Dell U2718Q Review: 27-inch 4K HDR10 IPS Monitor

The Dell U2718Q is a solid 27" 4K IPS monitor for color editing and professional work, but it lacks certain display capabilities for a decent HDR image.

Bottom Line

The Dell UP2718Q is a premium 27″ 4K IPS monitor for color editing and professional use, but its great input lag and response time performance make it viable for gaming as well. HDR performance, on the other hand, is underwhelming.

Design:
(5.0)
Display:
(4.0)
Performance:
(3.5)
Price/Value:
(3.0)
3.9

The Dell UltraSharp U2718Q is a 27″ 4K IPS monitor, which is mainly intended for content creators. Due to its quick response time speed and low input lag, it’s also an awesome option for casual gaming. 

While it does support HDR10 (High Dynamic Range), it lacks color gamut, brightness, and contrast, which would make the HDR viewing experience notably better.

The Dell U2718Q is not to be confused with the Dell UP2718Q, which has a much brighter image, higher contrast, and wider color gamut for the true HDR viewing experience.

Image Quality

Based on an IPS panel with 10-bit color support (8-bit + FRC), the Dell U2718Q delivers vibrant, consistent, and accurate colors.

Moreover, it’s factory-calibrated to Delta E  < 2 and covers 99.9% of the sRGB color space, making it an adequate display for professional color-critical work.

Its IPS panel also ensures wide 178-degree viewing angles, a notable 1,300:1 static contrast ratio, and a quick 5ms pixel transition speed for minimal ghosting of moving objects across the screen.

Furthermore, 4K Ultra HD resolution ensures an incredibly crisp and mesmeric picture quality with vivid details and plenty of screen real estate.

Overall, the image quality is stunning, as expected of Dell’s 4K IPS monitor at this price range. It’s only when we get to HDR that things start to turn south.

Note that you will need to download and install the following firmware update for optimal image quality if it’s not pre-applied out of the box.

HDR

While the Dell U2718Q monitor can accept the HDR10 signal, it lacks proper display capabilities to actually improve the viewing experience.

For a noticeable improvement in the image quality, an HDR monitor should be able to deliver at least a 400-nit peak brightness (preferably 600 or 1,000) and cover at least 90% of the DCI-P3 color gamut.

In contrast, the Dell U2718Q has a peak brightness of 350-nits and only covers the standard sRGB color gamut meaning that its HDR is software-emulated. Some games might look slightly better, but most of the time, you’ll just get oversaturated colors.

The monitor is still a great display due to its accurate colors, 4K resolution, premium design, and smooth performance, but don’t buy it just for the sake of HDR.

Performance

The Dell U2718Q input lag measures to only ~9ms for both HDR and SDR (Standard Dynamic Range) content, which makes it suitable for competitive gaming that is if you don’t mind being limited to 60Hz.

Additionally, the response time speed of only 5ms effectively eliminates the motion blur of fast-moving objects in video games and movies.

So, if you’re a professional designer who also likes to play video games casually, the Dell U2718Q is definitely for you.

Moving on, the monitor uses PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) to regulate brightness, so if you are over-sensitive to screen flicker, you may experience eye strain or headaches after prolonged use.

Features

All display connectors of the Dell U2718Q support HDCP 2.2. So, you can watch copy-protected content in 4K on Blu-rays and streaming services such as Netflix on the monitor.

In the OSD (On-Screen Display), you will find the following settings: contrast, brightness, aspect ratio, sharpness, color format, color temperature, input source selection, RGB, hue, and saturation.

To enable HDR, check the ‘Smart HDR’ setting in the OSD menu. You will also find the ‘Response Time’ setting, but we recommend leaving it at the ‘Normal’ option.

Finally, there are several preset modes available, including ComfortView, which filters out the harmful blue lights. There is no Picture in Picture and Picture By Picture modes available, though.

Design & Connectivity

dell u2718q amazon

The Dell U2718Q 27″ 4K IPS monitor features a premium design with full ergonomic support including up to 130mm of height adjustment, -/+ 45° swivel, -5°/20° tilt, 90° pivot, and 100 x 100mm VESA mount compatibility.

Connectivity includes HDMI 2.0a, DisplayPort 1.2, mini-DisplayPort 1.2, a headphones jack, and a quad-USB 3.0 hub. Keep in mind that only the HDMI port supports HDR.

Price & Similar Monitors

The price for the Dell U2718Q 4K monitor is usually around $460. We recommend getting a newer monitor for color-critical work with a flicker-free backlight instead. Visit our best photo/video editing monitors buyer’s guide for more deals and information.

Specifications

Screen Size27-inch
Resolution3840×2160 (UHD)
Panel TypeIPS
Aspect Ratio16:9 (Widescreen)
Refresh Rate60Hz
Response Time5ms (GtG)
PortsDisplayPort 1.2, mini-DisplayPort 1.2, HDMI 2.0a
Other Ports4x USB 3.0, Headphone Jack
Brightness350 cd/m2
Contrast Ratio1300:1 (static)
Colors1.07 billion (8-bit + FRC)
VESAYes (100x100mm)

The Pros:

  • Factory-calibrated precise colors
  • Full ergonomic support
  • Quick response time and low input lag
  • Extensive connectivity options

The Cons:

  • Software-emulated HDR only
  • No AMD FreeSync
  • Not flicker-free

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Joseph Moore

Joseph has probably spent thousands of hours learning about displays in his free time and prior work experience at HP. He now writes and manages DisplayNinja to ensure it stays as the people's favorite resource.