HP 27-inch QHD Gaming with Tilt/Height Adjustment with AMD FreeSync Premium Technology (X27q, 2021 model)

10/10!!!

This is a very new 165Hz gaming monitor and as such there unfortunately isnt many reviews for it out there so I decided Id write a few words regarding my experience with it thus far. I have been using the HP X27q for a few days now and so far I absolutely love it. The screen is absolutely beautiful and in my personal opinion it feels like 27 seems to be a pretty good sweet spot for the QHD (2560 x 1440) resolution that this monitor provides. The Height Adjustment mechanism is very smooth as well. It was very easy to setup and it came with a DisplayPort cable in the box which was a nice bonus. For my use case I mostly use the monitor connected via DisplayPort to my desktop computer with an AMD graphics card. However, I did temporarily connect it to my gaming laptop which uses Nvidia and while the monitor uses AMD FreeSync Premium and isnt listed as G-Sync compatible I manually enabled G-Sync within the Nvidia software on my laptop and it seemed to work just fine in my limited testing. (I should note that the G-Sync option will only appear when the monitor is connected via the DisplayPort.) I also tested my laptop connected to the monitor’s HDMI port using a premium Cable Matters HDMI cable and was getting a 144Hz refresh rate at the maximum resolution in the few games that I tested. The only very minor annoyance that I have is that you have to reach your hand around the back of the right side of the monitor to access the controls.

Ive received six of these so far – a mix of the LIM111 (1x), LIM101 (1x), and BIM111 (4x) revisions. Both LIM revisions appear identical in all aspects that I can see, while the BIM revisions have some serious quality differences. See attached photos for a comparison (LIM on left and BIM on right). The stock color difference is not as extreme as it looks, thats just distortion on camera due to the anti-glare coating, its only roughly half as bad. LIM111/LIM101 (LG): • No flickering • Good anti-glare coating and no visible graininess • Beautiful and vibrant color • Strong and accurate whites/grays • Great viewing angles • Moderate IPS glow BIM111 (BOE): • Flickers a lot (more on that below) • Excessive anti-glare coating that causes visible graininess on the screen • Weaker color vibrancy • Weaker whites/grays • Poor viewing angles • Minimal IPS glow For those who have a mix of BIM and LIM revisions, I recommend trying out custom RGB on both – (245, 255, 255) on LIM and (255, 255, 255) on BIM. Theres still a noticeable difference, you cant get them to match without drastically hurting color accuracy on LIM, but its a decent improvement. Do not install an ICC profile on the BIM revisions unless its specifically tuned for it. 3 of the 4 BOE panels that I received flicker, including replacements from different warehouses. The flickering is like a momentary 20-30% drop in brightness, and it happens in batches of 2-3 times over the course of several seconds, generally reoccurring every 5-30 minutes. I couldnt find any settings that helped, including reducing the refresh rate and disabling adaptive sync, nor swapping the cables with a LIM panel that didnt flicker. It seems like theres possibly a flicker lottery going on here too...

I got this and I am using an Nvidia Quadro 5000k video card. I hooked the display port to display port cable and it will not work. I get a black screen saying disconnected or some sort. I hooked up both monitors, my old one...with DVI port at 60hz and this one both..and both come up. Old one is default..the new screen comes up too but is secondary. So it will not work on its own. I went into the settings in both win10 and Nvidia to set it..the highest was 122hz. this video card I bought this year. SOOO I am not sure where to go from here. I ordered a DVI to display port cable adapter and we will see if that works..but that kinda defeats the purpose for the 144hz. If I cant find a solution, I will return this. Just beware if you have this video card, this screen monitor may not work for you. FYI-the display port cable that came with it..garbage for me. It has metal hooks on it..I assume to hold it in place in the port but...try removing it without ripping everything out. I used a different cable without the hooks..MUCH better. I recommend getting another cable unless you like tearing up your video card ports.

It was time to upgrade from my 24 inch AOC. I was looking for something around $200 that was bigger and more fit for gaming since I have start playing more. Id say this monitor is perfect for everything! Flat monitors tend to have better quality displays 27 inches is perfect for just about anything, work, gaming, movies Refresh rate of 165Hz is awesome, I definitely notice the difference with gaming Color and brightness are awesome, works perfectly for work (design work) I dont normally order stuff that doesnt have Prime delivery but after searching around, this was the best choice. I highly reccommend!

I bought this on sale with pretty high hopes, due to the largely very positive reviews. Im mostly satisfied with it for the price I paid. -Colors are vibrant and overall pretty good, despite not using the nano-ips backlight like some other monitors that contain the same LG panel within. -I like the looks of it; simple, somewhat classy/elegant and understated (not a flamboyant gaming monitor look. -No dead pixels -Performs well when playing games Two things preventing me from giving it 5 stars: -Some bothersome IPS glow, much more prominent on one side than the other. Backlight bleed from edges was quite minimal and perfectly acceptable, but the glow on black screens is very bothersome during loading screens or very dark scenes. I dont game on PC much and never watch movies on the computer, so I decided not to return. -The blue light reduction coating is something I dont like. Yes, you can apply ICC profiles (which I did) and tune the color a bit from there, but I felt like I could only get it a tad too warm, and a tad too cool, and couldnt achieve truly neutral whites I wanted. Its close enough for me I guess, so again, I didnt return. It sounds like I just got a less than stellar draw in the panel lottery, so I wouldnt let that dissuade you. Its an okay monitor for the price, but I think Ill definitely try something else when Im ready for a second 27 to replace my ancient 22 for a dual setup.

Gave it a try at ~$225. Picture quality is very nice but the ghosting is awful. All colors bleeding and leaving a a colored halo trail behind surface or line or contracting color. I do not recommend this for anyone gaming. For Photoshop or picture quality its nice, but not for gaming. Returning it. March 27, 2023 The example photos were taken with the monitor at 165hz refresh rate and the monitor setting Gaming > Response time > Level 4(Fastest). Double checked both computer Windows settings and nvidia settings, all set to 165 refresh and working properly. Game was running smoothly. One photo is not moving. The photo with the cloud blur and doubling was taken while moving the mouse at regular speed, not trying to whip 180 or anything.

Most FreeSync displays will correctly drop to about 48Hz for scenes where there is excess GPU load. However, this HP will only drop to 60Hz, meaning it doesnt do FreeSync correctly at the most common frame rate: 60. You see, most games will hover around 60 FPS, but no game is perfect. The frame rate may be lower or higher than 60 during gameplay. This is why any FreeSync/variable refresh display MUST allow for rates below AND above 60Hz (48-75Hz range being common for cheap monitors). If the display cant provide for this variation in 60 FPS games, then the FreeSync feature is pointless. This is such an unbelievably boneheaded oversight on HPs part, I suspect these monitors may be a defective batch that have been marketed differently. No competent engineer would ever spec a variable refresh display with this range, as its useless for the most common gaming frame rate: 60. So dont waste your time on a mediocre display with poor IPS glow and a useless FreeSync feature. Buy one of the cheap LG gaming displays instead that have a better variable refresh range.

Picked this up to replace my 2nd monitor that was going bad. Honestly, for this price point, its a great monitor. If my primary wasnt an insane 49 Samsung ultrawide, Id definitely consider getting another and running a pair of then as my primary screens.

Bought this at 209.99. Best price to performance and specs as you will get from a well-known brand. 1440p 165hz, I dare anyone to find a better price. Not talking about those cheap chinese Alibaba brands. I can have those made and sell them myself with minimal effort.