Conclusion
The S27C570H is Samsung’s take on the growing number of 27” ‘Full HD’ IPS panels. With its AD-PLS panel performance was largely comparable to monitors using LG’s latest AH-IPS panels. The strengths in viewing angle performance allowed for accurate colour representation all across the screen. Colours not only showed good consistency, they were also rich and well represented following some tweaking. Compared to AH-IPS models we’ve tested the out of the box setup was a little lacklustre on the Samsung, though, with significant alterations to the colour channels needed to correct the white point. There can of course be variation between units in this respect and some may provide a better balance out of the box. The colour gamut was also just slightly more restrictive in some regions than competing models. Not worryingly so, but enough to make some colours look a tad less saturated in comparison.
Another area where variation can and does occur is backlight uniformity. Although the uniformity of dark colours (in particular black) was quite good on our unit, PLS glow aside, the uniformity of lighter colours was not great. There were some significant variations in both uniformity and white point at different points of the screen. Most users would probably not notice this but it would trouble some users. From a monitor of this price and calibre you shouldn’t expect perfection in that respect, but you shouldn’t necessarily expect such significant deviations either. The static contrast performance, though, was every bit as good if not slightly ahead of the AH-IPS rivals.
One area that was fairly ‘niggle free’ was responsiveness. Whilst the monitor’s responsiveness is restricted by its 60Hz refresh rate, there were no real barriers beyond that. Pixel responsiveness using the default ‘Faster’ setting was as fast as it has to be for optimal 60Hz performance without introducing any troublesome inverse ghosting artifacts. Input lag was also impressively low, no complaints there. There were some PWM artifacts visible in places. Making a big thing about this would be a bit pedantic as it applies to many competing models as well but isn’t something we usually comment on. It’s also not something many users would take issue with or even notice for that matter.
Overall this monitor provided a decent all-round experience with good suitability for tasks ranging from general work and a bit of hobbyist photo editing to movies and gaming. It’s definitely a model worthy of consideration and worth remembering that our review sample likely received some rough treatment that most units wouldn’t be subjected to. It had been transported all around the world and probably took a few beatings along the way. If it wasn’t for the poor uniformity of our unit then this would be a fairly safe recommendation.
| Positives | Negatives |
| Good colour representation after tweaking with a rich and varied look, good consistency overall and low viewing-angle influence | The default colour temperature strayed a bit far from the desirable 6500K target whilst a slightly more generous colour gamut (and to some extent a lighter screen surface) could have unlocked some more vibrancy potential |
| Static contrast performance was strong and the screen surface was free from heavy grain that would sap the image of much of its clarity | PLS glow ate away at some peripheral detail. Dithering was also slightly more noticeable than on comparable AH-IPS models but not to a troubling degree. An even lighter matte screen surface (semi-glossy) would have been nice as well |
| Good overdrive implementation and very low input lag provides a pleasing 60Hz gaming experience | Fluidity is limited by the 60Hz refresh rate, not unusual for this type of monitor though |
| An HDMI colour signal that is correct for PC users without any driver tweaks – other manufacturers should learn from this | Limited ergonomic flexibility, port selection and moderately thick bezels by today’s standards |
Donations are greatly appreciated.
Calibration
Testing the presets
As usual Samsung includes some ‘MagicBright’ presets which make adjustments to image attributes such as brightness and contrast; ‘Custom’, ‘Standard’, ‘Game’, ‘Cinema’ and ‘Dynamic Contrast’. If any manual adjustments are made to any setting then the monitor sets itself to the ‘Custom’ ‘MagicBright’ setting. Unlike with presets on monitors from some other manufacturers there aren’t specific settings locked to specific presets – with the exception of ‘Dynamic Contrast’ where key manual image adjustments (contrast, brightness, sharpness and colour settings) are disabled. Using ‘Cinema’ disables all such adjustments bar brightness. Because all changes made by the presets can be made manually in ‘Custom’ mode we won’t be spending much time commenting on how good the image does (or in this case doesn’t) look in various presets by default. Instead we will also be focusing primarily on the effects of changing ‘Gamma’ modes between the three settings available in the ‘Color’ menu; ‘Mode1’, ‘Mode2’ and ‘Mode3’.
