The Eizo CS240 and CS270 already have perfect colors and a perfectly uniform panel. What does the Eizo ColorEdge CG277 add since it has the same panel ? A multitude of details that make it perfect! Quite simply.
But who is this perfect monitor for?! Obviously to photographers who want the best but above all no longer think at all about their screen or its calibration, to professional retouchers and graphic designers who must offer their customers all the guarantees of display and finally to video makers because this monitor increases the delicate attention against them.... In the ColorEdge range, the Eizo CG277 is the top of the very beautiful Eizo CS2730 and CG2730 range. This monitor (as well as its little brother, the Eizo CG247) is intended for those who do not want to make any concessions on the quality of their monitor and who, incidentally, want to make their life easier by no longer having to think about calibration since it has an built-in calibration device, which is excellent as well. Here everything is just refinement, display accuracy but only a colorimeter can measure... and that's the problem : you would have an almost perfect display with the Eizo CS2730 but without all the guarantees and accessories sold with the Eizo CG277. For videographers, this is a little different : only this monitor has the functions they need to display their productions. For about 2000 pounds, you will have an absolutely perfect color display in the Adobe RGB color space, 93% of the DCI, a FOGRA certification (class A screen), an equally perfect homogeneity thanks to the DUE Eizo technology, an integrated calibrator that can perform a calibration at night so you can relax, a 10-bit display and a 16-bit 3D LUT table, an HDMI interface that supports I/P conversion and 1080/24images/sec, a 5-year warranty and more. I told you it was all about refinement!
Here are some illustrations of this flawlessly ergonomic monitor... and surely the best quality of manufacturing that I have seen passing before my admiring eyes!
The power cord... of course!
The DVI-D to DVI-D cable in 2016 is visibly replaced by a DP cable in 2018.
Important note! This Eizo CG277 has a built-in colorimeter that you will use with the ColorNavigator software sold with this monitor.
The display has a 27-Inch panel and is 645 mm wide (the panel is 600 mm wide). It is therefore a rather cumbersome screen that does not especially favour a multi-screen working environment!
As for the perceived quality, it is excellent, really. Perhaps the best finish I've seen in my tests so far.... Just look at the profile screen to understand that the screen is really under control as it is so thick: 3.54 inches of electronics!
It is the same panel as the CS270/CX271 - but hand-picked since it is A-class - and therefore a matt IPS panel, normal on this niche of the so-called "Graphic Arts" displays, of 2560 x 1440 pixels. Its resolution is therefore 108 ppi. Classic and not "Retina" but who knows, thanks to the superb anti-reflective coating I talk about below, the pixels seem almost invisible at a "normal" viewing distance on a desktop (70 cm); All this is very beautiful. The backlight is a white LED diode type.
2 - The panel and its anti-reflective coating - I notice that recently and clearly on this display, the matt anti-reflective coating no longer marks the pixels, which gives this panel a magnificent rendering on the images and gradients. Very beautiful. No more anti-reflection treatments that give a granular aspect to pixels. Fine!
Remark! The panel of the Eizo CG277 is the same as the CS270 (or the old Eizo CS240) so there is an obvious kinship. This is for the visible part because the CG panel is hand-picked and is an A class. In other words, the best panels produced end up in the ColorEdge series but since we are at Eizo, even the worst panels are very good!
3 - Brightness and homogeneity with the DUE function - This very efficient function which acts as an equalizer ensures a homogeneous display with differences of no more than 5% measured. In other words, invisible or just like that!
4 - Built-in calibration sensor - This very small integrated calibrator, which works in conjunction with the famous ColorNavigator software sold with the screen and detailed below, which barely exceeds 20 mm when it comes out of its hiding place at the bottom left of the screen, will allow a "real" calibration unlike the CX271 model and this eventually automatically, according to a frequency you have defined - 200 hours by default or 20 days on average for a professional. You can still perform a calibration with your favorite sensor but this colorimeter is perfect and the calibration is very fast.
My advice! It is therefore possible to program the calibration at night to find yourself the next morning in front of a display that is always perfect. The monitor will then turn on by itself and warm up for 7 minutes. This is the time it takes for this new generation of displays to be perfectly at the right temperature, whereas a few years ago it took at least half an hour... You will perform a calibration every month and that will be enough. On the one hand, the new displays are very stable because they warm up much less than CRT displays so they don't need to be calibrated very often and on the other hand, this display allows you to program your calibration when you don't use it, no matter the programming rhythm!
The 3D LUT table manages the 10-bit input and 16-bit output for a perfect gradient display, especially if you install this monitor on a 10-bit graphics card.
Overdrive function for a smooth video display (equivalent to a 7ms response time).
For video post-production - HMDI: 1080 to 24 frames/sec.
This monitor has an HDMI port (with direct connection to a digital camera or a camera), a DisplayPort port, a USB 2.0 port to ensure hardware calibration, i. e. to send directly the ICC profile generated in the LUT table of the monitor and not only on the graphics card and finally two USB 2.0 ports (only USB 2.0!).
My advice! Even if the calibration with the i1Display Pro is very efficient as you will see below, the interest of this monitor lies, among other things, in its built-in colorimeter. He happens to be perfect and even a little better than my favorite sensor. I highly recommend the use of the built-in colorimeter which can only work with ColorNavigator!
