Compared: ViewSonic VP3481 vs VP3881
- The Best Upgrade I’ve Made To My Editing Studio
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Ultra-wide screen, high-resolution, large, curved monitors are the perfect tool for editing our photography and videography and also make great gifts for the serious or professional photographer in your family.
I have been using the new curved monitors from ViewSonic, the ViewSonic VP3481 34-inch and VP3881 38-inch are what I upgraded to in my own studio. I set up a dual screen editing studio with both monitors, but if I had to choose just one of the ViewSonic monitors, VP3481 vs VP3881, which one wins?
VP3481 and VP3881 Compared
Both of these ViewSonic monitors are superb editing monitors for photos and videos. We’ll look at their similarities and then the differences between the VP3481 vs VP3881, and end with our recommendation of which one you should choose.
Similarities VP3481 vs VP3881
Both the ViewSonic VP3481 and the ViewSonic VP3881 are large, ultra-wide curved screen monitors. The ultra-wide aspect ratio allows for multiple programs or multiple windows of the same program to be displayed at the same time without losing any detail because there is a whole lot of screen area to fill. This ability to tile programs really improves editing workflow.
What really makes these ViewSonic monitors special is their curved screen construction. It is a very slight curve, not like the amusement park 360 degree displays with their fire truck and airplane movies trying to make you fall down from visually induced dizziness. What the ViewSonic monitor curved screen gives is what’s known as an “immersive viewing” experience.
Immersive viewing is definitely in the pro column since regular flat screen ultra-wide monitors often end up giving a slightly distorted view of whatever is near the edges of the screen, making it an eye strain issue for some people which is in the con column of reviews.
Another pro that both ViewSonic monitors have in common is their superb color rendition. These monitors are ultra sharp, in fact they are sharp enough to display any of the photo and video file standards from our cameras, but it was the amazing color accuracy that really blew me away. Each of these ViewSonic monitors is capable of displaying 4.39 trillion colors!
VP3481 vs VP3881 Differences
The most obvious difference is the size of the screen. With either of these ViewSonic monitors, you have an impressive amount of real estate to look at. While there is only 4 inches of difference in the diagonal screen measurement, the area of usable screen is significant, from about 400 square inches for the ViewSonic VP3481 to over 500 square inches for the ViewSonic VP3881.
As a photographer, you’re pretty familiar with doing math, so it’s plain to see that a small increase of diagonal measurement will result in a much larger area of screen, but it’s when you see them side by side that you will really notice that difference.
Here is an image showing the VP3481 on top with the VP3881 underneath to illustrate:
For an extremely interactive viewing experience for editing, using two monitors is hard to beat, especially for video editing.
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Price Difference VP3481 vs VP3881
photo by by sonmez via iStock
Perhaps the biggest difference VP3481 vs VP3881 is the price. The 34-inch ViewSonic monitor is about 60 percent of the price of the 38-inch monitor.
photo by Stephen Plaster via iStock
Since dollar amounts may vary wildly in the real marketplace, I’ll relate it to other familiar photographic items. The ViewSonic VP3481 costs about the same as a basic entry level DSLR kit while the ViewSonic VP3881 is around the same price as a nice prosumer DSLR camera body.
VP3481 vs VP3881 - Which One Wins?
We all win! Yea! The recommendation I will make to anyone shopping for a new computer monitor for photo or video editing is the ViewSonic brand for their ultra high-resolution and superb color ability along with very reasonable prices for their type and sizes.
For an immediate upgrade from a laptop or the monitor that came with your desktop, the ViewSonic VP3481 is an excellent choice and is priced moderately for someone stepping up to external monitors.
The ViewSonic VP3881 will be a great choice for photographers already using external monitors but now want something better and the immersive viewing experience of curved monitors. The cost for what you get is still quite reasonable but might be just a little bit of sticker shock for first time monitor buyers.
Either way, you will get the curved screen immersive viewing, and features perfect for superior such as ultra high-resolution and amazing color. ViewSonic VP3441 vs VP3881 are both winners, and you will be too.
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