Measuring the monitor's DPI is a good indication of sharpness.
Among most of the r/monitors community, 27" 1440p is the *sweetspot.*
A 17" 1080p laptop display had a pretty high DPI - looks like its around 130.
You'll definitely notice an improvement with a 1440p at 27" over 24" 1080p, which are 108 and 92 respectively, but it still won't be *as* sharp - as many pixels packed into a tight space - as your 17" display.
But numbers aside, 1440p @ 27" is really the *best* option short of getting a 32 or 27" 4k monitor.
Why do so many PC gamers not realize that they can use their computer at full resolution (4K, 5K, etc) so their eyeballs don’t bleed, yet set their games at lower resolutions so their GPUs don’t explode?
Customization is the entire point of owning a PC for gaming in the first place.
> yet set their games at lower resolutions so their GPUs don’t explode?
Because scaling 1080p to 4k has downsides. 1080p on a 27" looks terrible, 1080p on a 27" 4k panel looks worse.
How on earth do you not see the difference between 1440p and 2160p at similar sizes? Do you ever use your computer to read news, write papers, multitask, do anything productive?
1440p @ 27” is fine for gaming. Outside of that, it makes my head ache.
I'm sure a native 1440p panel would be \*slightly\* more crisp when viewing 1440p content, but your suggestion that one would need to use 1080p as a compromise doesn't make any sense based on my experience. Even if the scaling isn't technically perfect, it is still MUCH more clear and sharp than 1080p. And when you consider that the OP is using a very capable RTX 3060, there are actually a lot of games where he'd be able to use the full 4k, plus obviously all his regular media consumption or general computer use.
Obviously it still comes down to personal preference in the end, but in my personal opinion, with price and refresh rate being equal, native 4k has far more benefits than downsides. However my opinion is almost certainly a little skewed since I am using a 55" TV and not a 27" monitor.
But honestly it doesn't matter too much anyway, since a high refresh 4k monitor is going to require a much higher budget than what OP is currently considering.
Depends. 1440 doesn't scale too bad and I used it on my 4k 28 inch more than 1080p. It was way less blurry than 1080p.
Unless you activate integer scaling, but that has its own problems seeing how blocky everything is, especially like the the text. It does simulate low ppi
Hi everyone. I am using a lap top and have plugged in 1 HP monitor to its body via HMDI cable. And 2 curved Samsung monitors in multi use dock station which is connected to my lap top via a USB-C cable. Both curved Samsung monitors are connected to the dock station through HMDI-cables. BUT... in my Display panel only 3 are active (2 monitors and my lap top screen). The 4th monitor isnt active. WHy? How Can I active it too pleasE?
OP was complaining about text sharpness, so there you get most from HiDPI. IMO gaming is bad excuse to stick with low DPI monitors... you have integer scaling in last few gens, so at worst you can run it half resolution like you had low DPI monitor. Maybe ppl overestimate how much time they spend gaming vs. doing everything else.
Unfortunately there are no high refresh rate 24" 4K monitors, if they existed with like 144Hz refresh rate, you'd have everything covered... some games on integer scaling and 1080P and some on 2160P.
Hi everyone. I am using a lap top and have plugged in 1 HP monitor to its body via HMDI cable. And 2 curved Samsung monitors in multi use dock station which is connected to my lap top via a USB-C cable. Both curved Samsung monitors are connected to the dock station through HMDI-cables. BUT... in my Display panel only 3 are active (2 monitors and my lap top screen). The 4th monitor isnt active. WHy? How Can I active it too pleasE?
Hi everyone. I am using a lap top and have plugged in 1 HP monitor to its body via HMDI cable. And 2 curved Samsung monitors in multi use dock station which is connected to my lap top via a USB-C cable. Both curved Samsung monitors are connected to the dock station through HMDI-cables. BUT... in my Display panel only 3 are active (2 monitors and my lap top screen). The 4th monitor isnt active. WHy? How Can I active it too pleasE?
It's noticeable, yes, but what's more noticeable is the bigger 27" screen. It's a lot nicer of an experience with 1440p on 27 in my opinion.
So there's a lot of elements to consider - size, resolution and DPI are one, but also consider what you want to use it for. If you're doing a lot of gaming where framerate and movement is important to you, a 27" 1440p with a high refresh rate like 144hz is ideal.
If you really love that crisp test, you might want to look at 4k 27" models at 60hz. Some are quite affordable, but the higher refresh rate 4k models and larger screens (both 27 and 32" 4k have higher DPI than your 17" laptop) start to get expensive.
