BenQ X2000W

The X2000W... The discourse surrounding this screen reminds us of the ads for detergents that were said to get your clothes ‘’whiter than white’’.  The ''X'' in the name is justified because according to BenQ X2000W’s product page, the screen is Xtremely fast, destined for demanding gamers, exit blurry  images thanks to the AMA function (actually, BenQ’s name for overdrive).  They also say that rendering is extremely realistic which results in unforgettable experiences and maximum viewing pleasure.  There sure are a lot of qualities!

Tests take away its X

Sorry BenQ.  The bad news is that the AMA functions which is supposed to give us so many X sensations has to be deactivated (BenQ knows better and by default the screen has the AMA on OFF).  With this function activated, the screen becomes very subject to a defect which has been very problematic for a year now, black or reverse ghosting.  Behind objects in movement there is a dark shadow, actually a negative of the subject, which adds to the persistent afterglow of the monitor. 

What causes such a phenomenon?  In reality, 5 ms and 2 ms are one and the same.  Manufacturers add a function to the 2 ms called the overdrive.  This consists of strongly increasing the voltage to the ends of liquid crystal cell for very short periods of time (a tenth of a millisecond) so that they will react more quickly.  Schematically, instead of applying 1 Volt, they will double it so that crystals turn twice as fast and therefore cutting the afterglow in half.  In practice, the complication arises when cutting off this higher than normal voltage.  If it’s done too late, the cell makes a transition to a non desired color and causes black ghosting.


It turns out that the function is poorly mastered, introducing more defects than anything else.  We largely preferred to deactivate it on our test screen which means that the screen becomes a classic 5 ms (but a good one at that).  Our measurements confirm this.