Asus has introduced some of the best OLED gaming monitors in recent years, and with each generation, it makes incremental improvements in performance, features, and technology. Its latest panel type is Tandem RGB Stripe, bringing higher brightness, a wide color gamut, sharper imagery, and lower power consumption.

The latest ROG Swift display to hit my test bench is the PG27UCWM. It’s a 27-inch 4K panel with 240 Hz (480 Hz in FHD), HDR10, Dolby Vision, DisplayHDR 400, and Adaptive-Sync. Let’s take a look.

Asus ROG Swift PG27UCWM Specs

I’ve reviewed a few Tandem RGB Stripe OLEDs of late, most recently, Asus’ 32-inch version of this screen, the PG32UCWM. There’s no denying the extra sharpness that this tech brings. Though I never saw much color fringing around text as discussed online, these new panels are clearly sharper than single-layer OLEDs. By sandwiching two layers and making the pixels’ physical shape narrower, you get more clarity, more color, and more brightness at a given wattage. And by driving the panel less aggressively, its lifespan is extended.

The PG27UCWM’s color volume is greater than that of single-layer OLEDs but not quite as large as that of Quantum Dot displays. I measured just over 102% coverage on my sample, whereas you’ll get closer to 110% with a QD monitor. Asus includes factory calibration with each monitor, and you can find that stored in firmware and accessed through the comprehensive OSD.

Peak brightness is just under 500 nits when measuring a 25% window pattern with uniform brightness turned off. That number holds for both SDR and HDR content. The PG27UCWM supports HDR10 and Dolby Vision, with VESA DisplayHDR 400 certification. Asus’ TrueBlack Glossy screen coating keeps reflected light from spoiling those deep black levels.

In the video processing department, Asus includes a dual-refresh feature called Frame Rate Boost that switches between 4K/240 Hz and Full HD/480 Hz. You can change modes with a single button press. Also in the mix is Adaptive-Sync, with certifications from both Nvidia (G-Sync) and AMD (FreeSync Premium Pro). And you can augment lower frame rate capable systems with ELMB (Extreme Low Motion Blur).

The PG27UCWM, like all ROG Swift products, is feature-rich. You get Asus’ GamePlus enhancements, including multiple aiming points, sniper modes, frame rate counters, timers, and alignment marks. The quick menu and joystick clicks are fully customizable for quick access to many functions. And you can download Asus’ DisplayWidget Center app for full control on Windows or Mac desktops. A full array of inputs includes DisplayPort 2.1 with 80 Gbps bandwidth, HDMI 2.1, USB-C, and a USB 3.2 hub with KVM options.

There are plenty of cables included, along with Asus’ signature LED lighting and graphics. The PG27UCWM is firmly in the premium segment at a starting price of $1,099. I would expect greatness for that sum, and if you read on, we’ll see if it delivers.

Assembly and Accessories

The PG27UCWM arrives in a well-adorned carton with colorful graphics and secure, recyclable packaging. The base, upright, and panel are separate, as is the lens for the ROG logo projector that shines symbols on your desk. It includes multiple lenses. The ROG pouch reveals cables for USB, HDMI, and DisplayPort, plus IEC for the internal power supply. There’s also a heavy stamped steel bracket that snaps onto the panel to create a 100mm VESA mount.

Product 360

The PG27UCWM features Asus’ latest ROG Swift styling cues, with clear plastic on the back that reveals some of the monitor’s internal components. Opposite that is the Lite Brite ROG graphic that can light up in a multitude of colors and effects. More LEDs can be found on the front, on the small protrusion beneath the screen, as well as on the base and even the sliding bit on the stand’s upright. All this fun can be controlled in the OSD and by DisplayWidget Center.

In front, the bezel is very narrow on all sides, just 9-11 millimeters, with a small protrusion at the bottom center for the joystick and control buttons. It also contains a sensor that works with the OLED care features to shut off the panel when you leave your desk.

From the side, you can see the panel-on-box design that is common to many OLEDs. This not only looks nice but aids in cooling. The OLED is backed by a metal plate that helps dissipate heat, along with a graphene layer inside, heatsinks on the internal circuit boards, and a heat-efficient power module. The PG27UCWM is fanless and always ran cool during my time with it.

The stand is very solid with a cast aluminum base that is both wide and deep. The upright features full ergonomics with a 4.4-inch height range, 5/20-degree tilt, 30-degree swivel, and a 90-degree portrait mode. Movements are firm and smooth with no wobble or play. The stand also has a threaded tripod socket on top for things like webcams.

The I/O panel is well-appointed with a single DisplayPort 2.1 (UHBR20, 80 Gbps), two HDMI 2.1, a USB-C, and a USB hub with one upstream and three downstream. The hub has full KVM functionality, along with version control and power for the USB-C up to 90 watts. There are no internal speakers, but you do get a 3.5mm headphone jack.

OSD Features

The PG27UCWM has two buttons and a joystick to cover all monitor functions. Pressing the left button switches the refresh rate between 240 Hz and 480 Hz. The right button is a power toggle. Pressing the joystick brings up a quick menu which is fully programmable. A second press reveals the full OSD.

The quick menu has four slots for any function you might want quick access to, like picture mode, brightness, and the like. The full OSD starts with Gaming, and there, you’ll find the GamePlus suite with a large selection of aiming points, sniper modes, frame counters, timers, a stopwatch, and display alignment marks. GameVisual refers to the nine picture modes, each aimed at different game types or tasks. Racing is the default and best choice there.

The PG27UCWM is one of the few monitors to support Dolby Vision in addition to HDR10. Dolby Vision uses dynamic tone mapping from the content metadata to tailor its luminance curve for each individual display. This renders the content more faithfully and with more impact than the fixed tone curve from HDR10 material. For that format, you get four more modes with the option to adjust brightness and other parameters.

To adjust color, the PG27UCWM includes a gamut selector, gamma presets, and color temps arranged by Kelvin value. You can also adjust RGB sliders for finer control. My sample was nearly perfect out of the box, and I could only make a tiny difference with calibration.

OLED Care includes many toggles for screen savers, logo detection, and more. Pixel Cleaning is a panel refresh feature that takes about six minutes to complete. When I first powered up the PG27UCWM, it prompted me to do this. I’ve found this to improve screen uniformity with brand-new panels, so I make it a habit for every review. A front-mounted sensor can be configured to shut off the monitor when you leave your desk.

To view two video sources simultaneously, use the PIP and PBP options. Each can have its own color settings, and you can size the PIP window. Aura RGB is the lighting feature, and it offers a wide range of effects and colors. Light In Motion works with the DisplayWidget Center app to create light shows that mimic what’s happening on the screen.

The quick menu and joystick are fully programmable, so you can access up to 9 functions quickly. This is great for switching inputs, adjusting brightness, changing the refresh mode or what have you. Also included are two memory settings.

The System Setup menu can be left alone in most scenarios, but one option you must address is the Power Setting. It’s on Power Saving by default, and that limits brightness. Switch to Performance Mode to unlock the PG27UCWM’s full potential.

Asus ROG Swift PG27UCWM Calibration Settings

The PG27UCWM measured close to spec out of the box for grayscale and color, but I noted a slight gamma shift. To improve this metric, I selected the 2.4 preset, which made it a tad darker in a good way. I also adjusted the RGB sliders for a tiny gain in grayscale accuracy. For gaming, calibration is completely unnecessary. My suggested settings are below and include brightness values for Uniform Brightness on or off.

For HDR10 content, I recommend the Gaming HDR mode even though its EOTF tracking is lighter than spec. You can read more about this on page five. For spot-on HDR, True Black mode is the winner.

Gaming and Hands-on

I have yet to game on an Asus OLED that wasn’t addictive in its imagery and responsiveness. The PG27UCWM was no exception. It’s super quick with no perceptible input lag and perfectly smooth motion resolution. For frame rates, I tried both modes, 240 and 480, and had excellent results. With a GeForce RTX 4090 in my test PC, I kept the action at 220-230fps in 4K with HDR enabled. This was awesome, to say the least, with every detail rendered sharply whether static or moving. I knew my system was working hard because the fans ran fast and there was a good bit of warm air circulating about my legs as I dispatched enemies in Doom Eternal.

To switch refresh modes, I had to exit to the Windows desktop to prevent the game from crashing. This is typical of the dual-refresh monitors I’ve reviewed and has nothing to do with their operation. At 480 Hz in FHD resolution, the picture was softer but not tremendously so. Games were just as playable and addictive. I kept the frame rate locked at 480 fps across all scenarios. It didn’t make play better for me, but I can see the advantage for users with slower PCs. Or if you just want to brag about frame rates.

HDR color and contrast were exemplary, and I toggled between two HDR picture modes: Gaming and True Black. You’ll see the technical differences between them on page five, but visually, Gaming provided a bit more brightness while True Black had better midtone contrast. It came down to game type for me. Bright outdoor scenery looked better in Gaming while dark imagery looked better in True Black. As with the frame rate boost feature, switching HDR modes should be done on the Windows desktop rather than in a game.

I noted light gamma during testing, which in SDR mode manifested as a slight flattening of the image. I fixed this by upping the gamma setting to 2.4 and raising the brightness value a few points. This added more texture to the picture, which was easy to see in a side-by-side comparison. For a more scientific explanation of the PG27UCWM’s gamma performance, see my test results on page four.

Like all Asus ROG Swift displays, the PG27UCWM is premium in every respect. It looks great just sitting on a desk with its clear back and extensive but not garish lighting. I turned on all the Aura RGB elements and enjoyed the show without distraction from games or work. The accents are well-balanced, even down to the logo projector, a feature unique to Asus ROG Swift monitors.

The Tandem RGB Stripe panel was visibly sharper than last year’s Quantum Dot-based PG27UCDM. The difference is small, but it is there. Text was rendered with perfect edges, free of artifacts such as fringing or jaggies. I could also see a difference in photos, especially when zooming in to the pixel level. This is a great monitor for content creation and writing. I also appreciated the inclusion of Dolby Vision for watching movies and TV shows. There is a lot of DV content on disc and through streaming services like Netflix, Disney+, and HBO Max.

The PG27UCWM has plenty of convenience features, such as USB ports with KVM and a tripod thread on the stand. But I missed internal speakers. Game sound had to come through headphones plugged into the provided 3.5mm jack.

Takeaway: The PG27UCWM is a supremely versatile monitor with lots of features, premium styling, excellent build quality, and top-level game performance. Competitive gamers will appreciate its advanced video processing, low input lag, and smooth response. Image quality is also top-shelf with accurate and saturated color, high luminance, and a variable brightness option. The Tandem RGB Stripe tech delivers a sharper picture than Quantum Dot or single-layer OLEDs.

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When I looked for 27-inch 4K OLEDs to compare to the PG27UCWM, I didn’t find many in the database. It is still an unusual format compared to 32-inch 4K or 27-inch QHD. The group consists of Alienware’s AW2725Q, ViewSonic’s VX2738-2K (QHD), Asus’ PG27UCDM, BenQ’s EX271UZ, and Acer’s X27 X1. All run at 240 Hz.

Pixel Response and Input Lag

Click here to read up on our pixel response and input lag testing procedures.

My data on the BenQ, Alienware, and Asus PG27UCDM predates my LDAT tests, so they are not included in the response results. Thus far, I haven’t seen much variation in OLED panel times. They range from 0.12 to 0.24ms, which is a tiny difference that can’t be seen with the naked eye. That’s why OLEDs all look smooth at 200fps or more. I noted that the PG27UCWM was quicker at 480 Hz than 240, but not by half: 0.12 versus 0.20ms.

In the lag test, the frame rate boost doesn’t provide an advantage in input lag. Even a Jedi Knight won’t be able to tell a 0.6ms difference. Either way, the PG27UCWM has the lowest input lag of any 27-inch 4K OLED I’ve tested, by a small margin over the Acer and ViewSonic screens. Gamers will want to check one of these out for their competition kit.

Test Takeaway: The PG27UCWM is the quickest 27-inch 4K OLED panel I’ve tested to date. It has very low input lag, and panel response is smooth in either frame rate mode. 480 Hz provides a boost in frame rates and is useful for slower systems, but it does not provide lower input lag. If you have enough video card power, the 240 Hz mode is more than adequate for instant control response and smooth motion resolution.

Viewing Angles

In my experience, the one weakness of Tandem RGB Stripe OLED panels is their slight color shift in the horizontal plane. There is no reduction in brightness or gamma, but there is a reddish-green (greenish-red?) tint, a bit like an IPS monitor. For a 27-inch panel like the PG27UCWM, this isn’t a big deal. Just don’t share it with another user who is picky. The vertical photo shows reduced gamma and the same color shift.

Screen Uniformity

To learn how we measure screen uniformity, click here.

The PG27UCWM’s screen uniformity is in line with other OLEDs. I have yet to find a bad one. I recommend that anyone buying an OLED run the pixel refresh routine when you first unpack it. This often yields a 5-10% improvement in uniformity.

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To read about our monitor tests in-depth, please check out Display Testing Explained: How We Test PC Monitors. We cover brightness and contrast testing on page two.

Uncalibrated – Maximum Backlight Level

I measured the PG27UCWM in its Racing mode with the Power mode set to Performance and the brightness slider maxed. With Uniform Brightness (UB) off, a 25% window came up just short of 500 nits, and a full field was 278 nits. UB on kept that same 278 nit value for both window and field patterns. I noted that the PG27UCWM was a tad brighter than last year’s PG27UCDM, which had a Quantum Dot panel. Black levels and contrast could not be measured.

After Calibration to 200 nits

Calibration made no difference to contrast or black levels. When switching between UB modes, I noted that the PG27UCWM saved the brightness value for each mode. That means you can equalize brightness by using a full field for UB on and a 25% window for UB off. As is typical for OLEDs, I could not measure the intra-image (ANSI) contrast.

Test Takeaway: The PG27UCWM delivers contrast and black level performance identical to other OLED monitors. It nearly hits 500 nits for a 25% window pattern with Uniform Brightness switched off. Leaving it on delivers around 278 nits peak.

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In the PG27UCWM’s Racing picture mode, there is no need for calibration, but you have the option to change color space, gamma, and white balance if you wish.

Grayscale and Gamma Tracking

Our grayscale and gamma tests use Calman calibration software from Portrait Displays. We describe our grayscale and gamma tests in detail here.

In the first chart, grayscale tracking is visually perfect with no error exceeding 2dE. The accepted visible threshold is 3dE. Gamma is a bit skewed, though. It’s too light in the darkest parts of the image, and midtones are also a little under. This flattens the image a little. At 90% brightness, it is slightly dark, which also lessens the picture’s impact.

I calibrated the RGB sliders for a tiny improvement in grayscale. For gamma, I could only pick a different preset, so I opted for 2.4, which was a good compromise. Since OLEDs have such high contrast, it’s easier to get away with dark gamma because you can just click up the brightness a bit to compensate. A perfect trace on the 2.2 reference would be better, but I don't expect anyone to complain about the PG27UCWM.

For sRGB, you can either pick the sRGB Cal mode or select sRGB from the color space options in the Color menu. I chose the latter because it leaves the RGB and gamma controls available. Gamma is still a bit light but also more consistent.

Comparisons

The PG27UCWM wins the out-of-box grayscale comparison with an excellent 0.94dE score. Calibration only improves that to 0.91dE. The two Asus and the Alienware screens can be used without calibration, but the Acer, ViewSonic, and BenQ should get some attention for top performance. Once adjusted, the six monitors are visually equal.

In the gamma test, the PG27UCWM runs mid-pack with a 0.25 range of values and a 4.09% deviation from 2.2. I made a compromise here, setting gamma to 2.4. If you leave it on 2.2, the value range is the same and the deviation is 3.18%. But I preferred the look of the darker gamma setting. Try both to see which works best for you.

Color Gamut Accuracy

Our color gamut and volume testing use Portrait Displays’ Calman software. For details on our color gamut testing and volume calculations, click here.

Asus’ latest crop of Tandem RGB Stripe OLEDs all come within a whisker of 100% coverage of DCI-P3 and display near-perfect accuracy. In the default chart, the PG27UCWM is a tad undersaturated in the primary colors, but not by a visible amount. My grayscale calibration adds just a little verve to the palette. You can barely see a difference, but it’s there when comparing screens side-by-side. This is excellent performance.

The sRGB gamut is also a bit undersaturated, coming up short in red, magenta and blue. This is a minor issue, but users needing the nth degree of accuracy might want to consider a color lookup table for their applications.

Comparisons

A 1.05dE color gamut error is impressive, but all the screens perform as well as the PG27UCWM in this test. OLED is an accurate monitor category, and you’ll be hard-pressed to find a bad one.

I’ve commented that Quantum Dot OLEDs have greater color volume than Tandem RGB Stripe panels, but in the 27-inch category, the differences are quite small. Asus’ own PG27UCDM has less than 1% more volume, an invisible amount. The ViewSonic will look a bit more colorful in a side-by-side comparison, but only slightly. The PG27UCWM delivers vivid and bold hues for both SDR and HDR. The sRGB mode is slightly undersaturated in red, magenta, and blue, hence the 91.87% score.

Test Takeaway: The PG27UCWM is very color-accurate out of the box but needs some attention in the gamma department. I had to compromise for the best picture because none of the presets are exactly on the 2.2 reference. The sRGB mode is slightly undersaturated and has light gamma. Color volume is high and nearly equals that of many Quantum Dot displays. The PG27UCWM is a very colorful monitor.

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Our HDR benchmarking uses Portrait Displays’ Calman software. To learn about our HDR testing, see our breakdown of how we test PC monitors.

The PG27UCWM adds extra HDR brightness and Dolby Vision to its feature list over last year’s PG27UCDM. It switches automatically when an HDR10 signal is detected and offers four picture modes with an adjustable option.

HDR Brightness and Contrast

To get the brightest HDR, I opted for the Gaming mode with the Adjustable toggle turned on. This delivered almost 500 nits from a 25% window pattern. Asus claims 1,000 nits for a 3% window, and there is no reason to doubt this. If you’re considering an upgrade from last year’s PG27UCDM, you can expect an extra 30 nits of peak brightness, about 6%. The Gaming HDR mode comes with a compromise, which I’ll tell you about below. If you choose the most accurate mode, True Black, it peaks at around 470 nits. Black levels and contrast could not be measured.

Grayscale, EOTF and Color

The first two charts illustrate the difference between Gaming and True Black modes. Gaming is a little brighter, not only because it peaks higher, but also because it rides above the EOTF reference. This gives the image a little more impact but also a little less texture. The difference is small and will come down to user preference. For games with bright scenery and color, I preferred Gaming HDR. But more subdued tones benefitted from True Black and its deeper shadows. Either way, you get excellent grayscale accuracy.

In the HDR color tests, the PG27UCWM makes full use of its large gamut in all content. The DCI-P3 is fully covered with a little extra verve in red, magenta, and blue. By emphasizing the warmer tones, it gives the picture more punch without becoming unnatural. This is an approach shared by many HDR monitors, LCD and OLED. In the BT.2020 test, the PG27UCWM runs out of color at 90% red, 75% green, and 95% blue, which is comparable to many Quantum Dot screens.

Test Takeaway: The PG27UCWM delivers a lot of HDR impact and is a little brighter than its predecessor and the other 27-inch 4K OLEDs I’ve tested. It has excellent grayscale and color accuracy in either Gaming or True Black modes. For the best luminance tracking choose True Black and for the brightest image, choose Gaming. Either way, it renders HDR content beautifully.

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Though OLED prices in general have crept downwards, it is still a premium category. New panel variants keep the technology moving forward and create more choices for buyers. It’s also a product category that embodies the concept that you never regret buying the best. With stunning images, bold color, and lightning-fast reflexes, OLEDs are the go-to display for gamers of all skill levels.

Asus has remained at the forefront of OLED technology by being early out of the gate with each new panel tech. It has fully embraced Tandem RGB Stripe with the ROG Swift PG27UCWM. Though relatively expensive for a 27-inch monitor, it is richly featured and capable of truly addictive gameplay. With 240 Hz in 4K and 480 Hz in Full HD, it can pair well with just about any gaming system from console to bleeding-edge PC. In my tests, it proved faster than all the other 27-inch 4K OLEDs I’ve reviewed.

Tandem RGB Stripe also delivers a visible improvement in sharpness. OLEDs were sharp already, but I could easily see the difference when comparing the PG27UCWM to a single-layer monitor. Color is also a highlight here. Though a Quantum Dot screen will get you a little more color volume, the PG27UCWM is still in the mix at over 102% DCI-P3 coverage. And its HDR prowess is substantial with the addition of Dolby Vision.

If you have the budget, currently $1,099, for a premium 27-inch OLED gaming monitor, the Asus ROG Swift PG27UCWM is sitting nicely atop the performance heap. Gamers looking for a premium experience should definitely check it out.

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IFA 2026 is upon us, and Acer has unleashed a whole onslaught of new products across various categories. One specific category is monitors, where Acer announced no less than seven new Nitro- and Predator-branded products to satisfy nearly every price point and gaming niche. With prices ranging from $299 to $1,199, there’s something for everyone with today’s announcements.

We’ll start our coverage with the Nitro family, which has four new members, the cheapest of which is the Nitro XV270U Z3 at $299. The XV270U Z3 is a tri-mode monitor, offering three distinct resolution/refresh rate presets. This is a 27-inch monitor with an IPS panel, QHD resolution, and a 275 Hz refresh rate. However, you can switch to two additional modes: 1080p at 360 Hz or 720p at 520 Hz. I haven’t gamed at 720p since the turn of the century, but the resolution is here for folks who crave frame rates over everything else.

The Nitro XV275U Z2 is another 27-inch tri-mode monitor with an IPS panel, but it is upgraded with 1,152-zone Mini LED backlighting. The available resolutions and refresh rates mirror those of the XV270U Z3, but there are a few additional perks. The XV275U Z2 offers a typical brightness of 500 nits (twice that of the XV270U Z3) and reaches 1,000 nits in HDR mode. Despite the pretty substantial upgrades, the Nitro XV275U Z2 is only $30 more expensive at $329.

The next two Nitro monitors also offer 5K resolution, and we'll start with the $699 Nitro XZ340CKR P. It features a 34-inch IPS panel with 5120 x 2160 resolution (21:9 aspect ratio) and a maximum refresh rate of 180 Hz. However, Acer also infuses the Nitro XZ340CKR P with a dual-mode switch, allowing it to operate at WFHD (2560 x 1880) at 360 Hz.

Rounding out the new additions to the family is the Nitro XV275X P, which squeezes a 5120 x 2880 resolution (16:9 aspect ratio) in a 27-inch IPS panel. For those who crave the ultimate in pixel density, the Nitro XV275X P should tick all the right boxes. The panel tops out at 165 Hz at native resolution, but if you're willing to drop down to 2560 x 1440, you can bump the max refresh rate to 330 Hz. The monitor has a typical brightness of 450 nits, but can jump up to 1,400 nits in HDR mode. However, you'll pay for that density and performance with a price tag of $1,199.

Shifting gears to the Predator family, we start at the lower end of the price spectrum with the $449 XB273K V7. The XB273K V7 natively runs at 4K resolution with a 160 Hz refresh rate. However, thanks to Dynamic Frequency and Resolution, you can switch to 1080p resolution and more than triple the maximum refresh rate to 500 Hz.

Stepping up the price ladder, we come to the $899 Predator X32 V3, the first of Acer's monitors announced today that use Penta Tandem QD-OLED panel technology. The 31.5-inch panel has a native 4K (3840 x 2160) resolution and a 180 Hz maximum refresh rate. Unlike the other multi-mode monitors that are launching, you're stuck with 180 Hz no matter which resolution you choose.

Finally, we come to the Predator XB253Q U1, which is the smallest of the announced monitors, with a 24.5-inch diagonal. But don't let its small size fool you, the Predator XB253Q U1 is the most performant of the bunch, and is aimed squarely at the elite eSports gamers. The monitor has a native 1080p resolution with a maximum refresh rate of 1,000 Hz from its IPS panel.

You'll find the usual support for AMD FreeSync Premium and Nvidia G-Sync, along with a 0.3 ms response time. Acer quotes typical brightness of 400 nits, while HDR mode squeezes out just a bit more at 450 nits. The added performance of the Predator XB253Q U1 doesn't come cheap, as you're looking at a suggested retail price of $1,099 when it launches.

Most of the monitors announced today will launch in Q4 2026, with a few stragglers extending the launch window to Q1 2027.

While gamers are definitely feeling the pricing pinch when it comes to memory and storage, some segments of the consumer tech sector are seeing more favorable trends. Advances in screen technology for gaming monitors are accelerating, while OLED prices are steadily falling. Dell is part of this trend with a pair of new Alienware monitors, the AW3226Q and AW2527HX, that take differing approaches to appeasing gamers.

We start with the AW3226Q, which is aimed at gamers who crave higher-resolution 4K gaming over outright speed. At its heart is a 32-inch panel that uses an RGB Stripe Tandem OLED technology (previously seen on the AW3926QW that we recently reviewed). The use of a four-stack tandem layer within the panel addresses one of the few criticisms leveled against traditional QD-OLED panels: slightly blurry/soft text upon close inspection. Another added benefit is that brightness levels are higher than on previous-generation QD-OLED monitors (1,000-nit peak brightness).

