At a look

Knowledgeable’s Ranking

Execs

• A brand new excessive mark for movement readability
• Wonderful picture high quality
• Simple-to-use menu with many choices
• Broad official Adaptive Sync assist

Cons

• Stand is just too giant
• No USB-C

Our Verdict

The Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP units a brand new excessive bar for movement readability—and has nice picture high quality, too.

Finest Costs At present: Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP

Nicely, that escalated shortly.

OLED displays have been simply starting to go mainstream in 2023 as new, extra inexpensive panels hit retailers. However now, in mid-2024, we’re amid a full-on OLED monitor struggle. A number of producers have deployed a number of OLED displays throughout a wide range of sizes and value brackets. Even probably the most inexpensive of those have a show measurement of a minimum of 27 inches, and most even have a refresh price of a minimum of 240Hz. Asus’ newest salvo on this battle takes movement readability to new heights: It’s the primary monitor to ship 480Hz at 2560×1440 decision.

Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP specs and options

The Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP would appear like a typical OLED monitor if not for one reality: It has a most refresh price of 480Hz, which is offered on the monitor’s native decision of 2560×1440. A couple of OLED displays have arrived with a 480Hz refresh price, however might solely obtain it at a decision of 1920×1080. The PG27AQDP is the primary to attain 480Hz at 1440p.

• Show measurement: 26.5-inch ultrawide 16:9 facet ratio
• Native decision: 2560×1440
• Panel sort: QD-OLED
• Refresh price: As much as 480Hz
• Adaptive sync: Adaptive Sync, Nvidia G-Sync, AMD FreeSync
• HDR: VESA DisplayHDR 400 licensed
• Ports: 2x HDMI 2.1, 1x DisplayPort 1.4, 1x USB-B 3.1 Gen 1 (upstream), 2x USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 (downstream), 1x 3.5mm headphone jack
• VESA mount: 100x100mm
• Audio system: No
• Value: $999

Refresh price apart, the PG27AQDP’s specs are a bit primary. It has three video inputs, however lacks USB-C. The monitor additionally lacks built-in audio system. These points aren’t sufficient to distract from the monitor’s strengths, nonetheless.

Additional studying: See our roundup of the perfect gaming displays to study competing merchandise.

Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP design

The Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP is a nice-looking monitor from most angles and holds as much as shut inspection. Asus gives slim bezels on all 4 sides of the show, with solely a small chin centered within the decrease bezel to supply entry to the monitor’s menu controls.

Round again, Asus makes use of the OLED panel’s skinny profile to ship a svelte look. The oblong enclosure which homes the mainboard and connectivity, in the meantime, is adorned with daring Asus branding and makes use of clear plastics, which is a pleasant contact. I believe it’s gaudy when in comparison with the most recent displays from Alienware, Samsung, and LG, however avid gamers on the lookout for a monitor that screams “I’m a gaming monitor” on the prime of its lungs will prefer it, and the design is in step with Asus’ ROG model.

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

The PG27AQDP contains RGB-LED lighting. It has a downward-firing gentle from the stand base, which is offered on many Asus ROG displays, in addition to RGB-LED lighting constructed into the rear of the show panel for additional aptitude. The RGB-LED lights look good, although I discover the downward-firing gentle a bit annoying and like to show it off. Your mileage might fluctuate.

The PG27AQDP adopts Asus’ frequent tripod-style ergonomic stand which adjusts for top, tilt, swivel, and pivot. The stand is sort of as broad because the show panel, and far deeper than regular, so it occupies much more desk area than is critical. Not everybody will discover this an issue, nevertheless it’s annoying if you wish to use your desk as one thing apart from a perch in your monitor. In fact, the monitor does assist a 100x100mm VESA mount, so another monitor stand or arm is an possibility.

As a bonus, the PG27AQDP has a threaded mount on the prime of the stand. The mount can be utilized to assist a digicam, microphone, key gentle, or the rest that can connect to it. It’s a useful additional for any streaming or house workplace setup that locations a digicam or microphone above the show.

Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP connectivity and menus

The Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP’s video connectivity is typical for a gaming monitor. It spans two HDMI 2.1 ports and one DisplayPort 1.4. That’s a complete of three video inputs, which needs to be sufficient for many avid gamers. It means that you can join a pc and two recreation consoles directly. All video inputs can obtain the monitor’s most refresh price and backbone.

With that mentioned, the PG27AQDP is conspicuously lacking USB-C. Some competitor displays now have USB-C with DisplayPort as a substitute video enter and information connection. The shortage of USB-C is perhaps annoying in case you wished to dock a laptop computer to the monitor as a substitute of, or along with, a gaming desktop.

There’s some USB connectivity within the type of a single USB-B upstream enter that drives two USB-A ports. That’s higher than nothing, nevertheless it’s not a lot. On the entire, USB connectivity just isn’t among the many monitor’s strengths.

