Samsung S23A700D 120hz 3D Monitor Review

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Video Review

All testing done using an i1 Display Pro Colorimeter (a colorimeter measures the colours, contrast, brightness, gamma, ect), basICColor 5 (profiling software which creates an ICC profile to calibrate the display), HCFR (software used to measure the default colours) and i1 Profiler (profiling software which creates an ICC profile to calibrate the display).

PC:

Motherboard: Gigabyte X58-UD9
CPU: Intel i7 930@ 2.93ghz
Case: Lian Li PC80
GPU: Overclocked SLI GTX 480's
Ram: 6gb Patriot G Viper Xtreme DDR3 PC3-16000 2000mhz

I will be comparing the Samsung S23A700D with an Asus VG236H since they are both glossy 120hz 3D displays and the Asus is one of the best 120hz displays still. Please refer to my Asus VG236H Review for more information regarding its performance.

Table of Contents

Ghosting and Input Lag

Default Colour Presets

Calibrated Image Quality and Screen Uniformity

3D and 2D-3D Conversion

Conclusion, Comparison and Settings

Specifications

Ergonomics

Watch this video

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Ghosting and Input Lag

120hz

The above photo was taken using the Samsung's default "Faster," response time setting at 120hz. The "Faster," setting is the best and produces a ghosting free experience. Using the "Normal," setting produces some slight ghosting and the "Fastest," setting produces some overshoot/corona effect=bright shield/halo forming around fast moving objects.

For reference here is the Asus VG236H using the "Trace Free 40," setting.



Here they are side by side (Samsung left, Asus Right)



Like its bigger cousin, the Samsung S27A950D which I reviewed the S23A700D is the fastest LCD monitor I have used. It will only have issues with console games that run at 30fps and use motion blur like Gears of War 3 and Resistance 3.

Just keep in mind that all LCD's will show motion blur regardless of a perfectly implemented overdrive due to the Sample and Hold effect compared to CRT's and Plasma's.

60hz

The above photo was taken using the Default "Faster," setting which is the best setting for 60hz. Below is a photo of the Fastest setting, which if you look very closely you can see some slight ghosting:



Like its bigger cousin the Samsung S27A950D, the Samsung S23A700D is the fastest LCD monitor I have used when operating at 60hz.

Input Lag

120hz

Please refer to this article from TFT Central about the different Input lag Testing Methods.

I used the SMT Tool 2.0 which is currently the most accurate program for testing input lag other than an oscilloscope.



I stole this image from the TFT Central input lag article. The stop watch timer=Flat Panels HD Input Lag Timer is very inaccurate compared to the SMT Tool and an oscilloscope.

The Samsung S23A700D lags behind the Asus VG236H (2-3ms vs a CRT) by 7-8ms at 120hz which puts it at around 10-11ms of input lag vs a CRT. One frame of input lag is 16.7ms.



When 2D-3D conversion is enabled the Samsung does suffer from 38ms of input lag due to the 2D-3D processing.

60hz

When operating at 60hz the S23A700D lags behind the Asus by 7-8ms:



When 2D-3D conversion is enabled at 60hz the Samsung does suffer from 38ms of input lag due to the 2D-3D processing.

60/120hz Input lag

The Samsung feels extremely responsive, only those who are die hard CRT Anti-Vsync users will take issue with the Samsung's delay.

2D-3D Conversion Input Lag

2D-3D Conversion introduces a lot of input lag which affects aiming, movement and general reactivity during games. When using a controller it is still playable, but I found the delay to be unbearable when gaming with a keyboard and mouse.

