BenQ XL2420T incoming
February 16, 2012 Category: News 30 Comments 
When we reviewed the XL2410T last year we were left fairly uninspired by the overall performance that we observed. The contrast and colour performance was lacklustre, screen uniformity was poor and high levels of negative ‘overdrive trailing’ could be observed. The contrast issues were largely down to a poor unit for our review sample but the overdrive issues, poor presets and many of the uniformity issues were much more widespread. BenQ were very grateful for our feedback and the responses from other websites (both positive and negative) and are always keen to improve their products based on this. They managed to iron out some of the creases with some newer revisions of the monitor. These boasted better colour balance, superior panel uniformity and improved pixel overdrive but things were still a bit below par in the price to performance stakes. BenQ have done enough ironing and now it’s time to put on a new shirt with the impending launch of the XL2420T.
BenQ XL2420T from the front (picture: BenQ)
The BenQ XL2420T builds on the successes of their ‘gaming monitor’ brand and once again gets the approval of ‘Counter-Strike Legends’ such as ‘SpawN’ and ‘HeatonN’ who were involved once again in the design and the development process. This is built with smooth 2D gaming in mind and doesn’t include any potentially superflous 3D transmitters and suchlike. For those interested in 3D gaming it is certified as ‘Nvidia 3D Vision 2′ ready meaning that users can take advantage of the enhanced viewing area and ‘LightBoost’ technology of Nvidia 3D Vision 2 (Nvidia GPU and 3D Vision 2 set required). The basic specifications are similar to that of the XL2410T with some key differences, including; a 24″ screen size (versus 23.6W of the XL2410T), some additional inputs and a 350 cd/m2 rated luminance (vs. 300 cd/m2). The monitor once again uses an LED-backlit TN panel with 1920 x 1080 resolution and a stated 2ms stated grey to grey response time. The monitor supports a full 120Hz refresh rate and this time is able to drive this through DisplayPort 1.2 as well as DVI Dual Link. Dual HDMI 1.4 inputs and VGA are also included to connect a wide range of devices but these will run optimally at 60Hz.
In terms of features the monitor has retained some useful additions including ‘Smart Scaling’ which can simulate smaller screen sizes to suit preferences and a fully adjustable stand; height, swivel, tilt and pivot adjustment. The monitor also includes an FPS mode for those who want the competitive edge and aren’t too bothered about eye-candy – it basically whacks out the monitor gamma and colours to increase visibility. BenQ has also made some welcome new additions including an ‘S Switch’ which allows rapid scroll-based switching between 3 sets of custom monitor settings. This can be latched onto the right side of the monitor base or detached as a wired remote control according to preferences. Another very interesting addition is a feature called ‘Black eQualizer’ which specifically adjusts the gamma of dark areas to enhance visibility without affecting lighter areas. The XL2420T is now available to buy in the United Kingdom with an RRP of around £299 (and retail price at time of writing of around £280). Availability within the United States and other non-EU regions is expected in February. BenQ have confirmed that the XL2420TX model which will include an integrated Nvidia 3D Vision 2 IR transceiver and a pair of the new Nvidia active shutter glasses will only be launched in the United States and possibly other select non UK and EU markets. This is apparently due to market conditions and projected demand for the ‘TX’ versions being sub-par in these territories (UK and Europe). The XL2420T currently has a US RRP of around $399 although a release date has not yet been confirmed.
Hey can you guys remember to say if the screen is matte or glossy? So many people fail to mention that. I’ve had to resort to watching unboxing videos on Youtube. ARGH!
BenQ don’t explicitly state this in their specifications or mention it as a feature, which is why it is often overlooked. BenQ’s PR department have suggested that this features a similar matte surface to the XL2410T but we are awaiting confirmation from BenQ engineers. Personally I would have liked to see a lighter haze surface such as those that BenQ use on their VA panel monitors as it gives superior vibrancy and much finer and less visible ‘grain’ to the image. The Counterstrike players who were involved in the design of the XL2410T and XL2420T were quite outspoken about their desire for as much ‘glare busting’ as practically possible on the screen surface.
Does the height adjustment allow for ‘all the way down’?
I know in the original you could not move the monitor all the way to ground, which is the reason I didn’t pull the trigger on it. Can this one do this? Thanks in advance.
Hi vitaliko,
We should have a sample with us shortly to confirm this but from what I understand the height adjustment of the stand will be similar to the original. Out of interest why do you require it moved all the way to the bottom?
I’d love 100% confirmation on the situation with overdrive/corona effect/rtc overshoot once you review the panel!
Thanks guys, keep up the great work.
We will certainly be looking out for any negative artifacts and the extent of them in the review
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I translated the Amazon.de reviews into English and all are reporting issues with AMA and are solving it by just disabling it. I have a feeling BenQ failed again in this department… Which will be a deal breaker for me.
