The Best Monitor for Surface Book | Top Pick + Buyer Guide
Laptops are fantastic devices to use for work or gaming. Nowadays you can get a laptop that can do pretty much anything as long as you’re willing to spend enough money. With one of the higher tier lineups being the Microsoft Surface Book series. A range of laptops that function brilliantly as work devices and multimedia machines. But the Surface Book is a laptop and with that comes one major disadvantage: screen size. Thankfully, you can always rely on an external monitor. But since there’s quite a few to choose from out there, we’ve put together a list of some of the best you can get. So let’s jump right into our list for The Best Monitor for Surface Book.
Table of Contents
Best Monitor for Surface Book
The screen size on most laptops isn’t ideal for tasks that require you to look at a lot of information at once. It’s easy to get eye strain or have difficulty reading text on a smaller screen. But maybe you don’t want to get a massive laptop and have to deal with carrying it around everywhere. There’s a solution that can fix both problems easily. You can just use a regular PC monitor with your Surface Book.
Sceptre 20″
First up we’ve gone for a cheaper option for those who don’t want to spend too much money. We’ve chosen this monitor from Sceptre for its affordability and smaller size. As you can tell straight away this monitor is on the smaller side but don’t let that put you off of it. It has a black body which is fairly standard for most monitors. The bezel on the screen isn’t too thick so there’s a pretty good optimization of space. Plus there’s a pretty nice base here too. Providing plenty of stability and not taking up too much room.
Let’s talk about the specifics now and there’s quite a lot to talk about. First up let’s talk about what you’re getting here. This is a 20” monitor that outputs a 900p resolution. That’s right, this is not a 1080p monitor which is a shame. But due to the smaller side of the screen, you may not even notice it. It has a refresh rate of 75Hz which is fairly standard so nothing really special there. It comes with 2 HDMI ports as well as one VGA port. And it also allows wall mounting via its VESA bracket. So with this monitor, you’re getting a pretty decent deal all around. But it obviously misses out on a few features that some may consider necessary.
Like a larger screen, more HDMI ports, and a higher refresh rate. What you do get here is great and for the price point, you can’t really go wrong. But what if you tend to struggle with reading small text or you simply want a bigger screen to watch videos and films on? In that case, we’d recommend you check out some of our other options on this list.
Pros:
- Affordable
- Small Form Factor
- Great Build Quality
Cons:
- Very Small Screen
- Poor Speaker
HP 24mh FHD Monitor
Next up we’ve gone for a monitor that steps things up a little but. We’ve chosen this monitor from HP for its affordability and great design. Straight away you’ll be able to tell that this monitor has some more style going on. With a silver trim along the bottom of the screen complimented by the black located everywhere else. The build quality here is great, everything feels sturdy and secure. Plus the stand doesn’t take up to much room, so if you have a small desk this shouldn’t be a problem.
But let’s dive in a little deeper and see what we’re working with here. The size of this monitor is 23.8” and it outputs in 1080p. So if you want a decently sized monitor that outputs in full HD, you can’t go wrong here. Of course, this isn’t the biggest monitor you could be getting. But if you’re working with a small space and don’t want to clutter up your desk then this is a good option. Besides that, this monitor also has a refresh rate of 75Hz. Which in itself is pretty standard in monitors at this price range. The colors that are displayed on it are vibrant and the picture is sharp thanks to the IPS panel.
Though you may be disappointed with the number of ports that we have to work with here. There’s one HDMI port, a display port, and a VGA port. So if you were planning on using multiple HDMI ports, you just won’t get that here. And while this monitor has a built-in speaker, it really isn’t anything special. Overall this is another great monitor but is held back by a lot of missing features.
Pros:
- Affordable
- Good Picture Quality
- Great Build Quality
Cons:
- Poor Speaker
- Lacks Special Features
Acer KB272HL
For our next option, we’ve gone for a monitor that’s great for those who are going to watch films on their laptop. We’ve chosen this monitor from Acer for its great design and functionality. So let’s about the general build quality here. It’s pretty good, the monitor feels sturdy and high quality. The main problems here are that there is no articulation with the monitor itself. You can’t angle it up or down or tilt it in any way. This might be annoying if you’re used to monitors that can do that. But nevertheless, the neat black casing on this monitor lets it fit in at work or at home.
Let’s take a closer look now at what we can expect with the monitor. First up is a 27” monitor that outputs at 1080p. This is really where we’d recommend starting in terms of size if you’re going to be watching things. It isn’t so big that it’ll take up a lot of room on your desk and it’s not too small to make viewing uncomfortable. Though it being a 27” monitor it will take up some notable room on your desk, so plan accordingly.
The refresh rate here is once again 75Hz which is pretty standard here. The biggest disappointment is the small number of ports that we have to work with. There’s one HDMI port and one VGA port. Which really isn’t much to work with, especially if you plan to use more than one HDMI port. But if you can bear with that, this is another great monitor to choose from. Especially if you don’t want to spend a ton of money on something of this size.
Pros:
- Affordable
- Good Picture Quality
- Great Build Quality
Cons:
- Only 2 Outputs
- Lacks Special Features
SAMSUNG LC27F398FWNXZA
For the next option on this list, we’ve gone for a monitor that has a few extra features that make it stand out. We’ve chosen this monitor from Samsung for its great picture quality and design. Straight away you’ll notice the difference with this monitor. The most obvious being that it is curved, which has its own advantages and disadvantages. But we’ll get into that in a second. The build quality here is excellent and it feels strong. Though it takes up quite a bit of room due to its stand needing to be a bit larger. So make sure that you have plenty of room on your desk for this monitor.
