Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP OLED 480 Hz gaming monitor review: Raising the bar

27-inch QHD OLED display with 480 Hz, Adaptive-Sync, ELMB, HDR and wide gamut color

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Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP
Editor's Choice
(Image: © Tom's Hardware)

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For price-no-object gaming monitors, you now have a number of choices for the highest frame rates and lowest input lag. There is the Asus’ dual mode PG32UCDP which is super quick but sacrifices resolution to put up fast numbers. Then there are 25-inch FHD monitors running at 360, 500 and 540 Hz. There are quite a few examples, and they deliver incredible frame rates and low input lag. But they also sacrifice resolution and contrast. Lastly, there are 240 Hz OLEDs which have the best of everything. Their motion resolution is perfect, they have low input lag, and their images are stunning with deep contrast and saturated color.

(Image credit: Asus)

The Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP sits at the pinnacle of the premium gaming monitor category. It has an honest and reliable 480 Hz refresh rate at QHD resolution. Not only is the pixel density an ideal 109ppi, but it also has Asus’ Clear Pixel Edge tech making a visible difference in clarity. Adaptive-Sync is free of artifacts, and if you hitch it to a slower video card, ELMB retains high motion resolution at 120 and 240 Hz.

(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

Like all the OLEDs I’ve reviewed, the image is peerless. The best Mini LED panels do a good job, but they don’t surpass OLED. The PG27AQDP’s black levels are true and dynamic range is as broad as is possible. There are some OLEDs with greater color volume, such as the Quantum Dot models, but the PG27AQDP covers over 97% of DCI-P3, which is well above the average for wide-gamut monitors.

The PG27AQDP doesn’t skimp in the feature department in any way. It has every Asus ROG add-on to aid gameplay and ensure convenient and easy use. There is nothing it cannot do well. Unless you want a larger screen, there is no better OLED gaming monitor at present than this. If you have the budget and the desire for ultimate performance, you should definitely check it out.

MORE: Best Gaming Monitors

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MORE: How to Choose the Best HDR Monitor

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Christian Eberle
Christian Eberle
Contributing Editor

Christian Eberle is a Contributing Editor for Tom's Hardware US. He's a veteran reviewer of A/V equipment, specializing in monitors. Christian began his obsession with tech when he built his first PC in 1991, a 286 running DOS 3.0 at a blazing 12MHz. In 2006, he undertook training from the Imaging Science Foundation in video calibration and testing and thus started a passion for precise imaging that persists to this day. He is also a professional musician with a degree from the New England Conservatory as a classical bassoonist which he used to good effect as a performer with the West Point Army Band from 1987 to 2013. He enjoys watching movies and listening to high-end audio in his custom-built home theater and can be seen riding trails near his home on a race-ready ICE VTX recumbent trike. Christian enjoys the endless summer in Florida where he lives with his wife and Chihuahua and plays with orchestras around the state.

5 Comments Comment from the forums
  • dimar
    This is not the one with MediaTek's new scaler chip recently advertised?
    Reply
  • s997863
    Can TomsHardware please include this in all their monitor reviews:
    How good is the motion clarity compared to CRTs for running older games that only work at 60Hz?
    I'm asking because I've heard of only 1 monitor that covers this (ViewSonic XG2431) which got a lot of praise from BlurBusters but many reviewers reported that it causes headaches to use backlight strobing at 60Hz. Nowadays you don't find much variety in actual stores and much of the market is moving online, but I'm not going to risk buying something as expensive as a monitor when I can't even see/test it for myself, especially when stores like Amazon only have a 2-week return period in my country with no warranty at all.
    Reply
  • richardvday
    This almost sounds like a love affair 🤔
    It would be nice if you gave some kind of idea about how much it cost in the article also.
    If it said how much I would have just moved on as it's outside my price range. I could afford it but rather spend it on my kids.
    $999.99 is I think more than most people would consider paying for a monitor, some of you probably don't care how much it is though.
    Looks lovely but I will wait for the prices to come down quite a bit before I will consider it.
    Reply
  • UnforcedERROR
    s997863 said:
    Can TomsHardware please include this in all their monitor reviews:
    How good is the motion clarity compared to CRTs for running older games that only work at 60Hz?
    I'm asking because I've heard of only 1 monitor that covers this (ViewSonic XG2431) which got a lot of praise from BlurBusters but many reviewers reported that it causes headaches to use backlight strobing at 60Hz. Nowadays you don't find much variety in actual stores and much of the market is moving online, but I'm not going to risk buying something as expensive as a monitor when I can't even see/test it for myself, especially when stores like Amazon only have a 2-week return period in my country with no warranty at all.
    I'd wager an OLED would do just fine in this respect. Your reference point is an IPS instead of an OLED. OLED is like CRT in that pixel response is instant. The big thing about CRTs is they are what a lot of older games were designed for. They simply look better over CRT, and the signal doesn't have to be converted to match. Still, for retro gaming there are options that improve the experience on high-res displays. That's more the barrier to entry than the motion clarity, because you can't do anything to bypass the inherent limits of 60fps.
    Reply
  • Lamarr the Strelok
    First, all the monitor reviews I've read here have had links with prices listed. And second there are many reviews of remarkably affordable monitors here.This review is of a pricier one and that's fine.
    Reply