Over the years, through my many conversations with founder Pete Lau and others, it has become clear to me that OnePlus as a brand does not want to limit itself to the smartphone. In fact, the brand is heavily inspired by Apple in the way it looks at technology, as well as the ecosystem of devices that can be spawned by a single brand, gripping the user in a web of loyalty. And that is why OnePlus has added more devices to its bouquet over the years. And now it has come up with monitors to give its user another big screen experience. Here’s my experience using the top-notch OnePlus Monitor X27 over the past few days.
OnePlus Monitor X27 review
The OnePlus Monitor X27 is a 27-inch monitor aimed primarily at those who need to push the boundaries when it comes to gaming, and perhaps their professional life. I’m not a gamer, and whatever interest I had in gaming has been negated by the lack of time for anything fun in my life. So my intention was to see how an extra monitor can improve my work life and make me more productive.
The OnePlus Monitor X27 is quite easy to set up. It has a sturdy, but stylish design, as we are used to from OnePlus. The metal bar that sits on the square base holds the 27-inch monitor with ease and offers tilt, swivel, and full rotation. This means the monitor can be quickly turned vertically if needed, well managed by the multi-angle adjustable stand. This has to be one of the best performance monitor stands, especially for someone with such a large screen.
The OnePlus Monitor X27 has a sturdy, but stylish design, as we are used to from the company. (Image credit: Nandagopal Rajan / Indian Express)
The controls and ports are located on the bottom of the monitor and not behind it. The cables are easily tucked away, even though you don’t need many, as the USB-C option took care of most of my needs. Anyway, there are also HDMI and DP options for those who prefer those.
The controls felt a bit old-fashioned to me, as you have to engage the five buttons at the base to use the menu and change settings. I say old-fashioned because the decade-old 17-inch LG monitor in my other room works the same way. Both have a low success rate as it ends up being a bit of a game practice depending on a lot of hand-eye coordination. You can use the settings to change picture presets or simply select a custom color profile, enable HDR mode, improve response time or simply switch between the different inputs.
The controls felt a bit old-fashioned to me, as you have to engage the five buttons at the base to use the menu and change settings. (Image credit: Nandagopal Rajan / Indian Express)
The 2560x1440p (QHD) IPS panel with a brightness of 350 nits is stunning and sharp. This reminded me of OnePlus phone displays that have always been good, although never really talked about in the same breath as a Samsung.
Watching Apple TVs Emancipation the monitor, with its extra dark tones, made me wonder how monitor technology has evolved over the years. A few years ago, such a dark color composition would have resulted in a lot of ghosting, forcing you to turn off all the lights in the room and find the perfect angle. And then you realize that OnePlus is also a company that makes big screen televisions quite successfully and has clearly learned what it takes.
With the intention of courting gamers, the OnePlus Monitor X27 offers a refresh rate of up to 165Hz with a blazing fast 1ms response time with AMD Freesync Premium. However, my testing for games was mostly through the iMac and playing Apple Arcade games like Gear Club Straddle, whose cinematic graphics showed up really well on the monitor. This has all the makings to impress gamers and keep them hooked.
The OnePlus Monitor X27 offers a refresh rate of up to 165Hz with a blazingly fast 1ms response time with AMD Freesync Premium. (Image credit: Nandagopal Rajan / Indian Express)
But I told you I’m not a gamer. I had some ulterior motives behind wanting to test a monitor that could make a vertical screen with a 90-degree turn. I wanted this monitor to help me monitor my sites. See, running a website like Indian express. com, I always long for a better view of the home page, which is large in every way. A vertical screen gives me the ability to see a lot more of the home page at once, giving me a holistic view of what we’re offering our readers. The OnePlus Monitor X27 worked perfectly on this front, mainly because it could just flip the screen vertically and select the orientation in the extensive screen settings on the iMac. It’s never been easier.
A vertical screen gives me the ability to see much more of the home page in one view, giving me a holistic view of what we’re offering to readers. (Image credit: Nandagopal Rajan / Indian Express)
However, I found the monitor to be a bit sharp at times and I had to tone it down a bit in the settings. The monitor does not have a built-in speaker, but it does offer a 3.5mm jack. I also felt some heat at the bottom of the screen where the ports are located.
At Rs 27,999, the OnePlus Monitor X27 is the perfect extra screen for someone like me to get an extra edge in my professional life. It’s also a great option for gamers, even those like my son who are looking for a big screen for their Nintendo Switch games, who want a quick response that can make all the difference in their endeavors. Moreover, this is also perfect for consuming more content.
