Dell has released a fair range of HDR monitors of late, and it’s no different here with the Dell S2419HW. Although these HDR image qualities are only claimed, as it depends on the backlight technology to achieve this. The backlight that Dell utilises here does play a part, but because it’s an EDGELIGHT system, and not a full screen backlight, HDR does suffer somewhat.
But saying that, the monitor is still insanely impressive, and when swapping it out from my LG 27MP47, I noticed a slightly sharper, and slightly better colour gamut. It may be because my eyes are so used to my old screen, but still I am liking this change.
The whole entire monitor is very minimalistic. It’s part of Dell’s Ultra-thin range, and it definitely does not disappoint in this area. The monitor thickness, excluding the stand is a little under 3-inches at its widest, and the bezels are extremely thin and if you’re looking at the centre of the screen, barely visible. The whole thing has been coated in silver to give it that premium look, and will definitely not feel out of place if paired with a new iMac.
Ports on the back of the Dell S2419HM however are a little disappointing. There are only two HDMI ports for various inputs from a PC and a games console on the desk for example and an auxiliary port for audio passthrough to a set of speakers. No display ports, no USB ports, not even an older style DVI or VGA to mess around with. Dell are really pushing HDMI connections with this.
I can also confirm that there is no horizontal swivel within the mount. It is stuck in one position. If you want to keep the monitor angled towards you, you will have to make sure there is enough clearance for the stand to face you too. The monitor however has a really nice tilt distance and I was able to aim the screen directly towards my eyes which helped a lot.
Even though this monitor is very minimalistic and skinny, it’s still built unbelievably well, and even though the rear of the monitor feels very plasticy, the base and stand part is made from a very tough metal.
Because this is the 24″ version I am looking at, it’s limited to a 1080p resolution, whereas the 27″ version of this monitor can hit resolutions of up to 2160 x 1440p. That is really the only difference between the two models. Both still use IPS technology that has a 178° viewing angle, and both are coated in an anti-glare matte coating which works somewhat. I work by a window, and it didn’t manage to cancel out all the sun’s glare, but it done a much better job than my other LG monitor.
Now what really excited me was the fact that the Dell S2419HM monitor has been listed as DisplayHDR400 Ready. This means that as standard, the edgelights can hit a 400cd/m2 level, which is already better than most other monitors at 300cd/m2. However, when HDR content is detected, the edgelights will pulse right up to 600cd/m2.
Now this is where the kicker is. To obtain true HDR, a screen really needs to have the ability to localise brightness, especially to obtain those deeper blacks. The panel relying on edge lighting means that the monitor can really only give you simulated HDR. For what it is, it looks nice, and media and even gaming colours and sharpness was real nice. But it’s not true HDR.
The Dell S2419HM Monitor is a fantastic bit of kit for those wanting something with a decent colour gamut for media consumption and even some light video and photo editing workloads. However, because of the lower refresh rate, and the 5ms response time, this monitor isn’t ideal for those wanting something to game on. Yes, your games can look beautiful, but if you’re after something to keep up with the likes of Counter Strike: Global Offensive or other competitive titles, you may want to look elsewhere. For more information on the Dell S2419HM monitor, then check out the Dell website.