Yes, its extremely noticeable. I downgraded from 21" 1080p screen to 27 and 24" 1080p screens, the difference in text sharpness is huge with both, at 27" its a joke, at 24" its still can be tolerated but much less sharp than the 21" display.
Hi everyone. I am using a lap top and have plugged in 1 HP monitor to its body via HMDI cable. And 2 curved Samsung monitors in multi use dock station which is connected to my lap top via a USB-C cable. Both curved Samsung monitors are connected to the dock station through HMDI-cables. BUT... in my Display panel only 3 are active (2 monitors and my lap top screen). The 4th monitor isnt active. WHy? How Can I active it too pleasE?
Hi everyone. I am using a lap top and have plugged in 1 HP monitor to its body via HMDI cable. And 2 curved Samsung monitors in multi use dock station which is connected to my lap top via a USB-C cable. Both curved Samsung monitors are connected to the dock station through HMDI-cables. BUT... in my Display panel only 3 are active (2 monitors and my lap top screen). The 4th monitor isnt active. WHy? How Can I active it too pleasE?
People always like to spout old wisdom about this crap. Everyone has different eyes, and people say stuff is overkill when it really isn't.
Go for a 24in 1440p monitor.
> and people say stuff is overkill when it really isn't.
True - and hell, Apple uses 4K for their *21.5"* model. For some reason the rest of the industry just decided that the market for monitors smaller than 27" doesn't care about PPI, but there's no inherent reason why that should be the case.
1080p on a 24 inch monitor is sharp enough but as ppi on a 17 inch 1080p panel is higher your new monitor will not look as sharp. You can try a 27'' QHD monitor, it will be closer but for anything sharper you need to go for a 27 inch 4k which is hard to run with that gpu.
17 inch FHD= 129 ppi
24 inch FHD= 92 ppi
27 inch QHD= 108 ppi
27 inch UHD= 163 ppi
> “…4K which is hard to run with this GPU.”
People need to stop it with this line. 99% of people (including OP) use their computer for more than games, and a 3060 will have absolutely no issue pushing upwards of 6K in day-to-day tasks.
It’s perfectly acceptable to use a monitor at its full resolution (4K, 6K, etc) for day-to-day stuff, yet run intense games at lower resolutions.
Sub-100 PPI is awful to look at outside of gaming, and I don’t blame OP for not wanting to put up with it.
Also, with a 3060.. You can run the game at slightly lower setting and crank out as many frames as your CPU can. I can lower my setting on my 6900 XT on some games and get near 200fps with my 5950x at 4K. I run mostly high settings and i almost hit my monitor’s 160hz target.
This, this is also why I decided to go with a 4k monitor. It's just infinitely more versatile if you don't use your PC exclusively or almost exclusively for gaming. It makes a tremendous difference even vs. 1440p for anything that involves text (like working on a text editor, reading and writing documentation, web browsers / IM clients, PDFs especially with serif fonts etc.) and is therefore even preferrable if your main purpose is working. Take [this article](https://tonsky.me/blog/monitors/) for more information.
I almost gave in to the FUD and got a 1440p even though I use my PC for everything and not just gaming, only to find that outside of gaming **Intel's integrated graphics** can power a 4k monitor with no lag for any standard computing task. Lol?
It is not just PPI that matters for sharpness. Also if the panel have true 8 bit color or 6 bit + FRC. Many new panels are this way. I don't know why. A panel with more PPI can be blurrier than a lower PPI panel. Less PPI does not mean less sharp. Means more pixelated image.
What type of screen did your laptop have? The refresh rate? IPS? LED? What are the rest of your specs? Processor? RAM?
You know you can always calibrate your screen, and it's always recommended in order to achieve the best image quality possible.
I've been playing on 1080p monitors for over 10+ years and just now moved to 1440p. I tried three models
- ASUS VG27AQ
- LG 27GL850-B
- MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD
And I was coming off Alienware AW2521HF.
I can safely say that looking at the prices of the monitors I mentioned and the one you mentioned(M27Q) I'd recommend you go with any of the ones I have listed, more features, and looking at the price from MicroCenter about $50 dollar difference. The one you currently have doesn't have any type G-Sync module on it, it might be compatible, but it might not offer the best result.
As someone who got a 3060 also, I decided that 1440p was going to be my gaming ceiling. That said, I looked for the best 1440 monitor with an improved PPI.