Blazing-fast refresh rates aren't the goal here, since the AW3226Q tops out at 165 Hz. With that said, you do get a 0.03 ms response time, AMD FreeSync Premium Pro and Nvidia G-Sync support, VESA DisplayHDR True Black 400 and Dolby Vision compliance, and a built-in USB-C/USB-A hub.

For the most discerning speed freaks, there's the AW2527HX. Instead of the larger 32-inch 4K panel's 165 Hz refresh rate, the AW2527HX uses a 24.5-inch panel with a 560 Hz refresh rate. While many of the higher-refresh-rate monitors we've seen can reach upwards of 1,000 Hz with IPS or TN panels, the AW2527HX offers the color performance and black-level improvements afforded by a QD-OLED panel. However, what you gain in speed, you lose in pixel density — the AW2527HX makes do with 1920 x 1080 resolution. With that said, you do get VESA DisplayHDR True Black 600 support, a matte panel finish, and DisplayPort 2.1 connectivity.

Alienware worked together with the folks at Team Liquid to develop the monitor, ensuring that it ticks all the major boxes for eSports gamers. There's a graphene sheet integrated into the display that helps distribute heat more evenly to mitigate pixel burn-in. An integrated stand is there to hang your headset, and there's a dedicated button that lets you switch between 4:3 and 3:2 aspect ratios depending on how you want to game. The base of the AW2527HX has even been minimized to ensure there's enough space under the monitor for your keyboard.

Both the AW3226Q and AW2527HX launch with a three-year OLED pixel burn-in warranty. Although pricing hasn't been announced yet, the former will launch this fall, while the latter is promised in Q1 2027.

OLED gaming monitors have become increasingly affordable in recent years, as the technology has matured in addition to the growing competition among major brands. If you’ve been saving up to make the jump to an ultrawide OLED monitor, Amazon currently has LG’s 34-inch UltraGear 34GX900A-B at a particularly attractive price. With an original listed price of $1,200, it is currently on sale and can be purchased for $599.99, resulting in a substantial discount of 50%.

• Check out the deal on Amazon

The LG Ultragear 34GX900A-B is a premium curved OLED gaming monitor offering a WQHD or 3440 x 1440 resolution with a 21:9 aspect ratio. According to LG, the steep 800R curve and impressive screen brightness of up to 1300 nits ensure an immersive experience during your gaming sessions. It also comes with up to a 240 Hz refresh rate and 0.03ms response time that keeps the gameplay fast, smooth, and responsive. Additionally, the monitor supports FreeSync Premium Pro and Nvidia G-Sync compatible for clear and tear-free visuals.

The monitor is listed to support 98.5% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, a 1.5M:1 contrast ratio, and DisplayHDR True Black 400. Essentially, one can expect deep blacks, excellent highlights, and cinematic color. The monitor is also UL-verified for flicker reduction, glare reduction, and hardware-based low-blue-light output, all aimed at making the display more comfortable to use for long periods. In terms of connectivity, the LG Ultragear 34GX900A-B comes with two HDMI 2.1 ports, a DisplayPort 1.4, USB Type-C with power delivery, two USB Type-A, and a 3.5mm audio jack. Other notable features include an inbuilt app to split the screen into 6 sections for multitasking, an adjustable stand with height, tilt, and swivel control, and some RGB lighting at the back, adding to the gamer aesthetics.

The LG UltraGear 34GX900A-B at $599.99 is highly recommended for anyone looking to move to an ultrawide gaming monitor. You’re getting a 240 Hz OLED panel, 3440 x 1440 resolution, 0.03ms response time, up to 1300 nits of brightness, and support for both FreeSync Premium Pro and G-Sync, all for $600 less than its original $1,200 price.

Fast refresh curved gaming monitors often cost a pretty penny, so it’s always a good idea to snag one if you see one go on sale. That’s why you should check out the Samsung Odyssey G55C if you want to get your hands on one, as it’s currently at 39% off on Amazon. This limited-time deal brings that price of the monitor from $329.99 to just $199.99, saving you $130 off sticker.

• Grab this deal on Amazon.

The Samsung Odyssey G55C is a 32-inch VA gaming monitor that comes with a 1000R curvature for better immersion during gaming. Aside from that, it also gives you 1440p QHD resolution, a 165 Hz refresh rate, and a 1 ms response time for that sharp and smooth gameplay. Of course, since this display is designed for gaming and entertainment, it also has AMD FreeSync to avoid screen tearing and is HDR10-compliant to give you incredibly vibrant scenes. If you plan to game for several hours at a time, you’ll also appreciate its Eye Saver Mode, which cuts screen flicker to reduce eye strain and distraction.

This display offers both HDMI and DisplayPort, allowing you to simultaneously plug your gaming PC and gaming console into it. Although it doesn’t have built-in speakers, it does come with a 3.5mm headphone jack, allowing you to attach your headphones or speakers directly, reducing cable clutter on your desk. The monitor comes with a fixed base that with thin legs to save space, but if you need more flexibility, you can also mount it to a monitor arm via the standard VESA mounting points at the back of the display.

Some of the drawbacks of this monitor is that Samsung doesn’t share its DCI-P3 coverage and color accuracy stats. It also only limited to just 300 nits, so it might struggle if you plan to use it in brighter locations. If you need a more capable monitor, you should consider options from our best gaming monitors list. But if you’re only looking for a display to satisfy your gaming needs, this monitor is more than enough for most of your requirements. So, if you’re looking for a new gaming monitor, you should get the Samsung Odyssey G55C right now for just $199.99. Don’t hesitate as this is a limited-time deal, so you should get it while you can.

Few, if any, users will say that they have too much screen real estate. There’s always one more window you’d like to open, or you’ll often wish you could see just a little more of a game environment. To this end, many people run two or three of the best gaming monitors together. This approach solves many problems, and if you go for something common like a 27-inch QHD, the price isn’t too high. But there’s one thing you can’t escape: the dividing line.

Monitors always have a frame; even the flush ones are visible. And no one will say that they like the line. It can perhaps be ignored, but it doesn’t just magically disappear. The simplest solution is to go for an ultra-wide display. If you’re currently running two 27-inch QHD monitors, you can replace them with a single 49-inch 32:9 panel. Add a curve, and you have a screen that’s great for productivity, gaming, and simulation.

This isn’t necessarily the least expensive solution, but if you buy one from Deco Gear, you can put the DG49OLED240 on your desk for $1,230. That will get you 5120x1440 pixels, a Quantum Dot OLED panel, 240 Hz, Adaptive-Sync, HDR400, and wide gamut color. Let’s take a look.

Deco Gear DG49OLED240 Specs

The 49-inch 32:9 display format is the exact equivalent of two 27-inch 16:9 QHD screens; it’s the perfect solution for those who would otherwise run two monitors. The only downside is that it costs more than two 27-inch QHD panels. But given the specs in play here, the DG49OLED240 delivers a lot for the money.

With Quantum Dot color, you get a healthy 112% coverage of DCI-P3. That’s more than many 34-inch 21:9 screens I’ve reviewed. It’s reasonably accurate out of the box as well. My sample measured well before calibration and better after a few adjustments.

Light output is around 430 nits for SDR and HDR content. That’s with variable brightness engaged and measurement of a 25% window pattern. Full field white comes in around 360 nits. The DG49OLED240 provides more than enough brightness for impactful HDR in an indoor space with some ambient light. It also plays well in the dark with lower levels that maintain full color and contrast.

Video processing is excellent in all respects with a 240 Hz refresh rate and Adaptive-Sync. I measured panel response on par with other OLEDs and lower input lag than other 49-inch 32:9 screens in my test database.

Gaming is enhanced by a pair of internal five-watt speakers accompanied by a 10-watt woofer plus a 3.5mm headphone jack. And you can hang those cans on a stout metal hook that flips out from the stand. Video inputs include two DisplayPort 1.4, one HDMI 2.1, and a USB-C that includes 90 watts of charging power. Additional USB ports support things like input devices and webcams. You also get LED lighting in the back with control in the OSD.

If you’re wondering about the Deco Gear brand, it is a subsidiary of Beach Camera, a very experienced vendor of electronics and technology. You can buy the DG49OLED240 directly for $1,229.99, or in one of Beach Camera’s brick-and-mortar locations.

Assembly and Accessories

The DG49OLED240 showed up in a large white carton with just the words “49” OLED Ultrawide Monitor” printed on it. A visit to Deco Gear’s website revealed that several variants of this display differ mainly by refresh rate. The DG49OLED240 is the flagship model at 240 Hz. The contents are packed in crumbly foam and assembled tool-free. The accessory bundle includes an IEC cord for the internal power supply plus DisplayPort, HDMI and USB cables.

Product 360

The DG49OLED240 is styled simply with just a Deco Gear logo on the front, screened on above a small protrusion. This is where you’ll find the only control, a tiny joystick. It covers all monitor functions. A word of warning: pressing it only toggles power. It doesn’t select functions like every other joystick on every other monitor. So, unless you plan to turn the DG49OLED240 on or off, do not press it.

The screen’s bezel is flush so you can’t see it when the power’s off. But it is a tad wider than average at 12mm around the top and sides and 15mm at the bottom. In practice though, you’ll be so glad to get rid of the line down the center after chucking your two 27-inch screens that you won’t care.

The stand is super solid with a wide and deep base made from cast aluminum and finished in a matte black powdercoat. It’s almost monolithic, but there is a bit of wobble where the panel snaps on. This is typical of super wide monitors. Ergonomics include a 4.6-inch height range plus 5/20 degrees tilt and 20 degrees swivel.

In the back are LED lights in two vertical arrays that frame the rear-facing I/O panel. There are two DisplayPort 1.4s and an HDMI 2.1. A USB-C handles video signals and provides 90 watts of power. There are USB ports too, one upstream and two downstream. A 3.5mm headphone jack delivers audio, and there’s an RJ-45 network port.

OSD Features

The DG49OLED240’s OSD is somewhat frustrating to control because the joystick doesn’t work the same way as nearly every other monitor I’ve encountered. One major issue I had was that pressing it toggles the power no matter what menu you’re currently in. I lost count of how many times I accidentally turned off my review sample. To select a function, right-click. To back out of the menu, left-click. Once I got the hang of it, I was able to find everything I needed for image control and video processing.

Every menu screen has basic signal information at the top in three small portholes. The menu graphics are game-focused with a purposeful red border on a black background. Game Settings is up first with four image modes, an Adaptive-Sync toggle, and Shadow Balance, which brightens darker areas for better visibility. On the second screen, you get a frame counter, two aiming points, and a timer. Dynamic Brightness is a global dimming feature. HDR can be turned off or engaged with two different modes. Ambient Lighting refers to the LEDs on the back.

Picture Settings has the usual basic controls and an unusual one called Contextual Model. I don’t know where this terminology comes from, but here, it means more picture modes. Specifically, this is where you’ll find sRGB along with other activity-specific options. An important one here is Brightness Mode. Deco Gear calls the two settings Normal and Highlight, and what they actually are is fixed or variable brightness. I’ll talk more about that later. The second screen, not shown above, has six gamma presets.

In Color Settings, you get three fixed color temps plus three more user memories with RGB sliders. These are difficult to adjust thanks to the joystick’s unusual operation. But they are effective and allowed me to dial in grayscale tracking to a very accurate level.

Additional settings include PIP/PBP for viewing two video sources at once. You can adjust the position of the OSD, and there are port version options. The one thing I didn’t find was OLED care options. But Deco Gear assures me that the DG49OLED240 has automated logo dimming and panel refresh, which runs every few hours to guard against burn-in.

Deco Gear DG49OLED240 Calibration Settings

The DG49OLED240 can be calibrated in its Standard picture mode, which uses the full native color gamut, 112% of DCI-P3. There are three user color temps with RGB sliders that helped me get grayscale tracking from good to great. Gamma runs a tad dark but tracks close to the 2.2 reference. For sRGB color, go to the menu called Contextual Model and select it from the options there. You can also specify Adobe RGB or P3 color. There is a variable brightness option as well called Brightness Mode. For fixed, choose Normal and for variable, choose Highlight. I’ve included brightness values for both modes in my settings list below.

HDR signals get two modes that vary only in their EOTF tracking. The best choice there is HDR Standard.

Gaming and Hands-on

Gaming on the DG49OLED240 was instantly addictive. It delivered very balanced performance with perfect motion resolution, lighting-fast reflexes, and a gorgeous image. The extra width provided by the 32:9 aspect ratio really drew me into the gaming environment with a VR-like feel that enveloped my peripheral vision.

You’ll see on the next page that the DG49OLED240 has a tad less input lag than the other 49-inch OLEDs I’ve reviewed. Though the numerical difference is small, I experienced a quickness and precision that I don’t get with every OLED. Clearly, 240 Hz is more than enough speed to ensure blur-free operation and instant control response. A seasoned competitor will want to give this monitor serious consideration. And I had no problem maintaining 240 fps on a GeForce RTX 4090 in Doom Eternal with detail set at maximum in HDR mode.

The DG49OLED240 also has exceptional color balance. Even though it covers more than 112% of DCI-P3, it never looked overblown in SDR mode. There is an available and accurate sRGB mode, but I only needed it when working on photos and graphics for web publication. For all other activities, including watching SDR video, I enjoyed the extra color. And HDR looked stunning thanks to linear saturation tracking and no visible hue errors.

With the same 109 ppi as a 27-inch QHD screen, clarity is excellent but not quite at the level of a 4K screen. It is more than sharp enough for gaming though. Documents also render with clean fonts, no apparent fringing, and that signature OLED contrast. I found smooth scrolling in Windows by running at 120 Hz. You can certainly run at 240 Hz all the time if you wish, but it will increase power consumption.

Putting a monitor as wide as the DG49OLED240 on your desk will require some adaptation if you aren’t already used to multiple screens. I habitually put the work I’m focusing on at the center of the screen, but with a mega-wide, I had to spend more time with pages to my left and right. Photoshop was my favorite use since I could put the photo in the center and leave the sides for toolbars and supporting dialog boxes. It’s also great for very wide spreadsheets, like my monitor test database which has 25 horizontal fields. For my work, it is less suited to writing since I prefer more height when using Word or Notepad.

A standout feature I noticed immediately was the DG49OLED240’s excellent audio quality. It has a pair of internal speakers which alone are not extraordinary, but they are accompanied by a 10-watt woofer which rounds out the bass frequencies. This makes the sound presentation much fuller and more realistic. It adds to the screen’s immersive quality and is a completely viable alternative to headphones or external desktop speakers.

Takeaway: The DG49OLED240 delivers gaming performance on par with the best OLED screens I’ve reviewed. It has perfect motion resolution and responds instantly to control inputs with less lag than other 49-inch monitors. It’s super useful for workday tasks like Photoshop and Excel and not quite as well suited to word processing or web browsing. Sound quality is equivalent to a good pair of headphones or external desktop speakers. If you’re looking to get rid of the line between your two 27-inch QHD monitors, the DG49OLED240 is a no-brainer.

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To compare the DG49OLED240’s performance, I’ve lined up two other 49-inch 32:9 OLEDs, AOC’s PD49 and Philips’ 49M2C8900. The other screens are 34-inch 21:9s, Alienware’s AW3426DW, Acer’s X34 OLED, and Asus’ PG34WCDN. Refresh rates range from 240 to 360 Hz.

Pixel Response and Input Lag

Click here to read up on our pixel response and input lag testing procedures.

The response group is slightly different in that it includes ViewSonic and MSI monitors. This is because I’m still building up the number of screens tested by the Nvidia LDAT sensor. Its results cannot be compared to my previous test method of counting frames from a high-speed camera. It’s becoming evident that refresh rate has a smaller effect on performance in this test than with LCD panels. So far, the OLEDs I’ve tested have ranged from 0.12 to 0.24ms. And faster refresh rates don’t guarantee faster response. That said, a 0.12ms difference is well below the threshold of perception. No human being could tell them apart. The DG49OLED240 is super smooth, same as any OLED.

In the lag test, the DG49OLED240 does well with just 15.2ms averaged over 25 mouse clicks. It’s the quickest 49-inch monitor, and it’s a tad quicker than the Acer. Here, refresh rate does matter, though it's a tight race. The 360 Hz PG34WCDN is very fast at 10.3ms. But the DG49OLED240 is more than quick enough for gamers of all skill levels.

Test Takeaway: The DG49OLED240 provides low input lag and smooth motion resolution for all game types and play scenarios. It is on par with other OLEDs in the panel response test and has a bit less input lag than the other 49-inch 32:9 OLEDs I’ve tested. I found it completely addictive during gameplay with perfect motion resolution and instant control response.

Viewing Angles

I’ve found that most Quantum Dot OLEDS show a slight tint at 45 degrees to the side. The DG49OLED240 has a red shift that’s just perceptible. There is no change to brightness or gamma, though, meaning you’ll have a hard time seeing a problem in actual content. The top view is also a bit red with a moderate reduction in gamma and brightness.

Screen Uniformity

To learn how we measure screen uniformity, click here.

The DG49OLED240 aced my uniformity test with just 3.27% deviation from the center zone. This is well below the visible threshold of 10%. My sample had no issues whatsoever, no bleed, no glow, and no color variation in any full-field test pattern. This is excellent performance that is typical of the OLED monitors I’ve reviewed.

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To read about our monitor tests in-depth, please check out Display Testing Explained: How We Test PC Monitors. We cover brightness and contrast testing on page two.

Uncalibrated – Maximum Backlight Level

To get maximum brightness from the DG49OLED240 in SDR mode, I had to set Brightness Mode to Highlight, which corresponds to variable brightness. Measuring a 25% window gave me 426 nits, which is about average for the category. A full field measured 360 nits, which is a bit higher than the average of 250 nits. The DG49OLED240 is plenty bright. It should be noted that large screens look much brighter at a given light level thanks to their extra size. In other words, you might not want to crank up a monitor this big to the highest brightness setting. As always in OLED testing, black levels and contrast could not be measured.

After Calibration to 200 nits

Calibration changes nothing except the peak brightness value. If you set Brightness Mode to Normal, that’s 79 for 200 nits. In Highlight, I set the peak with a 25% window, and that value was 45. Unfortunately, you must change the brightness setting every time you switch brightness modes. I find it best to use variable for gaming and video, and constant for work tasks. Black levels and contrast could not be measured in either the static or intra-image (ANSI) tests.

Test Takeaway: The DG49OLED240 delivers similar brightness, black level, and contrast performance to other OLED displays in the ultra-wide and mega-wide formats. It stands out for having a variable brightness option, but it doesn’t remember the different brightness settings when you switch back and forth. It offers plenty of peak output for any indoor environment and can go down to 50 nits peak for dark room play.

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The DG49OLED240 ships in its Standard picture mode, which can be used without calibration. It employs the full native color gamut, which covers over 112% of DCI-P3. An sRGB mode is available if you need it.

Grayscale and Gamma Tracking

Our grayscale and gamma tests use Calman calibration software from Portrait Displays. We describe our grayscale and gamma tests in detail here.

In the initial grayscale test, the DG49OLED240 shows almost no visible errors. Brightness steps above 70% just crack the 3dE threshold. You won’t see any issues in content, and the monitor is accurate enough not to require adjustment. I saw slight gamma variations in steps from 30 to 90% where the values were a little too dark. And there’s a slight dip at 10% where it’s too light. These are small errors, but gamma could be a little tighter.

Calibration brings all grayscale errors below 1dE, which is pro-level performance. Gamma is unchanged. It is possible to change the gamma as a whole, but there’s no way to straighten out the tracking line.

Interestingly, the sRGB mode has tighter gamma from 30 to 100%, where it’s only a tick above the reference line. There’s a slightly larger dip at 10%, which means shadow areas will be too light. Grayscale errors are just visible above 60% brightness. Calibration is possible here, something few monitors offer, and you can have independent settings for up to three color modes.

Comparisons

In the default test, the DG49OLED240 is mid-pack among a solid group of monitors at 2.63dE. You can enjoy it without calibration. After a few tweaks, the number falls to an excellent 0.63dE. With a range from 0.44 to 1.34dE, these screens are all visually perfect in the grayscale test.

The DG49OLED240’s gamma is reasonably good, but it could be tighter. Most of the range runs on the dark side, which is forgivable in a monitor with infinite contrast like an OLED. The values span 0.22, while the deviation is 2.73%; the actual value is 2.26. This is very good performance.

Color Gamut Accuracy

Our color gamut and volume testing use Portrait Displays’ Calman software. For details on our color gamut testing and volume calculations, click here.

In the color test, you can see how the DG49OLED240 distributes its ample gamut with linear oversaturation and bonus color on all sides of the triangle. This creates a balanced image that doesn’t look overblown even though it covers over 140% of sRGB for SDR content. Hue points are on or close to target. Calibration only makes a slight difference, which is hard to spot in actual content. This is excellent performance.

sRGB is nearly perfect as well, with all points on target and a low 1.81dE average error. I didn’t calibrate sRGB for this test, so there is a slight gain potential to be had from a grayscale adjustment. This too is excellent performance.

Comparisons

The DG49OLED240 again finds itself mid-pack among excellent displays with a 1.73dE average color error, well below the visible threshold. Where you can see a difference is in the volume test. It is on par with the other 49-inch screens and more colorful than the 34-inch displays. If you want a colorful monitor, the DG49OLED240 delivers with 112.28% coverage of DCI-P3. Its 98.27% coverage of sRGB is ideal for color-critical applications.

Test Takeaway: The DG49OLED240 is color accurate both out of the box and after calibration. With 112.28% coverage of DCI-P3, it is on par with other 49-inch OLEDs and more colorful than typical Quantum Dot 34-inch screens. It stands out with an adjustable sRGB mode that has a very accurate gamut. Gamma is a tad dark in all modes, but that is forgivable from an OLED thanks to its infinite contrast.

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Our HDR benchmarking uses Portrait Displays’ Calman software. To learn about our HDR testing, see our breakdown of how we test PC monitors.

The DG49OLED240 supports HDR10 signals with an automatic switch and two additional picture modes. All other picture controls are grayed out.

HDR Brightness and Contrast

The DG49OLED240 offers about the same peak output for HDR as it does for SDR. There’s plenty of brightness and impact, but it’s a little below the other screens. The Alienware and Acer have visibly brighter HDR, but the Asus, AOC, and Philips are close to the Deco Gear. It is more than bright enough to earn its VESA DisplayHDR 400 certification. Black levels and contrast cannot be measured.

Grayscale, EOTF and Color

HDR grayscale is a tad warm in tone, but the errors are no more than 5dE. This won’t affect content too obviously, and red errors are easier to ignore. Tracking is linear, which is a good thing, and darker tones are well below 3dE. The EOTF rides a little dark up to 40% brightness, where it meets the reference line. The tone map transition is at 65%, which is correct for the measured black and white thresholds.

In the color test, the DG49OLED240 doesn’t quite use all its red primary in the DCI-P3 gamut. The other points are slightly oversaturated, which is typical of the HDR monitors I’ve tested. Hue points run in line with their targets and are also a tad oversaturated. In the BT.2020 test, there is a little more oversaturation up to where color runs out at 90% red, 75% green, and 95% blue. This is solid performance.

Test Takeaway: The DG49OLED240 delivers excellent HDR with an impactful and colorful image. Accuracy is on par with other 34- and 49-inch OLEDs. It doesn’t offer calibration for the HDR modes, but with only a slightly warm grayscale, that isn’t a problem.

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With so many users putting two or three monitors on their desks to increase screen area, it is surprising that there aren’t more 49-inch 32:9 displays available. If you consider that 27-inch QHD is extremely common with many choices for buyers, then why aren’t there more screens like Deco Gear’s DG49OLED240? I can only imagine it’s the expense. Though it’s a good value at $1,229.99, that is still more than two 27-inch QHD 16:9 OLEDs with comparable specs. But how much is it worth to you to ditch that vertical line that sits right in the center of your view?

As a gaming monitor, the DG49OLED240 is superb. That it is an OLED gives it an immediate advantage. It performs on par with most of the premium screens I’ve reviewed. It has smooth motion processing and very low input lag, which suits it well for competitive gaming. Serious players should give it a serious look.

With a Quantum Dot layer, it delivers over 112% coverage of DCI-P3 color, which puts it slightly ahead of the other 49s I’ve tested. It’s accurate out of the box and improves slightly with calibration. Gamma was slightly askew, but color was exemplary. I also found more than enough brightness with healthy light levels over 430 nits and the usual unmeasurable OLED blacks and contrast. And if you’re concerned about text fringing, don’t be. My sample was free of that artifact. I also noted better-than-average sound thanks to the addition of a third speaker to fill out the bass. The DG49OLED240 can be enjoyed without headphones or external desktop speakers.

If you already have two 27-inch QHD screens, the Deco Gear DG49OLED240 is the perfect way to eliminate that dividing line once and for all. And if you’ve considered adding a second screen, it’s worth a look. If you have the space and the desire for a widescreen high-performance gaming OLED, definitely check it out.

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Remember back at CES when Samsung showed off a huge suite of Odyssey gaming monitors? The vast majority of those screens are now shipping, but arguably the most interesting monitor among them, the Odyssey G6 (G60H), still hasn't launched. Back at CES, Samsung was touting a 1,040-Hz refresh rate for that screen; now at Gamescom 2026, Samsung has shared the finalized specification, which is a nice and round 1,100 Hz. That's right; this monitor refreshes vertically at 1.1 KHz.

