- Overall
The Acer CB271HU is an easy to own monitor for everyday usage that offers a crisp IPS panel with a well-designed body at a reasonable price. QHD displays are excellent for many uses thanks to its increase in pixel count and space that isn’t too taxing on your eyes or PC. The Acer CB271HU isn’t top of the line by today’s standards, but is it a must-buy for shoppers who want a bang for the buck $300 monitor?
Acer CB271HU Specifications
- Screen Size: 27 Inches
- Resolution: 2560 x 1440 QHD
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Panel Technology: In-Plane Switching (IPS)
- Refresh Rate: 60 Hz
- Response Time: 4ms
- Contrast Ratio: 1000:1 (Static)
- Brightness: 350 cd/m²
- Speakers: Yes (2 x 2 Watts)
- Stand: Height – Yes
- Stand: Tilt – Yes
- Stand: Swivel – Yes
- Stand: Pivot – Yes
- VESA Compatibility: Yes 100 x 100
- Connectivity: DisplayPort 1.2 x 1, HDMI 4 x 1, DVI-DL x 1, 3.5mm Jack x 2
- Dimensions with Stand(WxHxD): 24.08” x 15.59” x 8”
- Weight 74 lbs
Design and Features
The Acer CB271HU sports a clean aesthetic that makes it more suited to offices than a gaming setup. But its matte black chassis with slim proportions will never look out of place due to its modern looks and functional design. The display is bezel-free on three sides, making the screen appear larger than it actually is.
This model isn’t part of the brand’s premium line like the PE320QK, but the build quality is still superb. The monitor did not have any sharp edges or uneven seams, plus there is no creaking on the plastic parts which means the device is durable. The device is no lightweight, so it can stable once assembled and propped up on a flat surface.
One of the downsides of the Acer CB271HU’s physical design is it doesn’t include an OSD joystick which we all prefer. You have to deal with OSD buttons which can get tricky, especially in the dark unless you’ve memorized their respective functions. But at least they are located at the front of the bezel, so you don’t have to fumble for them or reach for the back.
The Acer CB271HU is supported by a fully adjustable stand that lets you tilt, swivel, pivot, and adjust the screen’s height. The upright’s positioning towards the rear of the base makes it easy to place the product against the wall so you can free up more precious desk space. The squarish base eats almost ten inches of depth, but its flat surface should allow you to place phones or other small items easily.
You can also swap out the stand with a 100 x 100 VESA mount if you want the Acer CB271HU to be less intrusive on the desk. Doing so will add to the cost, but it’s a worthy investment if you don’t have a full-sized computer or office table.
The Acer CB271HU’s connectivity options will not fall short for regular use, but we wish there were at least some USB ports built-in. The I/O panel at the rear only includes a slot each for DisplayPort 1.2, HDMI 1.4, and DVI-DL. There is also a pair of 3.5mm jacks for audio pass-through which lets you utilize the built-in speakers, but they are not suitable for entertainment use.
Display and Performance
The Acer CB271HU boasts a 27-inch IPS panel with a 2560 x 1440 resolution, 60Hz refresh rate, and 4ms response time. The backlight pumps out up to 350 cd/m2, while the contrast ratio sits at a typical 1000:1 like most IPS and TN screens. The screen gets very bright at 100%, but what’s fantastic about it is it gives users a wider adjustment range for the best possible visual experience.
QHD at 27 inches is perfect for both work and play since you get a larger space or FOV to work with without requiring a top-end GPU. It’s great for document processing since walls of text won’t burn your eyes out, while the extra boost in sharpness is great for viewing images and games. Take note that the cabinet is slightly larger than most are used to, so be prepared with a large enough desk to accommodate the device.
The Acer CB271HU provides excellent color quality out of the box, making it ideal as an entry-level designer monitor. The IPS panel covers 99% of the sRGB gamut with color accuracy of Delta E 2.1 which means you don’t have to calibrate the display. The color temperature is slightly lower than the 6500K standard which gives the screen a bit more warmth than the usual.
Gamma is also slightly off at 2.14, but the contrast ratio at around 30% brightness exceeded 1150:1 which is excellent. This characteristic gives us richer blacks and color saturation, so the screen doesn’t look as greyish as many IPS monitors we’ve seen. Colors, on the other hand, are well-defined and punchy, so you don’t need to opt for a VA panel if you want deeper shades.
One issue with the Acer CB271HU is its uniformity due to backlight bleeding on one corner which added noticeable clouding. The deviance reached as much as 16%, and most of it’s concentrated on the quadrants near the leak. Colors are also slightly washed out, but this aspect could vary between unit to unit as far as IPS monitors go.
Another strength of the Acer CB271HU is its excellent responsiveness which pushes it past many comparable models. The pixel response time is decent at keeping blurs at bay, so you won’t need to use the monitor’s overdrive feature. Some persistence will still be present, so we recommend using the middle overdrive level if it disturbs you.
The Acer CB271HU is a FreeSync monitor, but it also works with G-Sync compatibility with a slight handicap which locks its refresh rate to 50Hz. IT can be resolved by restarting the game or alt-tabbing, but we cannot guarantee that more problems will not arise. Input lag is limited to 9ms, meaning there will be no delays or “de-synced” instances during game time.
Thoughts on the Acer CB271HU
The Acer CB271HU is limited when it comes to gaming capabilities, but its screen with excellent color quality right out of the box makes it worth more than its price. It’s rare to find a budget monitor that doesn’t require calibration or tweaking since most pre-calibrated states are reserved for premium offerings. We like the design of the product, but it could use some useful add-ons such as USB slots.
We recommend the Acer CB271HU if you need a cheap display solution for everyday use, but we would point you to gaming-specific displays if that is your main intent. This model is one of the few stand-out offerings out there, but it still has its limitations.
About the Author:
Paolo is a gaming veteran since the golden days of Doom and Warcraft and has been building gaming systems for family, friends, and colleagues since his junior high years. High-performance monitors are one of his fixations and he believes that it’s every citizen’s right to enjoy one. He has gone through several pieces of hardware in pursuit of every bit of performance gain, much to the dismay of his wallet. He now works with Monitornerds to scrutinize the latest gear to create reviews which accentuate the seldom explained aspects of a PC monitor.
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