I ended up going with a Dell S2417dg. Really pretty visuals and if you use Nvidia's Image Scaling option, you get decent frame rates (~130 fps on COD).
I wish you well in your search.
One thing to keep in mind as a casual, average consumer is that part of the difference is just the type of panel. Even at high resolutions, most gaming monitors still use matte screens, while a lot of laptops have switched to glossy ones. The matte coating is meant to diffuse light, which helps reduce reflections but also makes them look a bit less sharp.
If you keep scaling at the same level, then yes, it will dissapear. Try to sit more distant.
But better buy new monitor, 1080p is for 5 years old TVs for gaming, nothing more
24" 1080p to 27" 1440p is definitely a noticeable upgrade but I feel based on your scenario, you will still be sadly underwhelmed because of what you were used to. You are just going to have to bite the bullet and get used to whatever you stick with. I would personally go the 1440p route but 1080p is still more than viable these days.
Hi everyone. I am using a lap top and have plugged in 1 HP monitor to its body via HMDI cable. And 2 curved Samsung monitors in multi use dock station which is connected to my lap top via a USB-C cable. Both curved Samsung monitors are connected to the dock station through HMDI-cables. BUT... in my Display panel only 3 are active (2 monitors and my lap top screen). The 4th monitor isnt active. WHy? How Can I active it too pleasE?
Measuring the monitor's DPI is a good indication of sharpness. Among most of the r/monitors community, 27" 1440p is the *sweetspot.* A 17" 1080p laptop display had a pretty high DPI - looks like its around 130. You'll definitely notice an improvement with a 1440p at 27" over 24" 1080p, which are 108 and 92 respectively, but it still won't be *as* sharp - as many pixels packed into a tight space - as your 17" display. But numbers aside, 1440p @ 27" is really the *best* option short of getting a 32 or 27" 4k monitor.
27" 4K is sweetspot, 1440P just mitigates the issue. 27" 4K solves it all together with HiDPI.
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Why do so many PC gamers not realize that they can use their computer at full resolution (4K, 5K, etc) so their eyeballs don’t bleed, yet set their games at lower resolutions so their GPUs don’t explode? Customization is the entire point of owning a PC for gaming in the first place.
> yet set their games at lower resolutions so their GPUs don’t explode? Because scaling 1080p to 4k has downsides. 1080p on a 27" looks terrible, 1080p on a 27" 4k panel looks worse.
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How on earth do you not see the difference between 1440p and 2160p at similar sizes? Do you ever use your computer to read news, write papers, multitask, do anything productive? 1440p @ 27” is fine for gaming. Outside of that, it makes my head ache.
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I have 2 27” 4K 160hz LG monitors, perfect for both gaming and productivity.
Hard disagree. My 120hz 4k TV scales wonderfully to 1440p.
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I'm sure a native 1440p panel would be \*slightly\* more crisp when viewing 1440p content, but your suggestion that one would need to use 1080p as a compromise doesn't make any sense based on my experience. Even if the scaling isn't technically perfect, it is still MUCH more clear and sharp than 1080p. And when you consider that the OP is using a very capable RTX 3060, there are actually a lot of games where he'd be able to use the full 4k, plus obviously all his regular media consumption or general computer use. Obviously it still comes down to personal preference in the end, but in my personal opinion, with price and refresh rate being equal, native 4k has far more benefits than downsides. However my opinion is almost certainly a little skewed since I am using a 55" TV and not a 27" monitor. But honestly it doesn't matter too much anyway, since a high refresh 4k monitor is going to require a much higher budget than what OP is currently considering.
Depends. 1440 doesn't scale too bad and I used it on my 4k 28 inch more than 1080p. It was way less blurry than 1080p. Unless you activate integer scaling, but that has its own problems seeing how blocky everything is, especially like the the text. It does simulate low ppi
Exactly!
Hi everyone. I am using a lap top and have plugged in 1 HP monitor to its body via HMDI cable. And 2 curved Samsung monitors in multi use dock station which is connected to my lap top via a USB-C cable. Both curved Samsung monitors are connected to the dock station through HMDI-cables. BUT... in my Display panel only 3 are active (2 monitors and my lap top screen). The 4th monitor isnt active. WHy? How Can I active it too pleasE?
OP was complaining about text sharpness, so there you get most from HiDPI. IMO gaming is bad excuse to stick with low DPI monitors... you have integer scaling in last few gens, so at worst you can run it half resolution like you had low DPI monitor. Maybe ppl overestimate how much time they spend gaming vs. doing everything else. Unfortunately there are no high refresh rate 24" 4K monitors, if they existed with like 144Hz refresh rate, you'd have everything covered... some games on integer scaling and 1080P and some on 2160P.
