HP M27ha Review: Budget 1080p IPS Monitor

The HP M27ha is a 27″ 1080p IPS monitor with an ergonomic stand and integrated speakers. Here’s what you need to know about it and how it compares to similarly priced alternatives.

Image Quality

Based on an IPS panel, the HP M27ha delivers wide viewing angles and consistent colors, meaning that the image will remain perfect with no prominent shifts in brightness, contrast, gamma, or color when watching the screen at skewed angles.

It supports 8-bit color depth for 16.7 million colors via dithering (6-bit + 2-bit FRC) and has a rated color gamut size of 72% NTSC, which is roughly equivalent to ~99% sRGB.

The sRGB gamut is used for most content on PC, including web content and non-HDR games. Now, the NTSC color space includes the entire sRGB gamut, so you’ll get fairly accurate and rich colors since there’s some extension beyond the sRGB gamut as well as some undercoverage.

The actual coverage of the sRGB color space amounts to around 95%, give or take 2-3% depending on the unit. The difference between 95% and 100% sRGB gamut coverage isn’t noticeable or crucial unless you’re doing color-critical work.

For gaming, watching videos, and other everyday uses, the colors are accurate enough and as expected from a monitor at this price range.

Moving on, the HP M27ha monitor has a peak brightness of 250-nits – this is the minimum when it comes to modern LED monitors, but it’s still enough under normal lighting conditions.

For most users, it will be too bright at the highest brightness setting unless you plan on using the monitor in a particularly bright room without any curtains.

The contrast ratio amounts to 1,000:1, which is standard for IPS panel monitors – so, blacks aren’t quite as deep as that of VA panels with around a 3,000:1 contrast ratio.

Further, IPS monitors suffer from IPS glow, which is characterized as visible ‘glowing’ around the corners of the screen. It’s mainly noticeable when watching dark content in a dark room, with high picture brightness.

So, if you prefer deep blacks and watching movies in a dark room, you might want to consider a VA monitor instead. However, they have other flaws, such as narrower viewing angles, not as consistent colors, and slower pixel response time.

Next, note that the 1920×1080 resolution results in a mediocre pixel density when displayed on a 27-inch monitor. You get 82 PPI (pixels per inch), so details and text won’t be as sharp as that of a 24″ 1080p monitor with 93 PPI.

For gaming and watching videos, the low pixel density won’t be an issue for most users, especially if sitting a bit further from the screen. However, if you read or type a lot of text, the sharper image of a 24″ 1080p monitor would most likely suit you better.

Performance

The HP M27ha has a native refresh rate of 60Hz, but since there are other monitors that use this panel and have a 75Hz refresh rate, you should be able to set it to 75Hz by overclocking and using a custom resolution.

This will provide you with a subtle but noticeable boost in motion clarity in fast-paced games, as long as you get over 60FPS.

Input lag amounts to around 10ms, so you won’t be able to notice or feel any delays between your actions and the result on the screen.

Sadly, the monitor doesn’t support Adaptive-Sync or FreeSync, so you don’t get a variable refresh rate as a means to prevent screen tearing.

This technology is usually available on budget monitors at this price range at no additional cost, so if you want tear-free gameplay and have a compatible GPU, consider one of the alternatives we’ll mention below.

With a pixel response time speed of 5ms GtG, the HP M27ha IPS monitor is capable of eliminating prominent trailing behind fast-moving objects. So, there won’t be any eye-catching ghosting artifacts, even in first-person shooters.

Of course, if you want a really smooth gaming experience, you can actually get a 144Hz gaming monitor at this price range for a significant improvement in overall responsiveness.

Features

Since it doesn’t use PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation) to regulate brightness, the HP M27ha is completely flicker-free. So, those sensitive to flicker don’t have to worry about getting headaches after using the screen for a long time.

It also has an integrated low-blue light filter with three different modes, including a certified ‘Low Blue Light’ preset, ‘Reading’, and ‘Night.’

Other features include standard image adjustment tools, such as brightness, contrast, color temperature, etc.

The OSD (On-Screen Display) menu is well-organized and easy to use via the four hotkeys found on the right side of the monitor beneath the bottom bezel.

Design & Connectivity

The stand of the monitor is sturdy and offers a good range of ergonomics, including up to 100mm height adjustment, -5°/23° tilt, 90° pivot and 100x100mm VESA mount compatibility, but no swivel to the left/right option.

Connectivity options include DisplayPort 1.2, HDMI 1.4, VGA, and an audio line-in port for the two integrated 2W speakers.

The screen has a matte anti-glare coating that prevents reflections and thanks to its ultra-thin bezels, the HP M27ha is a good option for seamless multi-monitor setups.

Price & Similar Monitors

The HP M27ha price ranges from $155 to $250. At $155, it’s one of the cheapest 27″ 1080p IPS monitors with an ergonomic stand and built-in speakers.

We recommend the newer HP M27h model instead for $130 – $160. It has support for AMD FreeSync up to 75Hz, and since it also has a DisplayPort input, it allows you to use variable refresh rate with compatible (GTX 10-series or newer) NVIDIA GPUs within the 48-75Hz range.

If you’re looking for something similar, check out the Acer CB272 (~$155 – $190). It supports AMD FreeSync up to 75Hz for tear-free gameplay and its stand allows for swivel adjustment.

For the best 144Hz gaming models, check out our best monitors under $150 buyer’s guide.

Conclusion

If you’re looking for an inexpensive monitor for everyday use, casual gaming and watching videos, the HP M27ha is a solid option (for $155) with an ergonomic stand and built-in speakers. However, we also highly recommend checking out the above-mentioned alternatives to ensure you’re getting the best monitor for you.

Specifications

Screen Size	27-inch
Resolution	1920×1080 (Full HD)
Panel Type	IPS
Aspect Ratio	16:9 (Widescreen)
Refresh Rate	60Hz
Response Time	5ms (GtG)
Speakers	2x2W
Ports	DisplayPort 1.2, HDMI 1.4, VGA
Brightness	250 cd/m²
Contrast Ratio	1000:1 (static)
Colors	16.7 million (6-bit + FRC)
VESA	Yes (100x100mm)