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Dell S3220DGF Gaming Monitor Review: High-Performance Work and Play

A 32-incher fit for office work and speedy gaming.

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Dell S3220DGF Gaming Monitor
Editor's Choice
(Image: © Dell)

Viewing Angles

(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

The S3220DGF looks like most of the VA monitors we’ve photographed when it comes to viewing angles. There is a green shift to the sides and a roughly 50% reduction in brightness, while the vertical plane looks washed out with less definition between the steps in our test pattern. Though the screen is large enough to be shared, its curvature reduces that ability. We’d be more than happy to set three of them on our desk though for a rockin’ flight simulator!

Screen Uniformity

To learn how we measure screen uniformity, click here.

(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

In this group, VA won the day in our uniformity test. The S3220DGF has no visible issues anywhere on the screen. There were no areas of bleed or glow, and black field patterns looked perfectly toned even with the room lights off. This Dell may be value-priced, but its quality control is first-rate.

Pixel Response and Input Lag

Click here to read up on our pixel response and input lag testing procedures.

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(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)
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(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

The S3220DGF delivers a blur-free experience with its overdrive engaged. A 7ms panel response is fast enough to eliminate any stuttering or judder artifacts. There's no backlight strobe feature, but we don’t see a need for one. The overall lag score is quite low with the S3220DGF missing first place by just 2ms. Its 165Hz refresh rate provides super-responsive gameplay and can only be significantly eclipsed by a 240Hz screen, like the Samsung 27-Inch CRG5 we reviewed recently.

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23 Comments Comment from the forums
  • closs.sebastien 03 January 2020 13:31
    2560x1440 for a 32 inch? no way. we don't want so big pixels. I use a 4k on a 27'.
    and va... is not from the past? no new fast-ips?
    Reply
  • closs.sebastien 03 January 2020 13:33
    why are the manufacturers still putting speakers or headphone outputs on screens? screen is screen.. soundcard is soundcard... speakers are speakers...
    Reply
  • FastAddons 03 January 2020 13:52
    I want to buy this monitor for few weeks now and after reading this, I really don't see why not buy it right now.
    I already bought two DELL 27" QHD monitors for work and they are simply amazing.
    So having slightly bigger one, curved and 165Hz with HDR seems like the best combination for home, right?
    Reply
  • DookieDraws 03 January 2020 18:48
    I too have been reading up on this monitor lately, as I am also interested in possibly buying it. Thing is, there are so many positive reviews from buyers, it made me suspicious! No kidding! Just look at the reviews for this monitor on the best Buy and Dell websites. Certainly not saying any are fake, but when I see so many positive reviews for ANYTHING, it raises a red flag. :p

    So I have some questions about the monitor, and would love to get some answers, from not only Tom's, but from owners of this monitor.

    Are there any issues at all using one of the latest NVIDIA GPUs with this monitor? No flickering, or briefly going blank issues?

    How does text look on this monitor? Can you adjust the sharpness of text?

    Are there any smearing / ghosting while gaming?

    Lastly, the monitor supports DisplayPort 1.4, yet when I look at the included accessories on the Dell website, it says it comes with a DisplayPort 1.2 cable. If true, could this possibly be the reason some are having flickkering, and the brief blanking out issues? Can anyone confirm what the included cable version is? If it is, in fact, a 1.2 included cable, would it be best to purchase a certified 1.4 cable?

    Thanks everyone!
    Reply
  • jeremyj_83 08 January 2020 15:02
    closs.sebastien said:
    2560x1440 for a 32 inch? no way. we don't want so big pixels. I use a 4k on a 27'.
    and va... is not from the past? no new fast-ips?
    The DPI of 1440p at 32" is the same as a 1080p at 24" so that isn't bad. Also VA is the panel type used on the majority of LED TVs. While IPS is nice, I prefer VA for the added contrast.
    Reply
  • JKTexas 25 January 2020 14:12
    I have had this monitor for about 5 weeks now. I use it more for work than gaming but do that too. Its a great monitor - the curve doesn't bother me at all (which was one of my main concerns because gaming is maybe 2-5% of my total time) and the adjustable stand is nice. I like the headphone port on the machine because I use 3 computers with the monitor (2 personal and 1 work) and I can send the output to one set of speakers (not sure how this degrades audio but I am not a purist. I haven't noticed any flickering yet but use HDMI cables for my personal machines... Lastly, I work in a well lit room and really have no problems with glare or being able to see the monitor during the bright part of the day.

    I am coming from a 27" QHD monitor and I think the text may be a little less sharp but it is more than acceptable.

    The monitor is a little pricey in the mainstream line up but how often do you really need to upgrade once you get to this size of monitor. For me, it was worth paying a little extra.

    Hope this helps someone.
    Reply
  • tribeofham 30 January 2020 03:00
    Alright, so I bought this monitor based on this review. I was really excited but I found myself quickly let down. I can't get G-Sync working. I know it's not officially supported but the review here says they were able to get it working. How?!

    I went through the normal rundown: fresh install of Win10 LTSC, used the supplied DP cable, using the latest nvidia drivers, installed the monitor's INF driver, etc. For those of you are curious, I'm running a GeForce GTX Titan X.
    Reply
  • linovi 30 January 2020 04:08
    tribeofham said:
    Alright, so I bought this monitor based on this review. I was really excited but I found myself quickly let down. I can't get G-Sync working. I know it's not officially supported but the review here says they were able to get it working. How?!

    I went through the normal rundown: fresh install of Win10 LTSC, used the supplied DP cable, using the latest nvidia drivers, installed the monitor's INF driver, etc. For those of you are curious, I'm running a GeForce GTX Titan X.
    Make sure to enable freesync on the monitor. Then it should show up in the Nvidia control panel
    Reply
  • tribeofham 30 January 2020 04:32
    linovi said:
    Make sure to enable freesync on the monitor. Then it should show up in the Nvidia control panel

    Thanks for your reply. Freesync is enabled on the monitor. Is there anything else I may be missing?
    Reply
  • linovi 30 January 2020 04:45
    tribeofham said:
    Thanks for your reply. Freesync is enabled on the monitor. Is there anything else I may be missing?
    check the Pendulum demo from nVidia, it's perfect to see if your Freesync/GSync is working.

    https://www.nvidia.es/coolstuff/demos#!/g-sync
    Also make sure you use a Displayport cable, Freesync compatible with GSync monitors don't work with HDMI cables if you're using a nVidia GPU.
    Reply