The U2868PQU, at £499, is shaping up to be one of the best TN monitors to date and is ideally suited to users wanting to get a taste of 4K for an affordable fee.
HEXUS.where2buy
The AOC U2868PQU 4K monitor is available to purchase from Scan Computers*.
*UK-based HEXUS community members are eligible for free delivery and priority customer service through the SCAN.care@HEXUS forum.
