Review: UPERFECT UPlays C2 portable gaming 16-inch display

Review unit provided by UPERFECT

The UPERFECT UPlays C2 is marketed as a portable gaming monitor.

Here are the specs:

• Refresh Rate: 120Hz
• Screen Size: 16 inch
• Resolution: 2560*1600 QHD
• Display Ratio: 16:10
• Viewing Angle: 178°
• Panel Type: IPS
• Contrast Ratio: 1200:1
• Brightness: 400cd/m2
• Color Gamut: 100% sRGB
• Color Depth: 16.7M (8bit)
• Response Time: 3-5ms
• Rated Power: 12W
• Material: ABS
• Touch Screen: No
• Auto Rotation: No
• Built-in Battery: No
• HDR: Yes
• FreeSync: Yes
• VESA: Yes, 75*75mm@M3*4mm
• Built-in Speaker: Yes, 2 speakers 8Ω 1W
• Product Size: 360 × 237 × 10 mm (14.17 × 9.33 × 0.39 inch)
• Net Weight: 0.72 kg (1.59 lbs)

The price is currently USD 219 on UPERFECT online store and you can use coupon code TEOHTECH20 for $20 off (for purchases above $150).

The warranty period listed on their website is 2 years but I was told it will be upgraded to 3 years after purchase. Not sure why they did not list 3 years in the first place.

Bottom line

Colours on this display look vibrant. Measured max brightness of 238 nits is sufficient for use in a bright room environment. 120Hz provides smooth animation and is great for gaming. Display is lightweight and portable. Downsides would be the so-so audio quality from the two 1W speakers, and the included folio case can feel filmsy.

Things included

Items included with the purchase are:

• Display
• Folio case
• 2x USB-C video cable (1m long)
• HDMI to mini-HDMI cable (1m long)
• 20W USB-C charger
• User guide

Design

Design of the display is clean and simply. There's no UPERFECT branding on it so chances are this is a white label product. Bezels are 6mm on the sides and top, 1.5cm on the bottom.

This is an IPS LCD. Colours on the display look good out of the box. I measured colour support for 100% sRGB, 71% NTSC, 76% P3 and 76% AdobeRGB after colour calibration. Maximum brightness of 238 nits is sufficient for use in a bright room environment.

One thing I really like about this display is the 16:10 aspect ratio which is more useful for work compared to 16:9 displays. There may be black bars at the top and bottom when playing movies or 16:9 videos but games can usually be set to fill the whole screen.

2560 x 1600 resolution on a 16-inch display produces sharp visuals. Pixelation is not noticeable from one arms length away.

MacOS users will need an app called BetterDisplay for proper (sharp) UI scaling because MacOS does not work well with QHD & QHD+ resolution on a 16-inch display. Windows users can enjoy sharp visuals regardless of the UI scaling options used.

There is minimal colour shift when display is viewed from the side but there's a drop in brightness.

The display surface is matte textured with anti-glare. This is not a touchscreen.

The display weighs 720g and even with the folio case it's lightweight and portable. The size is quite similar to a 16-inch laptop, but lighter of course.

The folio case has magnets that will attach to the back fo the portable display.

These are the two angles of deployment possible with the included folio case.

The back of the display has a 7.5cm x 7.5cm VESA mount so it's possible to mount this on a VESA arm. The back is matte textured and is quite susceptible to fingerprint smudges.

There's some flex to the build quality but overall can still be considered solid.

UPERFECT also sells an optional VESA stand that's USD 35. This compact folding VESA stand will give you more angles and is easier to deploy. This is good if you want to match the height of a laptop.

If you want to use this display with your desktop monitor, it may be better to find something that can move the display higher, such as getting a higher tablet stand (above) or using a VESA arm.

Ports on the left are two USB-C video ports and a mini-HDMI.

If your computer can power the display with USB-C, you can use a single cable connection.

If your computer cannot power the display with USB-C or you're using HDMI connection, you have to attach another USB-C cable to a power source.

The power delivery or pass-through charging is less than 10W so can't really charge a laptop through the display.

Shown above is the display connected to the LG Gram Style 2023 (review). That laptop is able to power the UPERFECT display to 100% brightness. With this single cable connection, the external display will drain the laptop battery much faster.

The colours on the IPS LCD display is actually quite comparable to the OLED display on the LG Gram Style. If you have to compare the two displays critically, the OLED does have better contrast and have brighter highlights, darker darks and real HDR. However, a good IPS LCD display can still look good and I definitely do not have any complaints on the visual quality of the UPERFECT display given its relatively affordable price point.

The OSD has limited adjustments for colours. What you can change are brightness, black level, contrast, colour temperature and RGB. If you don't have a colour calibrator, you will have to use the RGB settings to adjust the colours.

Performance

This display has good resolution, decent colour support and brightness, freesync, 120Hz and 3-5ms response time.

Note that you will have to enable 120Hz in your Windows OS settings before you can get 120Hz.

This display has good specs for gaming so the overall gaming experience will actually come down to the computer you have. To game at full resolution 2560 x 1600 at 120Hz, you'll need a gaming PC or laptop that can keep up.

The gaming experience on this display is enjoyable due to the visual quality. But gaming experience can be terrific if you have a powerful gaming PC/laptop.

Conclusion

The UPERFECT Uplays C2 looks good and performs well. Display is vibrant and bright. Build quality is good. 120Hz gaming is so smooth and satisfying.

Even if you don't play games, this is can work as a normal external display and it has good visual quality.

The downsides would be the so-so audio quality and filmsy folio case. And too bad the actual brightness (238 nits measured) can't reach the advertised 400 nits.

The pricing seems reasonable to me. And there's two years warranty if you buy this from UPERFECT online store.

Uperfect online store discount code:
TEOHTECH30
TEOHTECH50 - $50 off for order amount above $400
TEOHTECH70 - $70 off for order amount above $500
TEOHTECH100 - $100 off for order amount above $700