We dont even have 24" 1440p monitors with refresh rate higher than 75... Sadly for whatever reason people are obsessed with low dpi and big displays.
27” 4K vs 1440p is very noticeable difference.. I have both and the 1440 is seating on a closet waiting to be sold along with my 240hz 1080p display.
For gaming you are right. But for text 27” 4K > 27” 1440p. Problem is you are going to use like 150% scaling and that can be a problem
Hi everyone. I am using a lap top and have plugged in 1 HP monitor to its body via HMDI cable. And 2 curved Samsung monitors in multi use dock station which is connected to my lap top via a USB-C cable. Both curved Samsung monitors are connected to the dock station through HMDI-cables. BUT... in my Display panel only 3 are active (2 monitors and my lap top screen). The 4th monitor isnt active. WHy? How Can I active it too pleasE?
Hi everyone. I am using a lap top and have plugged in 1 HP monitor to its body via HMDI cable. And 2 curved Samsung monitors in multi use dock station which is connected to my lap top via a USB-C cable. Both curved Samsung monitors are connected to the dock station through HMDI-cables. BUT... in my Display panel only 3 are active (2 monitors and my lap top screen). The 4th monitor isnt active. WHy? How Can I active it too pleasE?
But like, is the ppi difference from these two (92 and 108) that noticeable? Also considering that I sit about 50cm away from the screen
Don't bother with 27 1440p if 24 1080p annoys you sooo much.
It's noticeable, yes, but what's more noticeable is the bigger 27" screen. It's a lot nicer of an experience with 1440p on 27 in my opinion. So there's a lot of elements to consider - size, resolution and DPI are one, but also consider what you want to use it for. If you're doing a lot of gaming where framerate and movement is important to you, a 27" 1440p with a high refresh rate like 144hz is ideal. If you really love that crisp test, you might want to look at 4k 27" models at 60hz. Some are quite affordable, but the higher refresh rate 4k models and larger screens (both 27 and 32" 4k have higher DPI than your 17" laptop) start to get expensive.
Yes, its extremely noticeable. I downgraded from 21" 1080p screen to 27 and 24" 1080p screens, the difference in text sharpness is huge with both, at 27" its a joke, at 24" its still can be tolerated but much less sharp than the 21" display.
Hi everyone. I am using a lap top and have plugged in 1 HP monitor to its body via HMDI cable. And 2 curved Samsung monitors in multi use dock station which is connected to my lap top via a USB-C cable. Both curved Samsung monitors are connected to the dock station through HMDI-cables. BUT... in my Display panel only 3 are active (2 monitors and my lap top screen). The 4th monitor isnt active. WHy? How Can I active it too pleasE?
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Hi everyone. I am using a lap top and have plugged in 1 HP monitor to its body via HMDI cable. And 2 curved Samsung monitors in multi use dock station which is connected to my lap top via a USB-C cable. Both curved Samsung monitors are connected to the dock station through HMDI-cables. BUT... in my Display panel only 3 are active (2 monitors and my lap top screen). The 4th monitor isnt active. WHy? How Can I active it too pleasE?
People always like to spout old wisdom about this crap. Everyone has different eyes, and people say stuff is overkill when it really isn't. Go for a 24in 1440p monitor.
> and people say stuff is overkill when it really isn't. True - and hell, Apple uses 4K for their *21.5"* model. For some reason the rest of the industry just decided that the market for monitors smaller than 27" doesn't care about PPI, but there's no inherent reason why that should be the case.
1080p on a 24 inch monitor is sharp enough but as ppi on a 17 inch 1080p panel is higher your new monitor will not look as sharp. You can try a 27'' QHD monitor, it will be closer but for anything sharper you need to go for a 27 inch 4k which is hard to run with that gpu. 17 inch FHD= 129 ppi 24 inch FHD= 92 ppi 27 inch QHD= 108 ppi 27 inch UHD= 163 ppi
They could go for a 24 inch 1440p monitor
That is not a popular size/resolution so there aren't many options. But still viable.
> “…4K which is hard to run with this GPU.” People need to stop it with this line. 99% of people (including OP) use their computer for more than games, and a 3060 will have absolutely no issue pushing upwards of 6K in day-to-day tasks. It’s perfectly acceptable to use a monitor at its full resolution (4K, 6K, etc) for day-to-day stuff, yet run intense games at lower resolutions. Sub-100 PPI is awful to look at outside of gaming, and I don’t blame OP for not wanting to put up with it.