An Nvidia GTX 780 is used on our test system connected by HDMI. Unlike on many monitors connected by HDMI to Nvidia GPUs the correct colour signal is used by default. There is no need to mess around with custom resolutions or registry tweaks to enforce the correct ‘Full Range RGB’ signal as everything is optimal straight from the box. We saw similar behaviour on the Samsung S27C750P; other manufacturers could definitely learn from this. AMD GPU users should not have any issues with the default colour signal behaviour either. The table below shows values for white point, gamma and some observations using various presets and gamma settings.
| MagicBright (Preset) | Gamma (central average) | White point (kelvins) | Notes |
| ‘Custom’ (default) | 2.2 | 7484K | Excessively bright with a strong blue hue. |
| ‘Standard’, Gamma= Mode1 | 2.3 | 7504K | Blue hue remains but brightness much more comfortable. The overall richness of the image is decent (not a washed out nor heavily saturated look). |
| ‘Standard’, Gamma= Mode2 | 2.1 | 7436K | Colours appear slightly more muted in places but otherwise similar to ‘Standard’, Gamma= Mode1. |
| ‘Standard’, Gamma= Mode3 | 2.5 | 7439K | As ‘Standard’, Gamma= Mode1 with greater depth. Saturation too heavy in places and some shades are notably darker than they should be. |
| Test Settings (‘Custom’ modified as below) | 2.3 | 6469K | The image is much better balanced without the blue tint. Things look rich, nicely varied and appropriately saturated overall. |
Specifications
The monitor uses an AD-PLS panel that employs the common 6-bit+ FRC (Frame Rate Control) dithering. Modern dithering algorithms are very capable and if AH-IPS models are anything to go by we expect faithful shade reproduction that will please the vast majority of users. A 5ms grey to grey response time is specified by Samsung, indicating the presence of grey to grey acceleration (pixel overdrive). 178 degree viewing angles are also specified and with a typical retail price of around £160 ($200) this model is largely comparable to the IPS competition in both price and specification.
The key ‘talking points’ of the specification have been highlighted in blue for your reading convenience.
Screen size: 27 inches
Panel type: Samsung LTM270HL02 AD-PLS (Plane to Line Switching) LCD
Native resolution: 1920 x 1080
Typical maximum brightness: 300 cd/m2
Colour support: 16.7 million (6-bits per subpixel plus dithering)
Response time (G2G): 5ms
Refresh rate: 60Hz
Weight: 5.3kg
Contrast ratio: 1,000:1 (20m:1 Dynamic Contrast)
Viewing angle: 178º horizontal, 178º vertical
Power consumption: 20W typical
Backlight: WLED (White Light Emitting Diode)
Typical RRP as reviewed: £250 ($320 USD)
Contrast and brightness
Contrast ratios
A Konica Minolta CS-200 was used to measure the luminance of white and black alongside the resulting contrast ratio using the monitor settings assessed in the calibration section. The table below shows the results. For ‘Standard’ mode readings where brightness was adjusted everything else was left at default, including gamma being set to ‘Mode1’. Black highlights indicate the highest white luminance, lowest black luminance and highest static contrast ratio recorded. Blue highlights show the results of our test settings.
| Monitor Profile | White luminance (cd/m2) | Black luminance (cd/m2) | Contrast ratio (x:1) |
| ‘Standard’ 100% brightness | 354 | 0.30 | 1180 |
| ‘Standard’ 80% brightness | 284 | 0.24 | 1183 |
| ‘Standard’ 60% brightness | 220 | 0.18 | 1222 |
| ‘Standard’ 40% brightness | 153 | 0.13 | 1177 |
| ‘Standard’ 20% brightness | 87 | 0.07 | 1243 |
| ‘Standard’ 0% brightness | 20 | 0.02 | 1000 |
| Test settings | 185 | 0.17 | 1088 |
| ‘Standard’ Gamma= Mode2 | 181 | 0.15 | 1207 |
| ‘Standard’ Gamma= Mode3 | 181 | 0.15 | 1207 |
The average static contrast ratio (brightness only adjusted) was 1168:1 on the Samsung S27C570H, which is very pleasing and about as high as you’ll see from a non-VA LCD. Adjusting the gamma mode had no negative impact on the contrast performance. Under our test settings some moderate adjustments were made to colour channels which reduced contrast slightly to 1088:1 – still very good. The highest white luminance recorded was 354 cd/m2 which comfortably exceeded the specified 300cd/m2 whilst the lowest was 20 cd/m2 which is impressively dim. This gave an excellent luminance adjustment range of 334 cd/m2.
As usual for a Samsung monitor there is a ‘Dynamic Contrast’ preset which allows the backlight to adjust its brightness according to the image being displayed. For a dark image the backlight will dim, whilst for a light image it will turn on to a bright setting. We found this setting reacted extremely quickly to changes in image brightness. The usual caveats applied; the backlight dims as one unit to reflect the overall lightness or darkness of the scene, but most scenes are an intricate mixture of light and dark. Furthermore the rapid changes in backlight brightness can prove distracting. Some users may like this setting, but to put it bluntly – we don’t.
