Asus ROG Strix XG27AQDMG Gen 2 (aka XG27AQDMGR)
Introduction
Today we’re reviewing the newly launched Asus ROG Strix XG27AQDMG Gen 2 (aka the XG27AQDMGR), an update to their popular XG27AQDMG from a couple of years ago, with a few modern feature updates and a refresh of the glossy panel coating which was the key feature of the original model. In fact that original model was the first glossy-coated WOLED panel to be released to the market, using a first generation glossy coating from the panel manufacturer LG.Display. This set the screen apart from all the other WOLED panels of the time and the screen was a popular choice for many people.
It wasn’t perfect though, and some people found the glossy coating had a very minor grain to it as a result of a 3% haze rating for the panel. With the XG27AQDMG Gen 2 model being release this year, they’ve updated this with an improved glossy finish, which now has a 0% haze rating and offers a super clean and clear image. Asus market this under the brand name of ‘TrueBlack glossy’ and we’ve seen the same coating used on a couple of their other monitors in recent times (e.g. the XG27AQWMG and PG27AQWP-W).
The other main changes for the new Gen 2 model are the inclusion of their Neo Proximity Sensor, an update to their OLED Care Pro feature set, an upgrade of the HDMI ports from v2.0 to v2.1 and the addition of their ‘A.I. Assistant’ gaming settings and technologies. So there’s a fair few other enhancements to go along with the improved panel coating of note. Not enough to warrant an upgrade for an existing user of the original model, but some great reasons to go for the refreshed version if you’re looking for a new OLED monitor. This model is part of Asus’ more affordable OLED line-up as well, with an attractive price point.
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Key Specs
- 27″ size (accurately 26.5″), flat format, 16:9 aspect ratio
- 2560 x 1440 resolution
- LG.Display WOLED panel (with MLA)
- ‘TrueBlack glossy’ screen coating
- 240Hz refresh rate
- ELMB (Extreme Low Motion Blur) blur reduction mode via BFI
- Neo Proximity Sensor and Asus OLED Care Pro
- 1x DisplayPort 1.4 (with DSC), 2x HDMI 2.1 video connections
- 2x USB-A data ports and headphone jack
A note about the WOLED panel naming convention
Note that the WOLED panel used here is part of what we refer to as “Gen 2”. Originally produced in 2024. it uses MLA (Micro Lens Array) as opposed to being one of the most recent “4th Gen” Tandem WOLED technology panels. It also has the older sub-pixel layout that was used at the time, as opposed to the updated layout that came in Gen 3 and Gen 4 panels.
The updated panel used here went in to mass production in late 2025 and uses the same underlying panel as the 2024 version, just with an updated glossy coating finish. We distinguished this 27″ 1440p 240Hz panel from the later “Gen 3” panels since those later panels included a shift to an improved sub-pixel layout. You may notice Asus refer to this as “Third Generation OLED technology”, so please keep in mind that these generational naming schemes can be quite confusing and can vary a little depending on how they are interpreted. The “Gen 2” naming is our own, but the important thing to note here really is that it’s the same panel from 2024, with an updated coating finish. Other aspects have not been updated.
For more information on the different generations, naming schemes, Tandem WOLED and so on, check out our video here.
Design and Features
The screen comes in a familiar Asus ROG Strix series design with a 4-side “borderless” panel. There’s a thin black plastic edge around all sides, but then a black panel border before the image starts. The total border measures 8mm along the top, 9mm along the edges, and 13mm along the bottom. There’s the usual Asus “chin” on the bottom edge, where the OSD control buttons and joystick are contained behind it. The Asus logo light here can be disabled in the menu if you want.
From the back the screen is encased in a matte black plastic. There’s an RGB lighting logo on the right hand side as you can see from the photos provided which can be controlled or turned off from the OSD menu.
The side profile is a little chunkier than some of their previous screens, largely because this model features an integrated power supply instead of an external power brick. You only need a normal kettle lead cable which we like and even though the central section at the back if a bit chunkier, it still has thin and sleek side sections for the OLED panel.
The screen features a smaller, squarer base to the stand featured on the Asus ROG Strix series, as opposed to the 3-pronged foot of the ROG Swift series. We prefer this as it takes up less room and looks a little less gamer-focused. They’ve done away with the phone holder slot in the base that was featured on the original XG27AQDMG model in an effort to make the base a bit smaller which looks nice. This gives you more desktop space for your keyboard and mouse during gaming.
