Acer XV272U V Review: 1440p 170Hz 1ms FreeSync IPS Gaming Monitor

For a lot of gamers, 27″ 1440p high refresh rate IPS gaming monitors offer the ideal combination of specs. What’s more, these displays have become very affordable lately, but there’s a lot to choose from – here’s how the Acer XV272U V stacks up.

Note that the full name of this monitor is Acer Nitro XV272U Vbmiiprx.

Image Quality

The Acer XV272U V is based on an IPS panel by Innolux (M270KCJ-K7E), which has a wide 95% DCI-P3 gamut coverage for rich and saturated colors.

In the OSD (On-Screen Display) menu, you’ll find the Color Space option that can restrict the monitor’s native ~130% sRGB gamut size to ~100% sRGB, in case you prefer more neutral colors.

There are also other color space options, including Rec.709, HDR, EBU, DCI, SMPTE-C and ‘General’ – and none of them lock you out of brightness adjustment.

The monitor has professional-grade factory calibration at Delta E < 2, which along with the 178° wide viewing angles and excellent image consistency make it fit for color-critical work out of the box.

Next, the 1440p resolution suits 27″ sized displays very well. You get a pixel density of 108.79 PPI (pixels per inch), which results in plenty of screen real estate as well as sharp details and text without any scaling necessary. The resolution is also a lot less demanding to drive than 4K UHD, allowing for higher frame rates.

As expected from an IPS display, the static contrast ratio amounts to 1,000:1, so you won’t get as deep blacks as that of VA panels with a ~3,000:1 contrast ratio. Note, however, that VA displays at this price range have other drawbacks, including significantly slower response time speed and gamma/contrast shift.

IPS monitors also have ‘IPS glow’, which is another drawback of this panel technology characterized as visible glowing around the corners of the screen at certain viewing angles. It’s mainly noticeable when watching dark content in a dark room with a high brightness setting, so there are ways to mitigate it.

Related:What Is IPS Glow And How Can I Reduce It?

Now, the initial batch of Acer XV272UV monitors had an issue with peak brightness – it was limited to just around 200-nits, which a lot of users find too dim. The revised models have new firmware with a ‘Max Brightness’ setting in the OSD menu that allows the display to reach up to 350-nits, making it more than bright enough under normal lighting conditions.

Sadly, in case you get an old unit of the Acer XV272U V, you won’t be able to update the firmware yourself since the monitor has no USB ports. Given that this revision was over a year ago, the chances of getting an outdated unit are fairly small. Just in case, order from a retailer with a hassle-free return policy.

Alternatively, there’s the Acer Nitro XV272U KVbmiiprzx model, which is the same monitor as the XV272U V but with a USB hub, which would allow you to manually update the firmware. However, the XV272U KV variant is more expensive (from $30 to $185 extra, depending on the sale).

Lastly, the Acer XV272U V monitor supports HDR (High Dynamic Range) and has VESA’s basic DisplayHDR 400 certification. Due to the lack of proper HDR hardware, such as local dimming and much higher peak brightness, you’re not getting the true HDR viewing experience but barely a glimpse of it.

Thanks to the monitor’s wide color gamut and a small boost in HDR brightness to a bit above 400-nits, some HDR scenes might look better than SDR, but you’ll mostly prefer to have it disabled.

Performance

Moving on, the Acer XV272U V has three response time overdrive modes: Off, Normal and Extreme. The Extreme mode adds too much overshoot, so it can be ignored.

When using a variable refresh rate (VRR), the overdrive is locked to ‘Normal.’ At high refresh/frame rates, the Normal overdrive mode effectively prevents trailing behind fast-moving objects without adding any overshoot.

However, at low refresh rates, some overshoot is noticeable when using the Normal overdrive mode and since you cannot use ‘Off’ with VRR, you’ll have to choose between screen tearing and inverse ghosting at low FPS. The amount of overshoot is tolerable though, so most users should stick with VRR.

Input lag amounts to ~4ms, so you won’t be able to notice or feel any delays between your actions and the result on the screen.

While the Acer XV272U V doesn’t have official ‘G-SYNC Compatible’ certification, VRR works without issues with supported GPUs up to 170FPS.

