Asus ROG Swift PG32UQX gaming monitor evaluate – HDR perfection

It’s honest to say screens haven’t superior on the identical tempo as cell phones or televisions, with OLED panels now commonplace in just about all the pieces besides gaming shows. It’s anybody’s guess as to once we’ll see these catch up – however till then, the ASUS ROG Swift PG32UQX is the perfect of what gaming screens have to supply: a 32-inch panel sporting 4K at 144Hz, and DisplayHDR 1400 certification.

The PG32UQX provides us a glimpse of what gaming will seem like in a number of years, when the mini LED know-how powering this show is on the market at an affordable worth. Sadly, gazing into the long run is one thing solely Raven Baxter can do at no cost. For the remainder of us, you’ll need to spend a whopping $2,990 / £3,299 to see what all of the fuss is about. Belief me, I’ve owned an HDR1000 OLED TV for a number of years now, and I’ve by no means seen HDR pretty much as good as this earlier than.

For those who’re out there for the very best gaming monitor, you’ll know simply how tough it’s to discover a show that ticks each field. There are 4K panels on the market, however what number of of them run at a excessive refresh fee? With the newest graphics playing cards, gaming at 4K is not an unattainable dream, it’s actuality. Then you need to consider HDR, and that’s when issues get messy. Numerous trendy screens have HDR capabilities, however the peak brightness is just too low to have the meant impact.

My secondary monitor is an Alienware AW2721D, which is a improbable panel for aggressive gaming that additionally options DisplayHDR 600 help. The issue with HDR on this LED panel is the variety of dimming zones, coming in at simply 32 edge-lit zones. On a darkish background, you may clearly see blooming when shifting your cursor on the desktop. This turns into so distracting in darkish scenes that it’s merely not price utilizing HDR.

This downside is minimised on the PG32UQX as a result of it makes use of a Full Array Native Dimming (FALD) backlight, giving the monitor a staggering 1,152 unbiased LED zones. Some blooming does happen on this monitor, nevertheless it’s most noticeable on purely black scenes and on the desktop. In films and video games, the blooming impact isn’t noticeable in any respect. The PG32UQX has a cooling fan that prompts when utilizing HDR for extended intervals of time, although I couldn’t hear it whereas sporting headphones.

The PG32UQX delivers an HDR expertise in video games that’s unequalled by any show I’ve ever seen. The impact feels much more dramatic on a monitor in comparison with a TV since you’re so near the motion. In a vibrant sport like Ori and the Will of the Wisps, HDR deepens the visuals by making vibrant objects come out towards the darkish environments.

It’s tough to clarify the impact HDR has with out seeing it in particular person, and the PG32UQX is such a leap from what screens have been capable of provide over the previous few years. When applied accurately, HDR makes an even bigger distinction than each decision and graphics enhancements like ray tracing. Switching again to SDR looks like an enormous step down, and that’s the case with virtually each HDR sport accessible.

An space the place the PG32UQX falls quick is in aggressive gaming, however that’s clear to anybody who noticed the monitor’s refresh fee and response instances. Enjoying a sport like Apex Legends is a good expertise, however you’ll need to cope with ghosting results and poor efficiency except you’re prepared to scale back the decision. My familiarity with a 240Hz panel has spoiled me – it’s clear to see the PG32UQX wasn’t designed for use by skilled avid gamers.

Although this monitor excels when enjoying video games, it additionally works very nicely for productiveness. It might not provide as a lot display actual property as an ultrawide show, nevertheless it’s not far off coming in at a chunky 32-inches. The PG32UQX has been manufacturing facility calibrated out of the field, prepared for any color correct work that must be completed. Provided that this monitor is said to the Asus ProArt PA32UCX (a reference monitor), it’s not too shocking to see the PG32UQX do nicely on this division.

Identical to the Samsung Odyssey G7, the V-shaped stand on this monitor is cumbersome and takes up various area on my gaming desk. Happily, the PG32UQX is VESA-compatible, so you may mount it to avoid wasting area. The stand options peak, tilt, swivel adjustment, in addition to a gimmicky mild projection on the base to indicate off the ROG brand.

Talking of gimmicks, there’s a ‘reside sprint’ OLED panel constructed into the body of the show. You should utilize this panel to show a JPEG, or higher but, monitor your body fee to maintain that data off your display whilst you play video games. I truly like this function rather a lot and it threads properly with screen-clad CPU coolers, nevertheless it’s hampered by an OLED panel that forces the show to do a refresh animation each ten seconds.

The bezel on the display is so skinny that should you attempt to use the very best webcams just like the Logitech C920, the lip will cowl among the image. To fight this, the PG32UQX comes with a tripod mount together with a USB on the high of the show. Now that everybody’s working from residence, this can be a nice design selection. Streamers also can use the tripod port for further lighting, and even to carry a small DSLR digicam.

Asus has cracked the code with the PG32UQX with loads of design components I hope to see make their strategy to extra inexpensive fashions. The smaller high quality of life enhancements like a tripod mount aren’t as grand because the industry-leading HDR, nevertheless it ties a bow on what looks like an entire package deal. Proper now, although, it’s slowed down by a heavy price ticket that retains it simply out of attain.