PWM (Pulse Width Modulation)
The S27C570H uses PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) to dim the backlight below full brightness (100). The video below shows how a camera picks up the PWM with a distinct strobing at brightness levels below 100. The monitor does not look like this to the eye, but some individuals are sensitive to flicker and may experience visual discomfort when viewing a monitor that uses PWM. Such users may prefer to seek monitors which do not use this method of backlight regulation, although the choice of such monitors is relatively slender at the moment.
Luminance uniformity
When looking at a black screen in a darkened room, under our test settings, there was some minor backlight bleed in the bottom right and top right corners. This was not very extensive at all and would escape your notice during actual use. So-called ‘PLS glow’ overshadows this minor bleed from normal viewing positions anyway. This phenomena manifests itself as a purple-grey glow towards peripheral areas of the screen which blooms out and becomes more distinct if you view the screen from non-central positions. This is demonstrated in a video that featured in the ‘Viewing angles’ section of the review.
Samsung S27C570HS: Design & Features
Monitors rarely excite with their design and the Samsung S27C570HS is no exception. It’s slim, which is nice, but its glossy black front and black plastic base are anonymous and inoffensive. The rear has a brushed metal effect, but it is just that… an effect.
There’s only tilt adjustment on offer, and the base is not one of Samsung’s finest efforts. It’s easy to assemble, but it wobbles noticeably when jogged. It’s not a fatal flaw, but it is somewhat annoying.
The Samsung S27C570HS’s connections comprise HDMI, VGA and a headphone out, which is all most people need. However the lack of a second digital connection (HDMI or DVI) is disappointing, especially considering the 27-inch BenQ GW2760HS has both and at a lower £215 price point.
The Samsung S27C570HS isn’t wall mountable, either, which is a silly oversight considering the slim design lends itself well to such an option. It won’t bother many people, of course, but it also rules out anyone with a monitor arm mount.
So far, so ordinary, but the Samsung S27C570HS wins points for its easy to use OSD controls. There’s just a single control, a four-way control stick and button on the bottom edge below the LED power light. It and the easy to navigate controls make tweaking settings a breeze.
Introduction
27” LG IPS (In Plane Switching) monitors are becoming increasingly popular, with an ever-expanding range of models. There has also been a renewed focus on more affordable ‘Full HD’ screens to offer users a cheaper alternative to pricier WQHD monitors. With high affordability, strong colour reproduction characteristics, good responsiveness and a range of styles they have a lot going for them. Samsung’s PLS (Plane to Line Switching) technology is a relatively recent alternative to IPS, offering largely comparable performance at a similar price. The Samsung S27C570H, which sometimes includes an additional ‘L’ prefix and ‘S’ suffix, uses their latest iteration of the technology designed for 23-24” and 27” 1080p screens; AD-PLS (‘Advanced’ PLS). AD-PLS is designed to compete specifically with LG’s ‘AH-IPS’ (Advanced High Performance IPS) which is quite widespread at the moment. Having tested a number of models using such panels and been largely impressed by their performance we feel that the Samsung has a lot to live up to. We put this monitor through its paces to see how it compares.
Viewing angles
To further explore colour consistency on the SC570 we used Lagom’s viewing angle tests. The following observations were made.
- The purple block was purple for the most part with a very slight pink hue towards the bottom right corner.
The red block was a reasonably rich red with good consistency and no obvious pink tinting.
The green block was a slightly yellowish green throughout with no areas showing a stronger yellow tint.
The blue block was royal blue throughout.
The Lagom text appeared largely a blended grey, typical of a PLS panel with low viewing angle dependency to the gamma curve. The bottom left corner looked noticeably warmer than the rest, likely a uniformity issue with our test sample rather than a viewing angle limitation.
The video below highlights extends the idea of strong colour consistency by showing relatively minor changes as the viewing angle itself (in this case camera relative to the monitor) is shifted. The final third of the video shows PLS glow in action, demonstrating how it can ‘bloom out’ as viewing angle is changed.
Colour reproduction
Colour gamut
The Samsung S27C570H roughly covers the sRGB colour space, as shown in the image below. There is some slight over-coverage in some areas and some slight under-coverage. Compared to the 27” Full HD AH-IPS panels there seems to be some green shades that the 27” AD-PLS panel is missing out on. For photography, design and similar work this under-coverage is not ideal but not extensive enough to make the monitor completely unsuitable, either. More generally it has a slight impact on the saturation of some shades as explored below.
