MSI Optix MPG321UR-QD Xbox Edition Review: Colorful 4K Performance

A 32-inch, 4K IPS panel 144 Hz support and more.

MSI MPG321UR-QD Xbox Edition
Editor's Choice
(Image: © Tom's Hardware)

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Uncalibrated – Maximum Backlight Level

The MPG321UR-QDX pumps out plenty of light in its SDR mode, over 418 nits peak. That’s enough for outdoor use, perhaps in a film or television production setting. The downside is that minimum brightness is quite high, 121 nits, which makes it difficult to use in a dark room. You can work around this by using the Eco picture mode or by selecting the Custom color temp which limits output to 143 nits and allows a correspondingly lower minimum.

Black levels are about average for an IPS panel, so the contrast is just under 1,000:1. If you engage HDCR, that ratio goes up to around 3,000:1 but it makes the picture brighter with no way to adjust the peak level.

After Calibration to 200 nits

My calibration consisted only of reducing the brightness slider to hit 200 nits. I made no changes to the color temp because the custom mode limits output to 143 nits, too low for a fair comparison to other monitors. Contrast remains solid at 979.8:1.

The MPG321UR-QDX Xbox Edition's ANSI score was harmed by its uniformity issue in the lower right corner. 809:1 isn’t a bad result, but it is a tad below average for an IPS panel.

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.

  • Leszek L.
    Hello!

    I am looking for a solution for PS5 and I am thinking about Inzone m9 or maybe something 32". This MSi looks nice. Is the quality of the image on both similar and difference only in size? Or maybe there is something else? Could you share your own choice, if you would have to make one?
    Reply