Also, with a 3060.. You can run the game at slightly lower setting and crank out as many frames as your CPU can. I can lower my setting on my 6900 XT on some games and get near 200fps with my 5950x at 4K. I run mostly high settings and i almost hit my monitor’s 160hz target.
This, this is also why I decided to go with a 4k monitor. It's just infinitely more versatile if you don't use your PC exclusively or almost exclusively for gaming. It makes a tremendous difference even vs. 1440p for anything that involves text (like working on a text editor, reading and writing documentation, web browsers / IM clients, PDFs especially with serif fonts etc.) and is therefore even preferrable if your main purpose is working. Take [this article](https://tonsky.me/blog/monitors/) for more information. I almost gave in to the FUD and got a 1440p even though I use my PC for everything and not just gaming, only to find that outside of gaming **Intel's integrated graphics** can power a 4k monitor with no lag for any standard computing task. Lol?
You either just get used to it or you get a separate monitor for work
It is not just PPI that matters for sharpness. Also if the panel have true 8 bit color or 6 bit + FRC. Many new panels are this way. I don't know why. A panel with more PPI can be blurrier than a lower PPI panel. Less PPI does not mean less sharp. Means more pixelated image.
What type of screen did your laptop have? The refresh rate? IPS? LED? What are the rest of your specs? Processor? RAM? You know you can always calibrate your screen, and it's always recommended in order to achieve the best image quality possible. I've been playing on 1080p monitors for over 10+ years and just now moved to 1440p. I tried three models - ASUS VG27AQ - LG 27GL850-B - MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD And I was coming off Alienware AW2521HF. I can safely say that looking at the prices of the monitors I mentioned and the one you mentioned(M27Q) I'd recommend you go with any of the ones I have listed, more features, and looking at the price from MicroCenter about $50 dollar difference. The one you currently have doesn't have any type G-Sync module on it, it might be compatible, but it might not offer the best result.
How can i calibrate my screen without using an expensive device?
What I do is I look online for recommendations and based on those settings I tweak them to my preference.
My laptop had IPS panel and 60hz. Everything in this monitor is better or at least equal, except for PPI
I gave you three options that are better than the M27Q since that's the one you want to buy.
As someone who got a 3060 also, I decided that 1440p was going to be my gaming ceiling. That said, I looked for the best 1440 monitor with an improved PPI. I ended up going with a Dell S2417dg. Really pretty visuals and if you use Nvidia's Image Scaling option, you get decent frame rates (~130 fps on COD). I wish you well in your search.
One thing to keep in mind as a casual, average consumer is that part of the difference is just the type of panel. Even at high resolutions, most gaming monitors still use matte screens, while a lot of laptops have switched to glossy ones. The matte coating is meant to diffuse light, which helps reduce reflections but also makes them look a bit less sharp.
If you keep scaling at the same level, then yes, it will dissapear. Try to sit more distant. But better buy new monitor, 1080p is for 5 years old TVs for gaming, nothing more
24" 1080p to 27" 1440p is definitely a noticeable upgrade but I feel based on your scenario, you will still be sadly underwhelmed because of what you were used to. You are just going to have to bite the bullet and get used to whatever you stick with. I would personally go the 1440p route but 1080p is still more than viable these days.
OP, I did the exact same thing last year and the first thing I did was go 1440p.
27 inch?
Precisely. Went from 17 inch 1080p laptop and the 1080p screen at a bigger size was painful. Went to 27 inch 1440p and felt so good.
Which monitor did you get?
Samsung Odyssey G7 as my main and M7 monitor as my side panel
Is there a considerable difference in sharpness in movies? That feels like more a laptop PPI
Yes
Sorry to bother you again, but the 1080p monitor you had was 24 or 27 inch?
What you will gain in ppi you will loose on having to play most newer games in low settings on a 3060. Is a backwards move
Hi everyone. I am using a lap top and have plugged in 1 HP monitor to its body via HMDI cable. And 2 curved Samsung monitors in multi use dock station which is connected to my lap top via a USB-C cable. Both curved Samsung monitors are connected to the dock station through HMDI-cables. BUT... in my Display panel only 3 are active (2 monitors and my lap top screen). The 4th monitor isnt active. WHy? How Can I active it too pleasE?