I’m sorry to hear that zronvc! We are going to be reviewing the XL2420T ourselves very shortly indeed and will obviously give this some thorough analysis. I can’t imagine disabling the pixel overdrive would bring out the true benefits of a 120Hz monitor at all so we’ll have to see just how noticable these issues are in practice and if certain other settings can reduce them.
when will it be retailed in China?
Hi mengfei,
Pretty out of touch with the Chinese market at the moment so I’m not really sure. Can you get the XL2410T there at the moment? Given that BenQ are based in Taiwan I would have thought that the XL2420T would be coming to you very shortly.
Thank you for replying. xl2410t is on sale. I’ve heard that xl2420t is on sale at Japanese Amazon. By contrast, Benq Chinese official website has not announced when it will be released.
Hi PC Monitors, I too was unimpressed by your previous review so I hanged back a bit before buying a monitor.
Do you think the XL2420T will be better than gaming monitors currently on the market for 2D gaming?
Hi Jacob,
There are some recommendations based around this on a recent forum thread here. We will be testing the XL2420T shortly and hope to get a clearer picture then. There is not really much beating to be done when considering the performance of the recent Samsung monitors (for example), but the XL2420T does have some clear potential advantages depending on your preferences. The stand is adjustable and removable, the screen is matte (which has pros and cons) and it could present the best-rounded 24″ 120Hz monitor available given the RRP.
What can I say? I am extremely disappointed and baffled by one thing; BenQ’s decision to NOT launch the XL2420TX model in Europe?! This does not make any sense!
I mean, in every other aspect this display is nearly the perfect choice for a 24″ 120Hz/3d Vision 2 ready gaming monitor. The fact it’s built upon the experiences (the good and the bad) from XL2410T, which was already good monitor (after they fixed the backlight bleeding of the early versions) they have done an exceptional job with this thing. Even the stand is top notch work with the S Switch module, a headset hook and a cable management system (the hole on the base of the stand).
But to my right mind, I cannot fathom the decision to exclude the 3d Vision 2 kit bundled XL2420TX model from the European market. Quote: “This is apparently due to market conditions and projected demand for the ‘TX’ versions being sub-par in these territories (UK and Europe).”
What does that even mean? What, they actually think residents of European countries don’t want bundles? Or have an inability to use 3D glasses? Or don’t have the money to buy the undoubtedly more expensive TX model? Because those are the only reasons I can come up with.
Not only the TX model comes with built-in IR tranceiver and the glasses (this is not biggie, since they can be bought separately) BUT, there is one weakness in the T model, and a deal-breaker for me:
The XL2420T model DOES NOT have HDMI 1.4 3D Vision Support, which the TX version DOES. That means, you need to use DVI-DL or DP interfaces; i.e. no 3D via devices that use HDMI, say PS3? What the F?!
And even more of a problem, BenQ fails to specify this little peculiarity on their product sheets concerning the XL2420T/TX models, or anywhere for that matter. Hell, even on this page it says “Dual HDMI 1.4 inputs”. LIES! Well at least half-lies.
And I only realized it after buying the damn monitor and reading the XL2420T/TX manual, which only vaguely described it as such: “3D content can be transferred to XL2420TX through HDMI cable (version 1.3 or above) as well.”
Which means you can’t with XL2420T. And there is proof. This Nvidia website confirms it: http://www.nvidia.com/object/3d-vision-system-requirements.html
HDMI 1.4 3D Vision Support
XL2420T: No
XL24020TX: Yes
Needless to say, I had to return the monitor, much to my disappointment. Guess I have to go with the Asus VG278H after all, which is not a bad choice either. So there you have it. Damn shame, really. It’s still a good monitor, but not if you require the 3D capability via HDMI as well, unless you happen to live in US. Just go with the TX model.
Hi Baalaaxa,
Thanks for taking the time to write that post and air your views. I can only sympathetically agree with what you have said. I don’t see how they even gauged that there wasn’t demand for this kind of product in Europe at the moment – I have seen a number of people in Europe who have expressed a desire to buy one of the ‘TX’ models in forums and I don’t think BenQ would have been aware of these people or others like them. I’m still hoping that perhaps this decision will be reversed or that the ‘TX’ model will be launched a little later down the line. I wasn’t actually aware that the ‘TX’ model was the only one to support 3D via HDMI for consoles and other such devices – that seems like quite a poor omission from the XL2420T model!
I’ll certainly keep in contact with BenQ about this and update the post if anything further is known about ‘TX’ model availability.
When will the full review be up ?
Well the review should have already been underway but the courier messed up and didn’t deliver when they were supposed to. Assuming everything goes right next time and we get the monitor in later this week I would expect the review to be published by February 20th. No strict dates though as it will be a very thorough review and no shortcuts will be taken
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Hi
I’m wondering what the latency for the BenQ XL2420T is?
