Monitor Specs That Change What You Actually See

Four rows on a monitor spec sheet change what you see: pixel count against screen size, refresh rate, panel type with its contrast figure, and a certified brightness tier. The response time in milliseconds, usually the figure printed largest, is the least comparable number on the page. This guide reads those rows on two current product pages, the Dell 24 Plus S2425H and the LG UltraGear 27GS95QE-B, against the published criteria of VESA, the industry body that certifies display performance. Every figure below is quoted from a maker's or VESA's own page, checked October 10, 2026. Where a page leaves a number out, the guide says so, because the omission is the finding.

Pixel count only means something next to screen size

Dell publishes both halves of the equation. The S2425H page states a resolution of "1920 x 1080" on a panel of "23.8 inches diagonal", checked October 10, 2026.

LG publishes one half. Its 27GS95QE-B page states "QHD 1440P" at "27 Inch" and does not print the pixel count on the page read. A resolution name is not a resolution figure.

Density is what the eye reads, and neither maker publishes it. By editorial arithmetic from Dell's figures, 1920 by 1080 across 23.8 inches is roughly 93 pixels per inch. The same pixel count looks sharper on a smaller panel and softer on a larger one.

Refresh rate is the one row that compares cleanly

Dell lists "100 Hz". LG lists "240Hz". Both are measured the same way, as a ceiling on frames delivered per second, which makes this the rare display spec that can be compared across makers without a footnote.

What it changes is motion and latency floor. By editorial arithmetic, a 100 Hz panel presents a new frame every 10 milliseconds; a 240 Hz panel presents one roughly every 4.2 milliseconds. Cursor movement and scrolling are where most people notice the difference first.

The variable-refresh row travels with it. LG's page lists "G-Sync Compatible" and "AMD FreeSync Premium Pro". The Dell page read for this guide names no adaptive sync brand, which matters only if a graphics card will be driving it.

Office and reading work rarely rewards anything above 120 Hz. The payoff concentrates in fast games and in the feel of a desktop. If the desk itself is the next decision, the same spec-reading discipline applies in how to read a standing desk spec sheet.

Response time in milliseconds is the least comparable row

Dell publishes three response figures for one panel: "8 ms (Normal mode), 5 ms (Fast mode), 4 ms (Extreme mode)". LG publishes one: "0.03ms". Those are not the same measurement, and the pages do not say which method produced them.

VESA says the problem out loud. Its ClearMR announcement states that the Clear Motion Ratio metric "replaces Motion Picture Response Time (MPRT) and other methods of blur characterization since these other metrics do not accurately reflect the true nature of blur".

ClearMR publishes a ratio instead of a duration. VESA defines it as "the ratio of clear pixels to blurry pixels", graded in tiers. The body states that "ClearMR 7000, for example, is defined as a CMR range of 65-75 times (6500 to 7500 percent) more clear pixels than blurry pixels".

Neither product page read for this guide carries a ClearMR tier. Until a sheet does, treat a millisecond figure as the name of a picture mode rather than a comparable measurement, and give the refresh rate the weight instead.

Contrast and panel type have to be read together

Dell lists "In-Plane Switching (IPS) technology" with a contrast ratio of "1500: 1 (typical)". LG lists "OLED" with "1.5M:1". Those sit three orders of magnitude apart because OLED pixels can switch off entirely.

The practical result is black that looks black in a dark room. The word "typical" in Dell's figure also does real work: it describes a production average, not a guaranteed floor, and a sheet with no "typical" or "min" label hides which one was measured.

A complete display spec set states all of the following:

• Pixel count as numbers, plus the diagonal in inches
• Refresh rate in Hz, and the adaptive sync standard if any
• Panel technology, and native contrast labelled typical or minimum
• Peak brightness in cd/m2, with the test window it was measured on
• A DisplayHDR tier rather than a bare HDR claim
• A ClearMR tier rather than a millisecond figure
• Colour gamut coverage with the colour space named
• Port types and versions, and the warranty term in years

Brightness only means something with a certification behind it

Dell publishes "250 cd/m2 (typical)". LG's page read publishes no nits figure at all. What it publishes instead is a badge: "DisplayHDR True Black 400", which is a certification rather than a marketing phrase.

