So for boxing day I was looking to get a 2K monitor to replace my BenQ FP241VW that is nearly 10yrs old...it still works but wanted to try something bigger.
Bought the BenQ 3200PT last boxing day at Bestbuy but it had noticeable banding issues so I returned it.
This time I bought both the Acer B326HUL and BenQ monitors (made sure I got a 2016 build date) from Staples and Bestbuy, respectively (in Canada).
I tried the Acer first as it is $200CAD cheaper right now, $420 vs $620 for the BenQ with tax here in Ontario. The Acer is actually listed at $400CAD on the staples website but when they rang it in, it was only $350, so a steal TBH. It was a March 2015 build date though, so I was worried about the banding and flickering issues that have plagued this panel. Turns out the banding and flickering was non-existent, colour uniformity was great, no backlight bleed or dark spots, and only one barely noticeable stuck pixel.
HOWEVER, the Acer is going to be returned. The reverse ghosting issue caused by the overdrive (which you can't turn off) means that it is terrible for any sort of browsing and I'm guessing productivity apps. Black text on a white background is the worst. I was able to diminish it somewhat by increasing the contrast to 100 but then lowering it in the AMD settings and turning down brightness just made the picture terrible in a couple of games I played. It was also easily visible dragging a Windows explorer window around...it was unbearable.
The BenQ 3200PT on the other hand was a July 2016 build date, so I assumed most issues were ironed out, and it looks like they are. No noticeable banding, no flickering, but a bit of a dark spot in the bottom middle right by the bezel, not that noticeable unless on a pure white background, and no dead/stuck pixels I can see. The overall quality and features of the monitor are definitely better than the Acer. And the overdrive can be turned off or reduced, so no inverse ghosting.
Whether it is worth $200 extra is debateable, but since I intend to keep this for at least 5 yrs (unless OLED monitors plummet in price), it's not so bad.
If anyone has any questions about the BenQ, fire away.
Bought the BenQ 3200PT last boxing day at Bestbuy but it had noticeable banding issues so I returned it.
This time I bought both the Acer B326HUL and BenQ monitors (made sure I got a 2016 build date) from Staples and Bestbuy, respectively (in Canada).
I tried the Acer first as it is $200CAD cheaper right now, $420 vs $620 for the BenQ with tax here in Ontario. The Acer is actually listed at $400CAD on the staples website but when they rang it in, it was only $350, so a steal TBH. It was a March 2015 build date though, so I was worried about the banding and flickering issues that have plagued this panel. Turns out the banding and flickering was non-existent, colour uniformity was great, no backlight bleed or dark spots, and only one barely noticeable stuck pixel.
HOWEVER, the Acer is going to be returned. The reverse ghosting issue caused by the overdrive (which you can't turn off) means that it is terrible for any sort of browsing and I'm guessing productivity apps. Black text on a white background is the worst. I was able to diminish it somewhat by increasing the contrast to 100 but then lowering it in the AMD settings and turning down brightness just made the picture terrible in a couple of games I played. It was also easily visible dragging a Windows explorer window around...it was unbearable.
The BenQ 3200PT on the other hand was a July 2016 build date, so I assumed most issues were ironed out, and it looks like they are. No noticeable banding, no flickering, but a bit of a dark spot in the bottom middle right by the bezel, not that noticeable unless on a pure white background, and no dead/stuck pixels I can see. The overall quality and features of the monitor are definitely better than the Acer. And the overdrive can be turned off or reduced, so no inverse ghosting.
Whether it is worth $200 extra is debateable, but since I intend to keep this for at least 5 yrs (unless OLED monitors plummet in price), it's not so bad.
If anyone has any questions about the BenQ, fire away.
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