This monitor is sold with its calibration software, the well-known ColorNavigator, which works in conjunction with the built-in calibrator. This high-end software will not only allow you to perform an "ideal" calibration but also to verify that it complies with different standards used by printers - FOGRA CERT - or video editors - REC 709 or DCI. This guarantees you an ideal and above all easy calibration for those who do not master the meaning of all target values.
ColorNavigator also manages other control and comparison functions between the screen and a print seen in a control booth for example and many other things.
The ergonomics is classic but a "real" cable grommets in the foot would be welcome! The amplitude of the screen's movements in height (over 5.9 inches), inclination and rotation will allow all users to find their ideal setting. Really perfect! The menu buttons on the screen are classic, not too elegant though, but it's obviously a detail.
What is the Eizo CG277 screen worth after calibration with the i1Display Pro?
First, I calibrated this monitor with the best current colorimeter (except the superlative and very expensive Discus - about £1,000) in a simply excellent price/quality ratio: the i1 Display Pro + i1Profiler software (version 1.6.3). This allows you to compare this display with the other displays on the market, even if it is very clear that I strongly advise you to use the integrated colorimeter, which is even better, especially in the neutralization of grayscales). You will see that the numbers are already barely believable, as if by chance extremely close to the CS240 or the CX241 (how strange!) so it could only be better with ColorNavigator but I'm afraid you no longer see the difference even if the numbers are even better. And even though at this level, there are no uncertainty errors in the sensor and/or software. I would remind you that a very efficient eye distinguishes 1/200 of a difference. On average, we are talking about 1/400 deviations here!
Objective data: what does the final report after calibration say?
Once calibration is finished, the color temperature indeed reaches 6482K, the luminance of the black is only 0.11 Cd/m2 so very deep. The native measured contrast is 710:1. Personally, I prefer a ratio of 287:1 for a better comparison between screen and print.
Delta E figures (norm 2000) are of course exceptional and furiously alike those of the CS240 or the CX241 (they share the same panel... in a smaller version of course!) by far under the value of 1 - 0.71 - even for the patches that are the furthest from the ideal. It is already more than perfect. You'll se that with ColorNavigator these already perfect results don't get better! At this level, it's going to be delicate to get better results in numbers because of reading uncertainties of the sensor and above all, you won't see any difference with your bare eyes unless you're Superman.
My opinion! As it could be expected, the panel gets the same delta e type as the CS240/CX241, also superlative, to the point that a calibration with ColorNavigator won't add anything to the respect. However, ColorNavigator and especially the built-in sensor will enable to perform an even better grey neutralization and to realize a so-called "hardware" calibration where the ICC profile is directly injected in the 16-bits LUT table of the screen in order to guarantee even smoother color gradients (that's the pitch, at least). In fact, it is already so good with this valorous i1Display Pro!
Once again, the results are superlative: under 1% on a 27-Inch panel!
The screen Eizo CG277 exempts you from buying a colorimeter because it is already built in the lower section of the screen. It will get out of its little trap when a calibration is requested. This colorimeter of excellent manufacturing - even better than the i1Display Pro (within the framework of this review hence with my personal sensor) - is commanded by the program ColorNavigator sold with the screen. This program stands as a reference thanks to its performances and its monitoring possibilities once the calibration performed. I thus recommend it without any reservations.
Calibration can thus be programmed. It will be performed all by itself where, usually, you're only told that you're going to have to do it. And even better, it can even be performed on a switched-off screen by night. Calibration won't encroach on your working time! The very short heating time of the Eizo CG277 - 7 minutes - wouldn't keep you from using the screen for a very long time either. For a professional use, I recommend a monthly calibration, just to be really, really reassured!
To benefit from hardware calibration, the display needs to be connected to the computer that will at least be used for its calibration using the USB 2.0 cable provided and through which the ICC profile will pass directly to the LUT table on the display. This brings two benefits: on the one hand, it guarantees the best possible calibration but also the possibility of installing this monitor on another computer without having to recalibrate it on it.
Gamma : 2,2 (the L Star brightens dark tones too much).
Note! It is of course possible to change a huge number of target values in ColorNavigator but if you need to choose others you'll know why and how to do it, where and what values to pick.
Then choose the built-in sensor as colorimeter and launch calibration. It is rather fast because it only reviews 32 patches.
Objective data: what does the final report say after calibration?
Once calibration is finished, the color temperature reached is indeed 6504K, the brightness of black is only 0.13 Cd/m2 hence very deep and similar to the results obtained with the i1Display Pro. The native measured contrast is 623:1, here again very close to the result obtained with the i1Display Pro.
DeltaEs in accordance to norm 2000 give on the set of 32 patches a lower value of 0.1 only and a maximum of 1.07 in saturated yellows. The average value is 0.38. So theoretically, ColorNavigator and the built-in sensor are equal to the i1Display Pro and iProfiler. Those of you who wanted to know the difference between the two sets are now informed!
And my subjective data: what does my eye see?
Objectively, I could say that grey neutralization is maybe even more neutral with the solution ColorNavigator, that the grey gradient test is even a bit more progressive but it's really because we need a winner! The real winner, in fact, is the simplicity of use thanks to the programmation of this built-in solution.
Record figures after calibration with the i1Display Pro: average delta e of 0.30 and maximum gap of 0.71 (Norm 2000) when the eye has a hard time seeing differences under 1!
Everything about this CG277 is perfection (and I guess about the Eizo CG247 as well!) What a treat to review this product and thus to recommend it. Happy owners, video editors, printers and photographers!
- What is the Eizo CG277 worth after calibration?