It's a fascinating display because aside from that specification, it's actually a bit of a pedestrian gaming monitor. You've got a 27" Fast IPS LCD in 2560×1440 (QHD) resolution, and at its native sharpness, it tops out at "only" 600 Hz. Surely that should satisfy anyone, but if you really feel the need for speed, you can drop the resolution to one-quarter of native, bringing you to 1280×720 (HD), and then refresh the panel at 1.1 KHz. That means each frame is displayed for less than one millisecond.

With its Fast IPS LCD panel and one millisecond response time, this new monitor will have its work cut out keeping up with those claimed performance figures. It's surely still going to be incredibly sharp and clear in motion (assuming your system can put out the requisite 1,100 frames per second), but it does seem like an OLED would have been the more appropriate technology for this feature.

Indeed, the rest of the displays that Samsung is showing off at Gamescom 2026, comprising its next-generation Odyssey family, are all OLEDs. Starting from the OLED G7 (G75SJ), we have what Samsung says is "the world's first 42-inch 16:9 curved OLED gaming monitor," which might be true. A 42-inch screen area is absolutely massive, and as you'd expect, to keep DPI up to reasonable levels, it's 3840×2160 (4K UHD) resolution.

The Odyssey OLED G7 G75SJ has a 1000R curvature, which is quite tight for a display of this size. It also has a 165-Hz refresh rate and a rated 0.03-ms response time, although it's an OLED, so you already knew that. Samsung doesn't really share any other specifications for this screen, but the firm does say that this monitor includes "Glare Free technology" to help reduce reflections for "clearer daytime play." That's very helpful on an SDR OLED because the peak brightness of this display is probably low enough that it becomes hard to see in daylight.

The next step up from the G7 is the Odyssey OLED G8 (G80SJ). This beautiful beast sports a 32-inch 3840×2160 (4K UHD) QD-OLED panel that tops out at 360 Hz and features "triple mode" support, meaning that you can drop the resolution to QHD for a 520-Hz refresh rate, or all the way down to 1920×1080 (FHD) for a blistering 680 Hz refresh rate. That's not as fast as the 720-Hz OLED that ASUS announced, but it's also a higher resolution, as that screen has to drop to 720p HD to hit 720 Hz.

The Odyssey OLED G8 (G80SJ) has a few other tricks up its sleeve, too. It supports FreeSync Premium Pro (and is G-SYNC Compatible as a result), and it is spec'd for VESA DisplayHDR TrueBlack 600, which should result in a pretty decent HDR experience, especially in darkened rooms. Notably, its USB Type-C port supports up to 98W of power delivery, meaning it can very rapidly charge whatever device you connect to it.

Finally, the star of the show, the Odyssey OLED G9 (G95SJ), is a 49-inch "DQHD" gaming monitor. DQHD is "Double Quad High Definition", and if you can do arithmetic, you already know that the resolution of this 32:9 monitor is 5120×1440. The super-ultrawide uses a fifth-gen (latest) OLED with "Penta Tandem" technology, meaning that it has a five-layer panel structure that Samsung says lasts twice as long as older OLEDs. It also uses an RGB stripe subpixel layout that should mostly eliminate the text fringing which plagues older-gen OLED monitors.

You've already heard me whinging about the brightness of OLEDs; that won't be a problem on the Odyssey OLED G9 because this thing apparently supports a peak brightness of 1,300 nits. That's admittedly only on a 3% window at 4K resolution, but it's a high enough value that it should mean HDR highlights are nice and vibrant on this screen, although Samsung curiously doesn't list a DisplayHDR cert for this one. Other critical specs include the 360-Hz refresh rate, dual mode support (meaning 720Hz at 2560×720), and the usual 0.03ms response time rating.

Unfortunately, there's no pricing or specific availability for any of these displays. Samsung says that the 1,100-Hz Odyssey G6 will be available globally in "the second half of 2026", which basically means "any day now." Meanwhile, the other displays are explicitly noted as 2027 monitors, where "availability will vary by market," and pricing is anybody's guess in today's tech market.

What gives a product flagship status? Some might say price, and that is sometimes true. But in the computer monitor world, a flagship is something that stands apart from the rank and file.

I’ve reviewed many 34-inch ultra-wide panels. These 21:9 aspect ratio curved displays can cover the user’s peripheral vision almost as well as a pair of VR goggles. When using them, I have often wished for a little more vertical space. The easiest way to achieve this is with a 39-inch size.

Alienware’s latest flagship delivers that very thing to the best gaming monitors category. The AW3926QW is a 39-inch, 21:9 1500R curved OLED panel with Tandem RGB Stripe technology, 5120x2160 (WUHD) resolution at 165 Hz, eSports modes that run at 330 Hz, Adaptive-Sync, HDR10, Dolby Vision, VESA DisplayHDR 500 and wide gamut color. Let’s take a look.

Alienware AW3926QW Specs

This isn’t my first foray into Tandem RGB Stripe tech. I saw it in Asus’ recent PG32UCWM as well. It brings two important advantages: higher brightness with lower power consumption and wide gamut color without the addition of a Quantum Dot layer. The AW3926QW easily tops 500 nits in HDR mode for a 25% window pattern and can fill the screen at over 300 nits. Alienware claims 1,300 nits for a 3% window, and I have no reason to doubt that. It doesn’t quite have the color volume of a QD display, but my sample covered more than 100% of DCI-P3. It also came out of the box with reference-level color accuracy and a pro-worthy sRGB mode.

The AW3926QW also has higher pixel density than typical 34-inch ultra-wides. Most of them are 3440x1440, which means 109ppi, equivalent to a 27-inch 16:9 QHD panel. A 39-inch panel at 5120x2160 pixels delivers a 4K level density of 144ppi. That’s a clearly visible difference. The AW3926QW is super sharp with no fringing or other clarity-reducing artifacts.

Gaming performance is high thanks to Adaptive-Sync, FreeSync, and G-Sync support, and a 165 Hz refresh rate. For eSports applications, there are multiple resolution and refresh modes that go up to 330 Hz in full screen, 25, 27, and 32-inch formats. These can be switched with a single click thanks to a programmable joystick that controls a comprehensive OSD. Alienware also provides its AlienVision feature with its designable aiming points and sniper aids. And you get a frame counter, timer, and screen alignment marks.

On the outside, the AW3926QW sports AlienFX lighting with colored LEDs for the power button and the Alien Head on the back. These can be controlled in the OSD or with the Alienware Command Center app. Also included are the latest video inputs, DisplayPort 2.1 and HDMI 2.1, along with USB-C for a total of four ports. And there are USB upstream and downstream connections with KVM control.

With everything included except for internal speakers, you’d expect the AW3926QW to cost a lot, but it’s opening at $1,100, which makes it competitive with many other premium OLED ultra-wide displays. On paper, Alienware is delivering everything a flagship should have without an extreme price. Let’s see how it performs.

Assembly and Accessories

Alienware’s packaging is completely recyclable, even down to the paper tape that seals the clamshell carton. The panel, upright, and base assemble without tools. Included cables are IEC power, two USBs, DisplayPort, and HDMI. The power supply is internal.

Product 360

The AW3926QW maintains Alienware’s latest styling aesthetic with a thin bezel and the cool floating upright that appears to be detached from the small-footprint base. Everything is solid, with metal cores and heavy plastic coverings finished in a matte texture. On the back is a lozenge-shaped vent ring that provides effective fanless cooling. Inside it is the Alien Head and a polished logo. The stand unsnaps to reveal a 100mm VESA mount with fasteners included if you want to use an arm.

The stand provides a 4.3-inch height range plus 5/21 degrees tilt and 20 degrees swivel. The base remains stationary while the stand pivots upon it. There is no portrait mode, but you can tweak the panel with five degrees of yaw if your desk isn’t level. Movements are firm and sure and befit a flagship product.

The screen curve is 1500R, which in the scheme of things is fairly subtle. There’s just enough wraparound effect to bring the sides of the screen into your vision cone when sitting around three feet away. You can sit closer if you like since pixel density is tight, but then you’d have to turn your head to see the whole image. The screen coating is shiny, but a polarizing layer keeps reflections from affecting the picture.

There are inputs aplenty for video, four in all. You get two HDMI 2.1, a DisplayPort 2.1, and USB-C, which functions as DP Alt and delivers 90 watts of power. There’s a 3.5mm headphone jack plus more USBs: two on the bottom of the panel edge (C and A) and an A and B on the I/O panel. They can be bound to video inputs using the KVM wizard in the OSD.

OSD Features

The AW3926QW’s OSD appears when you click the joystick. First up is a quick menu with signal info at the top, then an up-click opens the full menu, which is quite extensive, which is why there are 12 photos below.

The little quick menu at the bottom of the first screen is programmable by the user. You can put almost any monitor function into the five slots provided. You can also program the four joystick directionals for a total of nine options. This makes it easy to change picture modes, refresh modes, call up aiming points, or whatever. That’s all controlled in the Personalize menu, photo 11 above.

The first menu is Game, and it has everything a gamer could want. There are 12 picture modes in total. Three of them have color temp and dark stabilizer settings, called Game 1-3. Custom Color also has color temp gain and offset sliders along with color management. Creator is where you’ll find gamma presets and colorspace options like sRGB. Standard is the default mode, and it’s visually perfect out of the box.

Game Enhance Mode has a timer, frame counter, and alignment marks. For the aiming points, go to AlienVision where you’ll see a cool reticle editor that includes settings for sniper aids. You can create up to three configurations for later recall.

The eSports modes are where you can change the refresh rate and image size. I’m not sure why they aren’t all in one menu, but between the two sections, you’ll find 25, 27, 32, and 39-inch settings. All but the 32 run at 330 Hz. The 32-inch gives you 4K at 165 Hz and puts black bars on the sides of the image. That one is handy because it doesn’t change the pixel density like the others. The 25- and 27-inch options can be moved up or down from the center if you prefer.

AlienFX Lighting refers to the power LED and Alien Head’s color and effect options. You can customize them to a variety of colors and movements.

For HDR signals, there’s a Dolby Vision option along with eight modes for HDR10 content. Custom Color HDR includes grayscale calibration. Of the listed modes, the brightest one is True Black, and the one with the best luminance tracking is Peak 1300 Bright.

The USB menu is where you’ll find the KVM options. There, you can bind the HDMI and DisplayPort inputs to specific USB ports which means you can use one keyboard, monitor and mouse for multiple systems like a PC and a console.

Personalize is where you can program the quick menu and joystick directionals, as well as toggle the power delivery of the USB ports.

For panel maintenance, the AW3926QW has pixel refresh, which runs automatically when the panel health indicator goes red. That’s determined automatically by internal software. Alienware backs the AW3926QW with a three-year warranty that includes burn-in.

Alienware AW3926QW Calibration Settings

The AW3926QW doesn’t need calibration in its Standard picture mode. I noted slightly light gamma, but the color gamut and temperature are visually perfect out of the box. To adjust the grayscale, I used Custom Color mode, which has both gain and offset sliders. If you want to change the color space, Creator mode has that option along with gamma presets. The three Game modes also have grayscale adjustments. My recommended SDR settings are below. For HDR, there are eight modes available plus Dolby Vision. I suggest trying Peak 1300 Bright and True Black to see which you prefer. They look similar, but the latter is a tad brighter while the former has more accurate luminance tracking.

Gaming and Hands-on

A few days with the AW3926QW proved its flagship status beyond a doubt. It excelled as a gaming monitor and workday display in equal measure.

For gameplay, my test PC with its GeForce RTX 4090 was more than enough to drive it at 165 Hz at full 5120x2160 resolution. That’s 11 megapixels in case you’re counting, about 23% more than Ultra HD. The video processing here is good enough that I didn’t wish for 240 Hz. And I had little need for the 330 Hz modes. I can see their use in competition or with lesser video cards to keep the action smooth. But I saw nothing but perfect motion resolution and hyper precision. Aiming and moving became an extension of my brain as control inputs were instantly translated.

Image quality was also superb, with lush bright color and deep contrast. Playing in SDR mode with the full color gamut was excellent, but HDR games were even better. The AW3926QW is a superb HDR display. And don’t forget to try Dolby Vision with its dynamic tone mapping. I didn’t have any DV games, but I watched content from a Blu-ray player that looked stunning. Going back and forth between HDR True Black and Peak Bright 1300, I found I preferred True Black because it had a tad more impact. On page five, I’ll explain the technical differences.

I’ve reviewed many 34-inch ultra-wide displays, and while I find them excellent for gaming, they lack the height I prefer for writing content. The 39-inch AW3926QW is perfect for getting work done. It is only half-an-inch shorter than the 32-inch 16:9 screen I use every day. So, it’s ideal for lining up two or three windows side by side when comparing copy or graphics. I loved it for Photoshop, where I could open and see multiple photos and still have room for toolbars. If you’re already a user of dual screens, the AW3926QW is the perfect replacement if you’re sick of that pesky dividing line.

The monitor proved to be flagship-worthy in every respect. The stand is solid; styling is premium and everything about the AW3926QW exudes quality. The inclusion of USB ports and KVM further extends its usability. And the selection of esports modes makes it flexible for a wide variety of gaming systems.

Takeaway: The AW3926QW is super useful in every way and excels as a gaming display. It delivers speedy and responsive performance at 165 Hz and impressive frame rates up to 330 Hz in the esports modes. The picture is gorgeous with vivid and accurate color and plenty of brightness. HDR has high impact and multiple picture modes to choose from, plus Dolby Vision support. The AW3926QW is a great all-around monitor that delivers a lot of bang for the buck.

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The AW3926QW is somewhat unique in my database and is the only 39-inch WUHD panel I’ve reviewed. The next closest comparison is LG’s 45GX950A, which is a 45-inch panel with the same 5120x2160 resolution at 165 Hz. The other screens are Alienware’s AW3426DW, Deco Gear’s DG49OLED240, Acer’s X34 OLED, and Asus’ PG34WCDN.

Pixel Response and Input Lag

Click here to read up on our pixel response and input lag testing procedures.

Faster panel response at higher refresh rates is not a given but in the AW3926QW’s case, 330 Hz halves the time it takes to draw a one-inch white square from black. It’s impossible to see this difference with the naked eye but the numbers are there for your interpretation. I noted that the Asus at 360 Hz did the draw in 0.24ms, the same as the AW3926QW at 165 Hz.

In the lag test, the AW3926QW is mid-pack at 165 Hz with a 2.3ms speed increase at 330 Hz. Notice that the LG drops 7ms off its lag score but is still slower than the other screens. The Asus PG34WCDN is the king of speed here but the AW3926QW at 165 Hz is on par with other 240 Hz displays.

Test Takeaway: The AW3926QW isn’t the absolute fastest ultra-wide OLED out there but it is just a couple of milliseconds off the pace, which in practice is nothing. Only Obi-Wan Kenobi might notice a difference between 16.6ms and 14.1ms of input lag. It’s plenty quick and with its extra esports modes, it’s versatile too. For most gamers, driving it with a speedy video card at full resolution and 165 Hz will bring the most fun.

Viewing Angles

I’ve noted a slight color shift with the Tandem RGB Stripe OLED panels I’ve photographed like the AW3926QW. This comes from the stacked emissive layers and added polarization. It rejects ambient light effectively but introduces some slight artifacts. You can also see a slight drop in brightness, but gamma remains constant in the horizontal plane. The vertical shot shows reduced brightness, gamma and a green color shift.

Screen Uniformity

To learn how we measure screen uniformity, click here.

The AW3926QW has exceptional screen uniformity, even among OLEDs with a 3.71% deviation from the center zone. There is no visible change in brightness in any field pattern when viewed head-on. With all the screens here being under 10%, you won’t see a difference between them with the naked eye.

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To read about our monitor tests in-depth, please check out Display Testing Explained: How We Test PC Monitors. We cover brightness and contrast testing on page two.

Uncalibrated – Maximum Backlight Level

Be not concerned about the AW3926QW’s 303 nit score in the SDR test. It isn’t as bright as the others because it only operates at constant brightness in SDR mode. This is a trait of all the Alienware OLEDs I’ve reviewed. It means there’s no difference in brightness between a full field and a 25% window pattern. The top-finishing Asus manages 501 nits with a window but just 306 nits with a full field, so at constant brightness, the two monitors are equal in luminance. Black levels and contrast cannot be measured.

After Calibration to 200 nits

Calibrating the AW3926QW makes no difference in either black levels or contrast. I set 200 nits based on a full-field pattern since there’s no variable brightness available for SDR. ANSI contrast was also theoretically infinite. This is typical OLED performance.

Test Takeaway: The AW3926QW has similar peak SDR brightness to other ultra-wide OLEDs when constant brightness is engaged. It does not have a variable option for SDR content. Black levels and contrast could not be measured under any test conditions.

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The AW3926QW comes set to its Standard picture mode, which employs the full native gamut for SDR content. It’s nearly perfect out of the box and does not need to be calibrated, but there are multiple options for adjustment, including a very accurate sRGB mode.

Grayscale and Gamma Tracking

Our grayscale and gamma tests use Calman calibration software from Portrait Displays. We describe our grayscale and gamma tests in detail here.

With all errors below 2dE, and most under 1dE, the AW3926QW does not need to be calibrated. My only complaint is slightly light gamma that tracks a bit below the 2.2 reference. You can adjust gamma, but only in preset increments in the Creator mode. Custom Color has no gamma options.

I managed a slight gain in grayscale accuracy, but it was so small that it could not be seen with the naked eye. Gamma gets a tad better in the 60-100% brightness steps, but that too is a tiny difference. Ultimately, calibration is only able to satisfy my ego, rather than making any visible improvement.

sRGB color, accessed from the Creator mode, has a couple of visible grayscale errors at 90 and 100%. It also has gamma anomalies at 10 and 90% where it is too light. These are minor complaints. You’ll see in the next section that sRGB color is visually perfect. This mode is suitable for color-critical applications.

Comparisons

The AW3926QW has the best out-of-box grayscale score with a tiny error of 0.70dE. That’s well into the professional realm. You could use this screen for video post-production or content creation and save yourself the cost of a professional monitor. After calibration, the top five screens are equal, with the LG just a tad behind the rest. For gaming, this is a non-issue.

In the gamma test, the AW3926QW stays tight from dark to light with a small 0.13 range of values. It’s a little light overall at 2.73% off the 2.2 reference with an actual value of 2.14. This is solid performance, but it would be nice to have gamma options in the Custom Color mode.

Color Gamut Accuracy

Our color gamut and volume testing use Portrait Displays’ Calman software. For details on our color gamut testing and volume calculations, click here.

There is zero reason for complaint about any of the AW3926QW’s color test results. Though it doesn’t have quite as much color volume as a Quantum Dot display, it covers a perfect amount of DCI-P3, hitting every target squarely in the process. You can see slight oversaturation in magenta and blue, but only on the chart. You won’t see anything on the screen but perfect and vivid color. Calibration takes the error from visually perfect to a tad more visually perfect. In other words, there’s no visible difference. This is excellent performance.

The sRGB test is even closer to numerical perfection with a 1.24dE average. The AW3926QW is completely qualified for critical work where the smaller gamut is needed.

Comparisons

You’d think 1.24dE would be a winning color score, but clearly, these OLED panels are seriously accurate. The spread from best to worst is only 0.67dE, and the worst number is 1.73dE. That’s impressive, to say the least. The AW3926QW is on par with the best displays I’ve ever tested and is clearly a flagship.

In the volume test, the AW3926QW is mid-pack, though with 101.20% coverage of DCI-P3, it’s ideal. The Deco Gear 49-inch claims the win at 112.28% thanks to its Quantum Dot layer. No one will think the AW3926QW isn’t colorful. It presents brilliant primary colors in all parts of the image, from dark to light. sRGB coverage is 96.09%, which reflects a tiny shortfall in blue. This is excellent performance.

Test Takeaway: The AW3926QW has color accuracy that rivals any professional monitor, and that’s straight out of the box. You can get a small improvement in numbers with a calibration, but it is completely unnecessary. Gamut coverage is ideal for both DCI-P3 and sRGB. The AW3926QW is fully qualified for critical work and can easily manage video post-production or content creation for photography and graphics.

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Our HDR benchmarking uses Portrait Displays’ Calman software. To learn about our HDR testing, see our breakdown of how we test PC monitors.

The AW3926QW supports both HDR10 and Dolby Vision formats. For HDR10 signals, you get an automatic switch and eight image modes. I tested True Black and Peak 1300 Bright to see which looked best.

HDR Brightness and Contrast

You’d think a mode called “Bright” would be the brightest, but the AW3926QW’s most luminous HDR mode is True Black. I measured 517 nits from a 25% window pattern. Peak 1300 Bright came up to 502 nits. Yes, that’s a tiny difference. And the color tests might sway your decision as to which mode to run. In practice, they both look good with deep blacks, bright highlights, and clear detail rendering. HDR definitely looks better than SDR on this monitor.

Grayscale, EOTF and Color

The first two charts above show the difference between Peak 1300 Bright and True Black modes. Grayscale tracking is excellent and identical for both modes, but the EOTF is different. This is the luminance tracking, like gamma for SDR. Peak 1300 Bright tracks close to the reference (the yellow line) with only slight variations and a 60% tone map transition. True Black runs too light starting at 20% but transitions closer to 70% thanks to its higher peak value. These differences are minor, but they are visible. Looking at the charts, I’d choose Peak 1300 Bright, but in most of the content I watched, I liked True Black better. These are the two best HDR modes in the AW3926QW’s toolkit. I suggest trying them both to see which you prefer.

Either way, HDR color is exemplary. And the differences are minuscule, so I’m just showing the True Black result. There is general oversaturation, which adds impact to the image. DCI-P3 is fully covered, while BT.2020 runs out of color at 90% red, 75% green, and 95% blue. This is close to what you’d see from a Quantum Dot display.

Test Takeaway: The AW3926QW has excellent HDR image quality and is one of the very few displays that supports Dolby Vision. With eight HDR10 picture modes, you can get a variety of looks, though the best accuracy comes from True Black and Peak 1300 Bright. Which is better is a matter of personal preference. Peak 1300 Bright measured a tad better, but True Black had a little more verve. Either one delivers excellent performance.

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Often, flagship means a halo product; one that has a huge feature list, bleeding-edge performance and premium build quality, with a high price to match. But in the case of Alienware’s 39-inch AW3926QW, you get all that for no more than the cost of a high-end 34-inch display.

The Tandem RGB Stripe panel means you get more than 100% coverage of DCI-P3 without the added cost of a Quantum Dot layer. It also means high brightness, more than 500 nits in HDR mode, with no extra power consumption. Resolution is 5120x2160, which means pixel density equivalent to a 32-inch 16:9 aspect ratio 4K panel. The 1500R curve is just enough to bring the sides in without image distortion and provides the immersive quality curved screens are famous for.

The image is colorful and incredibly accurate. Reference-level color comes right out of the box, no calibration needed. DCI-P3 coverage is over 101%, which is a little less than Quantum Dot monitors but more than the category average of 95%. The only flaw I noted was slightly light gamma in the Standard and Custom Color modes. I wished for gamma presets, but they were only available in the Creator modes.

As a gaming monitor, you’ll have a hard time finding a better OLED. The AW3926QW’s unusual size is perfect for first-person titles, and you can employ a slick aiming point editor, AlienVision, to help you stay on target. The extra eSports modes with speeds up to 330 Hz mean better performance with a wide variety of gaming systems. Panel response is smooth, and input lag is low enough that competitive gamers will want to add one of these to their arsenal.

Alienware has positioned the AW3926QW as a flagship display, and it earns that title while offering decent value. If you have $1,100 to spend on a large-format OLED monitor, definitely check it out.

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Earlier this year, we brought you news of the UltraGear 25G590B gaming monitor, which LG proudly claimed as the world’s first 1080p gaming monitor to offer a 1,000 Hz refresh rate. At the time, LG said that pricing and availability for the 25G590B would arrive in the second half of 2026, and, true to its word, we now have details. According to the company, the monitor, which is currently available for preorder, is priced at $999.99. Looking at it a different way, you’re paying $1 per Hz if you want to be the first on the block with this segment leader.

• You can preorder the UltraGear 25G590B directly from LG right now. Alternatively, you can purchase it at a discount from Amazon, where it’s currently on sale for $932.

However, that’s not all; LG is throwing in a couple of sweeteners with the 25G590B if you preorder it directly from its online store before August 31. The first perk is that you’ll earn 5 percent back in MyLG rewards on a purchase, which, on a $1,000 monitor, should get you $50 to use on a future purchase. As for the second perk, you can get two years of LG Premium Care for only a buck.

We've seen monitors employ Dynamic Frequency Resolution (DFR) to hit the 1,000 Hz mark before, but only at lower resolutions. For example, the Acer Predator XB273U F6 can hit the mark at 720p resolution, as can the AntGamer ANT275PQ MAX. The ANT275PQ MAX also uses a TN panel to reach 1,000 Hz, which might be a dealbreaker for some gamers. However, the 25G590B can hit 1,000 Hz at 1080p, giving it a resolution edge over its competitors.

The 25G590B features a 24.5-inch IPS panel supporting both AMD FreeSync Premium and Nvidia G-Sync. LG has also enabled its Motion Blur Reduction Pro technology, which helps smooth out visuals at 1,000 Hz for your fast-paced gameplay. However, we’ll be eager to get our hands on the monitor to test out the tech in person.

