Lepow Portable HD Monitor review: One of the best budget monitors you can get right now

Portable monitors are an accessory worth having, especially if you travel a lot. This is because you can connect a myriad of devices to them, ranging from tablets to game consoles. With a monitor you can take with you on-the-go, you always know you'll have a way to enlarge a smaller display or enjoy your favorite travel video game on something that isn't a garbage hotel TV. And while portable monitors generally tend to be pretty pricey, Lepow offers a budget-friendly one that offers good performance across the board while remaining within the price range of most customers. While the monitor is by no means perfect, it's still a great device that users will love to have.

What you'll love about the Lepow Portable HD Monitor

Overall, I think the best thing about this monitor is that it can be used with any device you have — provided it has a USB-A slot, USB-C slot, or HDMI port. These three connection methods are all supported by the monitor, meaning that you can hook up a smartphone, a tablet, a laptop, and even game consoles to the device with no hassle at all. People who own devices that don't have these, such as an iPhone or an iPad, will need the appropriate adapter. Aside from that, though, you'll be good to go. Lepow is also kind enough to include a USB-C to USB-C cable, a USB-A to USB-C cable, and an HDMI to Mini HDMI cable in the box for your convenience.

Aside from the versatility of the monitor, the image quality itself looks great. Casted images and video look crisp and clean, and while the color gamut on the display is lacking (I'll get to that later), the overall sharpness of the 1920x1080 image is excellent. Additionally, you can play around with brightness and color settings via a physical switch and tune everything to your liking. Since the screen has a solid 300 nits of brightness and is matte, it also holds up to sunlight pretty well, which is something you can't say for many modern glossy displays.

Lastly, the monitor's physical design is sleekly metallic with a light, thin chassis, and even slimmer bezels. As a result, it's compact, and it also avoids the issue of bulkiness that some other portable monitors have.

What you'll love less about the Lepow Portable HD Monitor

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I think the main thing people won't like with this monitor is that it has a narrow color gamut. I rewatched the trailers and first several episodes of The Mandalorian on DIsney+ to test the device out, and while the picture sharpness is great, the colors aren't vivid. As you can see in the pictures above, blacks are pretty gray, and the overall vibrancy of things like blaster fire just doesn't pop on this display. In fairness, that's to be expected with a portable monitor that's geared to be budget-friendly, but it's still worth mentioning nevertheless.

Additionally, the stand that the device comes with is a bit of a pain to use. You can prop the display up in a myriad of different positions thanks to the stand's multiple folding flaps, but in practice, it's awkward to use, and more often than not, you'll just get confused about how it's actually supposed to stand up. On top of that, the magnets built into it that keep the display upright are pretty weak and will break if you bump into the screen at all, so I found that simply using it in my lap was more enjoyable.

Lastly, the brightness and color settings automatically reset every time you turn the monitor off. This isn't that big of a deal, but it's annoying to have to reset your preferred settings regardless.

Should you buy the Lepow Portable HD Monitor?

While the narrow color gamut and annoying stand might turn some people away, I think that the Lepow Portable HD Monitor is ultimately a great budget display that's both versatile and widely affordable.

Folks who are looking for a top-notch portable monitor shouldn't opt for this pick, as there are many higher quality options out there. However, if you're in the market for a good portable display that offers respectable performance, wide compatibility, and won't empty your wallet, you should absolutely pick up the Lepow Portable HD Monitor.