- 144Hz QHD for well under $200
- Built-in speakers
- Meaningfully cheaper than the USB-C sibling
- No USB-C, so no single-cable laptop dock
- Thinner review history than Dell's bigger sellers
The 30-second verdict
This is the monitor you buy when your desk already has HDMI and DisplayPort cables running loose, and you don’t want to pay the $60 to $80 premium for USB-C. At 1440p and 144Hz, it punches above its price band. The trade-off is simple: no single-cable laptop dock, no USB power delivery. If that doesn’t matter to your setup, this is a straightforward win.
Who this is for
Desktop-first users adding a second monitor fit this best. You’ve got a tower or a docked laptop with native HDMI or DP outputs, and you’re not chasing a unified cable chain. A 27-inch 1440p panel is the sweet spot for a second screen: enough room to move email, Slack, or documentation off the main display, without demanding a monitor arm to hold it up.
Also worth considering: startups running a pair of older machines at the same desk, or teams splitting monitors between a laptop and a desktop in the same session. The 144Hz refresh matters less on a secondary screen, but it’s there for side work in games or video editing.
What it gets right
The refresh rate is the headline. 144Hz at 1440p is typically a gaming spec, priced accordingly by most manufacturers. Dell has packaged it into an office-grade IPS panel with built-in speakers, at a price that undercuts most 60Hz 1440p monitors from premium brands. Those speakers are functional, not hifi, but audible enough to beat dragging a Bluetooth bar into the setup.
The chassis itself is well-built and doesn't try too hard. The stand moves the way you'd expect—tilt, swivel, rotate, raise and lower—and takes up a sensible footprint when you're running two side by side. Wire management at the back stays clean and organized. No perceivable ghosting or lag in what I've watched on screen; color handling does the job for typical office tasks (it's IPS, 1440p, no HDR tricks, so keep your color ambitions realistic).
The refresh rate also means less flicker under PWM dimming. That’s a small ergonomic win if you’re staring at this for eight hours.
What annoys me
The review base is thin: 144 ratings on Amazon at the time of writing, tight enough that a run of defects could skew the average hard. Larger-volume second monitors give more confidence in the reliability curve; the 1440p picks guide lists older-generation options running 600 to 900 reviews. With this one, you’re betting on Dell’s brand consistency rather than a crowd of owners who’ve lived with it a full year.
The lack of USB-C is the main compromise here. If you work from a laptop that lives in a dock all day, you're still juggling power, video, and whatever else your hub needs—three separate lines instead of one. Not a fatal flaw; plenty of external monitors still work this way. But it does mean you don't get the cable-cleanup benefit that the S2725DC (its USB-C cousin, around $236) offers. The difference isn't enormous, but it matters if you're trying to keep your desk free of wire spaghetti.
One more thing worth flagging: Dell’s UltraSharp line has had occasional coil-whine reports, and while the S2725DSM sits in a different price tier, it runs the same refresh-rate electronics. The review summary here doesn’t mention it, so this isn’t a prediction of failure. Still, higher-Hz panels can produce audible noise in rare units. Check your return window before the clock runs out.
Compared to what else
If you need USB-C and laptop docking in one cable, the S2725DC is $236 on the same Amazon listing. That’s the right call. If you’re building a dual-monitor arm setup, both monitors are light enough (under 12 lbs each) to hang on mid-range arms like the Ergotron LX.
For a second screen on a tighter budget, the ViewSonic VS2725-2K (B0DH9L6MRH) sits at $139.99 with 1440p and a clean 4.5-star rating, but loses the 144Hz and the speakers. It’s the choice if refresh rate truly doesn’t matter and you want to squeeze another $40 out of the budget.
For a primary monitor where USB-C matters more than the refresh rate, the Dell 27 Plus QHD USB-C S2725DC is the better play, even at a higher price. For a 4K upgrade, you’re looking at $280+, and the real estate gain is marginal on a 27-inch screen.
Should you buy it
Yes, if you already have DisplayPort or HDMI cables waiting and want a second screen today without reworking your cable routing. The 144Hz refresh and built-in speakers are genuinely useful extras at this price. Dell’s QC on office monitors is reliable enough that the thin review base reads as a caution, not a red flag.
Skip it if your laptop is your primary machine and you’re trying to cut cable count; spend the extra $47 and get the USB-C version instead. Skip it too if you’re a compulsive refresh-rate skeptic and $200 is already a stretch for a secondary display. The ViewSonic saves you $60 and does the job.
Otherwise, this is a straightforward second-screen purchase. Don’t overthink it.
Full specs
| Refresh rate | 144Hz |
|---|---|
| Speakers | Built-in |
| Connectivity | HDMI/DP, no USB-C |
Questions people ask about the Dell 27 Plus QHD Monitor (S2725DSM)
The deal is 144Hz at 1440p with built-in speakers for under $200, on the condition that you don't need USB-C. It's HDMI/DP only, so no single-cable laptop dock and no USB power delivery. If you already have those cables running to your desk, it's a straightforward second monitor that's meaningfully cheaper than its USB-C sibling, with a thinner review history than Dell's bigger sellers.