You'll also find two HDMI 2.1 ports and one DisplayPort 2.1. The monitor is adjustable for tilt, height, and swivel, and it features LG UltraGear RGB lighting.

Asus’ ROG Strix line of products is known for high performance and high value. It also regularly boasts new models, with monitors being no exception. Though the best OLED gaming monitors still represent a premium category, many newcomers are vying for attention.

If you want a premium 32-inch 4K OLED, expect to spend around $1,000 for something with maximum performance and perhaps not every single bell and whistle. The XG32UQWMS has all the speed and smoothness of the flagship Swift displays but gives up minor bits like LED lighting and internal speakers. You still get 240 Hz, frame rate boost to 480 Hz in FHD resolution, Adaptive-Sync, DisplayHDR 500 True Black and Tandem OLED tech for a super wide color gamut. Let’s take a look.

Asus ROG Strix XG32UWQMS Specs

Asus expands the XG32UQWMS’s color gamut with Tandem OLED tech rather than Quantum Dots. The twofold advantage is that you get more light output with lower power consumption, and you get the same color coverage. The XG32UQWMS easily tops 600 nits in HDR mode when measuring a 25% window pattern. A 3% window gets up to 1,500 nits. Color coverage is over 108% of DCI-P3, which puts it just ahead of most of the Quantum Dot OLEDs I’ve tested.

This version of Asus’ Tandem OLED has four layers, which not only make the panel brighter, but it also runs cooler, consumes less energy, and lasts longer. Asus estimates 60% longer panel life, equating to over 30,000 hours. That’s a really long time, as in over a decade with the panel going six hours a day.

The XG32UQWMS adds flexibility with a 240 Hz 4K panel and a frame rate boost feature that doubles the speed to 480 Hz and reduces resolution to 1920x1080. You can also reduce blur at low frame rates by opting for ELMB (black frame insertion) instead of Adaptive-Sync. As you’ll see in my response and lag tests, the XG32UQWMS is one of the quickest and smoothest 4K OLEDs you can buy.

To ensure no ambient light can spoil the image, Asus employs a screen coating called TrueBlack Glossy. Though the panel is shiny, it doesn’t pick up light from top or side angles easily. This does indeed keep blacks true.

To protect the panel, there are multiple OLED care options like pixel orbiting and refresh. You also get logo and perimeter dimming. A proximity sensor blanks the screen when you leave your desk. And the XG32UQWMS is backed by a three-year warranty that includes burn-in. All these features can be controlled from a comprehensive OSD or with Asus’ Display Widget Center app.

The port complement is stacked with two HDMI 2.1 and a DisplayPort 1.4 with Display Stream Compression. Peripherals can be connected to the two downstream USB ports while a single upstream port makes the XG32UQWMS a hub. There are no internal speakers, but headphones can be plugged into the provided 3.5mm jack.

I didn’t have firm pricing information at this writing, but indications are that the XG32UQWMS will cost $1,099 to start. That puts it firmly in the thick of the high bang-for-the-buck genre against competitors like Acer, Dough, HP and MSI. The great part is that all the latest OLEDs are stellar displays. How does this new ROG Strix stack up? Let’s see what the tests say.

Assembly and Accessories

Like all ROG Strix products, the wrapper is plain brown and devoid of the colorful graphics found on Swift cartons. However, the contents are no less capable. The XG32UQWMS is packed in crumbly foam and ships in three parts. Assembly does not require tools. You get a solid stand and a thick steel mounting bracket with 100mm VESA lugs for use with aftermarket solutions. A zippered pouch contains an IEC power cord and a DisplayPort cable. A sheet of ROG stickers is there for those who like to decorate.

Product 360

Asus styles the Swift and Strix lines similarly with a thin metal-backed OLED panel attached to a component bulge which creates a two-box design. The profile of the thin part is just five millimeters. This isn’t just for show; it improves cooling with the metal backing acting as a heat sink. More heat sinks inside take care of the control boards and processors. This means no fans are required; temperature control is fully passive.

In the back are the familiar ROG graphics but without LED backlighting. They reflect enough light to glow white without any emitters required. In the top view, you can see a quarter-inch threaded fitting at the top of the stand, which is useful for headphone hooks, webcams, and the like.

The base is small but sturdy and made from a thick metal plate. The stand has a 4.5-inch height range plus 5/20 degrees tilt and 25 degrees swivel. There is no portrait mode. Movements are smooth and firm with quality on par with any premium display I’ve reviewed.

The I/O panel is on the bottom center and faces downward. You get two HDMI 2.1 and one DisplayPort 1.4 with Display Stream Compression (DSC). There are three USB 3.2 ports, one upstream and two downstream. And a 3.5mm headphone jack provides external audio. There are no built-in speakers.

OSD Features

The XG32UQWMS OSD is nearly identical to what I’ve seen from Asus ROG previously, except that a convenient quick menu has been added. It has four programmable functions with signal and picture mode info at the top.

The XG32UQWMS’s quick menu is large enough to see from across the room, which might suggest that a remote control would be useful, but there isn’t one. No matter because the joystick and two control buttons take care of business just fine. The OSD can be viewed in two different sizes though…

A second press of the joystick brings up the familiar Asus menu with its eight sections. Gaming is up first with Frame Rate Boost (refresh rate switch), VRR toggle, ELMB, GamePlus enhancements, GameVisual picture modes and Shadow Boost. Frame Rate Boost is most easily done by pressing the leftmost button for a one-click mode change. I would usually tell you that a visit to Nvidia or AMD Control Panel is required for a one-time setup, but that was not an issue this time. The XG32UQWMS communicated with my Windows 11 PC and configured itself automatically for the fastest refresh rate settings.

ELMB (Extreme Low Motion Blur) is a black frame insertion feature, similar to backlight strobing in an LCD. It’s useful at low frame rates, and indeed, it only works at 120 Hz or less, and cancels Adaptive-Sync in the process. It’s another option to keep resolution at 4K and still have decent motion resolution. If you can keep the frame rate above 200fps in 4K, the XG32UQWMS won’t need any help to look amazing.

GamePlus includes a full set of extras with a frame rate counter, aiming points, sniper modes, timer, stopwatch and display alignment marks. GameVisual offers nine picture modes, of which Racing is the default and best choice. It can be calibrated for color temp and gamma, and there are gamut selections too.

In the Image menu, you’ll find standard luminance controls along with Uniform Brightness. Turning this off means smaller peak areas of the screen will be brighter, which adds some punch to highlights. You can expect around 550 nits in SDR mode and as much as 1,500 nits for HDR content. For workday tasks, leaving it on maintains steady output regardless of picture content. It peaks at around 327 nits.

HDR signals get four additional presets which can be adjusted for brightness and contrast. In testing, the XG32UQWMS shone brightest in True Black 500 or Gaming HDR mode with Adjustable HDR turned on and brightness set to 100%.

For color adjustments, you get three color space options plus color temperature presets and a user mode with RGB sliders. You can also adjust saturation globally or for each color. And five gamma curves range from 1.8 (lighter) to 2.6 (darker).

The XG32UQWMS has flexible PIP and PBP settings when you want to view two sources at once. The PIP window can live in any corner of the screen and have independent color settings.

The quick menu shown in the first photo above has four user slots that can be set to a variety of functions like GameVisual, ELMB, and others. You can also customize the behavior of the four joystick directions and the left control key. That one is set by default to frame rate boost, and it is the easiest way to switch refresh rates with a single button press. Finally, there are two memories where settings can be saved for later recall.

Asus ROG Strix XG32UQWMS Calibration Settings

Initial testing of my XG32UQWMS sample showed that it did not require calibration. I tried the user color temp and found a small gain that was barely visible in actual content. This is a very accurate monitor, albeit one with a huge color gamut that covers over 108% of DCI-P3. If you’re OK with that for SDR content, it is very colorful if not strictly accurate. If you’d rather use sRGB for SDR, you can either choose the sRGB Cal mode or select sRGB from the color space options in Racing mode. I did the latter to retain access to the calibration controls. My recommended settings are below. I noted that I could use the same brightness values whether Uniform Brightness was on or off.

For HDR content, there are four additional modes, all of which can be adjusted for brightness and contrast. Gaming HDR or True Black 500 are the best choices there.

Gaming and Hands-on

If you’re looking for the speediest possible gaming monitor, meaning smoothest and most responsive, nothing can hang with an OLED. I’ve experienced many 360 and 500 Hz LCDs, and while they are fast, they aren’t as smooth as an OLED running above 200fps. 4K resolution makes it even better by rendering an image that is super realistic and tactile.

The first time I powered on the XG32UQWMS, it prompted me to run the pixel refresh routine, which took about five minutes. I have encountered other OLED panels that benefited from an initial refresh to make the screen more uniform in tone.

Since I can keep the frame rate above 200fps with a GeForce RTX 4090, I did not need the XG32UQWMS’s frame rate boost feature, but I gave it due diligence. In my case, it only served to soften the image. It wasn’t any faster or more responsive. Indeed, in testing, the screen response and lag times are barely different. So, you won’t gain much from 480 Hz if you can already run at 240. Where it helps is with slower PCs where 4K would drag the rate down below 160fps. That’s where blur starts to show. Switching rates keeps motion smooth, but there’s no hiding the reduced pixel density, especially with a 32-inch monitor in front of you. 70ppi is visibly softer than 140. But at those lower frame rates, motion blur is enough that aiming accurately becomes more difficult.

Unlike many OLEDs, the XG32UQWMS includes ELMB in the form of black frame insertion. It’s another way to combat motion blur at low frame rates, and indeed, it is capped at 120 Hz. It also takes Adaptive-Sync out of the equation. But at those speeds, frame tears are the least of your problems. It’s nice to have options and the XG32UQWMS gives you more than anyone else. If you plan to pair it with a less stout video card, it can adapt and still deliver a good gaming experience.

Playing at the XG32UQWMS’s full capability is an impressive thing, even if you are spoiled by fast gaming screens like me. Moving and aiming is so much easier when motion is this smooth. Precision is automatic and requires no effort other than to pay attention to one’s surroundings. And that’s easy to do with such a large monitor. Though ultra-wide displays encompass more of the user’s peripheral vision, a 32-inch 16:9 panel has more height. That means you can fill your view and sit as close as you like thanks to the 4K resolution.

The picture in both SDR and HDR modes is stunning. There’s so much color available and it’s bright. You can crank the XG32UQWMS well past the point of visual fatigue, but setting it to 200 nits and turning off Uniform Brightness delivers highlights that make the image truly three-dimensional. You can see the glistening of blood and sweat on your enemies as you apply the chainsaw. It looks so good that I found myself using it more than other weapons just to get close-up views of the alien monsters in Doom Eternal. This monitor has an addictive quality.

Being a 32-inch 16:9 flat panel, the XG32UQWMS is ideal for any task, work or play. My everyday screen is the same size, so I’m used to its ability to display multiple documents and windows. This monitor size was made for multitasking and side-by-side comparisons. If you work with a lot of graphics and photos, it’s an ideal format for keeping lots of toolbars open in Photoshop.

To keep the price down, the XG32UQWMS doesn’t have quite all the bells and whistles of a Swift display. But it gives up nothing in performance. You don’t get the LED lighting or internal speakers. But you get everything else and a nice savings in cost.

Takeaway: The XG32UQWMS delivers addictive gameplay along with versatility and capability for every task or form of entertainment. It has a stunning picture that is unmatched by other panel technologies and stands out among OLEDs with high brightness and rich color. The True Black Glossy screen coating keeps ambient light from spoiling the party, and its styling and build quality will remind you why you never regret buying the best.

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I’m stacking the XG32UQWMS up against a group of 32-inch 4K OLEDs to compare input lag scores. They are Asus’ PG32UCDM3, Acer’s X32 X3, Dough’s Spectrum Black 32, MSI’s MPG 322UR X24, and HP’s Omen 32.

Pixel Response and Input Lag

Click here to read up on our pixel response and input lag testing procedures.

For the response test, I didn’t have enough 32-inch 4K OLEDs from my Nvidia LDAT tests, so I mined the latest OLED monitors from the database. I’ve observed super close times from monitors running between 240 and 360 Hz. They’re so close that the human eye cannot tell a difference in smoothness. That said, the XG32UQWMS is a tad quicker than some at 0.20ms gray-to-gray. I noted that increasing the frame rate to 480 did not change the response time. This suggests that panel draw times may have reached their limit at 240 Hz, meaning faster OLEDs won’t render smoother motion resolution.

In the input lag test, the XG32UQWMS is quickest for both refresh rates, with 12.1ms at 240 Hz and 13.7ms at 480 Hz. This tells me that switching to 480 does not provide a significant advantage in speed or response. The dual mode switch is useful when 4K frame rates are lower, say below 160fps. But you can also smooth things out with ELMB at rates below 120 Hz.

Test Takeaway: The XG32UQWMS is one of the quickest and most responsive 4K OLED displays I’ve tested. While you can get a tad less input lag from LG’s and Philips’ 360 Hz models, it isn’t enough to make a perceivable difference. Among the 240 Hz screens I’ve tested, the XG32UQWMS is the king of speed.

Viewing Angles

The XG32UQWMS has excellent off-axis image quality that is on par with other OLED displays. There is a slight color shift at 45 degrees to the side, but the difference is more visible in a test pattern than in content. There is no change to gamma or brightness. The top view is also bright but with reduced gamma that washes out the image.

Screen Uniformity

To learn how we measure screen uniformity, click here.

OLED screens generally have excellent screen uniformity, but it seems that 32-inch flat panel models have slightly higher numbers than most of their 27-inch counterparts. This is nitpicking for sure because anything under 10% means you can’t see an issue. The XG32UQWMS is right in the middle at 7.36% deviation from the center zone. I noted that this was an improvement from the 11.56% I measured before running the panel refresh routing for the first time. This is recommended when you power it up for the first time.

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To read about our monitor tests in-depth, please check out Display Testing Explained: How We Test PC Monitors. We cover brightness and contrast testing on page two.

Uncalibrated – Maximum Backlight Level

The XG32UQWMS is one of the brightest OLEDs I’ve tested, with a 25% window pattern measuring 533 nits peak. A full field comes in at 327 nits. To get the 533-nit result, I turned Uniform Brightness off. You’ll want to do this for HDR content, but SDR images are less fatiguing to view when Uniform Brightness is engaged. As always, OLEDs have unmeasurable black levels so no contrast ratio can be calculated.

After Calibration to 200 nits

Calibration doesn’t change the result. The XG32UQWMS still has undetermined contrast. I noted that I could use the same brightness values whether Uniform Brightness was on or off. This makes it easier to equalize peak luminance when switching modes. The ANSI test is also incalculable.

Test Takeaway: The XG32UQWMS has the same infinite contrast as any OLED but is brighter than most for both full field and window patterns. When toggling between Uniform Brightness on or off, it lets you set the same brightness value, which automatically equalizes light output between modes. Though I could not measure an effect from the screen’s TrueBlack Glossy coating, I did note that the panel was more tolerant of ambient room light.

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The XG32UQWMS ships in its Racing picture mode, which allows access to all calibration controls, gamma, color temp, and color space.

Grayscale and Gamma Tracking

Our grayscale and gamma tests use Calman calibration software from Portrait Displays. We describe our grayscale and gamma tests in detail here.

As you can see in the first chart above, the XG32UQWMS does not require calibration out of the box. Gamma is a tad light but runs close to the reference line. The grayscale values just crack 3dE at 90 and 100% brightness, but I could not see any problems in either test patterns or actual content.

Calibration reduced the grayscale number slightly, but there was no visible difference. Gamma also got a tad darker, and that was a difference I could see, so the adjustments were worth making. This is excellent performance.

If you want sRGB for SDR content, there are two options. Either select the sRGB Cal mode or keep access to calibration by choosing sRGB from the Color Space options. In either case, gamma is a tad wonky with a slightly dark value at 10% and light values from 60% to 100%. This is a minor error that will not significantly affect content. But if you’re using the XG32UQWMS for color-critical tasks, an external lookup table might be a good idea.

Comparisons

OLEDs as a category are very color accurate, so the XG32UQWMS’s middle tier results aren’t a problem. With 1.65dE out of the box and 1.25dE after adjustment, there is nothing to complain about. In the gamma test, the range of values is very small at just 0.12 from lowest to highest. The deviation is 3.18%, equating to an actual score of 2.13. Gamma is a shade light, but values are in a tight range which mitigates the error.

Color Gamut Accuracy

Our color gamut and volume testing use Portrait Displays’ Calman software. For details on our color gamut testing and volume calculations, click here.

The XG32UQWMS is a very colorful monitor with DCI-P3 coverage that’s a tad greater than the competition. You can see slight oversaturation in red and green and more in blue where the color is extremely vivid. The points are in line, though, which means the image is very colorful but not unnatural. Calibration barely made a difference in the chart and no difference to the eye. This is excellent performance.

The sRGB gamut result is almost perfect with just some slight hue errors in magenta. The numbers are well below the visible threshold of 3dE, so there’s nothing to see here but excellent color.

Comparisons

Ordinarily, the XG32UQWMS’s last place finish in the comparison would be a bummer, but since the number is 2.11dE, well below the visible threshold, there’s nothing to be sad about. OLEDs are a competitive category for color accuracy, which is great because you will be hard-pressed to find a bad one. The big win comes in the volume calculation where the XG32UQWMS renders more color than all the other screens. Though the margin of victory is small, it’s significant because it is achieved without Quantum Dot technology. Asus’ use of Tandem OLED is very effective and is brighter too. With ideal 100.26% coverage of sRGB, the XG32UQWMS can be used for color-critical tasks, though it would be best to use a software lookup table to compensate for the light gamma.

Test Takeaway: Aside from slightly light gamma, the XG32UQWMS displays excellent color accuracy both before and after calibration. It has the largest color gamut in the 32-inch 4K OLED category by a small margin, and it covers an ideal 100% of sRGB. Calibration is possible but only produces tiny gains.

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Our HDR benchmarking uses Portrait Displays’ Calman software. To learn about our HDR testing, see our breakdown of how we test PC monitors.

The XG32UQWMS supports HDR10 signals with an automatic switch and four specific picture modes. By turning on a switch in the OSD, you can adjust brightness and contrast and toggle the Uniform Brightness option.

HDR Brightness and Contrast

In the 32-inch 4K category, only the Dough Spectrum Black 32 is brighter than the XG32UQWMS. At 622 nits, it is brighter than other Asus monitors and easily outshines the MSI, Acer, and HP. I measured a 25% window pattern to get this result. Asus’ claims of 1,500 nits for a 3% window are not in doubt. You can see the difference between screens in a side-by-side comparison where the XG32UQWMS’s highlights have more pop and texture. Ultimately, this broadens dynamic range and gives HDR content more impact.

Grayscale, EOTF and Color

The XG32UQWMS shows excellent grayscale tracking in both Gaming and True Black 500 HDR modes. There are slightly visible errors at 60% brightness and higher, but they are very hard to spot in actual content. The EOTF tracks the reference closely with slight darkness from zero to 25%. The tone-map transition point is at 65%, which is correct for the measured black and white levels.

In the color tests, the XG32UQWMS is a tad oversaturated in both the DCI-P3 and BT.2020 color spaces. This adds to HDR’s impact without going too far. Color is bright and vivid but also natural and smooth. Hue points are on target except for yellow and magenta, which are a tad off-line. Again, this isn’t a significant error. In the 2020 test, the XG32UQWMS runs out of color at 90% red, 80% green, and 98% blue. It has more green and blue than nearly every HDR monitor I’ve tested. This is excellent performance.

Test Takeaway: The XG32UQWMS is a benchmark HDR monitor with high brightness, adjustability, and more color than its direct competitors. The image is punchy and vivid without becoming overblown or cartoonish. If you play HDR games or want to watch HDR content, you won’t find a better OLED gaming monitor.

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OLEDs remain premium priced, but their capabilities are such that in my mind, they’re more than worth the money. $1,100 is a lot for a 32-inch monitor, but when it has unmatched sharpness, contrast, brightness, and gaming performance, spending that money brings no regret.

Asus isn’t the most or the least expensive, but it always offers value when you shop the ROG Strix line. These displays offer the same performance as their flagship Swift cousins and only leave out a couple of minor features. And nothing that affects gameplay is missing. When you’re mowing through enemies or exploring virtual worlds, you won’t know the difference between Swift and Strix.

The XG32UQWMS is the latest in a long line of excellent OLED displays. It has a stunning picture that’s brighter and more colorful than its competitors. It isn’t unique in offering 240 Hz at 4K resolution, but the inclusion of frame rate boost to 480 Hz in FHD and ELMB blur reduction makes it more flexible. You can pair it with a wide variety of systems and enjoy smooth, responsive play.

With over 108% coverage of DCI-P3 and HDR peaks between 600 and 1,500 nits, the picture is dazzling and textural with natural color that has an addictive quality. And there’s added sharpness from the True Black Glossy coating.

If you have $1,100 to spend on a 32-inch 4K OLED, the Asus ROG Strix XG32UQWMS is one of the best you can buy at this writing. Definitely check it out.

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If you have been planning to upgrade your monitor, now might be a great time to invest in an OLED display. Prices have been pretty decent compared to last year, and one great option is the LG UltraGear 27GX790A-B, which has dropped to $467.97 on Amazon from its original price of $999. The sale price saves you about $532, a 53% discount.

• Check out the LG UltraGear 27GX790A-B on Amazon

The LG UltraGear 27GX790A-B features a 27-inch WOLED panel with 1440p resolution, widely considered the sweet spot for gaming monitors. It also offers an impressive 480 Hz refresh rate and a 0.03 ms response time, plus support for Nvidia G-Sync and AMD FreeSync Premium Pro, making it suitable for both cinematic and esports titles. Additionally, the monitor is ClearMR 21000 certified, VESA’s highest motion-clarity tier, which helps eliminate the faint blur that lingers around fast-moving objects.

LG claims that the panel covers up to 98.5% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, along with a 1.5M:1 contrast ratio and DisplayHDR True Black 400 certification. This ensures that visuals pop with deep blacks, brilliant highlights, and vibrant cinematic colors. For connectivity, the monitor offers two HDMI 2.1 ports, a DisplayPort 2.1 port, a USB Type-B upstream port, two USB Type-A downstream ports, and a 3.5mm headphone and microphone jack with support for 3D audio via DTS Headphone: X. The monitor has a slim profile and supports height, tilt, swivel, and pivot adjustments. The back of the monitor also features customizable RGB hexagonal backlighting, adding to its gaming aesthetic.

At its discounted price of $467.97, the LG UltraGear 27GX790A-B is a compelling option for gamers looking to make the jump to OLED without spending close to $1,000. The combination of a 1440p WOLED panel, 480 Hz refresh rate, and strong HDR capabilities makes it particularly appealing for both competitive and visually demanding games.

With prices generally higher than their LCD counterparts, the best OLED gaming monitors remain a premium category. And within that, there are flagships even though you’ll rarely see the words “bad” and “OLED” in the same sentence.

Asus ROG Swift displays represent an entire series of flagships, with every model featuring plenty of bells and whistles along with benchmark performance. I’ve looked at many of these in the past, and here, I have the latest one, the PG32UCWM. It’s a 32-inch Tandem RGB Stripe OLED with 4K resolution at 240 Hz, FHD at 480 Hz, Adaptive-Sync, HDR10, DisplayHDR 400, Dolby Vision, and wide-gamut color. Let’s take a look.

Asus ROG Swift PG32UCWM Specs

First, we’ll tackle the alphabet soup in the room: Tandem RGB Stripe OLED. Let’s call it TRS-OLED, consisting of two light-emitting layers with red, green, and blue diodes. This approach addresses several issues. With two layers comes lower power consumption at a given light level. Tandem white OLEDs do the same thing. RGB Stripe takes care of the fringing issue where white diodes behind color filters can spread their light and cause a loss of sharpness. In practice, you will be hard-pressed to see any softness from any OLED, but an RGB Stripe panel like the PG32UCWM is a tad sharper, and you’ll see it in a side-by-side comparison. To this, Asus adds its True Black Glossy screen coating, which earns its name by reducing the effect of ambient light on the screen. Visually, it deepens black areas and improves perceived contrast.

Another advantage of RGB Stripe is increased color volume. Most wide gamut screens employ Quantum Dots to increase volume up to 110% of DCI-P3 or more. RGB Stripe achieves most of that without the light-reducing effect of a QD layer. The PG32UCWM delivers an honest 100% of P3, which is a little less than the competition, but it’s more than the 93-95% coverage of non-QD monitors. Asus promises and delivers accuracy out of the box as well with a calibration report stored in the panel’s firmware.

It wouldn’t be ROG without serious gaming performance, and on that, the PG32UCWM delivers in spades. 240 Hz at 4K is available for those with enough video card power to achieve it. If you want maximum fps, there’s a 480 Hz mode with FHD 1920x1080 resolution. You can also employ ELMB at lower frame rates to reduce motion blur. Asus includes its exclusive OLED Anti-Flicker feature, which mitigates stutter during rapid frame rate transitions. Does this translate into a fast and smooth experience? Check out my test results on page two to find out.

The PG32UCWM supports HDR10 with multiple picture modes and an adjustable option. And it accepts Dolby Vision content, which is still a rarity among computer monitors. Its dynamic tone mapping creates a major improvement in picture depth, regardless of the level to which content is mastered. It will show you every nuance and render every detail present in the original material.

