The graphics card shortage is over. PC gamers everywhere are finally able to splash out on mildly overpriced offerings from AMD or Nvidia without taking out a second mortgage, but you’ll need a display that can keep up too. After blowing the budget on the best bit of silicon available the mid to budget range displays might seem like a compromise too far, however, the M1N5500 is aiming to score something of a headshot in the desktop arena, without killing your credit score. Available at £300 or local equivalent, this is a 27 QHD inch display that comes crammed with the basics required to win at everything from Valorant to Excel pivot tables without the RGB enhancements that you might expect from a gaming brand.
Specifications
- LCD panel type - Nano IPS
- Backlight type - W-LED system
- Panel Size - 27 inch / 68.5 cm
- Aspect ratio - 16:9
- Maximum resolution - 2560 x 1440 @ 170 Hz* (DP -> overclock); 2560 x 1440 @ 144 Hz (HDMI)
- Pixel Density - 108.79 PPI
- Response time - 1 ms (Grey to Grey)*
- MPRT - 1 ms
- Brightness - 350 Nits
- HDR - HDR Ready
- AMD FreeSync Premium - Compatible
- Advertised colour gamut - DCI-P3 98%*, NTSC 113%*, sRGB 133%*, Adobe RGB 93%*
- Picture enhancement - SmartImage game
- Display colours - Colour support 1.07 Billion colours
- Scanning Frequency - HDMI: 30 - 230 kHz (H) / 48 - 144 Hz (V); DP: 30 - 255 kHz (H) / 48 - 170 Hz (V)
- Connectivity
- Signal Input - HDMI 2.0 x 2, DisplayPort 1.4 x 2
- HDCP - HDCP 2.2 (HDMI/DisplayPort)
- USB - USB-B x 1 (upstream), USB 3.2 x 4 (downstream with 2 fast charge B.C 1.2)
Dropping onto our front doorstep, this Philips Momentum 27-inch gaming cuts something of an understated figure. When stacked up against the AOCCu34G2X or curves of the NZXT Canvas, this lacks the high fashion credentials and the slick RGB enhancements of more expensive propositions but it still manages to be unmistakable. Packaged alongside this display is a stand that seems to draw design inspiration from the retro video game Tempest. The angular base could easily be a wire-framed spacecraft, while the hexagonal core invokes the on-screen perspective of this old-school play space. The gunmetal grey finish is a nice touch, although I’m not sure why it wasn’t replicated further up the stand into the display itself, which is once again all hard design choices.
The working features of this Philips display come crafted into a shell that features a slim bottom bezel, a nicely integrated ventilation system, and a subtle textured backplate. The black plastic that caps off the back of this Momentum monitor seems a little odd when paired with the metal stand, but it’s also unlikely to be the side you end up looking at. Pulling these together takes barely a few moments, with a toolless design, and a clip in connection. Ports are easy to access, and the external power brick goes exactly where you’d expect, meaning testing is something we can get straight into.
At first glance, color recreation on every Philips display I’ve had on my desk has been anywhere from good to exceptional. This time is no different. Without even plugging in a SypderX Pro to take a look at the statistics, color looked accurate, clear, and generally consistent. After some minor calibration in a naturally lit environment, the following test results occurred.
100% of sRGB, 90% of AdobeRGB, 95% of P3, 87% of NTSC
For the untrained eye, there is a minor if noticeable correction from out of box calibration, but these numbers do still stack up well. While the NSTC numbers might initially seem like they’re not ground-breaking, consider that this is a gaming monitor and not a device you’re likely to use for high spec content creation. The sRGB falls in at 100%, while everything else clocks in above 90%. That result is indicative of what we would expect to see on a Nano IPS display and after jumping into Apex, reminiscing in Guild Wars 2, and watching the latest Ring of Power, initial impressions of the picture are positive for a device that still sits at the lighter end of the market. Although SDR pictures benefit from this solid color reproduction, HDR is a slightly disappointing experience. This particular model does comes as HDR ready but when turned on the result seems inconsistent at times, especially in brighter scenes. HDR content feels barely passable.
Speed And Sync
At 170Hz and a 1ms GtG time, however, it is reasonable for the performance of this model to be far more than average. Luckily, Initial tests to confirm the response rate showed that this comes in at the expected response times, meaning that you’re unlikely to be sat waiting on a shot going off or experiencing screen tear.
Just to fully confirm that tearing is long gone, we subjected this to the usual Blurbusters ghosting test too. As I’ve come to discover on previous Philips displays, these really tend to settle in best up above 100Hz. While ghosting is barely visible down at 120Hz, it still occurred. Bump up to 165 or 170Hz and this is all but gone.
Those results are generally improved upon using the built-in synch tech. While AMD FreeSync Premium provides the best smoothing for this Philips, it seems that the M1N5500 is even Nvidia G-Synch compatible, meaning that blowing through DOOM, the loud Metal Hellsinger, or even just wading through the upcoming new World Brimstone Sands expansion is a flicker-free experience.
Faster Faster
Overclocking, called SmartResponse mode here, is also a major feature of any gaming display. While Philips has always managed a decent result with these at mid settings, it’s my impression that you won’t want to push past this. Visible image overshoot occurs at full speed ahead and it’s virtually pointless at the lowest configuration. Besides, with response times that we managed to verify this doesn’t feel like a display you’ll be waiting on.
Ready To Go Whatever The Situation
Overall, the Philips Momentum 5000 M1N5500 seem to be a very solid and flexible monitor for the amount you’ll be putting down. The overall connectivity could seem like overkill, but the 27 inches of QHD display can just as easily handle a high-rolling spreadsheet and switch over to an Xbox Series X without much more than a wiggle of the integrated control stick at the back corner of this design. The display screams gaming without trying to take over the entire desktop and never seeming so aggressive that it would take over the whole home office. Even the OSD is thoughtfully constructed but deliberately underwhelming. There’s an understated nuance to this display and what it does, it does very well indeed. Aside from the HDR, there’s really nothing that misses the mark, making the Philips Momentum M1N5500 a fantastic value for anybody who is just done with any more RGB.
The product described in this article was sent by the manufacturer for evaluation purposes.
