Dell P2720D DELL 27" Black 2020

The Dell P2720D is a 27-inch QHD IPS monitor built for office work, with a sharp 2560 x 1440 panel and a fully adjustable stand. It's slow at 60Hz with an 8ms response time, so gamers should look elsewhere. Pricing varies from $225 to $345 in the US, and the lower end is where this makes sense. If you need a reliable productivity display and don't care about gaming specs, it's worth a look.

The headline spec here is the 2560 x 1440 resolution on an IPS panel. That gives you roughly 109 pixels per inch, which means crisp text and enough screen real estate to run two windows side by side without feeling cramped. The 350 nits of brightness is solid for an office environment, and the 10-bit color support is a nice touch for a monitor in this class, even if it's likely 8-bit plus FRC rather than true 10-bit.

But the 60Hz refresh rate and 8ms response time are where this thing shows its age. Our database puts its performance in the 6th percentile, which means it's slower than almost everything else we track. For static work, that's fine. For anything with motion, whether that's gaming or even fast scrolling through long documents, you'll notice some ghosting and blur. The 1000:1 contrast ratio is standard for IPS, so blacks look more like dark gray in a dim room. That's not a Dell problem, it's an IPS problem, but it's worth knowing before you buy.

The competitors in our database for this product are mostly OLED gaming monitors like the ASUS ROG Strix XG27AQDMG, MSI MAG 271QPX QD-OLED E2, and LG UltraGear 27GX790A-B. Those are in a completely different league when it comes to refresh rates, response times, and color performance. But they also cost significantly more and are built for gaming first. If you're comparing the P2720D to those, you're asking the wrong question. This Dell isn't trying to compete with a 240Hz OLED.

A more useful comparison is against other office-focused QHD panels in the $200 to $350 range. The P2720D's ergonomic score lands in the 78th percentile, which is genuinely good for this class. The color performance at 74th percentile is also respectable. But the connectivity score at 36th percentile is a weak spot. One HDMI and one DisplayPort is fine for a single-computer setup, but if you want to plug in a laptop and a desktop, or use USB-C for a single-cable setup, you'll need to look elsewhere. The Samsung Odyssey G60SD and Gigabyte MO27U2 SA both offer more modern connectivity, though at higher prices.

Pricing on the P2720D is all over the place depending on where you look. In the US, we're seeing listings between $225 and $345, which is a $120 spread for what should be the same monitor. That's a big enough gap that you really need to shop around before pulling the trigger. The lower end of that range feels fair for what you get. The higher end starts to bump into territory where you can find faster panels with better connectivity.

At $225, this is a reasonable deal for a QHD IPS monitor with a good stand. At $345, you're paying a premium for the Dell name and the adjustable ergonomics, and that's harder to justify when competitors offer more features for similar money. If you're in Canada, the CAD 459 to CAD 473 range is tighter, but still worth comparing against other QHD office panels before committing.

The Dell P2720D is one of those monitors that doesn't try to impress you with RGB lighting or a 240Hz refresh rate. It's a 27-inch QHD IPS panel aimed squarely at people who need to get work done. Spreadsheets, code, documents, maybe some light photo editing. The 2560 x 1440 resolution on a 27-inch screen hits a sweet spot where text stays sharp without making you squint, and you get noticeably more room than a standard 1080p display.

Dell has been making office monitors forever, and the P-series is their bread and butter for business users. This one comes with a fully adjustable stand, which is more than you can say for a lot of budget panels. Height adjust, tilt, swivel, pivot, the whole package. That matters if you spend eight hours a day in front of the thing and your neck has opinions about monitor placement.

But let's be real about what this is. It's a 60Hz panel with an 8ms response time in a market where even cheap gaming monitors push 144Hz or higher. The performance percentile sits at 6th, which is about as close to the bottom as it gets. If you're buying this for gaming, you're going to have a bad time. If you're buying it for work, it's a different conversation entirely.

Gamers should absolutely skip this. The 60Hz refresh rate and 8ms response time are dealbreakers for anything faster than Solitaire. Even casual gaming will feel sluggish compared to budget 144Hz panels that cost about the same. If you want to game and work on the same monitor, look at something like the Gigabyte M27Q or similar 144Hz+ QHD panels.

People who need modern connectivity should also pass. The lack of USB-C is a real limitation in 2024, especially if you use a laptop as your primary machine. The single HDMI and DisplayPort combo means you'll need dongles or adapters for multi-device setups. And if portability matters at all, the 4990g weight and 13th percentile compact score mean this monitor is staying put once you set it up.

For office work, the P2720D is a solid choice if you can find it at the lower end of its price range. The QHD resolution gives you real productivity benefits over 1080p, the IPS panel keeps colors accurate enough for most business tasks, and the stand is better than what you'll get on most budget monitors. If you spend your days in Excel, Outlook, or a code editor, this monitor will serve you well.

For creative work, it's a mixed bag. The 10-bit color support and decent color accuracy make it usable for light photo editing or design work, but the 60Hz refresh rate and lack of hardware calibration options mean serious color-critical work should look elsewhere. And for gaming, just don't. The 6th percentile performance ranking tells you everything you need to know. This is a work monitor, full stop.