Legend:
Blue=Suitable For ALL Enthusiast CRT & 120hz Users
Purple=Suitable For Some Enthusiast & ALL Regular Gamers
Orange=Not Suitable for Enthusiast Gamers & Some Regular Gamers
Red=Not Suitable for Enthusiast or Regular Gamers: CASUAL GAMERS ONLY

Viewsonic VP2770: 7ms signal delay measured by PRAD
Asus VG248QE: Signal Delay=1.6ms @60hz and 0.7ms @144hz measured by PRAD
Dell U2713H Game Mode: 14ms (Measured by PC Monitors Info)
Dell U2713H: 30ms signal delay measured by PRAD
ViewSonic VX2770SMH-LED: 4-5ms
Asus PB278Q: 17.8ms signal delay measured by PRAD
Dell S2740L: Negligible
Asus VG23AH: 2-5ms (recently retested)
CrossOver 2720MDP Gold: 12-14ms
Samsung S27A850D: 13.6ms signal delay measured by PRAD
Samsung S23A700D: 12-13ms @120hz
BenQ XL2420T: 3ms @120hz
Asus VG236H: 3ms @120hz
Asus PA238Q: 2.2ms signal delay measured by PRAD.de
Samsung S27A950D: 13ms @120hz

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Default Colour Presets

The following pictures are of the Samsung S23A700D (left) with its default colour settings (it comes set to Custom out of the box). The Asus VG236H on the right is calibrated. As you can see, other than the Samsung looking much brighter it is quite close to the calibrated Asus.

My initial impression is that the Samsung comes as advertised with "100% Photo Accurate," colors. The only issue I had (subjectively speaking) was, like the S27A950D I tested the default gamma was a little low, meaning the colors could be a bit punchier/saturated and the 700D suffered from a blue/purpleish tinge.

I used a fixed shutter speed and dynamic aperture on my Sanyo HD2000 so these aren't 100% accurate but should give you guys a very good idea since the HD2000 has very accurate color.

Samsung (Left) vs Calibrated Asus (Right)

Click this link for the basICColor 5 default colour preset results

The S23A700D has very accurate colour presets out of the box, the only issues being the blue/purple tinge and slight lack of punch to the colours. Fortunately setting the Gamma to Mode 3 in the Colour Menu

Movie mode sucks and is blurry due to under-sharpening, also soon as you change any of the settings in the Preset Standard/Custom modes it reverts back to Custom. Only the brightness can be changed in the Dynamic and Movie modes.

The Dynamic setting is far to bright and Game looks a bit bleached due to too much contrast (85 in the OSD vs Custom/Standard modes 75).

Both the Custom and Standard modes are fine, though Custom with it's default brightness of 300cdm/2 is to bright and lacks any black depth. Standard is the best preset, especially when the Gamma is changed to Mode 3.

Asus PB278Q:
Dell S2740L:
Asus VG23AH:
CrossOver 2720MDP:
Samsung S27A850D:
BenQ XL2420T:
Samsung S23A700D:
Asus VG236H:

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Calibrated Image Quality and Screen Uniformity

The only issue after calibration was the blue/purple-ish tint and poor screen uniformity. Though not major, even after calibration it was still obvious. The Samsung S23A700D looses a star since it uses a TN panel (poor viewing angles and gamma shift), a star for the poor screen uniformity, and half a star for the blue/purpl-ish tint.

Left Samsung vs Right Asus @120cdm/2 Brightness


This image is slightly over-exposed to highlight the uneven brightness distribution. Here you can see that the top half of the Samsung is clearly darker than the bottom.

Blue light bleeding (blue-ish glow) visible during the day on the bottom of the Samsung


Asus


Left Asus vs Right Samsung @120cdm/2


This picture is under exposed but closer to reality.

This image should give you an idea of the accentuated Gamma shift on the Samsung. Left Samsung, Right Asus



If you scroll down on the Lagom page you can see the actual colour
Viewing angle - Lagom LCD test


Due to the mediocre screen uniformity and gamma shift which was worsened by the poor brightness distribution the Samsung get's a mediocre score.

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3D and 2D-3D Conversion

I only used the Samsung's 3D with my PS3 since I have Nvidia GPU's. An AMD GPU is required to use the Tri-Def PC 3D properly

When 2D-3D conversion is enabled there is no black silhouette ghosting/smearing like I observed on the S27A950D.

