Why you can trust Tom's Hardware Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.
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 PG49WCD’s peak brightness numbers depend on whether the Uniform Brightness option is turned on. If it’s on, the peak is limited to around 250 nits. This is fine in a dark room, but with ambient lighting, I recommend turning it off. Then, I measured a 25% window pattern to just under 450 nits. That’s plenty of output for any indoor environment. Black levels are unmeasurable, and so is contrast. This is why I love OLEDs. And this is why they look better than LCDs.
After Calibration to 200 nits
Adjusting that same window pattern to 200 nits is fine for testing purposes as it levels the playing field. But I found that it was still a tad too bright. For my office, 175 nits was a more comfortable level. Your mileage will vary, so I recommend setting brightness to taste with Uniform Brightness turned off. If you use the PG49WCD in darkness, UB is a good option.
Any further contrast measurements are impossible thanks to the shutoff of all pixels receiving a 0% signal. It truly can’t get better than this.
Test Takeaway: The PG49WCD delivers the infinite/unmeasurable black levels that all OLEDs are famous for. This creates an image with depth and dimension superior to any LCD, even Mini LED models. If you want more brightness, yes, LCD tech is better. But for pure image quality, OLED is king.
MORE: Best Gaming Monitors
MORE: How We Test PC Monitors
