The higher-end model of two similar, recently released business monitors, the $479.99 Dell P2720DC offers a better port selection than its Dell P2720D sibling, adding a USB Type-C port and a second DisplayPort connector. By Dell's naming convention, the "P" stands for productivity, the "D" is for QHD (2,560-by-1,440-pixel) resolution, and the "C" represents the USB-C port, but the "DC" could just as easily stand for "daisy-chaining." The P2720DC's secret sauce is that you can connect a second monitor to it via DisplayPort, and the Dell Express Daisy-Chaining feature automatically configures Windows' display settings for an extended dual-monitor setup. Even better, the display does most everything else well, and becomes our latest Editors' Choice business monitor.
Barely-There Bezels
The P2720DC's 27-inch screen offers in-plane switching (IPS) technology and a standard widescreen (16:9) aspect ratio. The flat screen is set in a matte-black cabinet. It has minimal bezels—0.6 inch below the screen, and inconsequentially small to the sides and top—which adds to its appeal as a candidate for a multi-monitor setup.
Including its stand, the Dell P2720DC measures 15.6 by 24.2 by 7.1 inches and weighs 16 pounds. The cabinet connects in back to a silver-colored shaft with a circular hole near the bottom, through which you can snake cables. The shaft is set in a gray base with a footprint of 9.6 by 7.6 inches, and the monitor feels quite sturdy on its mount. The stand supports adjustments for height (adding up to an extra 5.1 inches), tilt, swivel (90 degrees in either direction), and pivot (90 degrees from landscape to portrait and back). It also has four holes in a square spaced 100mm (3.9 inches) apart, to support VESA wall mounting with an appropriate bracket (not included).
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A Good Complement of Ports
One of the P2720DC's strong points is a wide selection of ports. The USB-C port supports DisplayPort over USB and power delivery of up to 65 watts, letting the monitor power and even charge a laptop that's connected to it while receiving data or video.
The display packs in four downstream USB ports (two USB 3.0, two USB 2.0) for charging handheld devices as well as connecting peripherals. One of its two DisplayPort 1.2 ports is for connecting to a computer, while the other is for daisy-chaining a second monitor to the system.
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Most of the ports are positioned face-downward in back, but the monitor is small enough that it should be no problem to turn the unit around to access them. Two downstream USB ports are on the left side for easy access.
Daisy-Chaining Simplicity
For many users, a big draw for the P2720DC is the promise of easily daisy-chaining a second monitor to it. While the Dell Express Daisy-Chaining utility automatically adjusts Windows' display settings into a multi-monitor configuration in extended mode when a second monitor is attached to the DisplayPort connector, you have to first enable the DisplayPort Multi-Stream Transport (MST) setting in the onscreen display (OSD) menu. The second display need not be another P2720DC; it doesn't even have to be a Dell monitor, nor the same size or resolution (although it can't be higher than QHD resolution).
Buttons and Menus
Physical controls on the P2720DC are typical of business monitors, consisting of a small power button on the bottom of the monitor near its right edge, and a row of four even tinier navigational buttons to the left of the power button. Although this system isn't as easy to use as the mini-joystick OSD menu controller now found on many gaming and some general-purpose monitors, I didn't find it too difficult to navigate the Dell's menus. Based on their default purposes, the four buttons could be called Color, Input Source, Menu, and Exit. The Menu entries include Brightness/Contrast, Input Source, Color, Display, Menu (changing the OSD language and how long it's displayed), Personalize, and Other.
Brightness/Contrast includes sliders for adjusting those two settings. From Input Source, you can select HDMI, DP, USB-C, or Auto Select. From Color, you can access preset modes such as Standard, ComfortView, Movie, Game, Warm, Cool, and Custom Color. From Personalize, you can set shortcut keys and enable or disable USB charging.
From the Display menu item, you can change the aspect ratio, tweak the sharpness, and also enable the MST setting, which is essential if you want to daisy-chain a second monitor to the P2720DC.
Color and Brightness Testing
I measured the P2720DC's brightness, contrast ratio, and color accuracy using Portrait Displays' CalMAN 5 calibration software, a Murideo SIX-G signal generator, and an X-Rite Pro 3 Plus spectrometer. I measured the luminance in Standard mode at 250.4 nits (candelas per meter squared), well below its rated 350-nit brightness but more than adequate for general business use. I calculated the contrast ratio at 990:1, a hair below its 1000:1 rating.
Above is a color accuracy or chromaticity chart of the sRGB color space, which was generated when testing in Standard mode. The area within the triangle represents all the colors that can be made by mixing the primary colors red, green, and blue. The circles, representing my measurements, mostly lie just outside the triangle and are fairly evenly spaced. The P2720DC covered 99.8 percent of the sRGB color space—the standard color space used on the web and in many other applications—surpassing Dell's claimed 99 percent sRGB color coverage. In our testing, it also covered 78.1 percent of Adobe RGB, a wider color gamut used in some photographic applications, and 82.6 percent of DCI-P3, a common color space used for digital movie projection. These are all more than adequate for the monitor's intended use.
In addition to our formal testing, I did some ad-hoc testing by viewing a range of documents, websites, videos, and photos on the display. Colors were bright, vibrant, and realistic-looking in photos and videos. Text looked sharp, and business graphics were handsome.
Dell backs the P2720DC with a three-year warranty.
No One-Trick Pony
Although it isn't the only monitor that supports daisy-chaining to a second panel (we reviewed the Mac-centric LG UltraFine 4K Display not long ago), the P2720DC is one of just a few Dell monitors that is supported by the company's Express Daisy-Chaining feature, which adds the extra convenience of automatically configuring such a multi-monitor setup as a pair of extended displays. Happily, it has plenty of other attributes, including a generous selection of ports, a full set of ergonomic features, and good color coverage (essentially covering the full sRGB gamut).
About the only downside to the P2720DC is that it's not priced to fly off the shelves, even though Dell's website lists its $359.99 sticker as a discount from $479.99. A quick search will find many other 27-inch productivity monitors around, with more than a few of them selling for considerably less (a quick look at their specs reveals that many are less sharp 1080p models). You wouldn't expect to find daisy-chaining support on a budget monitor, but many discount displays lack DisplayPort altogether, as well as USB-C. As for ergonomics, fuhgeddaboutit! Even the Editors' Choice Dell 27 USB-C Ultrathin Monitor (S2719DC), a largely entertainment-oriented display, only supports tilt adjustment, while the P2720DC includes the big four: height, swivel, tilt, and pivot.
You may be inclined to go with a low-cost option if you're procuring monitors in bulk for your company, but consider adding a few extra, more feature-rich displays for employees who could really benefit from them. The Dell 27 USB-C Monitor (P2720DC) would be a good choice. It's our newest Editors' Choice sub-30-inch productivity monitor.
The Dell 27 USB-C Monitor (P2720DC) offers a broad port selection, a range of ergonomic features, and bright, realistic-looking colors. Its practically automatic daisy-chaining to a second display is a bonus.
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