Taking a closer look now and there’s quite a few things to like here. Starting off with the size of the monitor and we’ve got a 27” display that outputs in 1080p. Plus it is also a curved display which offers a few things. Using the monitor will be more comfortable for longer periods of time due to the shape of the display being more pleasing to the eye. Though this means that the monitor will need to be directly in front of you and not at an angle. Otherwise, it will look strange and not give off the intended effect. The refresh rate here is 60Hz which isn’t anything special and is quite typical. It’s disappointing with the ports again, as it only has one HDMI port and one display port. So if you need more ports you’d be better off looking elsewhere. But if you’re looking for a monitor that provides a great viewing experience for work and leisure, you can’t go wrong with this one.
Pros:
- Curved Display
- Great Picture Quality
- Great Build Quality
Cons:
- Only 2 Outputs
- Large Stand
BenQ EW3280U
For our final choice on this list, we’ve chosen a monitor that will appeal to those who want the best of the best. We’ve gone for this monitor from BenQ for its sharp picture quality and large screen. In terms of design, this is actually quite an interesting monitor. There are tons of little touches on this monitor that add to its aesthetics. With the nice patterning along the bottom of the monitor to the dark bronze coloring throughout. What also helps is that they stand on this monitor isn’t too big. Meaning that it won’t take up too much space on your desk, even though the monitor itself is quite large.
What we have here is a 32” display that can output in 4K. Of course this is provided that you have a device that can output a 4K resolution. With most devices it’ll just output at a 1080p resolution. But if you have any media players or game consoles that can run at 4K, this is a great monitor to have. The large size also lends itself well to watching all sorts of media on it. Making it great for work and for entertainment too. A handy inclusion is a little remote that you can use to access all of this monitor’s features. Saving you from having to mess around with any of the controls on the back of the monitor.
You’ll get 2 HDMI ports to work with here as well as one display port. Which should be enough for most people as you can get three devices going at once easily. The two biggest downsides are its size and its price. If you don’t have much space at your desk, then you probably should look for smaller monitors. And this is pretty expensive too but definitely worth the price.
Pros:
- Large Screen
- Great Picture Quality
- Great Build Quality
Cons:
- Requires Lots of Space
- Expensive
Buying Guide
If you’ve come this far down the list and you still aren’t sure which monitor you should get, don’t worry! In this section, we’ll be giving you some extra information to help you out with your purchase.
Think about what you’re using the monitor for
There’s a lot of choice out there when it comes to choosing a monitor. And an important question that you have to ask yourself now is what are you going to be using it for. This is a really important thing to think about because it can drastically alter what you need. For instance, if you simply want a bigger screen to work on for word processing, you don’t need anything fancy. Pretty much anything will be an upgrade to some degree there. But if you’re going to be watching videos and films then you’ll need to think about it a little more.
In this case, you’d want to get a monitor that is at least 23” or bigger. That way you get a decent enough sized monitor for watching stuff at high fidelity. We really wouldn’t recommend getting a monitor below 23” for these purposes since the quality just won’t be there. The next jump is if you want the monitor for gaming, in which case things get a little more complicated. In this case, you want to get a monitor that is as big as you are comfortable with. 27” is the perfect size for a lot of people. But since you’ll be sitting in front of it for long periods of time, just get the size that you’re comfortable with. You also want to make sure that there’s a high refresh rate if you’re into serious gaming. Typically you want to look at monitors that have a 144Hz refresh rate.
Stick with brands you recognise
These days there are a lot of tech brands out there. And unfortunately there are some that don’t sell very high quality products. If you see a very cheap monitor from a brand you don’t recognise, stay away. These monitors tend to be very cheap because the components used to make them aren’t high quality. Due to this you could get one with pretty bad picture quality. Or you could find one that breaks within a couple months, past any short term warranty that would’ve been provided. Stick with the brands you recognise and if you do spot a cheap monitor pay extra attention to the reviews. If you see a lot of good reviews out there, then it should be a pretty safe purchase. Just be sure to do plenty of research.
Below is a list of manufacturers that you can trust to sell you a decent monitor. Stick with these brands if you’d like an easier time. And also check their warranty policies so that you know what you could get if something goes wrong. Here’s the list:
- Acer
- ASUS
- BenQ
- Dell
- HP
- Lenovo
- Samsung
- ViewSonic
Tips
- If you plan to use the monitor as a way to use multiple devices, make sure it has more than two output ports. Or atleast make sure it has 2 HDMI ports. That way you can use multiple devices with it without too much fuss.
- If you plan to use the monitor for gaming, make sure you get a monitor that is bigger than or at least 23”. That way you avoid potential eye strain.
- Some monitors use built in speakers, but these are rarely anything to get excited about. Invest in a pair of good quality speakers or headphones if you care about sound quality.
- Make sure to double check reviews of any tech that you’re purchasing. Someone else’s bad experience could save you from problems yourself.
- Don’t spend more money than you need to! There’s no point in buying an expensive monitor if you aren’t going to be using all of the features present in it.
Verdict – Best Monitor for Surface Book
That is that for our list of The Best Monitor for Surface Book. If it helped you out at all please don’t hesitate to let us know about it in the comments below! Thanks for reading.
