Dell Monitor Deal: 32-inch, 165 Hz Display Still Just $299

Dell S3220DGF
(Image credit: Dell)

Dell's S3220DGF monitor has long held the top position on our list of best gaming monitors, and for good reason. The 32-inch, 165 Hz display uses its VA panel to provide an epic contrast ratio of 3,783:1, while most IPS-based competitors hover around 1,000:1. That makes blacks look really black, so colors pop and dark scenes in games look much more realistic. Throw in an immersive 1800R curve, great build quality, and excellent color accuracy and you have a winner.

Normally the Dell S3220DGF sells for $449, but for Cyber Monday, it fell all the way to its lowest price ever. The good news is that, for now, Best Buy still has the Dell S3220DGF for an all-time low price of $299.

Dell S3220DGF 32-inch. 165 Hz Monitor: was $449, now $299 at Best Buy

Dell S3220DGF 32-inch. 165 Hz Monitor: <a href="https://shop-links.co/link?publisher_slug=future&exclusive=1&u1=hawk-custom-tracking&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bestbuy.com%2Fsite%2Fdell-s3220dgf-32-led-curved-qhd-freesync-monitor-with-hdr-displayport-hdmi-usb-ascent-gray%2F6375331.p&article_name=hawk-article-name&article_url=hawk-article-url" data-link-merchant="bestbuy.com"" target="_BLANK">was $449, now $299 at Best Buy
Available at an all-time low price, our favorite monitor sports a 2560 x 1440 resolution on its 1800R curved, VA panel. Operating at a speedy 165 Hz in FreeSync or G-Sync, this well-built display returns a contrast ratio over 3700 and covers 120 percent of the sRGB gamut.

The Dell S3220DGF is designed for FreeSync but we had no problems getting it to work Nvidia's G-Sync. We experienced very low input lag and the great contrast, HDR support and wide color gamut -- 120 percent of sRGB and 83 percent of DCI-P3 made gaming a pleasure. When we played Tomb Raider and Call of Duty: WWII, we noticed rich details, particularly in dark scenes.

Dell's monitor is great for work too. In our Dell S3220DGF review, Contributing Editor Christian Eberle wrote that "The S3220DGF is an ideal size, shape and resolution for any use. The Windows desktop is generous, and the curve almost makes it seem taller than a flat 32-inch screen. Work tasks are a pleasure with so much height available. Scrolling is almost unnecessary since you can easily fit an entire word processing page on the screen while keeping type at a readable size."

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Panel Type / BacklightVA / W-LED, edge array
Screen Size, Aspect Ratio & Curve Radius32 inches / 16:9; Curve radius: 1800mm
Max Resolution & Refresh Rate2560x1440 @ 165Hz, FreeSync 2 HDR: 48-165Hz
Native Color Depth & Gamut10-bit (8-bit+FRC) / DCI-P3, DisplayHDR 400, HDR10
Response Time (GTG)4ms
Brightness350 nits SDR; 450 nits HDR
Contrast3,000:1
SpeakersX
Video Inputs1x DisplayPort 1.4; 2x HDMI 2.0
Audio3.5mm headphone output
USB 3.01x up, 2x down
Power Consumption27w, brightness @ 200 nits
Panel Dimensions WxHxD w/base27.9 x 18.6-24.4 x 9.8 inches (709 x 472-620 x 249mm)
Panel Thickness2.5 inches (64mm)
Bezel WidthTop/sides: 0.3 inch (7mm); Bottom: 0.7 inch (19mm)
Weight24.1 pounds (11kg)
Warranty3 years

For connectivity, the Dell S3220DGF provides a single DisplayPort and two HDMI ports, along with a 3.5mm audio jack. It has a built-in USB 3.0 hub with two downstream ports. 

