HP 2311xi IPS Monitor
by Chris Heinonen on August 13, 2012 12:15 AM ESTHP 2311xi - Design, OSD, and Viewing Angles
HP managed to make the right choices with their 27” ZR2740w monitor, hitting a reasonable price point without sacrificing quality. Now HP has introduced their 2311xi monitor, a 23” IPS display with LED backlighting that is designed with value in mind. Even with their value target, they haven't cut back on features, with multiple inputs and a good amount of adjustments available inside of the display.
With a street price of $200, HP is aiming directly at value priced TN displays that have ruled the low-end of the LCD market for years. We finally might be starting to move to better panels, as the price of IPS continues to come down. Has HP managed to get enough quality into a $200 display that it can convince people to move from TN panels when looking for a value display, or have there been too many sacrifices made in order to hit this aggressive price point?
The HP 2311xi is a very simple monitor on the outside. The only inputs offered are DVI, HDMI, and DSub, with no DisplayPort input. The lower right corner of the screen houses the buttons for controlling the OSD and otherwise the screen is free of any other inputs or outputs. One other item that is missing from the screen are VESA mounting holes for those that wish to use their own stand or other mounting device. The included stand offers tilt adjustment and some swivel, but offers no height or pivot adjustments so there is no way to use the 2311xi in portrait mode.
The OSD system is okay but not great, as you use two buttons for both left/right and up/down control, which continues to be a pet peeve of mine. However it does have a full array of options, including three default color temperatures and a user adjustable one, overdrive, sharpness, dynamic contrast, and more. It also has a DDC mode that works quite well I found, so if your calibration solution supports DDC you can have it configured automatically for you.
As you would expect from an IPS panel, the viewing angles are quite good and far beyond what TN can give you. Moving far off-axis we don’t see any color shift but do start to see a shift in the contrast at the very extreme angles. With a 23” display you aren’t going to run into any issues with viewing angles on the 2311xi no matter how you have it configured on your desk, or likely even if you are watching a movie on it from a few feet away.
| HP 2311xi | |
| Video Inputs | DVI-D, Dsub, HDMI |
| Panel Type | e-IPS |
| Pixel Pitch | 0.265 mm |
| Colors | 16.7 Million, 72% Color Gamut |
| Brightness | 250 nits maximum |
| Contrast Ratio | 1000:1 |
| Response Time | 7ms GTG |
| Viewable Size | 23" |
| Resolution | 1920x1080 |
| Viewing Angle | 178 Horizontal and Vertical |
| Backlight | LED |
| Power Consumption (operation) | 29 Watts |
| Power Consumption (standby) | < 0.6 Watts |
| Screen Treatment | Anti-Glare Coating |
| Height-Adjustable | No |
| Tilt | Yes, 0 to 25 Degrees |
| Pivot | No |
| Swivel | Yes |
| VESA Wall Mounting | No |
| Dimensions w/ Base (WxHxD) | 16.4 x 24.49 x 6.26 in |
| Weight | 9.25 lbs. |
| Additional Features | |
| Limited Warranty | 1 Year Parts and Labor |
| Accessories | DVI Cable, VGA Cable |
| Price | $200 Online (7/15/2012) |
Now that we’ve had a full overview of the HP 2311xi it is time to put it through our test bench and see how it performs. Calibration and dE measurements were done using ColorEyes Pro and an i1Pro spectrometer, and black and white level measurements were done using an i1DisplayPro and test patterns from CalPC.
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eallan - Monday, August 13, 2012 - link
So we're comparing full blow laptops with great specs to monitors now?darwinosx - Monday, August 13, 2012 - link
Yeah pretty odd comparison. Also Apple laptop displays have gotten great ratings on this very website.Sabresiberian - Monday, August 13, 2012 - link
So you can't figure out he's just saying that there are high density monitors on the market already, and is just using the Apple Retina display notebooks as an example?piroroadkill - Monday, August 13, 2012 - link
There are very high res TFT-LCDs. Check out the IBM T220/1, 3840×2400, 22.2", back in 2001...Just a very small market for them, or at least there is perceived to be a very small market.
gegiarmo - Monday, August 13, 2012 - link
Why do so many companies refuse to put Displayport in such nice monitors? Does it really cost that much more to add in?jeremyshaw - Monday, August 13, 2012 - link
I'm guessing, but maybe they reused an existing controller PCB to shave costs. Or an older controller ASIC without DP, that was cheaper.Bull Dog - Monday, August 13, 2012 - link
yea honestly I started reading the article and saw, 'with no DisplayPort input' and I felt like not continuing to read any further. No DP input, no chance of my buying it or recommending someone else to get it. DP is the future, get with the times.Bull Dog - Monday, August 13, 2012 - link
but after finishing reading this review it does appear to be a nice monitor for $200.My sister purchased a Dell U2312HM for $240 back when Dell had it on sale. She is quite happy with it and for the little extra $$ you get a much more adjustable stand, Display Port, VESA mounts and matte black plastic.
tk11 - Monday, August 13, 2012 - link
You said it... "DP is the future" but the now is still dominated by DVI / HDMI.Senpuu - Monday, August 13, 2012 - link
A quick wiki search reveals that the first monitor with a DP port was released in January of 2008. Over the intervening years, it's gained rather widespread adoption, to the point that every modern GPU has a DP port. DP provides the most connection bandwidth of any standard, it's adaptable, and it's royalty free to incorporate into your monitor design. It seems a little silly at this point to exclude it from a new product.I'd say that DP is the present...