HP ZR30W: Who Said the 30-Inch Monitor Was Dead?

Lately, 30-inch monitors have been a bit thin on the ground. In fact, it seems that 27 inches is a more popular monitor format, especially since some models, like the U2711, have a resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels. HP, however, has decided to break the mould with its new ZR30W 30-inch display.

This 30-inch monitor has a 7 ms wide-gamut IPS panel, and is currently announced with a retail price of $1,299. If HP simply converts that price into pounds for the UK release then that's a pretty good deal (approx. £900), as this display also has a height-adjustable stand, a swivel base, a 4-port USB hub, and DVI and Display Port entries.

HP ZR30W Find the best price

Spec like this makes for wide viewing angles and good colour homogeneity. On an IPS panel, the announced response time of 7 ms is equivalent to the kind of responsiveness typically required by gamers. However, you'll need a seriously powerful graphics card for gaming on a 30-inch monitor, with all the graphics settings at their maximum. The resolution of 2560 x 1600 pixels means lots of information can be displayed on the screen, and you'll have no trouble viewing two Word or Excel files side by side, for example.

The only thing that could put off home users is the fact that this is a wide-gamut monitor. For anyone working in digital imaging or using an SLR camera, a wide colour gamut is a real plus, but for general day-to-day use, you could just end up with strange, or even fluorescent-looking colours. Let's just hope HP has equipped this monitor with an sRGB mode to effectively counteract that.


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