2D-3D Conversion introduces 38ms of input lag.

Priest 3D on the PS3 through the Samsung 3D glass @18:22. You can see minor cross-talk if you look closely at the Center Right Statue



A closer look



In all of the 3D movies I tried where I observed cross-talk on the Asus VG236H, the Samsung S23A700D showed less, however cross-talk was still present and noticeable. It is important to note that the visible cross-talk was still very minor and I suspect most people would not notice it. I also compared Tron 3D and found that the S23A700D showed slightly less cross-talk in 3D than the VG236H. My 3D movie collection below (I bought Tron 3D after this was taken):



I tried the following games in 3D on my Xbox 360 and PS3

Uncharted 3:

Apart from some frame rate and anti-aliasing issues Uncharted 3 looked great, forgiving the obvilousy reduced resolution vs 2D though. I saw some obvious cross-talk in a few scenes, however having no other HDMI 1.4a compatible display I have no means for comparison.

Resistance 3:

The 3D depth was cool, but Resistance 3 clearly takes a visual hit in 3D due to the reduced resolution. The reduced resolution is a big problem considering Resistance 3's low native resolution of 960x703. 2D-3D Conversion worked just as well as the native 3D on the S23A700D, however the added 38ms of input lag did make aiming fluidly much harder.

Gears of War 3:

2D-3D conversion actually worked much better than Gears of War 3's Native 3D which looks terrible. There was more depth with the 2D-3D Conversion and the visuals remain the same compared to the Native 3D mode which scales back the resolution. Gears of War 3D looks like a slightly up-rezed PS2/Xbox 1 game in 3D.

I don't really have much to say about the 3D this time around. If you want to learn more about the Tri-Def 3D software that the Samsung uses please refer to my Samsung S27A950D Review. If you want to learn more about Nvidia 3D please refer to my Asus VG236H Review.

The 2D-3D conversion works fantastically and is a vast improvement over the conversion that the S27A950D offered. In terms of native 3D in the few 3D movies I compared scenes with cross-talk the Samsung S23A700D showed less than the Asus VG236H due to the slightly faster response time. The only downside of the 2D-3D conversion was the 38ms of input lag which is quite noticeable and it is enough to effect ones ability to aim and move precisely.

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Conclusion, Comparison and Settings

+Fairly priced
+Glossy screen=vibrant whites, light colours and clarity
+Fully functional 3D out of the box due to the built in IR Emitter, HDMI 1.4a port and bundled 3D glasses for 360$
+Near perfect default colour accuracy
+Standard Preset provides a very natural image with good brightness and contrast
+1100:1 native contrast across all ranges of brightness including 3D mode
+Highest contrast I have measured on a TN panel apart from the HP 2509B
+No ghosting
+Very low input lag (10-11ms)
+Less cross-talk in console games and 3D movies vs the Asus VG236H
+3D mode has natural colour apart from the blue/purple-ish dominance
+3D mode colour was better than the S27A950D
+2D-3D conversion works fantastically and much better than the S27A950D
+2D-3D Conversion works nearl as well as proper 3D for some games and movies
-TN panel=very narrow viewing angles
-Glossy screen=reflections
-Severe back-light bleeding and poor screen uniformity
-Accentuated gamma shift due to the poor screen uniformity
-Back-light bleeding and blue tinged blacks on the bottom part of the screen was distracting with dark content
-Worst screen uniformity I have seen apart from the S27A550h and S27A950D
-High input lag which causes a noticeable delay (38ms) when 2D-3D conversion is enabled
-Blue/Purple-ish tinge which dominates even after calibration

Apart from the poor screen uniformity, back-light bleeding and blue/purple-ish tinge the S23A700D improves on everything the S27A950D did right. Screen uniformity varies from unit to unit, so if one were to get an S23700D with good screen uniformity they would have one of the best TN panels avaliable.