The stand has a dark grey metal foot, and a dark grey plastic arm, which provides a strong and stable base for the screen.
The stand offers a full range of tilt, height, swivel and rotate adjustments. Tilt is a little stiff to operate but the height and swivel are smooth and easy. The screen remains very stable as you adjust it with only a bit of wobble.
The OSD is controlled primarily through a small joystick toggle on the back of the screen’s “chin” section on the bottom edge. There are also two pressable buttons, one either side of the joystick. One gives you quick access to the ‘pixel cleaning’ function by default, while the other is the power on/off button. You can edit the left hand button via the menu to have a shortcut for something else though if you want. A nice touch is that if you press the power button, it prompts you to confirm you definitely want to turn the screen off, to avoid those accidental power-offs.
| OSD Menu | |
| Joystick toggle controller |  |
| Quick and snappy | |
| Intuitive to use | |
| User updatable firmware | |
| Software application | |
There is also some quick access to key settings via the directions on the joystick which you can customise in the menu, or if you press the joystick in you can enter the main menu. Navigation is quick, snappy and intuitive thanks to the joystick controller. There were a decent range of settings and options available too. The screen supports user-updatable firmware too.
DisplayWidget Center
There’s also support for Asus’ DisplayWidget Center software, which we explored in our detailed article here, and which is useful for configuring your screen, or making use of additional features like auto-switching modes depending on the app or content you’re viewing, setting up hot key shortcuts, or activating automatic firmware updates. Do check that out if you own any Asus monitor.
Connectivity
One update for the Gen 2 model is the upgrade from 2x HDMI 2.0 ports to 2x HDMI 2.1 ports here which allows full support for the 2560 x 1440 @ 240Hz, 10-bit spec from compatible systems if you need. The old model could only support up to 144Hz over the HDMI 2.0 ports. This also offers better games console support which we will explore in more detail later.
There’s also 1x DisplayPort 1.4 (with DSC), 2x USB-A data ports, 1x USB-B upstream port and 1x headphone jack. There’s no USB type-C connection offered on this screen to help keep costs down.
‘TrueBlack’ Glossy Coating
One of the key selling points of this new Gen 2 model is the inclusion of Asus’ new ‘TrueBlack’ glossy screen coating, an improvement to the original glossy coating from the original 2024 model. This is a screen coating applied at the factory by the panel manufacturer LG.Display instead of (not on top of) the matte AG coating, Asus call this new coating ‘TrueBlack’; not to be confused with the ‘True Black’ terminology used for VESA’s DisplayHDR certifications for OLED panels.
This new coating offers:
- A zero-haze (0%) optical layer which removes the slight graininess that was visible on the original glossy WOLED panel from 2024 for a clean, clear and crisp image. The original coating was rated with a 3% haze finish and we observed some minor grain to the image during our testing, which is removed here.
- A reported 38% drop in ambient reflections “compared to previous-gen glossy WOLED panels” from last year. We found some improvements compared with the original coating with a slightly less reflective finish although it’s hard to provide objective comparisons here, only our subjective observations.
OLED Care
Asus include a 3 year warranty with the monitor, including burn-in cover which gives some added peace of mind around usage and image retention risks. This is the same as on their other recent OLED monitors.
To help mitigate the risks of image retention Asus provide an impressive and expanded set of OLED care options within the OSD menu under their ‘OLED Care Pro‘ feature set. This basically offers the same set of OLED care settings as the previous model, but with the addition of their Neo Proximity Sensor, which can be controlled via the OSD menu,
| OLED Care and Warranty | |
| Warranty period | 3 years |
| Burn-in cover | |
| Screen saver | |
| Pixel / screen shift | |
| Logo dimming | |
| Taskbar detection |  |
| Boundary detection | |
| Motion sensor | |
| Other OLED care features | n/a |
The Neo Proximity Sensor is a TOF sensor which allows users to set their preferred usage distance. When the user steps out of range, the monitor will switch to a black image (i.e. turn off the pixels) to reduce the risk of burn-in, and restores on-screen content when you return to it. You can also customize the detection distance quickly and easily. This is a potentially useful feature for many users to help mitigate the risks of burn-in, and save power also when the screen is not being used.
- Additional reading: Helping Avoid OLED Burn-in and Flicker – Exploring the Latest Asus OLED Technologies for 2025
Brightness and Contrast
For this testing we disabled the OLED care features in the OSD menu as those can have a small impact to screen brightness in certain situations. We would recommend enabling as many of those features as possible to mitigate risks of burn-in, although you may need to experiment for your particular usage to ensure none are distracting or problematic. We also moved to the ‘performance’ power mode which opened up proper access to all the settings.