A joystick-style management, centered on the decrease bezel, can be utilized to regulate the monitor’s on-screen menus. It’s responsive and straightforward to make use of, and Asus’ menus are well-labeled. Nevertheless, as with many rivals, the font measurement is a bit small. The monitor’s choices and settings may also be accessed via DisplayWidget, a Home windows utility accessible to obtain from Asus’ web site.

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

A variety of picture high quality choices, together with coloration temperature and gamma changes, can be found, and are flanked by gaming options like an on-screen crosshair and a black equalizer designed to make enemies simpler to see in darkish areas of a recreation.

Asus additionally provides AI-assisted options that should automate capabilities just like the Shadow Increase, the on-screen crosshair, and Sniper mode. I can see a few of these options having some use; the AI Shadow Increase characteristic, specifically, could possibly be useful since it can enhance darkish areas of the scene when required however have much less impression on picture high quality when it’s not wanted. Nevertheless, I didn’t really feel a lot profit from these options. I believe their usefulness stays to be confirmed.

Like many OLED displays, the PG27AQDP gives the choice to constrain the seen show area to that of a 24.5-inch monitor. That may appear odd, however aggressive avid gamers generally favor this, because it retains the whole show area inside their field of regard. Right here, the 24.5-inch mode has a decision of 2368×1332 and may obtain the utmost refresh price of 480Hz. The monitor additionally helps a 4:3 mode, which is perhaps useful for retro video games that by no means obtained correct widescreen assist.

The PG27AQDP doesn’t embrace audio system, which is one other space the place the monitor is behind some rivals. For instance, the LG UltraGear 32-inch has a wonderful built-in sound system. However that mentioned, many displays don’t embrace audio system — and plenty of avid gamers favor to make use of a headset — so it’s not a serious drawback.

Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP SDR picture high quality

The Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP has an LG WOLED show panel, which differs from the Samsung QD-OLED panels discovered in lots of OLED displays. WOLED doesn’t fairly defeat QD-OLED’s coloration efficiency, nevertheless it’s a contender.

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

The Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP makes a powerful displaying in SDR brightness, the place it achieved a most sustained brightness of 310 nits. That’s higher than common for an OLED monitor. Whereas most OLED displays are greater than brilliant sufficient to make use of in a room with gentle management, they’ll look dim if positioned subsequent to a sunlit window. The PG27AQDP isn’t proof against that, nevertheless it gala’s higher than most.

Asus opts for an anti-glare show coating as a substitute of the extra frequent shiny end. It is a controversial alternative amongst OLED followers, as in some lighting situations it might trigger darkish areas of the display to look barely brighter than on a shiny OLED panel. Alternatively, an anti-glare coat can scale back reflections and look extra engaging when viewing paperwork or pictures. In the end, your alternative between a shiny and anti-glare will rely in your wants. I favor the anti-glare end.

Distinction was successfully excellent in checks. The monitor can obtain a minimal luminance of zero nits, which suggests darkish areas of the show are completely black. Almost all OLED displays can obtain the identical end result, so it’s not a bonus for the PG27AQDP. Nonetheless, the monitor’s wonderful distinction contributes drastically to its beautiful SDR picture high quality, and it offers the monitor an enormous benefit over cheaper displays with an IPS or VA show panel.

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Colour gamut is one other sturdy go well with for OLED displays. Nevertheless, displays with an LG WOLED panel, such because the PG27AQDP, are inclined to carry out barely worse than these with a Samsung QD-OLED panel. The PG27AQDP achieved 96 % of DCI-P3 and 88 % of AdobeRGB. By comparability, the Gigabyte Aorus FO27QS achieved 98 % of DCI-P3 and 95 % of AdobeRGB.

This isn’t a serious concern for almost all customers, together with avid gamers. The PG27AQDP’s coloration gamut is excess of sufficient to ship a vibrant, saturated picture that appears incredible. Nevertheless, in case you’re an artist or photographer who must have a monitor that may show as many gradations of coloration as attainable, the PG27AQDP just isn’t your best option.

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

The PG27AQDP stable coloration accuracy outcomes are higher than most WOLED displays I’ve examined and nearer to what QD-OLED displays sometimes obtain. The default coloration accuracy is sweet sufficient to look sensible and needs to be appropriate for a variety of duties, from gaming to picture and video enhancing.

The PG27AQDP’s achieved a default coloration temperature of 7000K, which is cooler than our most well-liked goal of 6500K, and an on-target gamma curve of two.2. What does this imply in actuality? Nicely, the PG27AQDP can look a bit cooler and extra sterile than we favor to see. The distinction is giant sufficient for it to be noticeable if you understand what you’re on the lookout for, or if the monitor is in contrast side-by-side with one other. Nevertheless, the monitor gives a variety of picture quality control, so you may alter the monitor to look hotter in case you favor.

