When Dell's 24-inch 4K UHD monitor debuted earlier this year, it was praised for its astounding image quality and lambasted as far too expensive. Its original list price of $1,000 had people asking why anyone would shell out that kind of cash for a 24-inch display when any number of HD monitors easily can be found for well under $200?
Well, the picture has sharpened and prices have dropped: Dell's UltraSharp 24 Ultra HD monitor now runs around $700 on Amazon—as low as $681 a few days ago—or $800 directly from Dell. Still expensive, but largely in line with the handful of other 4K displays at this screen size on the market.
Why is this rig so expensive? Two key reasons: Pixel density and color accuracy. Foremost, the UP2414Q is simply a great-looking display. While it is nearly blinding at its highest brightness setting, it still manages to keep primary colors correct and prevents washing out while ensuring more nuanced hues like skin tones are accurate and natural. Of course, dialing down the brightness to a more room-appropriate setting helps further, but it's good to know the UltraSharp 24's color excels in a variety of environments. (A matte screen makes this monitor's color performance even more impressive while making the display quite versatile.) On a technical level, color coverage includes 99 percent of the AdobeRGB color space and 100 percent of the sRGB space. A certificate showing detailed color calibration information is included in the box.
The UltraSharp 24 crams 185 pixels into each of its 23.8 inches of screen real estate, for a total resolution of 3840 x 2160 pixels. The level of sharpness on the IPS screen is hard to overstate. Every wrinkle or skin blemish appears in video and pictures, and text is fully readable—if tiny—down to a 3-point font size (at standard magnification).
If something's not to your liking, the UltraSharp offers a range of customization features and presets, including such fine-tuning options as a color temperature setting. A fine-tuning companion colorimeter is also available as an option. Physically, the included stand offers ample range of motion, including full tilt, swivel, pivot, and height adjustments. The monitor also can pivot a full 90 degrees for use in portrait mode.
Ample connectors are available. Primary inputs are two DisplayPort connectors (which support 60Hz with a compatible graphics card), one full size and one mini, and a single HDMI (30Hz only) input. (I tested over DisplayPort using a Dell XPS 15.) Four USB 3.0 ports are included, as well as an SD card reader—the only connector that's on the side of the device. All the rest of the ports are in back and not all that easy to get to. No speakers are included, but a companion sound bar is available as an extra.
Yes, 4K content remains effectively nonexistent, but it'll arrive eventually. If you need to prepare yourself for it now in the most compact yet high-performing way possible, Dell's UltraSharp 24 easily fits the bill.
