Why ips panel is the most recommended for designers?

The IPS panel has always been recommended for image or video professionals. The question is why? We answer it within.

IPS panels have been with us for a long time, especially in the television sector. Currently, we find a wide range of monitors that incorporate this technology. We see that they are continuously recommended for designers. Why?

We explain why the IPS panel is ideal for professionals.

Index of contents

IPS panel, accurate colors and good image

These two characteristics are the "culprits" that designers choose these panels. A graphic designer, a photographer, and image or video editors need a monitor that projects the image or video as real as possible. To do this, they will require a good panel: this is where this panel is.

The initials IPS stands for In-Plane Switching and it is a display technology based on conventional LCDs ( Liquid-Crystal Displays ). This technology emerged to solve the limitations of TN panels, which are: poor viewing angles and low quality color reproduction. If we are designers, we are interested in the aspect of the viewing angles because we will not worry at the height that we have the monitor.

Thus, the IPS panel offers consistent and accurate color at all viewing angles. Also, its contrast and its "gamma" are much better. Specific:

• The gamma is noticeable in the panel backlight. IPS panels use sRGB backlighting or another extended gamma, such as AdobeRGB, used in Photoshop. TN monitors are not capable of displaying very bright or very dark parts, causing many image imperfections. TN panels offer a much lower contrast than IPS. This is very important when it comes to real projection of the image. That the contrast ratio is high provides that the range of luminosity is wider, which translates a more natural image. We found native contrast ratio and dynamic contrast ratio.
  • • Native Contrast Ratio - Contrast is determined by the panel manufacturer. Normally, the native contrast ratio is usually 1000: 1. We could say that a professional native contrast ratio would be 1500: 1. Dynamic Contrast Ratio: Contrast changes depending on content being played, responding to the needs of the panel when playing or watching a movie.

But are these the only reasons designers choose IPS? No Nor do I want to get into complex terminologies or technicalities that are difficult to understand. Having said that, I am going to go "way above" these concepts.

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Shades or blacks

The TN panels do not have blacks, remaining in mere grays. The problem is greater when there are shadows, which are not clear and show the true weaknesses of the TN. In IPS panels we will not find pure blacks as in OLEDs, but they are better simulated.

Many IPS panels in dark black colors looks like grit. It is normal, but it is less and less common.

Incorporating HDR into these panels greatly enhances dark shadow imperfections, especially in highly compressed video. This can be improved with shadow calibration.

Color depth

This is a key aspect that many designers look at, and that is that we refer to a true 10 bit or even 12 bit color depth, which we find in an IPS panel. Other panels such as TNs reach 6 bits or 8 bits, which in terms of image quality is of no interest. The greater the color depth, the more colors the monitor can display.

10 bit panels usually come with HDR10 certification, being able to reproduce a quadruple of colors more than 8 bit panels. As for the panels that offer a 12-bit color depth, they can show 4092 colors and we often find Dolby Vision HDR technology.

In this section, VA panels offer 8 native bits, which are still far from what an IPS can provide us. So, in this sense, we would not have an alternative in these panels.

Matte or glossy?

Source: Howtogeek

This "nonsense" is very important for those who want a perfect image, in relation to ambient light. In theory, designers often shy away from " glossy " screens, which are screens that have a glossy finish. For this reason, professionals prefer satin or matte screens to avoid problems with ambient light.

Here the spectrum of light is vital: the black material absorbs all radiation, the white on the contrary. In this way, the matte panel will have no reflections; the brilliant yes.

Alternatives to the IPS panel?

There are alternatives to the IPS panel, but they are not entirely recommended because they do not cover all the needs that designers have. In the market we can find the Samsung Super PLS panel, which is a LCD very similar to IPS . Supposedly, it offers 10% higher brightness, better viewing angles, and is cheaper.

In practice, it is a panel that does not have much hook on the market and that for multimedia use is very good, but it shows weaknesses when we test it.

On the other hand, we have the AHVA, a panel very similar to the IPS and that offers similar benefits than the Super PLS. In theory, they offer the best viewing angles on the market. The same happens with the previous one, there are almost no options on the market.

Finally, IPS panels are ideal for those professionals who work with the image treaty, either at high or low resolutions. It is configured as the best option on the market for this purpose.

If you have any questions, you can leave us your question below and we will answer it as quickly as possible. We hope it has helped you.

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What do you think is most important when choosing a monitor? Are you designers? In that case, what monitor do you use?