Avram Piltch
Avram Piltch is Tom's Hardware's editor-in-chief. When he's not playing with the latest gadgets at work or putting on VR helmets at trade shows, you'll find him rooting his phone, taking apart his PC or coding plugins. With his technical knowledge and passion for testing, Avram developed many real-world benchmarks, including our laptop battery test.
  • DoctorFatty
    Y'all gotta stop saying this monitor works with G-sync. It doesn't: Using G-sync with it FUNCTIONS but results in brutal brightness flickering when gaming.
    Source: I bought this monitor (in part because of the original review), tried it with G-sync on my 3080, and that's exactly what happened. A cursory google search shows that I am far from alone on this.
    Reply
  • brandonjclark
    Fear not, DoctorFatty! I own this TREMENDOUS monitor along with an RTX 3090 and will lead you to the light! When a Gsynced-monitor setup approaches it's max refresh rate, it disables gsync! Stupid, I know, but it's true across the board with all monitors. In fact, it seems to be around 4-5fps NEAR the max refresh rate. So, we need to cap our framerates to NEVER exceed this if you want gsync to remain enabled. There is a great YT video out there on the topic, but trust me, I've done the legwork for you.

    Here is what you need to do:

    Cap your framerate inside the Nvidia software Control Panel to 160fps
    Launch Nvidia Control Panel
    Go to Manage 3D settings
    On the Global Tab, scroll down and set Max Framerate to: 160fps.Set vSync to ALWAYS ON
    Launch Nvidia Control Panel
    Go to Manage 3D settings
    On the Global Tab, scroll down and set Vertical sync to: On.Disable vsync inside any game!
    You can encounter problems with a game's implementation of vsync, so just let the global setting in step 2 handle this for you.Ensure that you are running each game at 165hz refresh rate if it indeed has that option in the game.That's it! Try out these steps and let me know what you think. Nvidia has a great tool out there to TEST gsync, it's called the Pendulum app. If you download and run that, ensure you also set the framerate to 165fps in the app. (*note, our global setting will keep it at 160fps).


    If you are thinking, wtf man, I bought a 165hz-capable monitor and an RTX 3080, I don't want to cap my framerate at 160fps, Brandon! Don't fret! That's the POINT of gsync. You will NOT notice the 5fps which are "missing" because gsync does such a great job!

    So, the point is, if you WANT to use gsync, and you do because it's smoother, you must cap your global framerate to 160fps in nvidia control panel and set the global vsync option (and disable it in any game) or gsync will DISABLE if it hits 161-162fps on this monitor.

    Extrapolated to a monitor with 120hz max refresh rate, this solution would call for setting the max global framerate to 114-115fps!

    Leave some feedback!
    Reply
  • DoctorFatty
    brandonjclark said:
    Fear not, DoctorFatty!

    Brandon, you absolute unit. You are as handsome as you are intelligent. Where have you been all my life? Is this what love feels like? My cold black heart is racing anew, and colour has returned to my world. The wind whispers "Brandon" as I walk through the virtual parks rendered on my PC.

    I'm no techno-slouch, and I searched for MONTHS to figure out how to get G-sync working on this monitor to no avail. I followed your instructions (which, I might add, are written beautifully) and I just fired up Apex Legends to test, since it was always the worst offender for brightness flickering. Sweet baby jesus it was perfect!
    My tears are tears of joy, my soul is refreshed with optimism.


    You, Brandon, are a glorious techno-mage and my hero!
    Reply
  • brandonjclark
    DoctorFatty said:
    Brandon, you absolute unit. You are as handsome as you are intelligent. Where have you been all my life? Is this what love feels like? My cold black heart is racing anew, and colour has returned to my world. The wind whispers "Brandon" as I walk through the virtual parks rendered on my PC.

    I'm no techno-slouch, and I searched for MONTHS to figure out how to get G-sync working on this monitor to no avail. I followed your instructions (which, I might add, are written beautifully) and I just fired up Apex Legends to test, since it was always the worst offender for brightness flickering. Sweet baby jesus it was perfect!
    My tears are tears of joy, my soul is refreshed with optimism.


    You, Brandon, are a glorious techno-mage and my hero!


    {Brandon leans back in his rocker, his pipe glows red as he takes another pull and slowly removes it from his mouth, ready to speak as the smoke bellows from his lips...}


    "And that was the time I met him... On a TomsHardware forum."
    Reply
  • Blackink
    What a great story And a better ending....
    Reply