As talked about, the PG27AQDP has 2560×1440 decision which, at its measurement, works out to about 109 pixels per inch. That’s the standard pixel density for a 1440p show, and it seems to be sharp sufficient in most conditions. OLED displays can at occasions undergo degraded sharpness because of how their sub pixels are organized, an issue I discover most noticeable when studying small textual content. Asus tries to fight that with a “Clear Textual content Algorithm” which, to my eyes, is considerably efficient. Small fonts can nonetheless look a bit pixelated or aliased, however the monitor’s sharpness is sufficient to present a crisp look to video games and Netflix, amongst different leisure.

The PG27AQDP doesn’t attain new heights in SDR picture high quality, however as a substitute delivers efficiency that’s typical of a 27-inch OLED monitor. Fortuitously, that’s a excessive bar, so merely assembly it ends in wonderful picture high quality. The monitor seems to be nice in SDR.

Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP HDR picture high quality

The Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP’s give attention to movement readability makes it straightforward to miss the monitor’s HDR efficiency. That may be a mistake, as a result of it performs nicely in HDR.

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

LG’s newest WOLED show panels, just like the one utilized by the PG27AQDP, are inclined to outperform present Samsung QD-OLED displays in HDR brightness. The PG27AQDP didn’t disappoint, as proven on the graph above. Though the brand new Asus didn’t set information, it carried out nicely throughout the board, and delivered a wealthy, vivid expertise. Scenes that decision for the whole show to be brightly lit are the PG27AQDP’s solely weak spot: It’s higher at rendering a lightning strike than a snowy mountainside. However that draw back is shared with different OLED shows.

The PG27AQDP goes the additional mile with the choice to unlock brightness in HDR mode. Usually, a show’s HDR mode locks consumer management of brightness to make sure content material is displayed with the suitable brightness. However this may be annoying on a monitor, which can show a wide range of SDR and HDR content material concurrently in varied home windows or throughout varied shows. The PG27AQDP’s possibility to regulate HDR brightness offers customers extra management over their expertise.

Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP movement efficiency

There’s a number of causes to love the Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP, however movement readability is the explanation to decide on it from the buffet of fantastic OLED shows now accessible. The PG27AQDP is the primary 1440p 480Hz monitor, and it seems to be beautiful in movement.

This isn’t the primary 480Hz OLED monitor we’ve reviewed. A number of earlier displays, just like the Asus ROG Swift PG32UCDP, might attain 480Hz, however provided that the decision was decreased to 1920×1080. The PG27AQDP can hit 480Hz at 256 x1440, which suggests it’s sharper each in movement and at relaxation.

The result’s very good readability. In lots of instances, transferring scenes seem virtually excellent. This isn’t technically appropriate, however the look of movement blur is so decreased that even small objects, like a baseball whizzing throughout a area, seem razor-sharp and straightforward to determine. I used to be additionally in a position to make out particulars whereas scrolling throughout a map in League of Legends. Each particular person tick in a personality’s hitpoint bar, each UI component, and each font was legible. The identical can be true for another high-refresh price displays, just like the Asus ROG Swift PG32UCDP and the Alienware AW2524HF. However they solely attain 1080p decision at their most refresh price, in order that they’re not as sharp general.

Asus contains Excessive Low Movement Blur (ELMB), a characteristic that strobes the monitor at a particularly excessive frequency. As a consequence of oddities of how human imaginative and prescient works, this has the impact of decreasing movement blur. Nevertheless, the characteristic is just accessible at a refresh price of 120Hz or 240Hz. That is much less of an issue than it may appear; most video games is not going to run at a body price excessive sufficient to maximise the readability of 480Hz (to take action requires the sport to run at 480 frames per second). ELMB can come into play as a substitute for extra typical refresh charges, and it does a very good job minimizing movement blur.

I don’t need to mince phrases right here. The PG27AQDP has the perfect movement readability of any monitor I’ve witnessed up to now. Lately, I’ve felt the necessity to make this declaration each few months, as new displays regularly leapfrog one another with ever-higher refresh charges. However the PG27AQDP is the brand new excessive bar that others should clear. If you happen to’re coming from an older 60Hz monitor, nicely, you’ll be in for a little bit of a shock. The distinction is astounding.

Adaptive sync is supported, as nicely, for easy body pacing and movement in video games. The PG27AQDP lists assist for the Adaptive Sync, Nvidia G-Sync, and AMD FreeSync requirements. In apply, assist for any of those ought to assist all of them, as they’re usually appropriate. But it surely’s good to see Asus checklist assist for all three, because it helps avid gamers perceive that adaptive sync will work with their explicit video card.

Do you have to purchase the Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP?

The Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP is yet one more nice OLED monitor from Asus, which continues to bang out hits via 2024. Whereas I’m not a fan of Asus’ design, and I’d favor to see USB-C included, it’s tough to argue with the PG27AQDP’s picture high quality. It delivers a brand new excessive bar for movement readability alongside good HDR and SDR picture high quality, an extended checklist of picture high quality changes, and several other options that the majority rivals don’t have, like the choice to regulate the monitor’s brightness in HDR.