In the ‘Uniform brightness’ mode the screen behaves without any ABL dimming, and so you get consistent brightness levels during desktop usage regardless of your content and windows sizes. We measured a maximum 262 nits in SDR which was very typical for an OLED panel.
You can disable uniform brightness if you want to get a boost in potential SDR brightness up to ~425 nits, although you would then have to live with some ABL dimming in certain situations. This is likely fine though for SDR gaming and multimedia, and other dynamic content; with the Uniform mode preferrable for desktop applications and general uses. Your brightness setting is remembered independently between the uniform brightness off / on modes which is a useful touch.
Only the most recent Gen 4 Tandem WOLED (335 – 380 nits) and some of the Gen 4 / 5 QD-OLED panels (~310 nits) reach higher, and so the performance here is as expected for an older gen WOLED panel offering.
| Black depth and contrast | Uniform Brightness OFF | Uniform Brightness ON |
| Max luminance (nits) | 425 | 262 |
| Min Luminance (nits) | 30 | 30 |
| Uniform / No ABL | | |
| Remains uniform in Windows desktop | | |
Keep in mind also that as a result of the amazing contrast ratio of the OLED panel, the perceived brightness in SDR mode is equivalent to an approximate 460 nits LCD monitor, even when using the uniform brightness mode so that should be plenty bright enough for most users. We explained the principles behind this in our article here, although we can’t officially give this screen a ‘TrueBright’ certification tier as that’s a programme created for QD-OLED monitors. The same principles apply though.
Testing Methodology Explained (SDR)
Performance is measured and evaluated with a high degree of accuracy using a range of testing devices and software. The results are carefully selected to provide the most useful and relevant information that can help evaluate the display while filtering out the wide range of information and figures that will be unnecessary. For measurement, we use a UPRtek MK550T spectroradiometer which is particularly accurate for colour gamut and colour spectrum measurements. We also use an X-rite i1 Pro 2 Spectrophotometer and a X-rite i1 Display Pro Plus colorimeter for various measurements. Several other software packages are incorporated including Portrait Displays’ Calman color calibration software – available from Portrait.com.
We measure the screen at default settings (with all ICC profiles deactivated and factory settings used), and any other modes that are of interest such as sRGB emulation presets. We then calibrate and profile the screen before re-measuring the calibrated state.
The results presented can be interpreted as follows:
- Gamma – we aim for 2.2 gamma which is the default for computer monitors in SDR mode. Testing of some modes might be based on a different gamma but we will state that in the commentary if applicable. A graph is provided tracking the 2.2 gamma across different grey shades and ideally the grey line representing the monitor measurements should be horizontal and flat at the 2.2 level, marked by the yellow line. Depending on where the gamma is too low or too high, it can have an impact on the image in certain ways. You can see our gamma explanation graph to help understand that more. Beneath the gamma graph we include the average overall gamma achieved along with the average for dark shades (0 black to 50 grey) and for lighter shades (50 grey to 100 white).
- RGB Balance and colour temperature – the RGB balance graph shows the relative balance between red, green and blue primaries at each grey shade, from 0 (black) to 100 (white). Ideally all 3 lines should be flat at the 100% level which would represent a balanced 6500K average colour temperature for all grey shades. This is the target colour temperature for desktop monitors, popular colour spaces like sRGB and ‘Display DCI-P3’ and is also the temperature of daylight. It is the most common colour temperature for displays, also sometimes referred to as D65. Where the RGB lines deviate from this 100% flat level the image may become too warm or cool, or show a tint towards a certain colour visually. Beneath this RGB balance graph we provide the average correlated colour temperature for all grey shades measured, along with its percentage deviance from the 6500K target. We also provide the white point colour temperature and its deviance from 6500K, as this is particularly important when viewing lots of white background and office content.
- Greyscale dE – this graph tracks the accuracy of each greyscale shade measured from 0 (black) to 100 (white). The accuracy of each grey shade will be impacted by the colour temperature and gamma of the display. The lower the dE the better, with differences of <1 being imperceptible (marked by the green line on the graph), and differences between 1 and 3 being small (below the yellow line). Anything over dE 3 needs correcting and causes more obvious differences in appearance relative to what should be shown. In the table beneath the graph we provide the average dE across all grey shades, as well as the white point dE (important when considering using the screen for lots of white background and office content), and the max greyscale dE as well.