I have read all over the place on the internet that the input lag for the XL2420T is low, but how low is it?
I have read on prad.de about the XL2410 and I believe it says (correct me if I’m wrong, my German is not that good) that the signal lag is 7.3ms and when half of the average frame change time of 3.8ms is added, the average overall lag amounts to 11.1ms.
One guy (jeffxx) from this forum (http://www.overclock.net/t/1185118/benq-…january-18th/10)
said PRAD.de’s Reivew Preview of the XL2420T is up (paid)…….and the BenQ gets a ‘Very Good’ rating, which is their highest rating. With 120hz input lag 4.9ms.
Is this correct? I only want to know if the input lag is lower then the XL2410T?
This is the only thing that is holding me back from getting this monitor. If you could answer this I would greatly appreciate it.
Hi Salkofuj1,
Having read the Prad.de review the figure of 4.9ms total latency is correct. We have also done our own testing (it is still in progress) but it seems to support this figure. The total latency that Prad measures includes the pixel transition as well as the base latency from the monitor. If you are comparing figures most people essentially give a rough guide that doesn’t always encompass all of this. It seems that the XL2420T has no more than 2ms of base latency and takes 2ms for the pixel to transition between common states – that is extremely fast!
Thanks for you answer. I will be getting the benq xl2420t
I will read your review on BenQ xl2420t once it comes out.
How is the latency for the monitor on 60hz? Is it below 10ms?
Comfortably under 10ms at 60Hz, yes!
Still no review?
I’m posponing my monitor purchase because I am in doubt and want to read a decent review about the XL2420T first.
Maybe somebody here can help me out with another question:
The Samsung S27A750D has only got two connection ports.
HDMI and DisplayPort.
My GTX 560ti SOC only includes HDMI and Dual DVI.
I read that to reach 1080P @ 120hz you either need the DisplayPort or Dual DVI, so HDMI is no option.
I’m really interested in purchasing the samsung, so what can I do to accomplish 1080P @ 120hz?
Are there any affordable DisplayPort(female) to Dual DVI male adapters?
Help is much appreciated!
Greets.
Hi Dude,
The review is very much in progress and is very detailed indeed. It will be worth waiting for I’m sure and should be published later this week! Regarding the SA750, unfortunately there is no economical way to connect it to a GPU without DisplayPort or Mini DisplayPort and achieve 120Hz. The very limited range of adaptors that could possibly do that (by a company such as Atlona) would end up costing you more than buying an AMD equivilent or slighlty better GPU (Radeon 6950) and selling your 560ti.
After some research and logical thinking I came to the conclusion that the available adapters convert DisplayPort output to DVI input and not the other way around.
In other words, it’s impossible to connect the samsung to my GPU, period
So now I just hope that the XL2420t is superb, so I can buy that monitor!
Atlona (Dual Link) DVI to Mini DisplayPort Converter.
Ok it does exist, but it’s indeed ridiculously expensive…
Thnx for the info!
Unfortunately so. Converting DVI to DisplayPort in far more complex and requires an active adaptor (such as those made by Atlona mentioned previously) and even then it seems it doesn’t always do what you want. Although I could readily question the adjective ‘superb’ in relation to the XL2420T I think it is a very capable monitor and in your situation will be a practical choice. Hopefully when you see the review you will be able to settle for it.
Im going to buy a new PC system soon. I going with Radeon 7970 (single GPU only). Im confused to whatever to buy the BenQ XL2420T or Dell U2412m.
I prefer to play Battlefield 3, MW3 and some RTS gaming also. I will also use the PC for internet surfing, School work, watching movies (youtube, DVD an soon on)..
Which one should I go with?
Should I take a 120 Hz monitor (like the BenQ XL2420t) when Im only planning to have a single graphic card (Radeon 7970) WHICH WILL PROBALY NOT go much over 60 fps in high/ultra with a single GPU card? Or should I take the DELL..
Im no pro gamer, just a regular gamer. The game I will play most i probably BF3
That’s a difficult question to answer and unfortunately is something that depends on individual tastes and sensitivities. One thing to remember is that with the BenQ XL2420T, even if you are only running games at around 60fps, the considerably lower input lag and ‘connected feeling’ you get from the more frequent mouse updates will make the game feel much smoother than on the Dell U2412M. On Modern Warfare 3 you will easily and consistently reach the frame rate cap of 90fps on multiplayer regardless of settings and the smoothness of the experience is vastly superior. The XL2420T review which is due to be published very shortly will explore this in more detail. Once this review has been published you will be able to compare it to the U2412M that has been tested in much the same way and will hopefully be able to decide for yourself.
thanx.. superb site anyway you have here
Thanks
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