6 of the best budget monitors for your Mac

Next it's time to check whether the entire display is consistently lit, showing no light or dark patches when viewing a single-colour screen.

You'd hardly expect a budget monitor to perform to the same standards as an OLED-lit high-end display, but overall, all the models tested here perform well, but all lost consistency when viewed at an angle.

The Asus and BenQ monitors are the worst, with noticeable light and dark patches throughout. They're not disastrous, but the others are all better.

BenQ e2200hd

BENQ E2200HD

The LG's lighting is stronger in the centre of the screen, with the Hanns G and the NEC offering small darker patches, but nothing too drastic. The Samsung is the best here; it has the same problems but they're not so noticeable.

It must be noted that while none of the displays offer a perfect degree of consistency, anyone who finds the results unacceptably poor probably shouldn't be looking for a budget monitor.

Test 3 results