The monitor also supports MBR (Motion Blur Reduction), which uses backlight strobing to reduce perceived motion blur at a cost of picture brightness. Acer calls their implementation VRB (Visual Response Boost) and it has two modes: Normal and Extreme with the latter offering smoother clarity at a higher brightness penalty.

Finally, the backlight of the monitor is flicker-free (unless VRB is enabled) and there’s an integrated low-blue light filter.

Features

At the rear of the monitor, there’s a directional joystick for quick and easy navigation through the OSD menu.

Noteworthy gaming features include crosshair overlays, Black Boost (improves visibility in dark scenes), a refresh rate tracker and various picture presets.

Besides the standard image adjustment tools (brightness, contrast, color temperature, aspect ratio, etc.), the Acer XV272U V also offers gamma settings, 6-axis hue/saturation, sharpness and Auto Source support.

Design & Connectivity

The stand of the monitor is fairly sturdy and offers a good range of ergonomics, including up to 110mm height adjustment, -5°/25° tilt, 360° swivel, +/- 90° pivot and 100x100mm VESA mount compatibility.

Next, the screen has a light matte anti-glare coating that prevents reflections without adding too much graininess to the picture.

Connectivity options include DisplayPort 1.2, two HDMI 2.0 ports (max 144Hz), a headphone jack and dual 2W built-in speakers.

Note that DisplayPort 1.2 is limited to 120Hz with 10-bit color depth. For the maximum 170Hz refresh rate, you’ll need to drop the color depth to 8-bit color. However, the difference between 8-bit and 10-bit color isn’t really noticeable in games – it’s mostly beneficial for color editing type of work as you get a bit smoother gradients.

1080p/1440p 120Hz console modes are supported too.

Price & Similar Monitors

The Acer XV272U V price ranges from $250 to $300.

There’s also the Acer XV272U KV variant, which is the same monitor but with a USB hub that goes for $280 – $435. Acer offers several 27″ 1440p high refresh rate IPS models with similar names:

Variant	XV272U P	XV272U V	XV272U KV	XV272U X	XV271U M3	XV272U RV
Panel	Innolux M270KCJ-K7B	Innolux M270KCJ-K7E	Innolux M270KCJ-K7E	AUO M270DAN08.0	AUO M270DAN08.D	AUO A.R.T.
Refresh Rate	144Hz	170Hz	170Hz	270Hz	180Hz	170Hz
Resolution	2560×1440	2560×1440	2560×1440	2560×1440	2560×1440	2560×1440
Color Gamut	95% DCI-P3	95% DCI-P3	95% DCI-P3	99% Adobe RGB	95% DCI-P3	95% DCI-P3
Response Time	4ms GtG	1ms GtG	1ms GtG	1ms GtG	0.5ms GtG	0.5ms GtG

We recommend getting the Acer XV271U M3 model since it can be found on sale for $200. Another good option is the KTC H27T22S – it has a tilt-only stand, but can be found on sale for just $150.

Alternatively, if you want proper HDR support, consider the AOC Q27G3XMN with a 336-zone mini LED FALD backlight and a fast flat-screen VA panel for ~$280.

To learn more about monitors and ensure you’re getting the model most suited for your personal preference, visit our comprehensive and always up-to-date best gaming monitor buyer’s guide.

Conclusion

All in all, the Acer XV272U V is an excellent gaming monitor, but there are better options available in this price range.

Specifications

Screen Size	27-inch
Resolution	2560×1440 (QHD)
Panel Type	IPS
Aspect Ratio	16:9 (Widescreen)
Refresh Rate	144Hz (170Hz OC)
Response Time (GtG)	0.5ms (GtG)
Visual Response Boost	1ms (MPRT)
Adaptive-Sync	FreeSync (48-170Hz)
Speakers	2x2W
Ports	DisplayPort 1.2, 2x HDMI 2.0
Other Ports	Headphone Jack
Brightness	350 cd/m²
Brightness (HDR)	400 cd/m²
Contrast Ratio	1000:1 (static)
Colors	1.07 billion (8-bit + FRC) 95% DCI-P3
HDR	DisplayHDR 400
VESA	Yes (100x100mm)