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Tuesday, December 3, 2024

Acer Nitro XV282K Review

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One monitor for everything. That’s my dream for a gaming monitor – something I’m just as comfortable using while gaming on PC or Console, editing photos or writing. The Acer Nitro XV282K is just that kind of monitor. It boasts a 4K IPS panel, 144Hz rate with Adaptive-Sync, bold HDR colors – and importantly – two HDMI 2.1 ports.

But at $900, it’s a very expensive monitor – so whether this is the one you’ve been waiting for depends on how badly you want that HDMI 2.1.

Acer Nitro XV282K – Photos

Acer Nitro XV282K Monitor – Design and Features

When it comes to design, the Acer Nitro XV282K sports a clean look. It has a large, round base with a small red ring and a metal column. The monitor has a thin 8mm bezel on the sides and top, and a larger 21mm chin on bottom. There’s a small Acer logo on the left chin and a barely noticeable proximity sensor in the middle. That chin is a bit of a letdown as far as build quality goes – it feels quite creaky.

The stand is designed to tilt from -5° to 25°, can swivel 360°, and lift about 120mm (4.7”). That makes it a cinch to flip from portrait to landscape and back.

That proximity sensor houses “LightSense,” “ProxiSense” and “ColorSense.” LightSense detects ambient light and can adjust the monitor according to your room’s brightness. ColorSense adjusts your color temperature based on environmental light, and ProxiSense basically tells you to take a break if you’ve been gaming for too long. (I never saw that ProxiSense warning, even after some long gaming sessions.)

Around the back, you’ll find four buttons and a directional joystick that makes navigating its minimal OSD features very easy.

The XV282K features a 27” panel with UHD (3840 x 2160) resolution. It’s got AMD FreeSync, which can minimize latency and prevent screen tearing. But most importantly, with HDMI 2.1, the XV282K is capable of supporting the PS5 and Xbox Series X at 4K resolutions and 120Hz refresh rate – or you can play PC games at 4K and 144Hz.

The XV282K has a brightness up to 300 nits in standard definition and 400 nits for HDR content. It includes speakers which are destined to impress nobody, and a headphone jack.

Beyond the two HDMI 2.1 ports, there’s a USB-C port, USB-B, and one DisplayPort 1.4.

In the box, you’ll find a DisplayPort cable, an HDMI 2.1 Cable, a Power Cord, a USB Type-C cable, a USB 3 cable, and one large power brick. It comes calibrated out of the box, so there’s also a single piece of paper with calibration results.

Acer Nitro XV282K Monitor – Performance and Gaming

The XV282K’s two HDMI 2.1 ports means you can plug your PC and next-gen console in at the same time, no compromises needed. In fact, the USB-C input was able to power my MacBook while providing an image at the same time – a huge boon for those switching between a gaming PC, work laptop, and next-gen console.

I felt zero input lag while gaming, and no surprise – Acer clocks the XV282K at just a single millisecond of response time. At 144Hz on PC and 120Hz on PS5 or Xbox Series X, motion looked sharp, even with overdrive settings set to Normal.

I tested the monitor in a variety of different placements and orientations, and I was really impressed with its ability to quickly flip between portrait and landscape orientation. The monitor can even spin in a full 360-degrees, though it's not particularly practical, given the abundance of wires you’ll likely hang in this thing.

There’s a small clip near the base which functions as the monitor’s sole utility for cable management. It was far too small for the slew of wires I had hanging from it, and I was never able to completely alleviate my cord conundrum while using this monitor.

The stand is quite large and the column sits diagonally, which makes the monitor occupy a surprising amount of space on your desk.

IPS monitors offer excellent viewing angles – and the XV282K is no exception. Colors hold even when looking at the monitor from extreme angles. But IPS monitors also usually suffer from lackluster contrast ratio, and the XV282K does as well, which is even more noticeable in HDR mode. HDR also improves black uniformity, which is not great otherwise. But what it lacks in blacks and contrast it makes up for in its vibrant colors, despite the certification only being for HDR400.

Unfortunately, while gaming on console, you can’t switch between any of the user modes – you’re stuck in HDR at all times – which can be excessively bright and vibrant, making some games even look cartoony. I much prefer a custom balance, and I was disappointed to find that wasn’t an option for console gaming.

This is a bigger deal than it seems on the surface. You can’t turn the brightness down in HDR and sitting that close to a monitor at full brightness can be a pain, literally.

Verdict

The Acer Nitro XV282K is a fantastic monitor that features mostly superb build quality, 4K resolution, 144Hz refresh rate, and two HDMI 2.1 ports. Unfortunately, while console gaming, it’s unable to switch between user modes, meaning you’re forced to use HDR, even when you’d prefer not to. For PC gamers and creatives, the XV282K’s gorgeous 4K IPS will be a huge boon – but its sky-high price may deter most.

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