As careful parsing of its model number would suggest, the ViewSonic VP2785-4K ($899.99) brings a native 4K resolution to its 27-inch screen. Geared toward creative professionals such as photographers and video editors who require exacting, reproducible color in their images, this professional-grade monitor supports a wide color palette and is factory-calibrated for a host of common color spaces. It beautifully rendered photos and videos in our testing, supports the display of HDR content, and also can be used for low-impact gaming. It becomes our latest Editors' Choice professional monitor.

An Adjustable Panel for Pros

While it is very similar to the ViewSonic VP2780-4K, which earned our Editors' Choice way back in 2015, the VP2785-4K offers some distinct improvements. It adds a USB Type-C port, which can charge a laptop that's connected to it, as well as letting you take advantage of an unusual KVM-switch feature. With this feature, you can plug multiple input sources—say, two computers—into the monitor and switch between them easily using one keyboard and mouse. (One of the input sources has to be connected to the USB-C port.)

The VP2785-4K has a wider color gamut than the VP2780-4K in several color spaces. (For instance, it covers 99 percent of Adobe RGB, while its predecessor covered just 80 percent.) It also has much smaller side and top bezels, which equates to a larger screen area and a more seamless integration into a multi-monitor array.

The VP2785-4K's matte-black design is handsome yet simple, offering little inkling of the precision of the panel it houses. Clean lines and narrow, near-invisible bezels adorn the sides and top, with a thicker strip across the bottom. When placed on its stand and extended to its maximum height, the VP2785-4K measures 21.5 by 24.1 by 8.5 inches (HWD) and weighs 14.1 pounds including the stand.

Color Precision Is the Point

The in-plane switching (IPS) 27-inch panel is impressive, with its native resolution of 4K (3,840 by 2,160 pixels) making for a high pixel density of 163 pixels per inch (ppi). Higher pixel densities generally translate to sharper images.

ViewSonic rates the VP2785-4K's contrast ratio at 1,000:1, which proved to be within 1 percent of our tested ratio (991:1). The VP2785-4K's's peak brightness is rated at 350cd/m2 (aka nits); it turned in a slightly lower 323 nits when we took it through its paces.

ViewSonic touts the VP2785-4K's color accuracy, and the fact that the monitor comes pre-calibrated for a variety of color spaces (Adobe RGB, DCI-P3, sRGB, EBU, SMPTE-C, and REC709). I did our luminance, color fidelity, and contrast-ratio testing using a Klein K10-A colorimeter and SpectraCal CalMAN 5 software. The chromaticity chart below was produced with the VP2785-4K in Adobe RGB mode.

The area within the triangle represents the colors that can be produced by mixing the primary colors red, green, and blue, while the area bounded by the curve approximates the range of colors that can be discerned with the human eye. The circles represent my color measurements, which are considerably outside the triangle—especially in the green part of the spectrum, indicating a very wide color gamut. Though I have no way of quantifying it strictly, it appears close to the 99 percent of the Adobe RGB space claimed by ViewSonic.