In need of a new monitor? UPERFECT sent over a review unit of the UPERFECT UMax 24 and I've come away from it thoroughly impressed with it. Disclosure: the review unit was not required to be sent back.
You might know the name UPERFECT from some of their great looking reasonably sized portable monitors.
Now, technically, this is a portable monitor but it's on the rather large size at 24.5 inches so it's really pushing the limits here of what's possible (no battery, it's USB-C powered). Portable then, with an asterisk, that it's not something you're going to stick in an ordinary bag. But it is super simple quickly to pack it down and move.
Surprisingly, it's still pretty light and easy to move around anywhere and I've tested this between multiple locations for setting it up. What makes it great is the quality built-in stand. Anywhere you can find the space for it you can just stick it down, plug in and away you go.
First impressions are everything of course, and the UPERFECT UMax 24 doesn't disappoint. The flip-out stand on the back, despite being quite thin, feels decently strong. Unless you're really doing something stupid, I don't see it breaking. And, bonus, it's actually incredibly stable with it too. More so than I actually expected. I thought there would be a fair bit of wobble (I've seen some awful stands for things in my time), but it's as solid as a rock with it.
My testing with it has been mainly with a Steam Deck attached to it. Although it will support basically any device that can be hooked up via the full-featured Type-C and mini-HDMI ports on the side.
This is hardware I've always wanted to try! But I don’t have a reference here against any other portable monitor, besides the Elecrow CrowView Note that has an integrated keyboard, but they’re different markets and this absolutely blows that out of the water. So with that in mind, I’ve only usually tested more traditional monitors of which I’ve been through many over the years. And yet, the UPERFECT UMax 24 sold itself very quickly. That said as well, I will be surprised if there’s many such portable monitors with a built-in stand of this size that will be able to beat it - it’s just that good.
Originally, I had my Steam Deck hooked up to the additional HDMI port on my main work monitor. That's been quite a nuisance to swap between, so having a dedicated monitor like this has actually been thoroughly great. Not just due to having an extra (always nice), but because the UPERFECT UMax 24 is properly gorgeous. Easily giving my main monitor for work and play a run for its money.
It comes with everything you need out of the box including a USB-C to USB-C cable, a mini-HDMI to HDMI cable, a power adaptor and even VESA mounting screws. As you don’t have to use the stand, you can attach it to a mount as well, like a traditional monitor.
In terms of features it’s ridiculously packed too. You get a nice 165Hz, 2560 × 1440 (QHD) IPS screen that supports HDR and Freesync. It also has a blue light protection feature and 100% sRGB so in motion while playing games, it looks brilliant. Although the screen is capable of 165Hz you’ll only get up to 144Hz with the HDMI, but the USB-C port gives the max 165Hz.
The 178° viewing angle is wonderful too. I’ve set this up and moved it about for a few co-op sessions over the last week, and it hasn’t given a single issue on that. The screen remains crisp and clear from quite a ways over to the side of it so there’s many ways this can be used from gaming to work.
The only build quality issue here that I can see are the buttons on the side to power it on and manage the on-screen UI for adjusting volume, picture and so on. I’ve actually never found a monitor that didn’t have rubbish buttons, so I’ve just come to expect that. They’re not overly bad, just they feel a bit wobbly and cheap compared to the rest of it. Bit weird to have everything else about it so nice.
Nothing to really note about the on-screen UI to adjust things either. It’s a bit fiddly with the buttons, as it always is on monitors but generally acceptable to do what you want to adjust the picture, turn on
Wonderfully thin too (563 × 324 × 16 mm (8 × 12.76 × 0.63 inch)), so it really doesn’t take up much room other than being on the larger size overall. Despite the sleekness of it, the durability of the monitor itself feels close to perfect. Apart from those side buttons, the build quality is truly fantastic and the design of it is great with a nice thin border on it so it doesn’t look too imposing. Zero issues with ports lining up that I've seen across other devices, they look perfectly placed.
As for sound quality, don't go expecting the world here, it's nothing special. It's "2*8Ω 1W" according to the specs sheet, which is perfectly fine for me and wasn't a problem during co-op but a little bit louder would have been nice to have. Loud enough to be clear enough to enjoy playing games on it, even while my (somewhat loud) fan heater was going to not cause any problems.
Tech Specifications:
Refresh Rate |
165Hz |
Response Time |
10ms |
Size |
24.5 Inch |
Resolution |
2560 × 1440 (QHD) IPS - HDR / Freesync |
Display Ratio |
16:9 |
Viewing Angle |
178° |
Contrast Ratio |
1000:1 |
Brightness |
320 cd/m² |
Colour Gamut |
100% sRGB |
Colour Depth |
16.7M(8bit) |
Built in speakers |
2*8Ω 1W |
Interfaces |
2 × Full-Featured USB Type-C for Audio & Video Input 1 × mini HDMI for Audio & Video Input 1 × Micro USB-B OTG for USB Drive or Keyboard and Mouse 1 × 3.5mm AUX for audio output |
Net Weight |
2.64 kg (5.83 lbs) |
When it comes to such a review, I’ve been trying to think of things to add in. However, I’m not one to unnecessarily pad any of my articles with fluff just to hit some sort of mark. The fact is: if you’re after a display that’s quite portable, very versatile and big then this might be your best bet — the ultimate portable monitor for all your needs. However, if truly easily portable is your definite need, going for the smaller model might be a better idea. Overall though, my time with it has been absolutely great. Really do love it.
Thank you to UPERFECT for their trust in sending it over.
If interested you can purchase it directly from their website. At time of writing the normal price is $539.99 but it’s discounted to $439.99.
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