Compared to my Asus VG236H the S23A700D had less ghosting in 2D, less cross-talk (though still present) in the 3D movies I compared and higher measured contrast. My Asus had more natural colours out of the box, better colour in the 3D mode (not adjustable, you can tweak the Samsung's colour in the 2D-3D and 3D modes) and less gamma shift which was the result of having better screen uniformity.

The Asus also suppourts Nvidia 3D wich is more widely supported, has less issues but is not as customizable as the Tri-Def software. The Asus lacks HDMI 1.4a so console 3D is out of the question and you are looking at spending a minimum of 100$ extra to get the Nvidia 3D IR emitter and 3D glasses which makes the Samsung a better value since it comes with everything you need to operate in 3D for 350$.

If you are having a hard time deciding base your purchasing decision on what graphics card you currently own or plan on buying if you want to use 3D. Only buy something if it can be purchased from a place with a hassle free return+exchange policy! Being stuck with something you don't like and paying restocking fees sucks!

AMD GPU owners can only use the Samsung displays for proper 3D while Nvidia GPU owners need to stick with Nvidia 3D compatible displays. Click the link below for a list of all the Nvidia 3D compatible displays:

http://www.nvidia.com/object/3d-visi...uirements.html

If you have no intention of ever using 3D buy the cheapest one as long as it can be purchased from a place with a hassle free return+exchange policy.

Settings

Brightness: 22
Contrast: 75 (Default)
Sharpness: 60
Response Time: Faster (Default)
HDMI Black Level: Normal (Default)
Gamma: Mode 3
Red: 50 (Default)
Green: 50 (Default)
Blue: 42

When 3D is enabled just change the Gamma to Mode 3 and the Blue to 42. Keep everything else at the defaut settings.

For console settings refer to this image:


Use the AV mode for consoles and PC mode for PC as shown in the top right image. Use the Screen Fit option as shown in the bottom right image to avoid over-scan with your consoles.

[paolone]

What is your setting in OSD menù ?

Compared to bigger cousing S27A950D, are the image quality and colors similar ?

[Beast Mode]

I'd also like to see what OSD settings you're using for calibration.

Is the purple/blue hue really that bad? Does it create an obvious tinge in whites/darks? Without having seen it in person, I want to say that if I had to choose between two monitors and each had a color dominance, I'd much rather have one with a slight purple tinge than a green tinge. I've seen monitors with green dominance and they look really gross to me, the biggest problem being that skin tones look kind of sickly. I've found that correcting it through color balance settings often introduces other issues, like making snowy images look blue-ish when they should look white.

[NCX]

I updated my last post with settings.

When I first set the thing up next to my calibrated Asus I didn't really notice the blue/purplish tint until I started looking for it, from there on I could always see it, even after calibration. My photo gallery video should help you get an idea, specifically at the 3:40 and 5:55 mark:



The blue/purpleish tint was obvious but it was not dominating, my main issue was the poor screen uniformity which caused much more obvious gamma shift and the blue tinted blacks on the bottom part of the screen.

This image should give you an idea. Left Samsung, Right Asus



If you scroll down on the Lagom page you can see the actual colour
Viewing angle - Lagom LCD test

After calibration or changing the green value to 90 the green tint on the Asus is only obvious with some grey shades next my calibrated PLS display and former IPS (PA238Q). The green tint on the Asus was only bad when using the default settings in the Movie and Scenery mode but once I changed the color settings to Warm/Normal in those modes or turned the green down to 90/100 it was gone, except when looking at some shades of grey.

For example, when looking at the [H]ardforum.com and the Lagom Gradient Banding the slightest hint of grey is still present on the Asus.

[Beast Mode]

Thanks, your information has been very helpful.

Edit: How was the green tint of the s27a950d you tested? I've actually noticed it in a few of the pictures and videos I've seen of 750s and 950s, but my current monitor might just be exaggerating it.