Colour in games and movies
The Battlefield 4 beta is somewhat limited in shade variety by the single ‘Siege of Shanghai’ map featured. Nonetheless it had a rich and nicely varied look overall. The yellow road markings and red flags dotted around the map had particularly good depth and intensity. Roaring flames and the blue-red and green in-game markers also looked fairly vibrant – but not to the extent you’d see on a glossy monitor or some of the IPS and PLS models with slightly more generous colour gamuts. Vegetation was not exactly abundant on the map but the scant greenery did show a pleasing variety and decent depth of colour.
The racing environments on Dirt 3 had the varied and natural look that they craved. Vegetation showed a very good variety of subtly different green and golden brown shades – although some of the more autumnal (orange and reddish) browns and deep greens could have done with slightly more intensity. The palette of vibrant colours on cars and adverts around the track was varied and quite vibrant. Strong yellows, pinks and purples stood out particularly well. Strong reds and blues also had pleasing depth. Some deeper greens and strong ambers could have done with a little more depth, however. Overall the colour representation was pleasing on this title, held back just a little in places by the screen surface and colour gamut.
On the Skyfall Blu-ray colour performance was very good with everything looking much as it should. There was plenty of shade variety with even subtly different shades (similar skin tones, for example) showing appropriate distinction and saturation. Some of the more vibrant colours, such as deep red and purple lights were nice and intense with good depth to them. Some of the most vibrant colours in the film were showcased during the Shanghai night scenes. These did not have the same ‘pop’ you’d see on a decent glossy screen but were certainly far from lacklustre.
We also used the Blu-ray of Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder to assess colour reproduction. With large blocks of individual shades this title is an excellent test for shade consistency. The Samsung performed very well in this regard, displaying a good variety of closely matching pastel shades. There was a bit of variation due not to a weakness in panel performance but rather the relatively poor uniformity of our unit. Such variation was far more subtle than the shifts you’d see on even the most uniform TN or VA panels. There were well represented deep and bright neon shades as well. Deep reds, blues and purples were particularly pleasing.
Samsung S27C570HS: Image Quality
The main specs for the panel and monitor read much like any other monitor at this price: 1,000:1 contrast ratio, 5ms grey-to-grey response time and a peak brightness of 300 nits. Actually the latter is very high, too high really – not that this matters a great deal. These don’t tell us much, so we fired up our Xrite i1 Display Pro and got testing. And, sadly, out of the box the Samsung S27C570HS calibration is distinctly average, less so even.
Our target colour temperature (white point) is 6500K, but at default settings the Samsung S27C570HS sits at 7471K. This is very cool, leaving whites and blacks noticeably off. We managed to get this down to 6622K using the RGB controls (blue channel down to 45 from 50), but we expect monitors to arrive better calibrated than this.
Contrast and brightness were on target, at 1,044:1 and 331 nits respectively. The latter is quite a bit higher than the quoted figure, and we recommend tuning this down to around 250 nits (brightness to 79 on our model) for comfortable everyday use. Some will recommend lower still – it depends on how bright you environment is.
While the colour temperature is rather cool, actual colour accuracy is decent enough. The Samsung S27C570HS measured a deltaE of 2.29, which is good enough for average users. It’s a little way off the BenQ GW2760HS (1.92) and Samsung SC24C650 (1.27), but not so much that any ordinary user should worry.
Brightness uniformity
Colour temperature
The uniformity (aka consistency) of the panel is a concern, however. The brightness (luminance) and colour temperature (white point) uniformity tests shown were conducted before we tweaked the settings, but reducing brightness only improved things a small amount.
Across the whole screen there’s a great deal of variance. The white point in the bottom left edge is way off and, while there’s no really obvious backlight bleed, brightness consistency across the whole panel is iffy.
These average results are borne out in general use. The Samsung S27C570HS isn’t a bad monitor, but it doesn’t stand out, either. Colours lack a little punch and it struggles resolve really fine detail in dark scenes in photos and videos. And in comparison to the BenQ GW2760HS, which has an impressive 3,000:1 contrast ratio, the depth and richness of its pictures are sadly lacking.
The redeeming quality here is the viewing angles, which are very, very good. It’s the best part about the Samsung S27C570HS’s image quality, actually, but not really enough for us to recommend it. We didn’t have any complaints about its responsiveness or motion handling, either, which combined with the high peak brightness makes this a reasonable option for gaming, but there are better.
