When comparing Dell E2318Hx vs Planar Helium PCT2785, the Slant community recommends Planar Helium PCT2785 for most people. In the question“What are the best monitors?” Planar Helium PCT2785 is ranked 30th while Dell E2318Hx is ranked 47th. The most important reason people chose Planar Helium PCT2785 is:
The black levels are respectively low at 0.16cd/m², which helps the contrast ratio achieve 1100:1 which is much lower than the advertised 5000:1, but still quite good.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Affordable
The Dell E2318Hx is one of the cheapest 23-inch IPS monitors on the market. You’ll be hard-pressed to find it a matching competitor in its price range since the big manufacturers like HP, Dell, Samsung, LG, Phillips, Asus, Acer, and AOC don't offer such large panels in the sub $120 range.
Pro Low energy consumption
Running this monitor 24/7 will cost you less than $1.2 per month in electricity bills because the Dell E2318Hx consumes only around 16 W of electricity, which makes it one of the most energy-efficient monitors in this price range.
Pro Responsive
This monitor doesn't feel disconnected and reacts to your actions quite rapidly as there is almost no lag between your actions and the actual stuff happening on the screen.
The motion looks good and blur-free because of the monitor's full pixel response time of 5 ms, which allows each pixel of the panel to change their colors within only five milliseconds. Therefore, only very tiny trails may follow fast-moving objects.
Pro Acceptable picture quality
The monitor's picture quality is a tiny bit below the average because of its limited color gamut. However, the panel's peak brightness and native contrast ratio are on par with the rest of its competitors in this price range.
The Dell E2318Hx displays adequately-looking pictures with average blacks and vivid, yet a bit inaccurate colors. The dark scenes look mediocre because the monitor's native contrast ratio of 1000:1 is a little bit too low and can't push blacks to really intense levels. Colors look shiny since the monitor's backlight can get up to 250 nits bright.
However, you might spot some color inaccuracies because of the monitor's incomplete coverage of the sRGB color space, which results in color shifting.
Pro Good for mixed-use
The Dell E2318Hx is among the most versatile budget monitors because it offers fair responsiveness, low energy consumption, and adequate picture quality without breaking the bank.
Pro Decent black levels, good contrast ratio
The black levels are respectively low at 0.16cd/m², which helps the contrast ratio achieve 1100:1 which is much lower than the advertised 5000:1, but still quite good.
Pro Pretty fast response times make the system feel quick
The response time is 12ms, which isn't lightning fast, but it's still quick enough to make the system feel more responsive than cheaper monitors. While not fast enough for high-level gaming, this monitor won't make your system feel slow or unresponsive.
Pro 'Massive tablet' design is unique, and versitile
It really does look like a massive tablet with a kickstand - but that's not a bad thing. There's no stand visible, leaving the front looking very clean. The stand can angle anywhere from 15-70 degrees which allows for flexible use, or it can be folded in and used flat on the desk or even mounted using the VESA mounting holes.
Pro Built-in speakers, webcam, and mic
This monitor has many peripherals built-in, and unless you use them heavily they will do the job just fine. Unless you feel the need for dedicated hardware, the built-in stereo speakers work well enough, and the webcam and mic are acceptable quality for occasional recreational use (for business calls or other uses where quality is important, you'll want to upgrade to dedicated hardware).
Cons
Con Lacks ergonomic adjustments
It will not be easy for you to set up a proper, ergonomically correct working environment with the Dell E2318Hx as its adjustment range is limited severely. You can't adjust its height, pivot, or swivel angle.
Con Poor connectivity
The Dell E2318Hx offers only a bare minimum of connectivity which might be a huge deal breaker in 2018.
Con Poor color space
The Dell E2318Hx is unsuitable for color-critical applications because the monitor supports only 85% of the sRGB color space.
Con Disappointing color accuracy
The MVA panel (multi-domain vertical alignment: in-between of TN and IPS technologies) doesn't reproduce colors very accurately. It scores just 82% of the sRGB color gamut, while other panels offer high 80s and even above 90%. This display's weakest points are with the green and cyan shades, while reds and blues appeared just fine.
Con Dim display
The display doesn't get very bright - at just 172cd/m² this panel is very dim. Many monitors can achieve 300cd/m² or higher brightnesses.
Con Takes much more power than similar monitors
Without using the ECO mode, this monitor requires about 50 watts to power it. This is double than other monitors. There are different levels of ECO modes, however these dim the display and barely get down to the power level of other monitors when they are all enabled.