Like all ROG Swift screens, the PG32UCWM includes multiple LED arrays on the back and in the stand where a logo can be projected onto the desktop. There is a full list of GamePlus enhancements like aim points and sniper modes. And some of these can be automated with AI to better adapt to the gaming environment. You also get USBs and a full set of the latest video I/O ports: HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 2.1 and USB-C.

Swift displays usually come with a price premium over their competition, but the PG32UCWM comes out of the gate at $1,299, which isn’t a huge number when you consider its build quality and performance. It is a true flagship.

Assembly and Accessories

A colorfully adorned box houses the PG32UCWM in molded pulp, which is completely recyclable. The stand, base, and panel assemble without tools. The ROG logo projector lens fits under the base with magnets and includes extra lenses. A zippered pouch disgorges a cable bundle consisting of IEC cords, two USBs, HDMI, and DisplayPort. You also get sheets of ROG decals and a microfiber cleaning cloth for that beautiful shiny screen. Speaking of shiny, there is a lot of bling on this monitor, all protected by bits of clear film. It almost becomes a game to find it all, but at least you can be sure your PG32UCWM won’t arrive with scratches.

Product 360

The latest crop of Swift displays, like the PG32UCWM, set themselves apart with LEDs in the stand, a logo projector and clear plastic on the back that reveals the internal componentry. It’s a great complement to a transparent PC case, which Asus can also sell you. The right half includes the Lite-Brite LED feature, which can play a vast array of colors and effects. You also get lighting in the stand where it says “Swift”, in the base, in the ROG logo up front, and in the projector under the stand.

The stand is super solid and includes a 3.1-inch height adjustment plus 5/20 degrees tilt and 15 degrees swivel. There is no portrait mode. If you want one, you’ll need an aftermarket arm that interfaces with the included adapter bracket, which provides a 100mm VESA mount. It comes with beefy fasteners.

The styling is a two-piece configuration with the screen and its metal backing attached to a component bulge. This improves cooling along with a graphene layer and internal heat sinks. Several OLED care features enhance panel life, and Asus backs the PG32UCWM with a three-year warranty that includes burn-in. No internal fans are needed to keep running temps low.

The I/O panel includes one DisplayPort 2.1 (configurable to 1.4), two HDMI 2.1, and a USB-C (DP Alt). USB 3.2 is supported by one upstream and three downstream ports. Audio comes only through a 3.5mm headphone jack; there are no internal speakers.

OSD Features

The PG32UCWM’s OSD has every feature one could want in a flagship gaming monitor, including video processing and extensive image controls. It’s operated by a joystick behind the small protrusion in the front center. Two buttons flank it; one toggles power, and the user can program the other.

At the top of the Gaming menu is the Frame Rate Boost toggle. You can also switch modes with the left control button. Either way, it takes a few seconds for the picture to return. In GamePlus, you get frame counters, aiming points, sniper modes, timers, a stopwatch, and display alignment marks. Some of these have AI-controlled settings which change things like the reticle color or the gamma of the image’s dark areas to increase visibility.

GameVisual has nine picture modes, of which Racing is the default and best choice. Like all Asus ROG monitors, there’s an sRGB Cal mode which is accurate but also grays out the calibration controls. If you want sRGB, it’s better to pick that option from Color Space in the Color menu. Then you can adjust grayscale and gamma if you wish.

HDR is available in HDR10 and Dolby Vision formats. When the appropriate signal is present, you can pick between four different picture modes and turn on an adjustment toggle that enables the brightness and contrast sliders. Also included is Uniform Brightness for both SDR and HDR. If you turn this off, the peak output of small highlights can top 1,000 nits. I measured 532 nits from a 25% window pattern. This feature improves HDR impact and is handy for SDR gaming and video. Turn it on for productivity and static graphics where it will reduce eye fatigue during long work sessions.

The Color menu includes the aforementioned gamut options plus color temp and gamma presets. A set of RGB sliders can dial in grayscale to a very precise level. If you want to tweak color further, there are global and individual saturation controls.

Asus takes OLED care very seriously with a host of options like pixel cleaning, screen saver, orbiter, and logo brightness. All of these can be toggled individually. When I first powered up my PG32UCWM sample, it recommended running the pixel clean straight away, so I did. This often improves screen uniformity for brand-new monitors, though I didn’t see a difference in this case. You also get a proximity sensor that turns off the screen when you leave your desk.

The PG32UCWM includes PIP and PBP options for viewing two video sources at once. You can have individual color settings for the two windows and position and size them how you like. The Lighting Effect menu controls the many effects possible with LEDs in the base and back of the monitor. With Aura Sync enabled through Asus’ Display Widget Center app, you can coordinate the show with what’s happening on screen.

The quick menu has four user-programmable slots for one-click access to different functions. You can also program the four joystick directions and the left control button. There are two settings memories as well.

Asus ROG Swift PG32UCWM Calibration Settings

The PG32UCWM doesn’t need calibration in the Racing mode but I tweaked the RGB sliders for a nice gain, which took it into pro-monitor territory. Color is spot-on whether you choose wide gamut or sRGB. I found similar results in HDR mode when using either Gaming HDR or True Black modes, more about that on page five. Below are my suggested SDR settings including brightness values for Uniform Brightness on or off. You only need to set this value once for each mode, which is nice when switching back and forth.

Gaming and Hands-on

I’ve often said that it’s nearly impossible to buy a bad OLED. All the displays I’ve reviewed over the past few years are super close in performance and image quality. That said, there have been several variations in technology that have subtle effects on the picture. Asus currently has the largest selection of different panel types covering Quantum Dot, Tandem, and RGB Stripe as the major categories. The PG32UCWM combines the latter two into a fourth variant, Tandem RGB Stripe. Looking at my sample, I could immediately see its sharper image. OLEDs are always razor-sharp, but this one is sharper, and I could see that in a side-by-side comparison with a typical Quantum Dot panel.

I could see it while gaming too. The detailed environments of Doom Eternal were even more textural and sharply resolved than usual. Little things like the reflections of light on a gun barrel, or the changing hues of the player’s hand as I moved around had me almost entranced. I’ll warn you now, if you audition a PG32UCWM, you will want to buy it. The sharpness and clarity of this monitor is addictive.

Video processing was exemplary, as it is with any Asus ROG Swift display. Movements and transitions happened with surgical precision as I ran through my usual sequence of run-and-gun maneuvers. Turn and shoot became second nature as I was able to stay apart from enemies and still put most of my ammo on target. Lobbing grenades became easier too. I love the sticky ones!

I always check out the HDR calibration screen in Doom’s menu to look for the correct rendering of both highlight and shadow detail. Game HDR showed a little clipping of highlights, but shadow areas were perfect. True Black was the better mode, which showed everything clearly.

I also tried the dual mode switch. You don’t want to do this in a game because it scrambles the image to where you can’t see the menu. Always make the switch on the Windows desktop. The PG32UCWM lets you do this with a single button press. My GeForce RTX 4090 maintained 220-230fps at 4K and around 430fps in FHD. Though the image was softer, this monitor has smoother scaling than other dual-refresh screens I’ve reviewed. It is a good solution for those who can’t run more than 200fps in 4K.

When the games were put away in favor of getting work done, the PG32UCWM continued to provide a picture that was hard to look away from. It is very colorful, though a few Quantum Dot displays will show you a tad more red and green. But the PG32UCWM covers 100% of DCI-P3 so it still overachieves for SDR in a good way. When editing graphics, I switched the Color Space option to sRGB and enjoyed similarly high accuracy.

The effect of Asus’ True Black Glossy coating was also evident. Blacks seemed deeper because there was no reflected ambient light. The screen is shiny, but it rejects room light as if it were matte. This also makes color more vibrant. It was like having a light-blocking hood in place.

My user experience was completely positive. The PG32UCWM has a familiar and intuitive control and menu system. It’s easy to create different settings memories and to set up the quick menus for easy access to things like picture modes and GamePlus options. I could plug input devices into the USB ports, which was handy. My only minor complaint was the lack of internal speakers. But playing with the extensive LED lighting was fun.

Takeaway: The PG32UCWM is a benchmark gaming display with a reference-quality image. It’s incredibly sharp, and it looks great in brightly lit rooms thanks to its advanced screen coating and Tandem RGB Stripe technology. The refresh rate boost will be useful for those with less stout video cards, and its scaling down to FHD resolution is excellent. Paired with a well-endowed gaming PC, the PG32UCWM is about as good as it gets.

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To compare the PG32UCWM’s performance, I’ve mined only 32-inch 240 Hz OLEDs from my test database. The more recent models are MSI’s MPG 322UR X24 along with Asus’ PG32UCDM3 and XG32UQWMS. Older screens include Dough’s Spectrum Black 32 and HP’s Omen 32 OLED.

Pixel Response and Input Lag

Click here to read up on our pixel response and input lag testing procedures.

Since acquiring the Nvidia LDAT sensor, I’ve noted that OLED panel response times, black-to-white transition run in a super tight range from 0.12 to 0.24. The PG32UCWM manages this feat in 0.16 in both 240 and 480 Hz modes. Motion blur is non-existent when any of these screens run past 200fps.

In the lag test, the PG32UCWM is the quickest of the 240 Hz screens at 11.2ms average lag over 25 mouse clicks. Only a couple of the 360 Hz panels I’ve tested are quicker, and only by 1.2ms, a microscopic amount. What’s interesting is that 480 Hz is a tick slower at 12.9ms. This is still much lower than any human reaction time, so the difference is imperceptible. I’m confident that this is due to the processing lag involved in scaling the image down to Full HD from 4K.

Test Takeaway: The PG32UCWM is the quickest 32-inch 4K OLED you can buy at this time. Only a couple of 360 Hz QHD screens are a tad quicker, so if you have the video card necessary to run 4K over 200fps, this Asus is your best choice. There’s no motion blur at that speed either. I noted that 480 Hz brought an increase in frame rate but not in motion resolution. And it did not reduce input lag.

Viewing Angles

I’ve noticed slight differences in off-axis images from the different OLED variants I’ve reviewed. The PG32UCWM has two emissive layers, meaning that at any angle other than head-on, they are slightly out of phase with each other. This is the reason for the slight tints seen in a grayscale step pattern. In color patterns, or in actual content, you can’t see this issue. In the side photo, there is no change to brightness or gamma, which is typical of OLED displays. The top view washes out a bit with reduced gamma.

Screen Uniformity

To learn how we measure screen uniformity, click here.

The PG32UCWM is the recipient of serious quality control as its low 2.69% uniformity score indicates. There is no hint of bleed or glow in any part of the image. It doesn’t get much better than this.

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To read about our monitor tests in-depth, please check out Display Testing Explained: How We Test PC Monitors. We cover brightness and contrast testing on page two.

Uncalibrated – Maximum Backlight Level

To find the PG32UCWM’s maximum brightness value, I turned Uniform Brightness off and measured a 25% window pattern. It peaked just below 500 nits, which is typical for the category. The Dough and HP screens have only fixed brightness for SDR, so they measure the same for window or full white field patterns. The PG32UCWM’s full-field value with Uniform Brightness on was 269 nits. Black levels and contrast could not be measured.

After Calibration to 200 nits

Calibration doesn’t change anything but the peak white value. I recommend setting uniform brightness to 200 nits using a full field pattern and variable brightness to 200 nits using a 25% window pattern. This creates a visual balance between the two modes. Black levels, static contrast and ANSI intra-image contrast could not be measured.

Test Takeaway: The PG32UCWM offers the option of fixed or variable brightness which is something not all OLEDs offer. It’s nice that the user can set individual brightness values for each mode just once. They are saved when switching back and forth which is another standout feature. The PG32UCWM can hit nearly 500 nits showing SDR content which makes it impactful for gaming and video content. Though contrast is theoretically infinite, the True Black Glossy screen coating makes this monitor’s blacks perceptually deeper.

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The PG32UCWM offers accurate color out of the box and does not need to be calibrated. You can choose between DCI-P3 and sRGB gamuts and adjust grayscale tracking to a high standard.

Grayscale and Gamma Tracking

Our grayscale and gamma tests use Calman calibration software from Portrait Displays. We describe our grayscale and gamma tests in detail here.

In the initial grayscale run, the PG32UCWM shows slight red errors in steps from 60 to 90% brightness. This error is barely visible, even in a test pattern. Gamma tracks very close to the 2.2 reference line. With calibration of the RGB sliders, all but one brightness step drops below 1dE. Gamma becomes a little tighter thanks to a change in the contrast slider.

For sRGB applications, I recommend using the sRGB gamut option rather than the sRGB Cal picture mode. Then, you can calibrate the grayscale if you wish. By default, it’s a little warm in tone. Gamma is excellent with no visible errors.

Comparisons

With a 2.27dE average value, the PG32UCWM has no visible grayscale issues. It can be used without calibration like all the screens here. One should expect this from a premium display. After changes to the RGB values (just blue actually), the error drops to 0.72dE, which is better than all but the MSI. Visually, there is no difference between any of the monitors.

The PG32UCWM’s gamma is very tight with a tiny 0.08 range of values and a 0.45% deviation from the 2.2. reference. The actual value is 2.19, which is nearly perfect and visually flawless.

Color Gamut Accuracy

Our color gamut and volume testing use Portrait Displays’ Calman software. For details on our color gamut testing and volume calculations, click here.

The PG32UCWM aces the default gamut test with a low value of 1.53dE, well below the visible threshold of 3dE. This is the average of 32 measurements. Though it covers right at 100% of DCI-P3, it is slightly oversaturated in the red, magenta, and blue areas of the triangle. Green is perfectly and fully rendered, putting the PG32UCWM ahead of any non-Quantum Dot screen. This is what Tandem OLED tech is supposed to do, and it is successful here. Calibration, shown in the second chart, tightens everything up even further, putting the monitor firmly in reference territory. This is excellent performance.

In the sRGB test, I’m showing a pre-calibration result so magenta is a tad off hue. The score is still quite low at 1.76dE so there’s no cause for complaint. The PG32UCWM is fully qualified for color-critical applications.

Comparisons

As impressive as the PG32UCWM’s color is, it isn’t any better than the others save the XG32UQWMS. I am picking nits here since the naked eye cannot see these differences. But every hundredth of a point counts, and the PG32UCWM has fewer than most with a 1.06dE score. That’s better than many pro monitors can boast, and it’s only a tick behind the Dough and MSI displays. It doesn’t really get better than this.

In the gamut volume test, the PG32UCWM is slightly behind the top four screens. But with almost exactly 100% coverage of DCI-P3, you’ll see every shade and hue from the original content, and more if you run wide gamut mode for SDR. sRGB coverage is also nearly ideal at 96.66%. There is no cause for complaint here.

Test Takeaway: The PG32UCWM is very colorful and accurate with visual perfection out of the box and calibration to a high standard. It is fully qualified for critical applications in either DCI-P3 or sRGB modes. It has a little less color volume than some of the competition but more than the average non-Quantum Dot display. Gamma is tight and ruler straight in every case, which makes fine detail and texture more visible and impactful.

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Our HDR benchmarking uses Portrait Displays’ Calman software. To learn about our HDR testing, see our breakdown of how we test PC monitors.

HDR is the PG32UCWM’s forte with its bright highlights, deep blacks and vivid color. It supports HDR10 with four specific modes and offers adjustable brightness and contrast. It also plays Dolby Vision content which is a rarity in the computer monitor genre.

HDR Brightness and Contrast

All the screens offer variable brightness for HDR content, so their peak levels vary somewhat. The PG32UCWM is in the middle at a healthy 532 nits which is plenty of light from the 25% window pattern I measured. Asus’ claim of 1,000 nits for a 3% window is completely valid. I measured this by engaging the Gaming HDR mode and turning on Adjustable HDR which upped the peak output a little. That changed the EOTF a little and I’ll show you how below.

Grayscale, EOTF and Color

In the first two charts, you can see the difference between the Gaming and True Black HDR modes. They offer the same accurate grayscale tracking but vary in the EOTF luminance curve. True Black is closer to the reference with only tiny variations from black to white. Gaming offers a little more peak output, but it rises from black too quickly. This will make mid-tone regions a little less textural. These are subtle differences that will be perceived differently by different viewers. I would go for the True Black version, but the Gaming HDR picture will be a little blingier. It’s like the “brighter TV sells better” principle seen at big-box electronics stores. At least the PG32UCWM gives you a choice.

I measured color in both modes and got similar results. There is a slight and general oversaturation in the manner of nearly all the HDR OLEDs I’ve tested. This is typical performance. The picture is very impactful and colorful. In the BT.2020 test, the PG32UCWM runs out of color at 90% red, 75% green, and 95% blue. This is also typical of wide gamut screens with either Tandem or Quantum Dot enhancement.

Test Takeaway: The PG32UCWM delivers a superb HDR image with options to dial it into the user’s liking. I recommend the True Black mode for its luminance accuracy, but some users may prefer the Gaming mode for its higher brightness. Either way, it’s gorgeous to look at. Also of note is that the PG32UCWM is one of the rare computer monitors that supports Dolby Vision.

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There’s always something special about flagship products. So, if a company makes a line of displays that are all flagship, are any of them special? In the case of Asus’ ROG Swift PG32UCWM, I’m going to say yes. Thanks to Asus’ willingness to seed its stable with multiple OLED panel technologies, we have a large array of choices, all of them good.

The PG32UCWM and its Tandem RGB Stripe panel stand out for being incredibly sharp. In other areas like color, video processing and build quality, it is the same as other Swift displays, but image clarity raises the bar. You can expect accurate color out of the box with reference-level performance after a few adjustments. Video processing is super smooth with perfect motion resolution and the lowest input lag in the category. There’s flexibility in the frame rate boost feature that lets the PG32UCWM work with less powerful video cards. And its extra features like GamePlus and Aura RGB elevate it beyond most premium monitors.

At $1,299, it is an investment, but consider that its performance and build quality mean you’ll be using it for many years through multiple system upgrades. If you desire a flagship monitor and have the budget, the Asus ROG Swift PG32UCWM is well worth checking out.

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Since the advent of fixed-pixel flat panel displays, the quest for greater pixel density has not subsided. In times past, a high-res display was 1280x1024 with a 4:3 aspect ratio. Now the gold standard is 4K, 3840x2160. So, where do we go from here?

Traditionally, resolution increases in whole multiples like 1920x1080 to 3840x2160. And there are a few 8K 7680x4320 screens out there. But in the realm of the best gaming monitors, you can have any resolution you want, so why not 6K?

Samsung’s Odyssey G80HS is a 32-inch IPS panel with 6144x3456 pixels at 165 Hz and 3072x1728 pixels at 330 Hz along with Adaptive-Sync, HDR10, and wide gamut color. Pixel density is an impressive 224 or 112 ppi. Let’s take a look.

Samsung Odyssey G80HS Specs

I’ll start with the caveat: the G80HS requires the latest port specification, DisplayPort 2.1 or HDMI 2.1, to run in 6K at 165 Hz. You’ll also need an HDMI cable rated for 48 Gbps, or a DisplayPort cable rated for 80Gbps. You’ll also need a GeForce RTX 5090 to even dream of running over 120fps in 6K. That’s where the dual mode function comes in. Though 3072x1728 is unusual, it is a realistic task for an RTX 5090 or an RTX 4090 to move things along at 240 fps or more. That 330 Hz refresh rate is handy to have.

The panel uses Fast IPS technology with a claimed 1ms response time. It includes Adaptive-Sync and overdrive, but you can’t have both at the same time. I’ll talk more about that later. The good part is that input lag is extremely low, so gamers will get a responsive experience. And running at the higher refresh rate eliminates nearly all motion blur.

The panel doesn’t employ Quantum Dots but manages to cover just over 90% of DCI-P3 with solid out-of-box accuracy. With a few tweaks, I saw reference-level color, gamma and grayscale tracking. The G80HS also has an equally accurate sRGB mode for graphics pros, photographers, and users who want the correct BT.709 color space for SDR content. HDR10 signals are supported as well with expanded contrast and peak white levels around 480 nits.

The G80HS is clearly a gaming monitor with extras like LED lighting, aiming points and game-specific picture modes. You get all the latest video ports too with DisplayPort 2.1 and two HDMI 2.1 inputs. There are USBs for peripherals and a 3.5mm headphone jack. The only thing missing are internal speakers.

Bleeding-edge resolution doesn’t come cheap, but the G80HS isn’t super pricey either at $1,599 to start. Let’s see how it performs.

Assembly and Accessories

The G80HS arrives packed in crumbly foam with a base, upright, and panel that assembles easily, no tools needed. A medium-sized power brick with right-angled cords provides the alternating current, and you get very thick HDMI and DisplayPort cables which are rated for 48 and 80 Gbps respectively.

Product 360

The G80HS has a minimalist aesthetic with only a tiny Samsung logo on the front bezel. The rest of the frame is flush and thin. Coupled with a very slim side profile, one might think they’re looking at an OLED. Internal bits are packed into a central bulge which has generous ventilation. The stand’s fulcrum is ringed by an LED that can play a variety of effects and colors.

The stand is substantial with firm movements and generous adjustments. You get a five-inch height range plus 2/25 degrees tilt and 30 degrees swivel. There’s a 90-degree portrait mode as well. The base has a medium footprint and brings plenty of stability. I noted that the fulcrum had a little wobble when adjusting tilt and rotation.

The screen has an effective anti-glare coating with a matte finish. It is grain-free and provides excellent clarity for the extreme 224ppi pixel density. You’ll need a magnifying glass to see any dot structure from any distance. Sharp and smooth is almost an understatement.

The I/O panel includes a DisplayPort 2.1 and two HDMI 2.1 ports. All of them can manage 6K resolution at 165 Hz if your video card has DisplayPort 2.1 or HDMI 2.1 outputs. USB 3.2 ports are also included, one upstream and two downstream.

OSD Features

The G80HS has a super-efficient OSD that’s controlled by a joystick. A quick menu pops up on the first press, then you click up and select to see the full menu.

Samsung’s gaming monitors all have this cool control-panel-looking menu with signal info at the top in little portholes and a tree-style menu. The G80HS has four sub-menus starting with game options. You can toggle Adaptive-Sync, which is good because if you want overdrive, it must be turned off. This is an unusual choice because at 165fps, you’re going to want both things. The choice is less motion blur or no frame tears. And that will depend on game type. I’ll talk more about that below.

The Dual Mode option switches between 6K at 165 Hz and 3K at 330 Hz. Given my experience, users will be using the 3K mode more often for twitchy shooters and the 6K mode for less frenetic titles. For aiming help, you get two different reticles. And the lighting, called Infinity Core, can play different colors and effects through the LED ring in the back. CoreSync lets you sync the light show with what’s happening on the screen.

The Picture menu starts with 10 picture modes, with Graphic being the default and best choice for all-around gameplay and productivity. It leaves calibration controls accessible and has an Auto color space option which selects sRGB for SDR and DCI-P3 for HDR. This is something I wish more wide-gamut monitors had. For adjustments, you get gamma presets and a very precise set of RGB sliders.

To enhance contrast, there are three different options: Local Dimming, Contrast Enhancer, and Dynamic Brightness. Local Dimming is a bit misleading because the G80HS is not a full-array panel. And tests showed me that it doesn’t do zone-edge dimming either. The best of the three for expanding dynamic range is Dynamic Brightness. That will deliver almost 15,000:1 contrast versus the panel’s native ratio of around 1,700:1. In HDR mode, you can opt for dynamic tone mapping, which improves the image in most cases. I noted that in testing, the Static mode produced reference-level accuracy. You can read more about that on page five.

Samsung Odyssey G80HS Calibration Settings

The G80HS is close to standard out of the box and will display its full native color gamut, 90% of DCI-P3, for both SDR and HDR content. The Picture menu has a single-point RGB control which is very precise. I used it to tighten up grayscale tracking. Gamma is nearly perfect on the zero setting. If you want sRGB for SDR content, change the Color Space option to Auto. Then the monitor will switch back and forth automatically. My recommended settings are below. I noted that I could adjust the RGB sliders independently for HDR mode, and as it turned out, the same settings worked. This is something very few HDR monitors allow.

Gaming and Hands-on

Gaming on the G80HS was a unique experience. On the positive side, it’s the first dual-refresh monitor that I can call truly useful because its resolution only reduces to 3072x1728, which equates to 112 ppi, a tad more than a 27-inch QHD screen. And my GeForce RTX 4090 ran it at around 250 fps, which eliminated any need for Adaptive-Sync or overdrive.

This was fortunate because, as I discovered, playing in HDR mode grays out both options. In essence, you get no video processing with dual mode engaged, but don’t be dismayed. Motion resolution was superb, and the G80HS was super responsive to control inputs. You’ll see why when you read the input lag test results on the next page.

Playing in 6K was not as fun with my setup. An RTX 4090 is fine for 4K where I can get speeds over 200fps. But at full resolution, I could barely crack 100 fps. And with Adaptive-Sync and overdrive out of the picture, motion was just too blurry. There was no hit to input lag; control response was instantaneous. But it was hard to aim precisely at distant targets because unless I stopped moving, enemies were too difficult to make out.

Gameplay experiences aside, the G80HS is gorgeous to look at. With 224 ppi, the picture is uncannily smooth. I could not see the pixels even with my nose next to the screen. Though 4K looks very film-like and realistic, 6K is even more so. It amps up my anticipation and desire for 8K, which will inevitably be a thing within my lifetime.

