HP 27-inch QHD Gaming with Tilt/Height Adjustment with AMD FreeSync Premium Technology (X27q, 2021 model)

As several reviews mention, at some HP decided to replace the highly lauded LG panel in this monitor with a cheaper BOE (a Chinese manufacturer) panel. Its hard to say exactly how much this degrades the quality of the panel but keep in mind that the initial wave of very positive reviews for this may not be as accurate as they were. So far it seems good enough considering I got it on sale. I had a dead pixel scare exactly on day after the 30 day return period ended but I think it was a false alarm. I also think I may have received a returned monitor though as it has some scuffs on it and the warranty was already activated 2 months before I even received it. Might have to look into what thats about. Just do your due diligence and if you can grab it on sale, it should hopefully serve well as a decent monitor considering its size, resolution, and refresh rate. Will update as time goes on if any issues pop up.

Excelente monitor.

I did my research, and this monitor is truly worth the price (i bought it for $234, including taxes). With this monitor at this price, it makes no sense to buy a secondhand monitor (which is what I was planning to do initially). Great colors. Great looks. The refresh rate is amazing. Its an IPS panel which is better than TN panels. The 1440p resolution makes things look insanely good. I am very happy with my purchase, but if that changes anytime soon, I will change my review. So far, I have had this monitor for a month and have 0 complaints.

Amazon gave me a huge hassle not letting me replace the broken monitor they sent. BOE Panel. Theyd only allow a return. Finally able to order a replacement after my account suddenly changed the return options. This one is a working LG panel. So far a massive improvement and working well. If you want to take the gamble, it may be worth it, but it was over 2 weeks of headache.

Please excuse the cluttered desk haha Honestly one of the best monitors I’ve owned. Picture quality is above and beyond. Control menu very easy to use. Love that this has a portrait mode! The height on this monitor as well is amazing! Forward and back tilt as well! Bezel on monitor is very thin and maximizes the full screen capability as well! Highly recommend considering this for first time PC users or any level of computer user!

Purchased the legendary treasure truck deal, monitor came quick. Was unfortunate to learn the one I received came with the cheaper BOE panel that HP swapped into these bad boys to save money. There is an odd green tint on the screen I cant seem to remove with any settings. But for a second or third monitor this thing does the job.

Got the HP X27q during the second treasure truck sale on July 13, 2022. As you see in some of the reviews after July 13 some have reported getting monitors with a BOE panel (BIM111) used instead of the LG panel (LIM101) in earlier manufactured models that got a lot positive reviews. There are other reports of people getting a newer revision LG panel (LIM111). Its a lottery at this point. In my case I would be considered lucky and got an old stock manufactured Aug 2021 with the LIM101 LG panel and monitor FW 1.1.1.0. No dead or stuck pixels. No flickering. The colors after using a color profile file from a review and their recommended settings and in 10bit the general output from the monitor looks great. This is my first IPS monitor so it was a bit of a sensory overload with picture quality after using TN monitors for so long. But thats kinda ruined as I got unlucky with the IPS glow lottery. The bottom left is pretty bad. If theres anything dark in that corner it will look washed out if sitting in the center. I can either sit a bit off to the left about an inch from the center or sit one and half arms length away to see that bottom left glow go away so things like watching movies from a further distance is unaffected. Included in the review is a pretty good representation of what I see using a solid black color and with the monitor brightness set at 5 at about an arms length away. Horizontal viewing angles are good. Vertical viewing angles are only good looking from below. From above its a bit washed out and gets worse when a horizontal angle is added. Looks like it comes from the IPS glow at the bottom. Compared to my Dell S2716DG with TN panel vertical viewing angle from above is much better. But honestly vertical viewing angles will never be a problem for me. Buttons in the back is just bad. Having a multi monitor setup and needing to press any buttons to switch input or make any other adjustment means I have to keep pivoting away my side monitor which Im glad I have monitor arms. Just have the buttons at come out the bottom of the bottom bezel. The forward facing power LED design placement is questionable as the placement is just there. By default on the white LED is not that bad during the day, but at night it will be noticeable and can be dazzling to the eyes. And it turns to a nice amber when it enters into sleep mode though I its still a bit bright at night. HP does give us the option to completely disable it. But there seems to be a bug with it. After turning off the power LED and the first time the monitor enters sleep mode the LED will stay off. But when you wake it up and the next it enters sleep mode with the no input message pops up the white LED will come on and stay on. It doesnt turn amber and stays white. The LED will then turn off the next time you wake it up. Warranty length is only a year. But for me after searching up my serial number my warranty started back in April 15, 2022 and ends May 9, 2023. So I have 10 months. Though Im pretty sure they have to grant my warranty started at the time of purchase July 13 and not April 15 with the invoice. So to rate the monitor. During the day time the IPS glow is not noticeable and the overall picture quality is great. In the evening/night the IPS glow is there but Ive found a good balance of brightness that works well that it limits the IPS glow and havent noticed it when just doing stuff. Though for others this might not be possible. The vertical angle that Im not bothered about but should be brought up. And the bug with the power LED can be a major issue for some. Finding out that I may have less than one year warranty really sucks so Im giving it a 3 star instead of a 4. If this monitor was to ever drop down to the treasure truck truck price of $175 I would try and get another one and would recommend giving it a shot. It is Amazon so returns is not that much of an hassle. At the regular price of around $250 I would really be looking at other monitors in this price range before considering this X28q. Something to note is other major electronic stores dont sell this model anymore and HPs own store website doesnt even have a page for it. Is it possible this treasure truck sale was to move the last major batch of these monitors before being discontinued?

This is a great monitor I have no complaints. Edit 5/29/23 Ive started noticing some flickering issue with certain games when I have free sync enabled and am getting more fps than the refresh rate. So for example its noticeable in some games menus where fps can just basically sky rocket into the hundreds easily if its not capped, there is some flickering. Most modern games have a fps cap when at the main menus but not all. I cant say its an issue for me but maybe something to consider if your looking into this monitor.

Do yourself a favor and wait until this goes on sale again for <$200. Anyone in the market for a 1440p monitor should seriously consider the X27q. People over on r/buildapcsales go absolutely gaga for this monitor whenever theres a flash sale. And for good reason, too. It has all the specs you want - 165hz refresh rate, 1ms response time, and of course the budget friendly yet crystal clear 1440p resolution. No, you wont get HDR or any other bells and whistles, but for everyday use from streaming media content to gaming, the X27q is more than up to the task.

For the price this is the best budget gaming monitor. You cant go wrong