Full HD
Best words. 1080p on the Dell 2408 is something special.
In some aspects it does not yield a grain to the reference monitor. Outstanding measured contrast ratio (1200:1 over 800:1 for the reference monitor) and highly saturated colors (quite forgivable and - to a certain extent - beneficial for HD) play their role here. If you sit in front of the Dell 2408 or (even better) about 5-10 degrees off axis – you can see HD picture at it’s best. On condition that this requirement is met, this is the only case when the Dell 2408 surpasses the mighty NEC 2490WUXi. We can only imagine how HD would look on IPS monitor with contrast ratio 1200:1! (Remember: VA and IPS are two different currencies. So, 1200 USD not necessarily means more that 800 GBP.)
Due to its outstanding contrast and color saturation, the Dell 2408 may claim somewhat wider viewing angles for HD in comparison with DVD playback. Beyond this point washout begins and the picture is not comparable with the reference monitor anymore.
So, this panel is less suitable for HD video playback for several viewers, but for one or two it’s superb.
As it can be seen in measurements table, Video mode sends color temperature literally to the sky (frightening the probe - over 10000K; the sky covers 10000++ K). Fortunately, this mode is firmly bundled with HDMI input only.
Unlike HDMI + Video mode, DVI + Graphics mode provide realistic colors, correct format and dot for dot purity for 1080p. Custom (R,G,B) submode retains positions of controls selected during calibration process. (Note: …if calibration was done with the use of RGB controls. Although calibration process - for this kind of a monitor - concerns a video adapter first of all, right set of RGB may help HD too).
Graphics mode would deliver higher contrast ratio and deeper black (~1160:1 / 0.21 cd/m2) than Video mode (~820:1 / 0.3 cd/m2) at the same brightness of white – 245cd/m2.