Working on documents and graphics is such a pleasure when detail and clarity are this high. Though I usually crow more about contrast… Oh wait, the G80HS has a good deal of that. True that it’s IPS, but it delivers around 1,700:1 natively and almost 15,000:1 with Dynamic Brightness engaged. Though it isn’t quite in OLED territory, it is visibly superior to the average LCD panel, and that includes Mini LED monitors with their full-array backlights. The G80HS’s HDR is particularly excellent with balanced color, perfect luminance tracking, and peak highlights around 480 nits.

Takeaway: Though the G80HS’s resolution is somewhat of an “in-between” proposition, there’s no denying its appeal. 224ppi is serious pixel density, and it manifests itself as a super smooth and lifelike picture. Coupled with excellent contrast and pro-level color accuracy, it delivers a truly useful dual-refresh feature where you can play at 330fps at 3K resolution, which equates to 112ppi. So, if you can’t drive it at 6K/165 Hz yet, you can still enjoy it until the next generation of premium video cards comes to market.

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To compare the G80HS’s performance, I’ve mined the highest resolution gaming monitors in my database. They are AOC’s U27G4XM and U32G4, ViewSonic’s VX2730D-4K, KTC’s H27P3, and Asus’ XG27JCG. None are 6K, but the KTC and Asus are 5K (5120x2880) and the rest are 4K (3840x2160).

Pixel Response and Input Lag

Click here to read up on our pixel response and input lag testing procedures.

The Asus was tested before my acquisition of the Nvidia LDAT, so it has been omitted from the response chart. The remaining screens are very close in speed except for the 60 Hz KTC, which is slower for obvious reasons. The G80HS is slightly behind the top three but not enough to make a visible difference. The only consideration is that you’ll need to choose either overdrive or Adaptive-Sync; you can’t have both at once. Overdrive has a tad less motion blur, but there are some frame tears.

In the lag test, the G80HS takes the crown by a significant margin at 165 Hz. Surprisingly, 330 Hz is actually slower. I can only conclude that there is some processing overhead from scaling down to a non-native resolution. Again though, this is an invisible difference. The benefit from 330 Hz is that you get almost no motion blur and you can use Adaptive-Sync because overdrive is unnecessary.

Test Takeaway: The G80HS is a very quick monitor at either 165 or 330 Hz. Running at 6K comes with some motion blur since you can’t use overdrive when Adaptive-Sync is turned on. It also takes more horsepower than a GeForce RTX 4090 provides to even approach 165 fps in a game. 330 Hz comes with decent pixel density and much smoother motion resolution because you don’t need the overdrive, which leaves Adaptive-Sync available. Either way, input lag is lower than other 4K and 5K monitors running at 120 to 160 Hz.

Viewing Angles

The G80HS shows its IPS roots with a slight green tint in the 45-degree horizontal view. This is offset by excellent gamma and brightness retention, as in there is no change in luminance. It’s one of the best IPS panels I’ve seen for off-axis image quality. The top view retains most of its brightness, but gamma is reduced, and there’s a green tint.

Screen Uniformity

To learn how we measure screen uniformity, click here.

My G80HS sample showed minor hotspots in the corners of the screen, which took its average deviation above the 10% threshold. This was difficult to spot in most content, but I could see a little glow in the darkest material. This is a sample-specific issue.

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To read about our monitor tests in-depth, please check out Display Testing Explained: How We Test PC Monitors. We cover brightness and contrast testing on page two.

Uncalibrated – Maximum Backlight Level

Many of the G80HS’s closest competitors have Mini LED backlights and are capable of high peak brightness. But 431 nits is nothing to complain about for SDR content. This was measured from a full field pattern with all dynamic contrast options turned off. Trying different combinations of the three settings, I found that turning Dynamic Brightness on produced the highest peak from a 25% window pattern, 470 nits with a contrast ratio around 14,500:1. But the native ratio of 1,662.8:1 is well above the IPS average. This is excellent performance.

After Calibration to 200 nits

The G80HS has a very low black level after calibration, and I saw a small increase in contrast to 1,706.1:1. The IPS average is 1,000:1, so all the screens except the U27G4XM are overachievers.

The ANSI result is reasonably consistent at 1,308:1. This is partially affected by the corner glow I noted earlier, so other G80HS samples might have a higher intra-image result. This is still excellent performance that is above the IPS average.

Test Takeaway: The G80HS has more contrast than most IPS monitors with around 1,700:1 after calibration. Dynamic Black can take that to over 14,000:1 with peaks of 470 nits if you’re looking for extra punch for games and video. My sample showed slight uniformity errors, so its ANSI score was a bit lower but still above the IPS average.

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The G80HS ships in its Graphic mode, which is backed by a factory calibration report. It doesn’t need to be calibrated, though some slight gains will come from a few tweaks.

Grayscale and Gamma Tracking

Our grayscale and gamma tests use Calman calibration software from Portrait Displays. We describe our grayscale and gamma tests in detail here.

Only the 90 and 100% brightness steps crack the 3dE threshold. That’s the point where errors become visible, though there are very few users who would spot a problem in either test patterns or actual content. Gamma is almost perfectly aligned with the 2.2 reference. This is excellent out-of-box performance.

Calibration of the very precise RGB sliders brings all grayscale errors to below 2dE, which is as good as it gets, even in the pro-monitor category. Gamma remains almost perfect at 2.23. It doesn’t get much better than this.

For the sRGB test, I had already calibrated the G80HS, so it measured just as excellently. This is one of the rare displays that lets you calibrate outside its native gamut mode. Just set Color Space to Auto and it will use sRGB for SDR and native (DCI-P3) for HDR. This is something that all wide gamut monitors should do, but most will gray out the RGB sliders in sRGB mode.

Comparisons

With a score of 1.98dE out of the box, the G80HS does not need to be calibrated. It’s ahead of many other gaming monitors in this test. With a few tweaks of the precise RGB sliders, the error drops to 0.99dE, pro monitor territory. That’s impressive, as is the score of the four other monitors, which are even lower. This is more for ego than anything else. Visually, you won’t be able to tell a difference between any of the six screens once they’ve been calibrated.

The G80HS is a poster child for gamma accuracy. Grayscale can be fixed, but nearly all computer monitors only allow wholesale changes to gamma; there’s rarely a way to fix errors at specific luminance points. When you have only a 0.10 range of values, and the average is 2.23 (1.36% deviation), you’ll see clear detail and texture in all parts of the image. And it improves gamut accuracy too because hue and saturation points are closer to their targets.

Color Gamut Accuracy

Our color gamut and volume testing use Portrait Displays’ Calman software. For details on our color gamut testing and volume calculations, click here.

The G80HS achieves decent gamut accuracy out of the box in Graphic mode. You can see slight undersaturation in red and green, which lets you know that Quantum Dots are not present. But there’s a little bonus blue which makes the sky a little more brilliant. Only slight hue errors in magenta mar an otherwise solid chart.

Calibration not only aligns the magenta hue, but it also improves red saturation. Though the change to grayscale is invisible in neutral patterns, it has a visible effect on color, so it’s worth making the adjustments.

On the sRGB chart, you can see a bit of over-saturation in red, magenta, and blue, but not enough to take the G80HS out of contention as a color-critical-qualified display. With a low 1.15dE error, it can work in a video post-production or photography editing suite.

Comparisons

All the screens score well in the color test, with the G80HS coming in fifth place at 1.91dE. This is well below the visible threshold, so in a side-by-side comparison, all the monitors will look similar. The difference is more one of color volume rather than accuracy. The top three screens have visibly more color, which is most visible in the brightest red and green hues. If you view a lot of HDR content, you can’t have too much color volume. But the G80HS does well without the added expense of Quantum Dots at 90.32% coverage of DCI-P3. And its 102% score for sRGB is near-ideal.

Test Takeaway: The G80HS is accurate enough to be used without calibration, but there are some gains to be had from a grayscale adjustment. Gamma is nearly perfect in either case. There are more colorful screens in the category, but among non-QD displays, the G80HS is very competitive.

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Our HDR benchmarking uses Portrait Displays’ Calman software. To learn about our HDR testing, see our breakdown of how we test PC monitors.

The G80HS supports HDR10 signals with an automatic switch. Unusually, in a good way, it leaves the RGB sliders accessible so you can create an independent calibration if you wish

HDR Brightness and Contrast

Without the advantage of a full-array Mini LED backlight, the G80HS isn’t as bright as some others, but it is brighter than average. Most edge-lit screens manage around 400 nits for HDR content. The G80HS gives you a couple of options for dynamic range. Natively, it will render around 1,700:1, but with Dynamic Brightness on High, it tickles the underside of 15,000:1, a nearly tenfold increase. I measured this with a 25% window pattern in, oddly enough, the HDR Eco mode. Trying the other modes brought no increase in output. In the comparison chart, the Asus shuts the backlight off in its brightest HDR mode when a 0% signal is input, so I couldn’t measure its contrast. The G80HS is one of the better edge-lit LCDs I’ve tested for HDR contrast.

Grayscale, EOTF and Color

The G80HS’s HDR color accuracy is even more impressive. Though I give a free pass to nearly every HDR monitor with over-saturated color, because they look good anyway, I must commend Samsung on its ultra-precise HDR. The grayscale chart is excellent with no visible errors. I did make a couple of tweaks to the RGB sliders, but the default test also had no visible errors. The EOTF is also spot-on with only tiny variations from the reference line.

In the color test, every point on the DCI-P3 chart is on target except for the 100% saturations of green, blue, and cyan, which are off by around 5%. This isn’t surprising given the lack of Quantum Dots. On the BT.2020 chart, the G80HS runs out of color at 85% red, 70% green, and 95% blue. While one might think this approach would be less colorful, it is more balanced and detailed than a monitor that simply pushes everything 5-10% higher. This is excellent performance.

Test Takeaway: The G80HS has some of the best and most accurate HDR color I’ve ever experienced, both in tests and in actual content. The balance is such that pushing saturation points as other monitors do becomes unnecessary. It isn’t as bright as a full-array Mini LED screen, but it is a bit brighter than most edge-lit displays. The Dynamic Brightness option delivers a nice contrast bump from 1,700:1 to almost 15,000:1 without any loss of detail.

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The quest for higher resolution and pixel density is unlikely to end any time soon. We might have been satisfied with Full HD for a time, but the lure of 4K, 5K, 6K and 8K is strong. 8K is still an exotic technology that will someday be more common on the desktop, but not today. For now, we have the in-between.

Since PCs and Macs can render any resolution the user wishes, monitors like Samsung’s Odyssey G80HS will be relevant. Greater pixel density is always a good thing, and this screen boasts 224ppi at 6K and 112ppi at 3K. And that dual refresh feature is super important because this monitor’s capabilities go beyond those of the current crop of top-shelf video cards. Though I found too much motion blur at 6K and 100fps, the experience in 3K and 300fps was excellent.

I was a bit dismayed that Adaptive-Sync and overdrive couldn’t be used together. But playing in 3K mode negated any need for either feature. The G80HS has impressively low input lag, so its gaming prowess is equal to the best competition monitors I’ve reviewed. I was also impressed by its accurate color, both out of the box and after calibration. The ability to switch color spaces automatically between SDR and HDR was a major plus. And though it uses an IPS panel rather than an OLED, it boasts impressive contrast of 1,700:1 native and almost 15,000:1 with an effective set of dynamic options.

Since 8K is still something of a unicorn, I can easily recommend a 6K monitor like the G80HS. It delivers superb imagery, speedy game performance, flexibility, and Samsung’s usual solid build quality. If you want to venture into the realm of extreme pixel density, definitely check it out.

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If you don't have the cash reserves to fund a new GPU, RAM, or SSD, then consider upgrading the visuals on your PC with a new monitor. Upgrading the size or the panel from IPS/VA to OLED can give your games a vivid visual boost. At Best Buy, you can currently grab the magnificent MSI MAG 321UPXB gaming monitor, returning to its lowest-ever price of $599.99. That's a saving of $130 from the original $729.99 list price on the Best Buy store page.

● Check out this deal at Best Buy

The MSI MAG 321UPXB is a premium gaming monitor with all the bells and whistles for producing stunning images. The monitor is a flat-panel with a 32-inch viewable area and a high-detail 4K (3,820 x 2,160) UHD resolution. The QD-OLED panel has a fast refresh rate up to 240Hz and a blisteringly fast 0.03ms gray-to-gray response time thanks to the OLED panel tech. The combination of fast refresh and response times produces very smooth motion in games and eliminates ghosting artifacts.

The display also has an anti-reflective treatment to avoid light sources disrupting your viewing experience, plus it is compatible with Nvidia's G-Sync technology to help eliminate screen tearing by matching the monitor's refresh rate to the output of the game you're playing. To hit the high refresh rates of this monitor, you will require a powerful graphics card or use frame-generation techniques to boost frame rates. So you don't need to worry about the refresh rate of this gaming monitor bottlenecking your gaming PC.

The MSI's panel is DisplayHDR True Black 400-certified and supports VRR (variable refresh rate) for gaming consoles like the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. Ports are also plentiful, with two HDMI 2.1, one DisplayPort 1.4a, and one USB-C (DisplayPort Alt Mode) to choose from. For peace of mind, there's also a 3-year manufacturer's warranty that includes coverage for the dreaded OLED burn-in.

The MAG 321UPXB has a list price of $729.99 at Best Buy, but is currently $599.99 for a limited time only.

If you're looking for more savings, check out our Best PC Hardware deals for a range of products, or dive deeper into our specialized SSD and Storage Deals, Hard Drive Deals, Gaming Monitor Deals, Graphics Card Deals, Gaming Chair, Best Wi-Fi Routers, Best Motherboard, or CPU Deals pages.

Is now a good time to think about upgrading your PC or gaming monitor? As one of the only PC-related items that is still seeing discounts in the ever-increasing AI boom-related price inflation apocalypse, gaming monitors especially have become the best bang-for-buck upgrade for your gaming setup. With prices on OLED displays falling dramatically since the technology launched, and generational improvements in the panel technology and manufacturing making the screens cheaper, more resilient to burn-in, and offering large gains in refresh rates. A prime example is this deal on the 280Hz WOLED Gigabyte MO27Q28G 27-inch gaming monitor for $399.99, a massive $200 (33%) off its original listing price.

● Check out this deal at Newegg

You may be thinking about upgrading your CPU or GPU to improve your gaming experience, but honestly, none of that matters if your display doesn't do your hardware justice. Gigabyte's 27-inch MO27Q28G gaming monitor features a fast 280Hz refresh rate that requires powerful graphics cards to fully utilize, and a blisteringly fast 0.03ms gray-to-gray response time thanks to standard OLED tech. The Gigabyte MO27Q28G uses a colorful 4th-Gen WOLED display with 99.5% of the DCI-P3 color gamut and 84% of BT 2020. With a decent pixel density, delivering a crisp image at a 2560x1440 QHD resolution.

The monitor also features a KVM switch, USB-C connectivity, and a bright HDR peak brightness of 1500 Nits. To complete the package of a gaming monitor, the MO27Q28G also features a "tactical switch" for switching between screen ratios and resolutions.

The Gigabyte MO27Q28G comes with a standard stand that allows for adjustments to height, tilt, swivel, and pivot, but if you fancy upgrading the stand to a monitor arm and are also running a second monitor, you can pick up this handy bundle offer on the Gigabyte MO27Q28G and the MSI MPG MT201DR V2 desk-mounted dual monitor arms.

The MSI MPG MT201DR V2 sell for $139.99 individually, but if you purchase them as part of the Gigabyte MO27Q28G combo bundle for $519.98, you can save $20 off the monitor mount.

The ongoing global memory crisis has made upgrading an existing PC or building a new one a lot more expensive, with RAM, SSD, and graphics card prices all climbing in recent months. However, gaming monitors have become far more affordable than they were just a couple of years ago, especially when it comes to OLED. If you are looking for a new display for your setup, you could consider the Gigabyte GO27Q24A, a 27-inch QHD 240Hz QD-OLED monitor which is currently down to just $299.99 from its usual listed price of $449.99 on Newegg.

• Check out this deal on Newegg

The monitor offers pretty decent specs for the asking price including a third-gen 27-inch QD-OLED panel with a 2560x1440 resolution, which is considered the sweet spot for most gaming setups. It also offers a fast refresh rate of 240 Hz and a response time of just 0.03ms GTG, which makes it perfect for fast-paced games without compromising on the visual fidelity. For esports lovers, the monitor comes with a feature to quickly switch display resolutions or swap to a specific aspect ratio (such as a 4:3 ratio or a dedicated 24-inch custom format size) with a single click using a dedicated physical button.

In terms of color, Gigabyte claims up to 99% coverage of the DCI-P3 gamut with support for up to 10-bit color and a factory calibrated Delta E

As for connectivity, you get two HDMI 2.1 ports and a Displayport 1.4, meaning you can hook this up to your console alongside your PC or laptop. There’s even a standard 3.5mm earphone jack to plug in your headphones or speakers.

For $299.99, the Gigabyte GO27Q24A is one of the most affordable ways to step into OLED gaming without sacrificing key features like a high refresh rate, HDMI 2.1 connectivity, and a 1440p resolution. It may not be the brightest QD-OLED gaming monitor on the market, but at this price, it's hard to complain.

If you're looking for more savings, check out our Best PC Hardware deals for a range of products, or dive deeper into our specialized SSD and Storage Deals, Hard Drive Deals, Gaming Monitor Deals, Graphics Card Deals, gaming chair, or CPU Deals pages.

While we're seeing huge price rises for PC components, OLED gaming monitors are bucking that trend, becoming cheaper and more accessible than ever. This LG UltraGear OLED 27GX700A-B gaming monitor is the perfect example, dropping from its current $599.99 list price (and $849 launch price) to just $399.99 right now, which is a brilliant price for a high-spec, high-refresh-rate OLED monitor for gaming.

● Check out this deal on Amazon

This is a huge price drop for a display that was priced at nearly $600 less than a month ago. The UltraGear OLED 27GX700A-B launched last year and comes with LG's 4th-generation Primary RGB Tandem OLED panel, which the company claims can reach up to 1,500 nits of peak brightness. It also uses less power than previous OLED monitor generations, which should help improve your chances against disruptive burn-in.

This is a 27-inch display, which means you'll get an ultra-sharp 1440p picture compared to larger displays at the same resolution. Speaking of resolution, this display can hit 2,560 x 1,440, and comes with a fast 280 Hz refresh rate.

The refresh rate matters for a gaming monitor like this one, because it ensures that fast-paced action appears smooth with minimal motion blur. You're also able to benefit from Nvidia G-Sync and AMD FreeSync Premium Pro support, which will completely eliminate screen tearing and stuttering by synchronizing the display's refresh rate with your graphics card.

Ultimately, though, you're going to be wowed by the upgrade from an LCD to an OLED panel. Specs-wise, this comes with DisplayHDR True Black 500 and UL Perfect Black certification, ensuring true black levels to improve visual depth and the quality of shadows in dark scenes. It has a contrast ratio of 1,500,000:1, covering 98.5% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, and delivering color accuracy of Delta E ≤ 2. What this means is you're getting vibrant visuals with lifelike realism, which'll make the games you play extra immersive.

As far as ports go, you're getting two HDMI 2.1 and one DisplayPort 1.4 connections, along with a built-in USB hub. There's also a 2.5mm aux connector for your headphones, which includes DTS Headphone:X support, which can simulate 3D surround sound with up to 11 channels using standard stereo headphones. The monitor can be adjusted to suit your ergonomics, too, with a built-in stand that can be adjusted for height, tilt, swivel, and pivot.

This LG monitor also comes with built-in features to help protect your OLED panel, including automated panel care cycles, pixel cleaning, and screen shift to avoid common burn-in scenarios. You also get a two-year warranty with this monitor for additional peace of mind.

The $399 sale price for this 27-inch LG UltraGear OLED 27GX700A-B gaming monitor is a seriously good price and one you can't ignore if you need a display upgrade. It's the best-priced OLED at this size and with a refresh rate this high. This limited-time Amazon deal won't be around for long, however, so you'll need to snap it up fast if you want to secure one for yourself.

If you're looking for more savings, check out our Best PC Hardware deals for a range of products, or dive deeper into our specialized SSD and Storage Deals, Hard Drive Deals, Gaming Monitor Deals, Graphics Card Deals, Gaming Chair, Best Wi-Fi Routers, Best Motherboard, or CPU Deals pages.

You can also join the Tom's Hardware deals Discord for up-to-the-minute hardware deals.

In recent reviews of professional displays, I’ve talked about their function as content creation tools with reference color and the ability to integrate into video post-production and photography workflows. But there is a conceptual side that today’s monitors do not usually address. Designers and creators often collaborate and present their ideas, and for that, different display tools are needed. Things like touchscreens, tablet-style stands, and webcams are just as useful as standardized color modes and reference calibrations.

The Acer ProDesigner PE320QXT is such a monitor. It doesn’t have fast refresh or Adaptive-Sync, but it does have 219 ppi pixel density thanks to its 32-inch IPS panel with 6016 x 3384 resolution. It also has a Quantum Dot film for wide-gamut color that covers over 120% of DCI-P3. A 10-point capacitive touchscreen supports Microsoft Pen protocols. An integrated webcam lets users collaborate remotely. And a slick oleo stand lets the panel tilt back 60 degrees or stand up straight for a wide range of useful positions. Though exotic, it isn’t super expensive at $1,800 to start. Let’s take a look.

Acer ProDesigner PE320QXT Specs

6K resolution is somewhat rare, but I’ve seen a few such panels now, so it no longer has unicorn status. 6016 x 3384 is an in-between resolution that is not supported by video content. You won’t find 6K video anywhere. But it is useful for photography and CAD. It’s also great for presentation and conceptual graphics.

The PE320QXT’s maximum refresh rate is 60 Hz, so gaming with any sort of fast motion is impractical. But if your interest lies in titles that prioritize graphics over speed, 219ppi makes for a stunning image. Though the panel tech here is IPS, contrast is above average at over 1,500:1. HDR10 is also supported, though there is no zone dimming here so you won’t find much extra contrast for HDR content.

You will find lots of color though. The PE320QXT has one of the largest color gamuts I’ve yet encountered. In testing, I measured over 120% coverage of DCI-P3 and over 81% coverage of BT.2020. Adobe RGB gets a fair shake too with 96%. There are color modes to cover all current standards except for Cinema P3; however, Display P3 is included.

The PE320QXT forgoes the integrated calibration of other pro screens I’ve reviewed, but there is some tweakability in the OSD. You get Calman verification as well. I found all the preset modes to be reasonably accurate with just a few minor issues. I’ll talk more about that later.

Peripheral features include USB ports, types A, B, and C. There are four video inputs, two HDMI 2.1 and a DisplayPort 1.4 along with USB-C. Internal speakers play with five watts apiece, and there’s a headphone jack. A 4K webcam is mounted on the top and includes an angle adjustment knob and a cover for the lens. My sample shipped with a stylus that works with Microsoft protocols and can function as a pointing and drawing device. The screen is 10-point capacitive touch.

The PE320QXT is a different kind of professional display. It maintains color reference but is squarely aimed at designers and collaborators. At $1,900, it’s a decent value when you consider its unique abilities, extreme pixel density, and included extras.

Assembly and Accessories

The PE320QXT ships in fully recyclable packaging with molded pulp protecting the contents. The panel, upright, and base assemble without tools into a solid package. More on that unique stand in a moment. The webcam is permanently attached to the top of the panel. The pen comes in its own box with a USB charging cable for its Type-C port. Bundled cables include HDMI and USB, plus an external power supply brick.

Product 360

From the front, the PE320QXT looks like any other monitor, though it sits lower than most. That’s due to the oleo stand, which provides 60 degrees of tilt so you can angle the panel up like a tablet. The tilt extends five degrees forward as well. The height range is almost 10 inches, but if you want the panel to sit vertically in front of you, you’ll need a pedestal. You also get 360 degrees of swivel, with the base moving on a smooth bearing concealed within it. All movements are smooth and precise and befit a premium display.

The webcam sits atop the panel and is permanently attached. It has a little lens cover for security that slides left and right. You can roll a dial to angle the lens and tilt it completely backwards. The pen I received stows on the bottom of the screen magnetically and is compatible with Windows’ touchscreen protocols.

The screen’s front layer is very slick and shiny, perfect for drawing but not as good at preventing light reflection. You’ll need to be conscious of ambient light sources, especially when tilting the PE320QXT upwards. The image is very sharp and clear when no light hits it.

The ports are around the back and face rearwards. You get three USB ports, one upstream and two downstream. Video includes two HDMI 2.1 and a DisplayPort 1.4 plus a USB-C (DP Alt) port that supports 90 watts of power. There’s a 3.5mm headphone jack, and there are a decent pair of internal speakers, five watts each.

OSD Features

The PE320QXT uses buttons for OSD control. I found this a bit confounding since nearly every monitor today employs a joystick. Navigation is intuitive but slow. I also turned off the power accidentally a few times. Pressing any of the first four keys brings up a quick menu. Click button four for the full OSD.

The OSD is Acer ProDesigner standard and starts with basic image controls. The HDR option includes Off, Auto, and HDR600. I found that even on Auto, I had to manually select the HDR mode for HDR10 content. You’ll also want to turn on the Max Brightness option to get, you know…

In the Color menu, there are gamma and color temp presets for the General color space. These options are grayed out in the other color modes. They are found on the second screen under the Color Space sub-menu. There, you get Adobe RGB, sRGB, BT.709, DCI (Display P3 only), and HDR, which corresponds to BT.2020. General and HDR cover over 120% of DCI-P3 while the other modes are fairly close to their respective values. The picture modes include two calibration settings that can be any gamut and four memories which the user can select. In the Calibration sub-menu, you can specify two of the presets’ gamut selection.

