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The monitor brightness struggle was something I encountered first a 3 or so years ago when I moved into place with big windows that got a lot of natural light d

The monitor brightness struggle was something I encountered first a 3 or so years ago when I moved into place with big windows that got a lot of natural light during the latter half of the day, even in the winter. Garden variety 250-350 nit displays really struggle with that kind of light, even if it's indirect and the screen in question is matte. 400-450 nits I've found is about the minimum for universally usable display brightness indoors, assuming either a matte finish or good anti-glare coating (e.g. like that on newer MacBooks). If it's the sadly far more common mirror-type glossy displays found on damn near every laptop and non-enthusiast/pro desktop monitor out there, you're going to need 500-600 nits to cut through the glare.

wincy 4y ago
This has absolutely been my struggle since upgrading my lighting. It’s also so difficult to find data about how bright a monitor actually is! I bought some 1440p “gaming monitors” that I think are around 450 nits, and these are just barely bright enough for my newly lit up office.
- 411111111111111 4y ago
  This one has pretty decent brightness and comes with great blacks too. And the widescreen format is great for development. The 34" is basically an extended 27", whereas the 38" is an extended 32" https://www.dell.com/en-uk/shop/alienware-34-curved-qd-oled-gaming-monitor-aw3423dw/apd/210-bdsz/monitors-monitor-accessories https://www.dell.com/en-uk/shop/alienware-34-curved-qd-oled-...
  - rxyz 4y ago
    Alienware QD-OLEDs have a special pixel layout which isn't good for text
    - kitsunesoba 4y ago
      It’s probably not as much of a problem on macOS and Linux where the majority of apps will obey system text rendering settings (and macOS defaults to non-subpixel AA anyway) but under Windows everybody does their own thing for text rendering regardless of how you’ve set up ClearType and it’s a mess.
nextaccountic 4y ago
Is it possible to have a 500 or 600 nits display, but still have the lowest brightness settings be equal or lower than the lowest settings of a 250 nits display? That's my biggest issue
- dotancohen 4y ago
  Going below 50% brightness on _most_ monitors brings the flickering into the realm that many humans can perceive. This is because the physical brightness cannot actually be controlled, so PWM is used to adjust perceived brightness.
  - onli 4y ago
    That is not true for many displays. Have a look at reviews, whether there is pwm control/flickering is part of all(?) professional reviews now.
    - dotancohen 4y ago
      Terrific, that is great to know. I might update my monitors if so.
      - imhoguy 4y ago
        First thing when I buy any monitor is "flicker-free" keyword. If you got one with PWM then the best you can do is to max out the monitor LED brightness and reduce screen brightness/gamma with an app.
      - onli 4y ago
        :) Maybe an aside, but for notebooks, I know that notebookcheck always has a section about this in their reviews. https://www.notebookcheck.net/HP-Dragonfly-Folio-13-5-G3-convertible-review-No-more-Snapdragon-or-Windows-on-ARM.673537.0.html https://www.notebookcheck.net/HP-Dragonfly-Folio-13-5-G3-con... for example - and even if PWM is detected, they check how high the frequency is (high enough and it should bother no one). For monitors, RTINGs.com checks for PWM, https://www.rtings.com/monitor/reviews/dell/alienware-aw3423dw https://www.rtings.com/monitor/reviews/dell/alienware-aw3423... as an example (like imhoguy mentioned, flicker free is the keyword to search for).

wincy 4y ago

This has absolutely been my struggle since upgrading my lighting. It’s also so difficult to find data about how bright a monitor actually is! I bought some 1440p “gaming monitors” that I think are around 450 nits, and these are just barely bright enough for my newly lit up office.

411111111111111 4y ago
This one has pretty decent brightness and comes with great blacks too. And the widescreen format is great for development. The 34" is basically an extended 27", whereas the 38" is an extended 32" https://www.dell.com/en-uk/shop/alienware-34-curved-qd-oled-gaming-monitor-aw3423dw/apd/210-bdsz/monitors-monitor-accessories https://www.dell.com/en-uk/shop/alienware-34-curved-qd-oled-...
- rxyz 4y ago
  Alienware QD-OLEDs have a special pixel layout which isn't good for text
  - kitsunesoba 4y ago
    It’s probably not as much of a problem on macOS and Linux where the majority of apps will obey system text rendering settings (and macOS defaults to non-subpixel AA anyway) but under Windows everybody does their own thing for text rendering regardless of how you’ve set up ClearType and it’s a mess.

nextaccountic 4y ago

Is it possible to have a 500 or 600 nits display, but still have the lowest brightness settings be equal or lower than the lowest settings of a 250 nits display? That's my biggest issue

dotancohen 4y ago
Going below 50% brightness on _most_ monitors brings the flickering into the realm that many humans can perceive. This is because the physical brightness cannot actually be controlled, so PWM is used to adjust perceived brightness.
- onli 4y ago
  That is not true for many displays. Have a look at reviews, whether there is pwm control/flickering is part of all(?) professional reviews now.
  - dotancohen 4y ago
    Terrific, that is great to know. I might update my monitors if so.
    - imhoguy 4y ago
      First thing when I buy any monitor is "flicker-free" keyword. If you got one with PWM then the best you can do is to max out the monitor LED brightness and reduce screen brightness/gamma with an app.
    - onli 4y ago
      :) Maybe an aside, but for notebooks, I know that notebookcheck always has a section about this in their reviews. https://www.notebookcheck.net/HP-Dragonfly-Folio-13-5-G3-convertible-review-No-more-Snapdragon-or-Windows-on-ARM.673537.0.html https://www.notebookcheck.net/HP-Dragonfly-Folio-13-5-G3-con... for example - and even if PWM is detected, they check how high the frequency is (high enough and it should bother no one). For monitors, RTINGs.com checks for PWM, https://www.rtings.com/monitor/reviews/dell/alienware-aw3423dw https://www.rtings.com/monitor/reviews/dell/alienware-aw3423... as an example (like imhoguy mentioned, flicker free is the keyword to search for).