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HDR Performance

Our HDR benchmarking uses Portrait Displays’ Calman software. To learn about our HDR testing, see our breakdown of how we test PC monitors.

An HDR10 signal automatically switches on the PG32UQ’s HDR mode with three mode options, Game, Cinema and Console. They are similar in performance, but I found a tad more contrast in Cinema, so I used that for my tests.

HDR Brightness and Contrast

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Asus ROG Swift PG32UQ — (Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

The PG32UQ’s Cinema HDR mode pumps out over 660 nits peak white which is very bright, especially considering the screen size. It will hurt your eyes to look at a full white field. In actual content, you’ll see bright highlights against deep shadow detail. Dynamic Dimming is engaged for all HDR modes and renders contrast over 9,024:1. The monitor’s zone dimming effect can effectively increase this to where parts of the screen have the backlight shut off. The takeaway is that the PG32UQ delivers excellent HDR contrast and quality.

Grayscale, EOTF and Color

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I measured all three HDR modes and found they had almost identical grayscale, EOTF and color tracking. There is a slight blue tint but that is barely visible in actual content. The EOTF runs a tad dark in the shadows of the image, not enough to obscure detail but slightly below the reference line. Luminance peaks a little early, but this does not have a negative impact.

I used Rec.2020 as the reference for HDR and found a bit of over-saturation in all colors. It’s not enough to obscure detail, but some material looks a little cartoonish. Green is a bit off in hue as well. This can be addressed by adjusting the game’s HDR settings. That helps dial down some of the overblown areas, so all detail is made visible. However, this is a minor issue, as the PG32UQ delivers some killer HDR.

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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.