Gaming’s single option is a two-level overdrive. It’s reasonably effective on its Normal setting, but there’s only so much it can do with a 60Hz refresh rate and no Adaptive-Sync.

The PIP/PBP menu gives you options for viewing two sources at once. You can size and move the PIP window and swap sources too.

In Save Settings to, four memory slots let the user assign configurations to four of the 10 picture modes.

Acer ProDesigner PE320QXT Setup And Hands-on

The PE320QXT can be calibrated in the OSD like a regular monitor in its User picture mode when the General color space is selected. This is the default setting, and its gamut covers a very colorful 120% of DCI-P3. I left the gamma preset on 2.2 and tweaked the RGB gain sliders for excellent grayscale tracking and no visible errors. To access other gamuts, use the Color Space option in the Color menu. The most used options are listed below with their color temp and gamma defaults. I noted that all of them grayed out the other picture controls so they cannot be calibrated in the OSD. You’ll see all test results on pages four and five.

For gaming and productivity, I stuck with the General color space and User mode with my calibration in place. I’ll deliver the spoiler first: the PE320QXT is not a monitor for fast-paced shooters. There is significant motion blur at 60 FPS to where aiming becomes difficult if you’re accustomed to faster screens. And there’s no Adaptive-Sync, though this wasn’t a significant issue since the frame rate never varied from 60. There is an overdrive option which reduces blur a little and works without ghosting on its Normal setting.

If your games are more like Myst, then you can have a spectacular time playing on the PE320QXT. The color is stunning with rich hues and bright primaries. The image is also razor sharp. 219ppi is a benefit you can plainly see when compared to the 140ppi of the same-sized Ultra HD monitor. You won’t be able to see the dot structure without a serious magnifying glass.

With a resolution like 6K, you must consider the original content. Nothing is mastered in 6K, so unless you’re playing a rendered game, there will be some upscaling. Watching 4K video was a good experience with clean rendering, but the frame rate is locked at 60Hz. There is no support for 24 or 50p cadences.

Rendered graphics are the PE320QXT’s strongest ability. I look forward to the day that 8K is a thing because 6K is so realistic already. Moving through a virtual environment suspends disbelief far more effectively than lower resolutions. Looking at CAD drawings and conceptual renderings is also much more useful with this much pixel density.

Color-critical work is also a good experience, but I wished for more flexibility in the PE320QXT’s OSD. You’ll see in the tests later that color and gamma are close to the mark, but grayscale tracking has errors that are just visible. This manifests more in neutral tones like clouds or snow. And black and white material has a slight color cast as well.

The touchscreen function is something I haven’t seen before in such a large monitor. To activate it, just make a USB connection between the PE320QXT and the PC. I could use my finger or the included stylus to act as a pointing and drawing device. It was handy to store the stylus on its magnetic strip across the bottom of the screen. The webcam was also very cool. It rotates enough that you can keep your face centered in the frame regardless of the panel’s position. With 60 degrees of tilt, it can almost lie flat, which is great for use while standing. The stand is super solid and flexible and lets you put the monitor in almost any position. 360 degrees of swivel means that you’re only limited by cables when swinging the monitor about.

Takeaway: The PE320QXT acquits itself well as a collaboration and design tool. It isn’t quite a reference display for video postproduction or photography, though it supports those color spaces correctly to the point where you could use it for presentation. Gaming isn’t its forte with a 60Hz limit, but the overdrive was effective at reducing motion blur. The tablet feature and flexible stand are its most usable assets since you can work in a group while standing or sitting. The webcam also makes collaboration easy.

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Comparing professional displays is difficult because they take different approaches to their design goals. For this review of the PE320QXT, I’ve laid out the results and charts with comments in the same areas that I normally test.

Pixel Response and Input Lag

Click here to read up on our pixel response and input lag testing procedures.

· Response Time Full black to white transition – 7.93ms

· Absolute Input Lag Full black to white transition – 26ms

Though I can’t recommend the PE320QXT for high-speed gaming, it performs better than many 60 Hz panels I’ve tested. The response time is very quick at just under 8ms. There is some motion blur but not as much as you’d expect. The overdrive helps somewhat, but gaming should be kept to slower-paced titles for best results. Doom Eternal will go a little soft when the action ramps up.

Input lag is 26ms, which is slower than typical gaming monitors but faster than typical human reaction times. Obviously, a skilled gamer will be hampered by that much delay, but casual gaming is well within the PE320QXT’s wheelhouse.

Test Takeaway: You can play games on the PE320QXT if you take its limitations into account. At 60 Hz, there will be some motion blur. And input lag isn’t super low, but it isn’t super high either. The overdrive is effective at reducing some of that softness. Though there is no Adaptive-Sync, you’ll rarely see a frame tear if your PC can run 6K at 60fps.

Viewing Angles

The PE320QXT has some of the best off-axis image quality of any IPS screen I’ve tested. The side view would fool anyone into thinking it’s an OLED. There is no visible color shift, nor is there a change to brightness or gamma. This is important given its design intent. The giveaway comes in the vertical view where you can see a red shift. But gamma and brightness aren’t significantly different. The PE320QXT is designed to be shared, and it easily can be as these results show

Screen Uniformity

To learn how we measure screen uniformity, click here.

· Screen Uniformity Deviation From Center 0% Black Field – 11.28%

I noted some slight glow around the edges of my PE320QXT sample, which put its deviation score over the visible threshold of 10%. A lot is going on here with the extra Quantum Dot and capacitive touch screen layers in play, so this result is not surprising.

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To read about our monitor tests in-depth, please check out Display Testing Explained: How We Test PC Monitors. We cover brightness and contrast testing on page two.

Maximum Backlight Level

· Maximum White Luminance General Mode – 346.3619 nits

· Maximum Black Luminance General Mode – 0.2194 nit

· Maximum Contrast Ratio General Mode – 1,578.4:1

· Calibrated White Luminance General Mode – 206.9276

· Calibrated Black Luminance General Mode – 0.2125 nit

· Calibrated Contrast Ratio General Mode – 1,621.4:1

· ANSI Contrast General Mode – 1,542.8:1

The PE320QXT doesn’t have local or zone dimming, so measurements of full field and window patterns are the same. SDR brightness tops out at 346 nits, which is plenty of light for any indoor environment. Given the shiny screen, I would recommend using higher brightness settings to keep the image from being affected by reflections. Black levels are respectable for an IPS screen, resulting in an above-average contrast ratio of 1,578.4:1. This is excellent performance.

When I calibrated the General mode, I had to reduce the contrast slider to solve a clipping issue, but the ratio actually increased to 1,621.4:1, a nice gain. ANSI contrast (intra-image) is also solid at 1,542.8:1. The picture has a nice depth and texture, and though it won’t match an OLED, it is visibly superior to most IPS monitors.

Test Takeaway: The PE320QXT has plenty of light output and excellent black levels and contrast for an IPS screen with above-average scores in all areas. My only complaint is that there’s no dimming available to increase dynamic range. Adding a full-array Mini LED backlight would take it to another level.

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To verify the PE320QXT’s color accuracy, I tested grayscale, gamma, and gamut tracking for the Color Space modes that match commonly used standards. I noted that they cannot be calibrated in the OSD except for General, which uses the monitor’s full native gamut. The charts are below, and at the end of this page is a table summarizing all the error values.

Grayscale and Gamma Tracking

Our grayscale and gamma tests use Calman calibration software from Portrait Displays. We describe our grayscale and gamma tests in detail here.

The PE320QXT’s default color space in the User mode is General with a 2.2 gamma and D65 color temp (Warm setting). It runs a tad cool with barely visible errors at 90 and 100% brightness. You won’t see a problem in most content. Gamma is a tad light as well. I tweaked the RGB gains to visual perfection, though gamma is unchanged. Overall, though, the picture is excellent, more than enjoyable for general use.

The other modes are fixed and cannot be adjusted in the OSD. They all have slight errors in grayscale tracking, being either a tad cool or a tad warm. The furthest off the mark is HDR (BT.2020), which is very warm in tone. This will manifest later in the HDR tests. In all cases, gamma is either on point or a little light.

Color Gamut Accuracy

Our color gamut and volume testing use Portrait Displays’ Calman software. For details on our color gamut testing and volume calculations, click here.

Color tracking takes a middle road between P3 and BT.2020. The PE320QXT is a P3+ monitor thanks to its Quantum Dot layer. But note the direction of the green hue. It tends towards BT.2020. This is a compromise that keeps color from being too garish while taking advantage of that bonus volume. This creates a more natural look. I noted that Adobe RGB was on point for saturation and only showed slight hue errors in cyan and magenta. The PE320QXT has enough green to qualify as a true Adobe RGB display. Many other pro screens can’t make that claim.

Grayscale, Gamma and Color Gamut Test Summary

Below is a table of all the color space options’ results. Volume figures are impressive, especially for Adobe RGB and BT.2020, where the PE320QXT fills more than nearly all its competitors. Gamma runs a tad light and varies anywhere from 1.36 to 4.54% from its intended reference point. Grayscale errors are right at the visual threshold with a few slight issues but nothing significantly wrong. Gamma range values are very tight with very few variations.

Test Takeaway: The PE320QXT is a color-accurate monitor with a good selection of modes for professional use. It can’t be calibrated in the OSD, though, which might be an issue for long-term maintenance of standard references. It also lacks a P3 Cinema mode, which could be a problem for video post-production. In the General color space, it calibrates to a very high standard. It also has more color volume than just about any other professional display I’ve reviewed.

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Our HDR benchmarking uses Portrait Displays’ Calman software. To learn about our HDR testing, see our breakdown of how we test PC monitors.

The PE320QXT supports HDR10 content with two modes. I noted that it would not switch automatically to HDR mode when a signal was applied.

HDR Brightness and Contrast

· HDR White Luminance – 424.9390 nits

· HDR Black Level – 0.2125 nit

· HDR Sequential Contrast – 2,000.2:1

The PE320QXT is rated for VESA DisplayHDR 600, but I could not get my sample brighter than 425 nits. There is no local dimming available, but since contrast is higher than SDR at 2,000:1, it is logical to conclude that some field dimming is taking place. Measuring window patterns returns the same result as full fields. The result is that HDR is only slightly more impactful than SDR. The PE320QXT would really benefit from a full array Mini LED backlight.

Grayscale, EOTF and Color

The BT.2020 grayscale errors I observed in the SDR tests are also present for HDR. There is a very warm tone here that cannot be corrected in the OSD. The EOTF tracks close to the reference with slight darkness from 10% brightness up to the tone map transition at 65%. This is the correct value given the measured black and white levels. The only issue I noted was lightness between zero and 10%. Shadow detail is well rendered but not at black as it should be.

The PE320QXT’s color tests show much better results with linear oversaturation and hue points that are close to their targets. The DCI-P3 gamut is used fully while BT.2020 covers more than other professional monitors I’ve tested. The PE320QXT runs out of color at 90% red, 80% green, and 98% blue. With over 81% coverage of 2020, it’s one of the most colorful monitors you can buy.

Test Takeaway: The PE320QXT does a decent job with HDR thanks to solid luminance tracking. But it leaves dynamic range under the table with its edge backlight. It also has a warm grayscale, which means neutral tones aren’t quite neutral. Color is the best part with vivid hues and accurate gamut tracking. It also fills more of the BT.2020 gamut than just about any other monitor.

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When shopping for a professional monitor, it’s important to consider what it will be used for. The most common category is color reference, where you’ll be creating video and photography. There, accuracy and flexibility are paramount. You must have reliable color modes and the ability to easily adjust them when needed. And if you’re creating game content, you need fast refresh, speed video processing and Adaptive-Sync.

But if you want to conceptualize and present, you need things like a flexible stand, a touchscreen and a webcam for remote collaboration. You also need good viewing angles, so sharing doesn’t leave some users looking at different colors. The Acer ProDesigner PE320QXT is made precisely for those purposes.

Though I noted some discrepancies in grayscale tracking, the PE320QXT displays solid accuracy out of the box. The only thing missing there is an easy way to calibrate in the OSD. I noted that the General color space did allow calibration to a very high standard. HDR color also showed a few hiccups in the grayscale test where neutral tones were visibly warm. But color and luminance tracing were exemplary. The PE320QXT is also missing the gaming element with no Adaptive-Sync and a 60 Hz refresh rate. But its 6K resolution and massive color gamut deliver a stunning image when gameplay isn’t too twitchy.

Not only did image quality shine, but its presentation and design features were impressive. The touchscreen element worked without issue and was a real value-add for artists and designers. The included stylus was a nice touch, as was the integrated webcam, which makes for easy remote collaboration. And the stand was truly useful with its 60-degree up angle. A large touchscreen that you can also draw on is a real plus for digital art.

If you need a large monitor that can function as a meeting place, a design tool, an artist’s easel or just as a really nice display, the Acer ProDesigner PE320QXT fills the bill. At $1,800, it’s also a decent value when compared to other pro monitors. Those looking for something different should definitely check it out.

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There is no shortage of 27-inch gaming monitors to choose from. This size strikes a balance between screen area and desktop footprint. But who would turn down a 32-inch panel when it comes to the best gaming monitors? No one I can think of. It requires a bit more room, but if you have it, it’s a screen size that lets you keep multiple apps open and edit documents side by side. It’s also a great window for the detailed graphical worlds found in today’s most popular games.

Larger screens always cost more than smaller ones, or do they? Following my recent review of AOC’s U27G4XM, a 27-inch 4K Mini LED panel that sells for $350, I have the U32G4. It also uses a 4K panel with a dual-refresh operation that toggles between 4K/160 Hz and FHD 320 Hz. It forgoes the Mini LED for an edge array, but in doing so, it actually costs less while being larger, 32 inches diagonal. It also has Adaptive-Sync, wide gamut color, and HDR. Let’s take a look.

AOC U32G4 Specs

The U32G4 starts with an IPS panel that’s both fast and full of contrast. I measured around 1,100:1, which is a little higher than average for the category. Keep in mind that an OLED with similar specs will cost you close to $1,000, so this AOC is a terrific bargain. Speed comes from a 160 Hz refresh rate and a decent overdrive. You also get backlight strobing that can be used in concert with Adaptive-Sync. That’s something usually reserved for high-end gaming screens. The dual-mode feature doubles the Hertz to 320 and sets the resolution to FHD (1920x1080). That’s a bit soft for such a large screen, but it nearly eliminates motion blur.

There’s plenty of color and brightness here with 480 nits available for SDR content. Contrast is solid with respectable black levels that are a little lower than the average IPS panel. No Quantum Dots are used, but color coverage is measured at 90% of DCI-P3. HDR10 content is supported, with a VESA DisplayHDR 400 rating. And three HDR emulation modes work to increase the dynamic range of SDR material.

Gamers get a nice set of extras, including aiming points with a dynamic option, sniper modes, and a frame counter. There are no LED lights, USB ports, or internal speakers. But you do get a precise four-level overdrive and the backlight strobe, which can be used along with Adaptive-Sync. That’s a boon for those who want to stay at 4K resolution but don’t have a fast enough video card to run at 160 fps. Of course, the 320 Hz/FHD option is just a button click away.

If you’re willing to give up the U27G4XM’s Mini LED backlight, the U32G4 represents a phenomenal value. $320 for a 32-inch 4K gaming monitor? That’s a deal well worth checking out.

Assembly and Accessories

The U32G4 ships in crumbly foam packaging, with the base, upright, and panel requiring toolless assembly. Once done, it’s a reasonably solid piece with a wide stance and good stability. The power supply is internal, so you get an IEC cord plus DisplayPort and HDMI cables.

Product 360

The U32G4’s styling is simple and elegant, with the panel’s shape formed from triangles in the back. A bright red trim ring encircles the fulcrum in the back and the words “AOC Gaming” appear as well. The cooling vents are hidden inside the gap you see at the top.

The screen has an 8 mm-wide flush bezel with a 20mm strip across the bottom. Under the right corner are four OSD control keys and a power toggle. A tiny status LED glows orange in standby and white when the power is on. The screen’s anti-glare layer keeps ambient light from spoiling the image while being clear and grain-free.

The stand is secure and tight in operation. It includes a red-trimmed cable hole that’s turned to the side, so it doesn’t show from the front. Ergonomics include a 5/23-degree tilt, 20-degree swivel, and a 5-inch height adjustment. You also get a 90-degree portrait mode. Movements are firm and smooth with little to no play. Though relatively lightweight, the U32G4 is a solid piece of gear.

There isn’t much happening on the I/O panel, except for a DisplayPort 1.4 port and two HDMI 2.1 ports. There are no internal speakers, but you can plug headphones into the 3.5mm jack. There are no USB ports or LED lighting. If you prefer to use a monitor arm, a 100mm VESA mount is provided with fasteners included.

OSD Features

To summon the U32G4’s OSD, press the right-most control key. Don’t press the power toggle by mistake, as I did several times. The menu is convenient and concise, and divided into seven sections.

The Game Setting menu starts with the dual mode feature, which includes 4K 120 Hz, 160 Hz, and FHD 320 Hz modes. The quicker way to switch is to press the second button, which pops up a quick menu and changes modes in a few seconds. You’ll need to visit the Nvidia or AMD control panel once to set each mode, then you can toggle back and forth at will.

There are also game modes in addition to the Eco picture modes. That makes for many possible combinations, so I suggest sticking with Standard/Standard for all content. It’s the closest to spec and calibrates to a high standard. This menu also offers shadow control for low-end gamma, a color saturation slider, a dial point (the aiming point, static or dynamic), and three sniper magnifications. The second screen has MBR and MBR Sync, which is the blur-reducing backlight strobe. Sync means you can use it along with Adaptive-Sync. There is a little phasing, but it is effective at keeping blur at bay when frame rates drop below 120fps. You can also turn on a frame rate indicator. The overdrive has four levels, of which Faster strikes the best balance between ghosting and blur reduction at 160fps.

The Picture menu contains the eight main picture modes. Standard works the best, and I used it for all testing and gameplay. You can adjust the color temp with fixed modes and a set of RGB sliders. There are five gamma presets, color management and three gamut options. Panel Native covers around 90% of DCI-P3 and is suitable for all SDR and HDR content. The sRGB mode is accurate enough to qualify for color-critical applications.

There are three HDR emulation modes that extend the perceived dynamic range of SDR content. When HDR10 signals are present, a fourth mode appears, Display HDR. It is the best choice for its accurate grayscale, EOTF, and color tracking.

The only other peripheral feature I noted here was PIP and PBP. You can view two sources at once and the PIP window can be moved and sized. You can swap the windows and select which one plays audio through the DisplayPort or HDMI inputs.

AOC U32G4 Calibration Settings

The U32G4 looked a tad warm to my eyes, and initial measurements showed it was a little short on blue in grayscale patterns. It can be used without calibration, but a few tweaks to the RGB sliders removed all visible errors. Gamma runs a shade dark on the 2.2 setting. Changing it to 2.0 was too much; it washed out the image. I noted that the sRGB mode had no calibration options, but it tracked grayscale and color with reasonable accuracy, though it showed a few gamma quirks. I’ll tell you more about that on page four. HDR signals have four modes available, with Display being the best choice. They cannot be calibrated. Below are my recommended SDR settings. Please enjoy.

Gaming and Hands-on

Right out of the gate, I could see how quick the U32G4 was. Even at a “mere” 160 Hz, it delivered smooth motion thanks to its precise and artifact-free overdrive. It’s one of the better implementations I’ve seen, especially at this price point. I used the Faster setting (third of four) and was rewarded with no perceivable motion blur. I was able to stay at 160fps thanks to a GeForce RTX 4090.

I tried the backlight strobe and found it effective at lower frame rates. I capped the action at 120 Hz and still had a smooth experience. It keeps Adaptive-Sync on, which is something I’m rarely able to do. There aren’t many monitors at any price that have that ability. If you have a slower video card, you can still enjoy 4K resolution at lower frame rates.

The dual-mode switch worked without issue once I set it up in the Nvidia control panel. You can toggle it in the OSD or press the second control key for a quick menu that does it faster. Running FHD on a 32-inch monitor is soft at best, but there’s no denying the benefit of 320fps. The U32G4 is quick at 160 Hz and super-quick at 320 Hz. This is also a good way to enjoy high frame rates from a budget gaming PC.

There are no Quantum Dots here, so I missed a little green saturation. But otherwise, the U32G4 is very colorful. DCI-P3 coverage is around 90%, so there is plenty of color for SDR content. The sRGB gamut option is useful when a smaller color space is needed, but I noticed slight gamma issues. Shadow areas were a bit light, and some highlights were muted. You can see why in the tests on page four.

For workday tasks, I stuck with Panel Native and a few tweaks to the RGB sliders to remove all grayscale errors. Gamma is a shade dark, but there is no loss of detail. Set the brightness slider to 200 nits, and you’ll enjoy a vivid and pleasing image.

4K at 32 inches has plenty of pixel density at 139ppi. That’s fine enough to hide the dot structure unless you sit inches from the screen. Text is smoothly rendered without visible jaggies. Graphics look realistic with photos being particularly enjoyable. That might have something to do with the large format. 32 inches is my go-to and it’s the size of my reference screen. It’s perfect for writing where I need to keep extra windows open to refer to charts and data. Spreadsheets can be viewed with much less scrolling, and webpages display more of their content too. Photoshop lets you see the picture and keep lots of toolbars at hand.

Takeaway: For $320, it’s hard to imagine a better 4K gaming monitor than the U32G4. It’s fast, bright, and colorful. It doesn’t have USB ports or internal speakers, but it does have all the goods for high-performance gaming with low input lag, smooth motion resolution, and accurate color. It’s equally adept at productivity with lots of screen area for documents and large, clear text. If you have the desktop space for something bigger, a 32-inch monitor is a great option.

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For all tests except panel response, I’ll be comparing the U32G4 to a group of 27-inch 4K screens. My database doesn’t have any current 32-inchers except for BenQ’s PD3226G. The other displays are AOC’s U27G4XM, ViewSonic’s VX2730D-4K, Titan Army’s P2712V, and Gigabyte’s GS27U.

Pixel Response and Input Lag

Click here to read up on our pixel response and input lag testing procedures.

The response test group consists of the last five LCD panels I’ve tested, so their sizes and resolutions vary. It’s interesting to note that refresh rate doesn’t always mean faster screen draw. That is a function of the overdrive. When I test, I set it to where there are no ghosting artifacts. This is usually not the fastest setting. In the U32G4’s case, doubling the refresh rate adds a scant 0.16ms to the score. This is an imperceptible amount. The overdrive is effective, but the first three panels will be a touch smoother at the indicated refresh rates. Remember that an OLED panel is about ten times quicker with draw times around 0.25ms.

In the lag test, the U32G4 takes the win at 320 Hz with a 13.4ms score. This puts it on par with many premium gaming monitors. At 160 Hz, it manages to outdo three monitors with higher refresh rates. For the price, this kind of performance is hard to beat.

Test Takeaway: The U32G4 is one of the faster gaming monitors I’ve tested. It’s worth pairing with a video card powerful enough to run at 160 Hz at 4K resolution, as it offers excellent overdrive and very low input lag. To get smoother processing, you’ll need an OLED, which will cost you around three times as much. This is impressive performance to say the least.

Viewing Angles

The green tint seen in the U32G4’s 45-degree side photo shows its IPS origin. But it isn’t the most tint I’ve seen. And there is no change to gamma or brightness, which is a major plus. This is a very shareable monitor. The top view has a red cast with reduced gamma and luminance.

Screen Uniformity

To learn how we measure screen uniformity, click here.

I noticed a Uniformity picture mode, which indeed improves uniformity but at the cost of peak brightness and contrast. No matter, because my U32G4 sample scored an excellent 6.58% in its Standard mode. There are no visible issues here in any test pattern or content. This is excellent performance.

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To read about our monitor tests in-depth, please check out Display Testing Explained: How We Test PC Monitors. We cover brightness and contrast testing on page two.

Uncalibrated – Maximum Backlight Level

The U32G4 is fairly bright for its size. Most 32-inch screens do well to hit 400 nits unless they have Mini LED backlights. At 480, the U32G4 is nearly as bright as its 27-inch Mini LED stablemate, the U27G4XM. If you use a 32-inch monitor at 480 nits, you will tire quickly unless your room is sunlit, or you’re outside, say in a location shoot tent. The black level is respectable for an IPS monitor, so you get 1,154.9:1 contrast, which is a tad above average. Only the ViewSonic boasts more dynamic range.

After Calibration to 200 nits

After calibration, the U32G4’s black level goes up to second place behind the overachieving VX2730D-4K, and contrast stays consistent at 1,147.4:1. ANSI contrast is also very consistent at 1,088.4:1, keeping it ahead of all but the ViewSonic in this group of tests. This is excellent performance.

Test Takeaway: You won’t mistake the U32G4 for an OLED or VA monitor, but among IPS screens, the most common tech, it stands out with solid contrast and good black levels. It also has high brightness, which is an asset for outdoor use or if you have a very sunny office like me.