- Luminance, black depth and contrast ratio (static) – measuring the brightness, black depth and resulting contrast ratio of the mode being tested, whether that is at default settings or later after calibration and profiling. We aim for 120 cd/m2 luminance which is the recommended luminance for LCD/OLED desktop monitors in normal lighting conditions. Black depth should be as low as possible, and contrast ratio should be as high as possible.
- Shadow detail – this is evaluated with the screen configured to a 200 nits white luminance for consistency between different monitors, and viewed in a dimly lit room. This first 16 greyscale shades are measured using our UPRTek MK550T spectro device (0.002 nits lower limit) for shades near-black, and the results are plotted on a graph relative to a target gamma curve (usually 2.2 gamma). Where the measurement line crosses the 0.01 nits point on the Y-axis is typically the visual threshold for where we would start to be able to detect luminance compared with black (0.00 nits). We combine these objective measurements with visual tests using a grey shade test pattern to determine the first visible shade, and then rank the shadow detail performance accordingly.
- Gamut coverage – we provide measurements of the screens colour gamut relative to various reference spaces including sRGB, DCI-P3, Adobe RGB and Rec.2020. Coverage is shown in absolute numbers as well as relative, which helps identify where the coverage extends beyond a given reference space. A CIE-1976 chromaticity diagram (which provides improved accuracy compared with older CIE-1931 methods) is included which provides a visual representation of the monitors colour gamut coverage triangle as compared with sRGB, and if appropriate also relative to a wide gamut reference space such as DCI-P3. The reference triangle will be marked on the CIE diagram as well.
- dE colour accuracy – a wide range of colours are tested and the colour accuracy dE measured. We compare these produced colours to the sRGB reference space, and if applicable when measuring a wide gamut screen we also provide the accuracy relative to a specific wide gamut reference such as DCI-P3. An average dE and maximum dE is provided along with an overall screen rating. The lower the dE the better, with differences of <1 being imperceptible (marked by the green area on the graph), and differences between 1 and 3 being small (yellow areas). Anything over dE 3 needs correcting and causes more obvious differences in appearance relative to what should be shown. dE 2000 is used for improved accuracy and providing a better representation of what you would see as a user, compared with older dE methods like dE 1994, as it takes into account the human eye’s perceptual sensitivity to different colours.
SDR Performance
Default Setup
The screen is set in the ‘Racing’ preset mode by default with the full wide gamut of the backlight active. In that mode we found a very accurate performance for gamma and greyscale, with a good RGB balance and excellent greyscale accuracy.
With the wide native wide colour gamut active here, the accuracy of sRGB colours was only moderate, with a dE 2.8 average measured. This is normal for a wide gamut screen and to be expected and we will look if we can improve sRGB / SDR accuracy in a moment.
The native colour gamut of this panel basically matches the DCI-P3 reference and with that closer match the accuracy of DCI-P3 colours out of the box was very good, with a dE 0.9 measured. This native mode is ideal for working with HDR content or providing a more vivid and saturated image that some people prefer, especially for gaming and multimedia.
sRGB Emulation
As is common for the Asus OLED range, there are two approaches to sRGB emulation which you can take. You can simply switch the colour space setting in the normal preset modes from ‘wide gamut’ to ‘sRGB’ if you want, which will leave you with full access to all the other brightness, contrast and colour settings. With that approach we saw very similar performance for gamma and greyscale as before, with a minor drop in the red channel which made the greyscale slightly cooler.
The other approach is to use the ‘sRGB Cal’ dedicated preset mode, which is actually configured to an sRGB gamma curve instead of 2.2 gamma which adjusts the near-black greyscale a bit, making it brighter and easier to see. Apart from that, there’s very little difference in performance to the other approach but this preset mode has locked controls for contrast and colours, although you do still at least have access to adjust the brightness control. That’s actually preset to a lower level for an approximate 120 nits default luminance but you can alter this.
The main thing that both these approaches do is clamp the native colour space back very close to the sRGB reference, removing the ~27% over-coverage we’d seen in the native mode. Both now offer good colour accuracy for sRGB / SDR content, although it could have perhaps been a little better tuned we felt, although it conforms to the “dE < 2” spec fine.
DCI-P3 Emulation
There is a DCI-P3 colour space setting available although this doesn’t really change much at all compared with just sticking with the wide gamut option, since the native gamut of the panel already matched DCI-P3 very closely. We didn’t see any change to the active colour space or greyscale to note, although the dE accuracy was not quite as good; so if you want to work with DCI-P3 content you might as well just leave it in the ‘wide gamut’ mode we think.
