Pixio PXC327 Review: Affordable 165Hz Curves

A 1440p bargain

Pixio PXC327
(Image: © Pixio)

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To learn about our HDR testing, see our breakdown of how we test PC monitors.

The PXC327 accepts HDR10 signals, but you’ll have to switch modes manually after the signal is applied and back again when you return to SDR content. All image controls are locked out in HDR mode, but you can still use Adaptive-Sync and the overdrive options.

HDR Brightness & Contrast

The PXC327 nearly makes it to 400 nits in HDR mode. It doesn't use dynamic contrast, but its excellent VA panel manages an impressive 3,544.6:1 contrast ratio. The top three screens are using dynamic contrast to great effect.

Unfortunately, the HDR goodness ends here, as we found some issues during the grayscale, EOTF and color tests.

Grayscale, EOTF & Color

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

The PXC327’s HDR grayscale run isn’t too bad, with the only errors being a blue tint in the 90-100% brightness steps. But the EOTF strays quite far from the reference line with no clear transition to tone-mapping. The lower steps are too bright, which makes many dark scenes look washed out and gray. Meanwhile, the transition point is too dark, which further reduces depth.

The main issue is with color saturation, which is clearly under the mark. We suspect a tuning problem because color tracks linearly but runs out of juice well short of the 100% saturation point. The HDR image is flat and a bit washed out because of this.

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.