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The U32G4 is on the edge of needing calibration. I expect most users will be satisfied with the image as it comes out of the box. If you do tweak, stick to the Standard/Standard mode which allows access to RGB sliders, gamma presets and color gamut options.

Grayscale and Gamma Tracking

Our grayscale and gamma tests use Calman calibration software from Portrait Displays. We describe our grayscale and gamma tests in detail here.

In the first chart, you can see that the U32G4 is a tad warm in tone, but the errors are close to the 3dE threshold. Brightness levels below 50% have no visible issues. This is solid performance for the money. Gamma runs a tad dark with rising values in the 60-90% range. This is a small error that won’t adversely affect real-world content. Some highlights may look muted, but problems will be hard to spot.

Calibration tightens up grayscale tracking by bringing all errors below 2dE. You won’t see anything but perfectly neutral tones here. Gamma is a shade lighter too, which is a subtle but positive change. Considering that the U32G4 is a 32-inch 4K monitor for $320, I can’t complain.

The sRGB mode has similar grayscale tracking, but gamma is a bit askew. The dip at 10% means dark areas will be too light. As the values rise, it mutes highlight areas, especially in the 80-90% brightness region. The U32G4 can be considered qualified for critical applications, but some compensation for the gamma error should be made.

Comparisons

In the default comparison, the U32G4 sits right on the edge of “needs calibration.” I would say it does, but I’m pickier than most. It’s an occupational hazard. I doubt too many gamers would complain. But if you tweak, at least with my recommended settings, you’ll make visible gains in image quality. Not only are the neutral tones more neutral, but the gamma is also a tad lighter, which gives the picture more verve.

Though gamma is a shade dark, its tight range of values mitigates the visual impact of any inaccuracy. The range is small at 0.12 while the deviation is 3.64%. That equates to an actual value of 2.28, not too far from 2.2. This is excellent performance for a budget gaming monitor.

Color Gamut Accuracy

Our color gamut and volume testing use Portrait Displays’ Calman software. For details on our color gamut testing and volume calculations, click here.

The default color chart shows excellent tuning on AOC’s part, with only slight hue errors in magenta and cyan. Green comes up a tad short of full coverage thanks to the lack of Quantum Dots. The inner points hit their marks, but you only get around 85% of the green primary. This is typical of non-QD LCD panels.

Calibration corrects secondary hue errors without changing any saturation points. The improvement is subtle but visible. This is excellent performance.

The sRGB chart adheres well to the standard despite the gamma errors I noted earlier. This is why you can use the U32G4 for critical work. Gamma issues can be compensated for using a software profile if you wish.

Comparisons

This is a solid group of color-accurate monitors, with the U32G4 in fourth place. If you lined them all up, you’d see very little difference except for the top three, which cover more of the green primary. From a precision perspective, the U32G4 holds its own with more expensive displays. DCI-P3 coverage comes up a little short of 90%, but for the price, there is nothing to complain about. sRGB coverage is ideal at 99.32%.

Test Takeaway: The U32G4 is very accurate out of the box when price is considered. You’re getting a 32-inch 4K display for $320. That alone is enough. With calibration, it delivers solid accuracy with its only weakness being green primary coverage when referenced to DCI-P3. The sRGB mode has excellent gamut accuracy and only needs improvement to its gamma tracking. Overall, the U32G4’s color performance is more than good enough to satisfy users looking to save a bit of money on a large screen.

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Our HDR benchmarking uses Portrait Displays’ Calman software. To learn about our HDR testing, see our breakdown of how we test PC monitors.

The U32G4 supports HDR10 content with an automatic switch and four specific picture modes. It can also mimic HDR’s dynamic range with three emulation modes for SDR signals.

HDR Brightness and Contrast

I was surprised to see that the U32G4’s HDR peak was a little lower than its SDR number. This isn’t a huge deal, but it does narrow the gap between SDR and HDR in terms of impact. I also noted that there was no dynamic contrast in play. There is no edge-zone or field dimming, and the DCR option in the picture menu is grayed out. This means there is no difference in black levels or contrast between SDR and HDR. In both modes, you get around 1,100:1. The U32G4 supports HDR but doesn’t embrace it. This is also true of the ViewSonic, Titan Army, and Gigabyte displays. If you want high-impact HDR from an LCD, go for a Mini LED screen like the U27G4XM.

Grayscale, EOTF and Color

In the HDR grayscale test, there is a slightly warm tone, but the error is barely visible in content. That’s a good thing because there are no adjustments available. The highest errors just crack 4dE, not bad for a budget display. The EOTF tracks very closely to the reference with a little lightness around 40-50% brightness and an elevated black level seen at the 0-5% part of the chart. The tone map transition at 65% is correct for the measured black and white thresholds.

The color test shows a little oversaturation, but no more than any other HDR monitor I’ve tested. This is a typical approach taken by most displays that gives HDR more punch. It’s effective in the U32G4’s case with no cause for complaint. Hue tracking is on point. The DCI-P3 chart is a tad short on green; also typical for non-Quantum Dot screens. In the BT.2020 test, the U32G4 runs out of color at 85% red, 70% green and 90% blue.

Test Takeaway: The U32G4 is a color-accurate HDR monitor but not a particularly bright or impactful one. It has no dynamic contrast available to extend that range but that isn’t unusual at this price point. The standard is supported with accurate color and luminance tracking, but HDR doesn’t look significantly different from SDR.

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Now that 4K monitors are becoming available at truly attractive prices, the array of choices is vast. But it seems they’re mostly concentrated in the 27-inch category, if my review database is any indication. I doubt there are users who would choose a 27 over a 32 unless they just don’t have the room. 32 inches used to be a significant price jump, but no more. The AOC U32G4 is $320, and for that sum, you get a lot.

Its IPS panel has slightly higher than average contrast at around 1,100:1. Color is accurate with no real need for calibration, but you can tweak it for a small improvement. It’s bright at over 480 nits peak though HDR is a little less vivid at around 450 nits. And it doesn’t offer dynamic dimming so the quality difference between SDR and HDR is small. In all scenarios though, it is very colorful. You don’t get Quantum Dots, but you do get 90% coverage of DCI-P3.

Video processing is on par with many premium screens thanks to a precise overdrive and extremely low input lag. The U32G4 also lets you run backlight strobing with Adaptive-Sync, a feature that very few monitors offer. And the dual-mode feature works without issue if you want to race around at 320fps in FHD resolution.

If you only have a small monitor budget but want a large screen, the AOC U32G4 is pretty much a no-brainer. It’s fast, bright, and colorful, and games with the best monitors I’ve reviewed. It’s versatile too, with dual-refresh and MBR Sync. For $320, it has no real competition. Budget-conscious gaming PC owners should definitely check it out.

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Of the many sizes and shapes the best gaming monitors come in, the 34-inch ultra-wide 21:9 screen strikes a good balance between size and player immersion. It’s wider than the 32-inch 16:9 format but not as large as extreme displays like the 52-inch LG I reviewed recently.

What makes them even better is QD-OLED technology, and there, Alienware is offering a nice update to last year’s AW3425DW. It’s the AW3426DW, and it brings a few new features, like a five-layer tandem OLED for higher light output, V-stripe RGB sub-pixels for sharper rendering, a bump from 240 to 280 Hz, and a new anti-reflective screen coating. It’s still WQHD 3440x1440 pixels, and it still offers Adaptive-Sync, HDR10, and wide gamut color, and adds Dolby Vision to its list of supported content. Let’s take a look.

Alienware AW3426DW Specs

The AW3426DW’s Tandem OLED is a new variant of the technology that takes the simple approach of stacking multiple OLED layers for greater light output with less energy consumption. It also taxes the layers less, so they last longer and are more resistant to burn-in. Alienware backs this with a three-year warranty that includes burn-in. The screen has a 34-inch diagonal, a 21:9 aspect ratio, a 1800mm curve radius, and WQHD (3440x1440) resolution.

V-Stripe RGB refers to the sub-pixel layout, which is finer and more precisely applied. This makes fine text and detail sharper by reducing color fringing. With its five OLED layers, the AW3426DW now boasts higher light output than last year’s model. The VESA DisplayHDR rating is now 500 nits for a full white field and 1,300 nits for a 3% window. To cap off the imaging improvements, there’s a new anti-glare coating applied to the screen that further deepens black levels and more effectively rejects ambient light.

With 280 Hz instead of last year’s 240, the AW3426DW is a tad speedier, and my test results, which you’ll see on the next page, show a nice drop in input lag. Panel response is typical OLED-quick, resulting in perfect motion resolution and smooth action free of motion blur. Adaptive-Sync is also supported on both Nvidia and AMD platforms.

It’s no surprise that the AW3426DW supports HDR10, but now it adds Dolby Vision to the mix. The benefits of its dynamic tone mapping cannot be understated. HDR10’s tone mapping is fixed to the content metadata, which usually has a peak of 1,000 nits. If a display can’t hit 1,000 nits, or its output exceeds that, it must tone map to render all brightness steps. Dolby Vision controls this process within the content and always knows the display's actual output level. Bottom line: it’s more accurate and consistent, and it looks better. It’s a difference you can plainly see. Dolby Vision isn’t common in games, but it is common from streaming services like Netflix, HBO Max, and Disney+.

All other features of the AW3425DW carry over to the AW3426DW, like AlienVision and its cool aiming point/sniper mode editor. You also get USB ports and a backlit Alienware logo on the back. There’s no headphone jack or internal speaker, but the downstream USB-A and USB-C ports are on the bottom edge of the panel, where they are within easy reach. Video inputs include two HDMI and a DisplayPort.

Assembly and Accessories

The AW3426DW arrived in secure molded pulp packaging that is completely recyclable. The base, upright, and panel assemble easily with no tools needed. The power supply is internal, so you get IEC power plus HDMI, DisplayPort, and USB cables. A small microfiber cloth is provided to keep that beautiful screen free of dust and fingerprints.

Product 360

The AW3426DW maintains the aesthetic Alienware introduced last year with softly rounded corners and smooth tapers. My favorite bit is where the upright and base meet; the joint appears to float with a slender swivel point that’s barely visible. In the back is a backlit Alienware head and a polished symbol; “Alienware 30” is the official term. The head can light up with different colors and effects. A subtle vent rings the fulcrum with small perforations that keep the internals cool. A graphite layer behind the OLEDs further cools the screen.

The side photo affords a good view of the rounded aesthetic. The stand has no angles or corners at all, just a small cable hole to keep wiring tidy. Ergonomics include a 5/21-degree tilt and a 20-degree swivel. The height range is 4.4 inches, and there is no portrait mode. Movements are firm and free of play. Build quality is premium in every respect. If you’d rather not use the stand, there is a 100mm VESA mount with fasteners included.

Underneath, you’ll find a small I/O panel with two HDMI 2.1 ports and a DisplayPort 1.4 with Display Stream Compression (DSC). A USB upstream port supports the two downstream jacks on the panel’s edge. You get a USB Type-A and Type-C. The Type-C port supports charging and peripherals, but not video. In the center, you can see the OSD joystick that controls all monitor functions.

OSD Features

Pressing the AW3426DW’s joystick opens a quick menu at the bottom of the screen with a large status bar at the top. It shows input signal info along with the current picture mode, HDR status, panel health, and dark stabilizer setting. The quick menu has five icons that scroll left to right. They can be programmed for many different monitor functions, such as brightness/contrast, input, AlienVision, HDR, and others. Clicking the joystick up opens the full OSD.

In the Game menu, you can choose from 13 picture modes. Standard works well by default and does not require calibration if you’re OK with using the full color gamut in SDR mode. It covers 105% of DCI-P3. If you want to make adjustments, select Custom Color, where you get RGB gain/bias and color management. To access sRGB, there’s a Creator mode with a gamut selector and gamma presets.

Game Enhance Mode contains a timer, frame counter, and alignment marks, but where are the aiming points? That’s one of the coolest features of the AW3426DW, it’s called AlienVision, and it is a completely customizable set of reticles and sniper modes, eight parameters in all, that can be edited and combined in hundreds of ways to create a custom view of the game environment. Once configured, there are three memories so you can have setups for different games.

In the AlienFX Lighting menu, you can customize the behavior of the power button and the Alienware head on the back. There are lots of color and effect options, and you can turn on Aurora, which coordinates the lights with what’s happening on screen. You’ll need Alienware Command Center and a USB connection to make that happen.

The Display menu has seven HDR modes for HDR10 content, including a tweakable Custom Color option. I found decent accuracy in both Desktop and HDR Peak 1300 Bright modes. I’ll tell you more about that on page five. You can also toggle Dolby Vision on and off here.

The AW3426DW includes PIP and PBP with options for window size and position. In Personalize, you can specify the functions of the five quick menu icons and the four joystick directions. This makes it easy to quickly change something like the input or the picture mode.

OLED care is much simpler now than in previous models. Functions like logo detection and pixel orbiting are handled automatically by the AW3426DW’s firmware. The only thing you can do manually is pixel refresh. This menu also has a factory reset option. In the Information menu, you’ll find an 11-page calibration report for each monitor, along with signal information and support resources.

Alienware AW3426DW Calibration Settings

Calibrating the AW3426DW is completely unnecessary. Just leave it in the default Standard mode and set brightness to taste. There is no variable brightness for SDR, so only one value is needed. If you want to calibrate, choose Custom Color. It has RGB gain and bias, plus hue and saturation sliders for each color. To change the gamut, use Creator mode. It lets you specify sRGB or P3 and includes five gamma presets. In the three Game modes, you can also adjust color and specify a custom value for the dark stabilizer. My SDR settings are included below.

For HDR content, there are seven more modes. Desktop is the default and is similar to HDR Peak 1300 Bright in its color and luminance tracking. The latter delivers the brightest highlights and the most vivid color.

Gaming and Hands-on

I suspect that some readers here will be wondering if the AW3426DW is a worthwhile upgrade over the AW3425DW. After several days of gaming and working, I will say that it is. HDR is brighter, and the new panel with its V-Strip RGB pixel structure is clearer than before. It’s hard to quantify this since OLEDs are sharp by nature, but the AW3426DW does make an incremental improvement. Brighter HDR certainly makes an impact with highlights that pop and a dimensional quality that no premium Mini LED can match.

Color accuracy is superb both out of the box and after calibration, where I changed just two settings, one click each. The AW3426DW is truly factory-calibrated. It equals any professional monitor in terms of measured performance and image fidelity.

Gaming was an addictive experience, as it is with any fast OLED. The smooth motion that comes with panel response, measured in fractions of a millisecond, is something you can’t get from an LCD. An OLED draws the screen about 10 times faster than an LCD with an equal refresh rate. The AW3426DW’s bump to 280 Hz is also a reason to upgrade. It reduces my input lag by 4ms in my test. Could I spot that difference in gameplay? No, but I’m not a competition gamer either. Those looking for every advantage will want to give this monitor an audition.

The 34-inch curved panel proved useful for both work and entertainment. It’s just large enough for me to display two documents side by side. It requires a bit more scrolling than my 16:9 32-inch screen, but the 1800R curve isn’t too severe. There was no image distortion, but I got a nice wraparound effect when navigating first-person shooters and graphical adventures.

I appreciated the inclusion of USB ports, especially the two located on the bottom edge of the panel. It’s easy to plug in peripherals or charge a phone from the USB-C port. But I missed the 3.5mm headphone jack. And there are no internal speakers, so to get audio, you’ll need USB-capable headphones or a desktop amplifier if you want to drive cabinet speakers. And I enjoyed the AlienFX feature with its glowing Alien head. It played colors off the wall behind my desk.

Takeaway: The AW3426DW is a worthy upgrade from the AW3425DW. It’s quicker and brighter, and the image is a tad sharper than before. Input lag is lower as well, which will appeal to skilled gamers looking for every possible advantage. Color is saturated and vivid with accuracy good enough to use right out of the box. The screen’s curve strikes an ideal balance between immersion and a square image.

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To compare the AW3426DW’s performance, I’ve included its predecessor, the AW3425DW, along with Asus’ PG34WCDN, Acer’s X34 OLED, AOC’s AG346UCD, and Gigabyte’s MO34WQC2. The response chart is a different group of OLEDs owing to my recent acquisition of the Nvidia LDAT tester. It includes Acer’s X27 X1, ViewSonic’s VX2738-2K, MSI’s MPG 322UR X24, Asus PG34WCDN, and Alienware’s AW2726DM.

Pixel Response and Input Lag

Click here to read up on our pixel response and input lag testing procedures.

OLED panel response times are extremely tight, and in practice, you’re unlikely to see a difference unless frame rates are low. A panel like the AW3426DW, with its 0.24ms draw time, will retain smooth motion resolution down to about 160 fps. A faster panel like the Acer can maintain blur-free operation up to around 140 fps. If your video card can keep the action above 200 Hz, all the panels will perform equally from a visual standpoint.

In the lag test, the AW3426DW is among the fastest panels I’ve tested. The Asus is an extreme overachiever. Only a couple of other monitors can approach 10ms in my test. 14.1ms is very fast, more than enough for pro-level competition. And it’s a tad quicker than last year’s AW3425DW. Most gamers will be satisfied with the AOC and Gigabyte screens at 22ms. Remember that the fastest human reaction time is typically around 100ms.

Test Takeaway: The AW3426DW improves slightly over its predecessor, with nearly 4ms less input lag. Its panel response is on par with the other fast OLEDs I’ve tested. Motion resolution is extremely high, with moving objects rendering blur-free. It is fast and smooth enough for pro-level competition.

Viewing Angles

Most Quantum Dot OLEDs show a slight tint in 45-degree-angle photos, but the AW3426DW’s tandem OLED tech seems to have eliminated that issue. There is no change to gamma or brightness either. This is about as good as it can possibly be. Viewing angles up to 45 degrees are visually perfect. The top view has a slight red shift with a 10% brightness drop and reduced gamma.

Screen Uniformity

To learn how we measure screen uniformity, click here.

Fittingly, the AW3426DW aces my uniformity test and is bested only by its predecessor, the AW3425DW. Visually, there is no difference here. You won’t see any variation among these screens, as they are all below the visible threshold of 10%. It doesn’t get better than that.

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To read about our monitor tests in-depth, please check out Display Testing Explained: How We Test PC Monitors. We cover brightness and contrast testing on page two.

Uncalibrated – Maximum Backlight Level

The AW3426DW is a bit brighter than last year, with over 320 nits peak for SDR. That’s from a full field white pattern. There is no variable brightness option, so you’ll see the same number from smaller windows and highlights in actual content. This does not reduce the impact of OLED’s infinite contrast and its unmeasurable black levels. The new anti-glare layer and five-layer Tandem OLED are said to lower black levels, but to the naked eye, they were already as black as black gets.

After Calibration to 200 nits

Calibration doesn’t change the black level or contrast result. It still cannot be measured. You’ll only need one brightness value since there’s no variable option. That comes into play for HDR content, though. ANSI, or intra-image contrast, also cannot be measured.

Test Takeaway: The AW3426DW offers the same black level and contrast performance as any OLED. That said, its new anti-glare layer offers better light rejection, which improves the perception of blacks in environments with medium to high ambient light levels. That is a visual observation that I cannot measure with instruments. One point in favor of upgrading your AW3425DW to an AW3426DW is the extra 60 nits of peak brightness it offers.

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The AW3426DW came to me set to Standard picture mode, which, as you’ll see, does not need calibration. There is an 11-page report stored in each sample’s firmware that you can read from the OSD. My tests confirmed that it is indeed calibrated at the factory.

Grayscale and Gamma Tracking

Our grayscale and gamma tests use Calman calibration software from Portrait Displays. We describe our grayscale and gamma tests in detail here.

If I were just going to put the AW3426DW on my desk and use it for gaming and productivity, I would not bother with adjustments. The first chart shows that it has no grayscale errors above 2dE, and the gamma is slightly dark but very close to the 2.2 reference. This is impressive out-of-box performance.

In the Custom Color mode, you get RGB gain and bias sliders. I didn’t have to touch the bias, but I lowered red and green gain by one click each. The result was all errors below 0.5dE and a slightly tighter gamma. The visual difference is extremely small, but if you have the desire and the means, why not? This is a superlative performance.

The Creator sRGB mode has very accurate grayscale, but gamma is a tad wonky. It’s too light at 10%, making the shadow areas less black. And there’s a rise between 60 and 80%, which takes a bit of definition out of the brighter mid-tones. This is a minor error, but it would be nice to have tighter gamma. You can change the preset, but you can’t alter the curve’s shape.

Comparisons

Though the AW3426DW impresses with a 1.46dE default grayscale score, it is slightly bested by its predecessor and by the Gigabyte. These numbers are more like talking points as the visual difference can’t be seen with the naked eye. But I am here to be precise in my testing.

Calibration takes the AW3426DW down to 0.44dE, but again, it is pipped by the AW3425DW by 0.01dE. Yes, that is a hair at best. All the monitors here test extremely well.

Gamma performance is excellent but middling by comparison. The range of values is very tight at 0.08 from lowest to highest. The deviation is 2.73% with an actual average of 2.26. This is excellent performance.

Color Gamut Accuracy

Our color gamut and volume testing use Portrait Displays’ Calman software. For details on our color gamut testing and volume calculations, click here.

The color test result clearly shows the advantage of Quantum Dot technology. The AW3426DW fully covers all primaries, including green with slight oversaturation at all points. This means the picture will be very colorful but also well-balanced. Calibration barely makes a difference, but you can see slightly better hue tracking in cyan, magenta, and yellow.

The sRGB chart is very good overall, but with some slight undersaturation in the midrange red tones. This is an extremely small error. The AW3426DW is qualified for color-critical applications.

Comparisons

The color difference between all six monitors is extremely small. From an error standpoint, there is no visible difference. The only variation comes in the volume test, where the AW3426DW sits at the bottom of the Quantum Dot screens. It has about 1.5% less color volume than the AW3425DW, which is an invisible difference. The AOC and Gigabyte screens have a touch more green and red, but you’ll only see that in the brightest content. For everyday games, videos, and applications, all six monitors will look the same.

Test Takeaway: The AW3426DW has exemplary out-of-box color, grayscale, and gamma accuracy. It does not need calibration, but a couple of tweaks generated awesome numbers in my tests. Its color volume is on par with other Quantum Dot screens at a hair shy of 105% of DCI-P3. No one would complain about its colorful and clear image.

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Our HDR benchmarking uses Portrait Displays’ Calman software. To learn about our HDR testing, see our breakdown of how we test PC monitors.

The AW3426DW offers higher brightness than its predecessor for both SDR and HDR content. It’s rated for 1,300 nits from a 3% window and certified by VESA for DisplayHDR 500. HDR10 signals get seven specific modes, and it supports Dolby Vision.

HDR Brightness and Contrast

For my tests, I measured HDR10 performance and noted a 70-nit higher peak for the AW3426DW over the AW3425DW. This is from a 25% window pattern. A 3% window is claimed at 1,300 nits, and this result leaves no reason for doubt. The AW3426DW is definitely brighter than before, and its HDR is more impactful. Variable brightness is in play here and cannot be turned off, not that you’d want to. This is excellent performance.

Grayscale, EOTF and Color

I measured the Desktop and HDR Peak 1300 Bright modes and got similar color and grayscale results. There are no visible errors in the first chart, and EOTF tracking is solid. The trace starts a tad dark, but I could still see all the steps in a test pattern. Shadow detail is clear and visible in all cases. The tone map transition is at 65%, which is correct for the measured white and black thresholds.

In the color gamut test, the AW3426DW uses all available coverage with extra saturation for P3 and almost 80% coverage of BT.2020. All points are slightly oversaturated, which is typical of the HDR monitors I’ve tested. They all push the envelope for extra impact, and it is effective. In the BT.2020 chart, the AW3426DW runs out of color at 90% red, 75% green, and 95% blue.

Test Takeaway: The AW3426DW presents a stunning HDR image with deep blacks and very bright highlights. It is a clear improvement over the AW3425DW. If you enjoy a lot of HDR content, it’s a worthwhile upgrade. Color and grayscale are very accurate in both Desktop and Peak 1300 modes.

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The benefits of 34-inch 21:9 curved gaming monitors are many when compared to the vast array of sizes and shapes currently available. Play is enhanced by a screen that mimics VR headsets by encompassing the viewer’s peripheral vision. And this size doesn’t have a huge footprint. While jumbo screens are cool, they demand a larger desktop and can be costly. The AW3426DW strikes a good balance between usability, performance and cost. At this writing, it’s brand new to the market with an opening price of $800, the same as last year’s AW3425DW.

The AW3426DW offers several compelling reasons to upgrade. It’s brighter for both SDR and HDR content by around 60 and 70 nits, respectively. It also boasts much brighter small highlights for HDR, around 1,300 nits for a 3% window. This is thanks to its new five-layer Tandem OLED tech. Color remains vivid, with 105% DCI-P3 coverage from its Quantum Dot layer.

Speed has increased from 240 to 280 Hz, and that brings with it a 4ms drop in input lag, about 22%. That will be worthwhile to the most skilled gamers who want every possible advantage. The new anti-glare coating helps keep the image solid in bright rooms. And the V-Stripe RGB sub-pixel layout sharpens fine detail and text better as well.

At $800, the AW3426DW is a solid value among OLED gaming monitors. If you already own an AW3425DW, it’s worth upgrading for the improvements in speed, brightness and clarity. If you’re looking for your first OLED, it’s a great choice for all-around use, work, and play that is worth checking out.

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