Samsung S27A950D Pro Reviews

Fantastic image quality, versatile 3D and an ultra-attractive design make this a Best Buy

Here's the rub, folks. The Samsung SA950's gorgeous aesthetics and excellent 2D traits aren't the main selling points here. Rather, it's the quality of 3D that'll determine whether readers put down £500 on a 27in, full-HD screen. Samsung's active-shutter glasses technology isn't compatible with NVIDIA's and, as such, 3D Vision isn't available. This is a shame because Samsung's chosen methods of displaying 3D - TriDef software and monitor-side processing - aren't as immersive in the games we tested with. A solid screen for readers who use AMD's Radeon graphics or want a 3D screen for the PS3 or Blu-ray player, NVIDIA's range of GPUs is better covered by Vision 3D-compatible screens. Ultimately, the Samsung SA950 is a gorgeous monitor whose looks aren't matched by similar 3D prowess in a PC environment.

The SyncMaster SA950 seems to have more highs than lows. Although it is far from ideal (I’d want to see a new driver version that could switch the monitor into 3D mode automatically whenever a game is launched; the support of the 120Hz 3D mode for Nvidia-based cards would also be welcome), I guess it can make a strong rival to Nvidia’s 3D Vision technology. So, if you take games seriously and 3D image quality is important to you, you should choose between the SA950 and the 3D Vision-compatible products depending on what graphics card you use. 3D Vision is not compatible with AMD GPUs whereas the SA950, although supports Nvidia GPUs, can only enable 120Hz mode for AMD-based cards.