HP LP3065 review

The LP3065 achieved a brightness score of 302cd/m² -- lower than HP's claimed 370 max. The monitor's brightness was lower than we expected, yet you'd never know with the brightness adjusted to its maximum setting. You'll definitely want to dial the brightness down if you plan to do much work with Excel, Word or any white-screen program.

We looked at Kill Bill: Vol 1 on DVD and a number of 1080p movie files from Microsoft's WMV HD Content Showcase. Movies on the LP3065 looked great, thanks to the display's deep blacks, but we've seen better contrast on some other monitors.

Unreal Tournament 3 looked good running at 2,560x1,600 pixels, and showed no signs of ghosting or input lag. Vibrant and deep colour, along with high brightness, gave the game an eye-poppingly pleasant look. There's really nothing like gaming at 2,560x1,600 pixels. We also looked at some high-resolution photos and found the colours accurate and vibrant, proving that the two aren't mutually exclusive.

The optimal viewing angle for a monitor is usually directly in front, about a quarter of the screen's distance down from the top. At this angle, you're viewing the colours and gamma correction as they were intended. Most monitors are made to be viewed only at that angle. Depending on the panel type, picture quality at non-optimal angles varies. The LP3065 was made with an S-IPS panel, which usually shows only minimal colour shifts with angle changes. Indeed, we noticed that the LP3065's screen hardly shifted colours at all when viewed from the sides, top or bottom.

Conclusion
If you can look past the £1,200 price tag and don't require many video-adjustment options, the HP LP3065 is one of the best-performing monitors that money can buy.

Additional editing by Charles Kloet