The DisplayHDR criteria set a minimum peak luminance matching each tier number, measured on an 8 percent centre patch, so DisplayHDR 400 requires 400 cd/m2 and DisplayHDR 1400 requires 1400. All tiers require a "10-bit Video Signal, per Channel".

The black level requirement is where the True Black tiers separate. Standard tiers run from 0.4 cd/m2 at the 400 level down to "0.02 cd/m2" at 1400, while the highest True Black tier requires "0.0005 cd/m2", per the same criteria page checked October 10, 2026.

VESA is blunt about uncertified claims. Its site states that a monitor claiming HDR support "without a DisplayHDR performance specification, or refers to pseudo-specs like 'HDR-400' instead of 'DisplayHDR 400'" likely fails the requirements. Dell's 250 cd/m2 sits below the entry tier, and its page claims none.

Check gamut, ports and warranty before you look at price

Dell publishes "99% sRGB (typical) (CIE1931)". LG's page read publishes no gamut figure, so its colour coverage can only be inferred from the DisplayHDR True Black 400 badge, which requires "99%" of BT.709 and "90%" of DCI-P3 at the 400 to 600 tiers.

sRGB is the gamut of the web, and a percentage without a named colour space tells you nothing. Ports matter just as much: Dell lists "2 x HDMI (HDCP 1.4)" and no other video input, so there is no DisplayPort and no single-cable USB-C docking.

Warranty is stated by one maker and not the other. Dell publishes "1-Year Advanced Exchange Service and Premium Panel Exchange". LG's page read publishes no warranty term, and that silence follows the pattern described in what appliance warranty pages leave out.

Running cost is small but calculable. Dell lists "14.5 W" on-mode power and "$134.99"; LG's page lists no price. At the EIA July 2026 residential average of 18.31 cents per kWh, eight hours a day is roughly 42 kWh and about $7.75 a year by editorial arithmetic.

Frequently asked questions

Is a 240 Hz monitor worth it over 100 Hz?

For fast games, yes. A 240 Hz panel presents a frame roughly every 4.2 milliseconds against 10 milliseconds at 100 Hz, by editorial arithmetic. For documents, spreadsheets and video, the gain above about 120 Hz is hard to notice and the price premium is not.

What does a 0.03 ms response time actually mean?

Less than it appears. VESA states that millisecond blur metrics "do not accurately reflect the true nature of blur" and replaced them with the Clear Motion Ratio. LG lists 0.03 ms and Dell lists 8, 5 and 4 ms for three modes; the two are not comparable.

Is DisplayHDR 400 real HDR?

It is the entry tier of a real standard. DisplayHDR 400 requires at least 400 cd/m2 peak luminance on an 8 percent centre patch and a 10-bit video signal per channel. Higher tiers demand far lower black levels, down to 0.0005 cd/m2 for True Black 1400.

Does 250 nits of brightness matter in a sunlit room?

Yes. 250 cd/m2 typical, as Dell publishes for the S2425H, is sized for indoor office light. It sits below the 400 cd/m2 floor that the entry DisplayHDR tier requires, which is why that page makes no HDR claim.

How much does a monitor cost to run for a year?

Little, but check the wattage row. Dell lists 14.5 W on-mode power for the S2425H. At the EIA July 2026 residential average of 18.31 cents per kWh, eight hours a day works out to roughly $7.75 a year by editorial arithmetic.

Bottom line

A monitor spec sheet is complete when it states the pixel count, the diagonal, the refresh rate, the panel technology, a labelled contrast ratio, a certified brightness tier, a named colour space, the port list and a warranty term. Neither page read states all nine.

Dell omits adaptive sync, a gamut beyond sRGB and any HDR tier. LG omits pixel count, brightness, gamut, warranty and price. Each maker publishes the rows it wins on, as in wireless headphone spec sheets and scent diffuser spec sheets.

Read the certification badges before the adjectives, and treat the biggest number on the page with the most suspicion. The habit carries across categories, from robot vacuum suction claims to portable power station numbers and air purifier spec sheets.