Custom PC - UK (2020-07)

T

hePhilips439P9His a mega-widedisplaywith

a whopping43indiagonalanda 3,840x 1,200

resolution.It’sthesameheightas34inultrawide

displays,butwithanextra10inofwidth,givingyouthe

desktoprealestateoftwomonitors,butwithoutbezels

breakinguptheimage.

It alsoincludesa webcam,whichprotrudesfromthetop

edgeandsupports1080pvideoforSkypeandZoomcalls,

aswellasWindowsHellofacialrecognition.If you’drather

keepyourselfprivate,thecameracanbepushedbackdown

intotheframeofthedisplay,whichturnsit off.Inourtesting,

though,thewebcamproveda paintogetworking,withthe

cumbersomeinstructionsanddownloadoptionsonPhilips’

websitemakingit lessthanintuitive.

Thereareseveralotherappealingfeaturesforthismulti-

functionbusinessdisplaythough.A built-inKVMunitlets

youplugyourkeyboard,mouseandeven

Ethernetconnectionintothedisplay,

thenfeedthewholelotbacktoyourPC

viaa USBType-Ccable.Again,thesetup

is a bitconvolutedbutthefeatureis there.

Thefulllistofconnectionoptions

includestwoDisplayPort1.4sockets

andoneHDMI2 videoinput,twoUSB

Type-C3.2upstreamconnections

(toyourcomputers)andfourUSB3.2

downstreamconnections(foryour

peripherals),onegigabitEthernetport

anda headphoneout.Theincludedpair

of5Wspeakersaresurprisinglypowerful

too– amplefora videochatmeeting.

Thewholesetuplookssmart,withthe

solidmetalstandofferingheight,rotation

andtiltadjustment,althoughtheheight

adjustmentdoesn’tgothathigh– the

maximumheighttothetopofthescreen

is 54cm.You’llfindsomerelativelyeasy-

to-usecontrolsfortheon-screendisplay

ontheundersideofthemonitor,oryou

caninstallPhilips’SmartControlsoftware,

whichallowsyoutosetupthedisplayfrom the desktop –

a mucheasierroute.

Meanwhile,that3,840x 1,2 00 resolution may sound

impressive,buttypical34inultrawidedisplays have a

resolutionof3,440x 1,440,sowe’dexpect a display this big

tocomeinataround4,600x 1,440.Assuch, while the image

is fine,it’snotsuper-sharp.Theotheroddity is the use of a

VApanel,ratherthanIPS.Theadvantageis a relatively high

nativecontrastof2,300:1(accordingtoour measurements),

whichis doublewhatmostIPSdisplaysprovide, but has

limitedbenefitsforbusinessapplications.

It alsohasHDRsupportviaa slightlyextended colour

gamut,whichagainisn’tidealforwork.However, you can

tonedownthecoloursbyoptingforthesRGB setting via

theSmartControlsoftware.Witha 100Hz refresh rate

andAdaptive-Syncsupport,thisdisplayis good for non-

competitivegaming,if yourgraphicscard and games can

dealwiththeresolution.

Onceyou’veselectedthesRGBoption and turned off HDR,

imagequalityis good,althoughnotoutstanding. The colour

balance(6,853Kcolourtemperature),gamma (2.4) and

colouraccuracy(0.25deltaE average)are all close enough

toidealtogetby,andviewinganglesfrom the VA panel are

goodtoo.

Conclusion

Thehugescreen,built-inwebcam

andall-in-oneKVMunitwithEthernet

connectionmakesthe439P9Hvery

versatileforwork.However,a VApanel

wouldn’tbeourfirstchoiceforbusiness

applications,andsomeofitsextra

featuresarea littleawkwardtosetup.

EDWARDCHESTER

REVIEWS / MONITORS

VERDICT

A hugely versatile business display

with loads of features, although it

comes with some caveats.

OVERALLSCORE

77 %

IMAGE QUALITY

30 / 40

FEATURES

25 / 30

VALUE

22 / 30

SPEC

Screen size

43in

Resolution

3,840 x 1,200

Panel technology

VA

Maximum refresh rate

100Hz

Contrast

3,000:1 (2,300:1 measured)

Active sync

Adaptive-Sync

Display inputs

2 x DisplayPort 1.4, 1 x HDMI 2, 2 x USB C

Audio

2 x 5W, microphone in, headphone out

Stand adjustment

Height, pivot, rotation, tilt

Extras

Webcam, KVM, Ethernet sharing,

Software OSD control

HDR standard

DisplayHDR 400

ULTRAWIDE

• 
  

  Colossal display

  
  


• 
  

  KVM with Ethernet

  
  


• 
  

  Built-in webcam

  
  


• 
  

  Software
  OSD control

  
  

ULTRA WHY!?

• Relatively low
  resolution for size


• VA panel not
  our first choice
  for work


• Fussy setup for
  some features

SUPPLIER reichelt.com

PHILIPS BRILLIANCE

439P9H /£867 inc VAT

43IN MONITOR