DELL 2022 New Monitor U2723QX Unboxing Blind Test

Whether or not you have style, first get all the proper formalities in place. Let me also start with a brief introduction, learning from the great masters—let's call it 'written at the beginning.'

1. A Note Before We Begin

As someone who works with keyboards, I browsed all kinds of reviews, and in the end I picked a Keychron K1 (京造 K1). It's passable for the price. I haven't had the chance to try those luxury keyboards costing thousands. A few years ago, when JD.com still allowed unboxing and returning, I tried an HHKB. Watching this notorious bug-creator with its various keycap materials tap away on two-thousand-plus switches, it does feel a bit excessive. Of course, this is a display review post—why am I suddenly talking about keyboards? Just because I want to say: a workman must first sharpen his tools. Adding an external display to a laptop means the built-in keyboard can no longer be used, which is why the K1 came along.

Low-profile switches, white backlight, USB-C charging, 87 keys — for someone like me who can only handle ctrl-c/ctrl-v and has even adapted to that awful MacBook butterfly keyboard, this is more than enough. The similar Keychron (京造) wired + Bluetooth dual-mode keyboards are the K1 and K1SE (I can't quite remember, ask the after-sales小姐姐). The difference is that the K1 has a full metal bottom, while the SE is plastic; the SE is a bit thinner, and supposedly has better Bluetooth signal (I don't have an 800-square-meter mansion, so I have no idea why the keyboard and screen that close would need a stronger signal). Also, the SE has a two-stage kickstand, while the K1 can only lie flat. As for feel, having a physical ESC is a dream — no more bowing my head through a thousand pages to find it for :w in Vim, and the Enter key goes clack-clack-clack, completely dominating the vibe.

A side note: I also bought a 84-key K3 at the time. It's a bit short, propped on top of the MacBook, with the left and right edges just barely aligned—it actually looks quite nice. There used to be a laptop from a certain brand with a similar layout, where home/end sat next to |; for those of us who pipe one command after another, it's very easy to hit by mistake. And it's not very friendly with the larger trackpad and touch-bar versions of the MacBook. For a perfectionist like me, once the keyboard's edges align with the original one, it's very easy to press on the space bar. Pull it back a bit, and it takes up trackpad space. Although the keyboard is optimized for macOS and comes with full-featured Fn keys, I'm still used to adjusting the volume via the touch bar, which feels awkward. So I returned it under the seven-day no-questions-asked policy.

Speaking of the U2723QX, one has to mention the previous generation's counterpart from DELL, the U2720QM. Apart from the price, which is unlikely to drop much, the specs and reputation can be called the ceiling for 4K monitors under 4000 RMB. Compared with the older generation, here is a brief summary of the spec improvements.

On the interface side, the two USB ports on the left side of the old model (one Type-A and one Type-C) have been moved to the lower-left, facing the screen. Although cable management may seem easier, you inevitably have to practice the Nine-Yin Bone-Shrinking technique, sticking your head under the screen to find the ports, which slightly reduces convenience. As for the RJ45, the MacBook recognizes it as a USB 10/100/1000 Mbps network adapter; for offices with poor wireless signal, it might not be a bad choice.

The panel was switched from IPS to IPS Black; the contrast ratio jumped directly from 1300:1 to 2000:1. The old version is said to have a BOE panel, and I'm not a professional—I don't care whether the new one is from LG or not. I heard the black is more pure; what a shame—the night gave me black eyes, yet I want to see the kaleidoscopic HDR400.

Furthermore, brightness has gone from 350 nits to 400; while it still falls short of Apple's 500, it is an improvement.

II. Unboxing

Before that, let me talk about JD's packaging—they just wrap a layer of plastic wrap around the original cardboard box. When it arrived, all four corners were crushed through. I couldn't even be bothered to leave a bad review. The previous AOC monitor came the same way, so I let it go.

Speaking of DELL's packaging design, it's a bit more user-friendly than AOC's. AOC uses foam plastic, with the monitor and accessories sandwiched between two layers of foam, and the opening on the cardboard box (imagine something like a toilet tank's structure)—you have to figure out how to pull the whole foam assembly out of the box body, then you can lift the top layer for assembly (a 27-inch screen still has some weight). In contrast, DELL has a side opening; apart from the few plastic sheets protecting the screen, almost everything is recyclable. Open the package: the top layer is the cables, lift that layer, then comes the screen, with a self-assembly instruction manual—simple, clear, easy to operate. There's also a factory color calibration sheet; as a non-professional, I won't say anything more, but it actually makes it look more professional.

I can't help but mention AOC one more time: following normal logic, when you remove the accessories on top of the screen for assembly, the screen is face-up — in other words, the stand's mounting hardware isn't exposed in a visible position. You have to manually flip the screen over, then attach the stand. During this operation, if the screen accidentally hits something hard, it may be damaged. In contrast, with DELL, in the normal procedure you don't need to change the screen's orientation — the stand is already on top; you just peel off the plastic packaging, and the stand is installed, all in one step.

DELL's new model has a silver stand that goes well with the MacBook — that's a plus. But in actual work, these minor details aren't worth fussing over.

III. Testing

A certain forum provided a website for online screen testing, which is quite convenient for those who don't use Windows and don't have tools like Lu Master.

https://screen.bmcx.com/#welcome

There's also a professional monitor parameter comparison site.

https://www.displaydb.com/compare/aoc-u27u2/dell-u2720q/lg-27up850

For a blind-test person who considers a screen reliable as long as it lights up, I'd summarize the display testing process as follows: first, test for dead or bright pixels, by visual inspection under various solid-color displays; second, test the display's color rendering—can it show multi-color gradients, true black, true white; and apparently a third, multi-line display stability testing.

I checked carefully for dead pixels; the rest, just for fun, took a picture—which is what you see above. Speaking of which, I have to mention AOC, which claims to be a NANO IPS Master Edition, but on the second day of use, I found 4 dead pixels on a black background. Although it's nearly 1000 yuan cheaper than this one (I heard that on March 8 it could be 2999 with 24 installments interest-free, lucky buyers could try), it's not exactly the same class for comparison—I just want to say, both quality components and quality control are impossible to have both for someone with average luck.

A rough comparison between the MacBook's built-in glossy screen and the DELL U2723QX matte screen—pictures only.