Adobe RGB clamping
Note that there’s no Adobe RGB emulation mode provided by Asus, so if you want to work specifically with content in that colour space, such as for professional and photography applications, you will need to be able to profile the screen yourself using a calibration tool. We’d like to see Asus add this as an additional option in the menu on future monitors.
There isn’t quite full coverage of this colour space available from the panel, reaching ~96% absolute coverage but it’s pretty close, and you’d ideally need to be able to cut back on the small over-coverage (~109% relative coverage) for more accurately working with this colour space.
Shadow Detail
We also explored and tested the near-black shadow detail which can sometimes be a challenge on OLED panels, even though they have a true 0 nits black depth and ~infinite contrast. We explored the reasons for this and the challenges that display manufacturers face when calibrating OLED panels in our detailed article here.
For these tests screen was configured to 200 nits white luminance, and we tested the screen in several colour space modes, as well as at different refresh rates.
Shadow detail was very good on this screen overall which was pleasing, as we’ve seen some OLED panels really struggle in this area. There was a slight shift in the gamma and shadow detail performance at different refresh rates, a common variance you will see on all WOLED panels but not on competing QD-OLED. We explored that in more detail in our article on this topic. This meant that near-black shades were a bit brighter at lower refresh rates due to the gamma shift, which made darker content a bit easier to see.
Asus provide a ‘Shadow Boost’ setting in the menu which can adjust darker scenes quite well. There’s levels 1, 2, 3 and dynamic available. Only the dynamic mode really impacts the very darkest shades near black, bringing out RGB 2 quite clearly in native mode, but they all boost the brightness of other darker grey shades and this is without raising the black point which is good news. You can experiment with this for darker gaming and multimedia if needed.
Calibration
Calibration and profiling can produce some very good overall results and could be useful though if you wanted to operate the screen within its native wide gamut mode, but then map the colour space back to something else like sRGB or Adobe RGB for instance for colour-aware applications (e.g. Photoshop). You would need a suitable calibration device and software for this, or you could also try our calibrated ICC profile.
The screen was profiled to 2.2 gamma, 6500K colour temp and to the sRGB colour space. The screen was left in its native wide gamut mode, but this profile will be used in colour-aware applications to map back to sRGB in this instance. Overall the calibrated results were very good as you’d hope, although it didn’t seem to be possible to fully correct the colour accuracy despite multiple attempts. We’ve seen this on other WOLED monitors in the past before, but we’re not sure of the cause. It remained very good overall though.
Best Settings Guide
- On our Patreon Insider tier and above you can find our full ‘Best settings guide’ for this screen which includes all our recommended calibrated settings and ICC profile for SDR mode, as well as other best settings guidance for other configurations, modes, HDR, gaming and everything else.
- If you only want just our standard SDR settings and calibrated profile, that is available via our ICC database (without all the other best settings guide).
General and Office
The resolution of 2560 x 1440 is standard on a 27″ sized screen and is comfortable without scaling being required, providing a decent desktop space for multi-tasking and split screen work. Higher pixel densities from 4K resolutions are available in this size of OLED monitor, but at higher prices, and the lower 1440p resolution is more suitable for fast-paced gaming, being a lot easier to power than 4K. As this is an OLED panel you need to be mindful of image retention risks for lots of static work, although there’s a good range of OLED Care options, the new Neo Proximity Sensor and a robust 3-year warranty offered as well.
Sub-pixel layout and text clarity
This screen uses an older Gen WOLED panel which features their original RWBG sub-pixel layout, later optimized on more recent panels to RGWB. This means that text clarity is not as good as some of the modern panels, a potential concern if you’re looking to use it for lots of text and office applications, but not really an issue for gaming and multimedia. It leads to more noticeable fringing on text in static uses and this screen is more suited to dynamic content. If you’re concerned about text clarity then you will probably prefer some of the high pixel density options like the 27″ 4K models (e.g. PG27UCDM) if you can stretch your budget further.
Glossy coating
The improved ‘TrueBlack’ glossy coating provides a super sharp and clear image, free of any grain which is great news. That removes the very minor grain visible on the previous XG27AQDMG model, and certainly it looks crisper and cleaner than the matte anti-glare coated WOLED panels you can find on the market. A lot of people prefer this coating finish, and it helps the image pop more as well. On the other hand, it is not as well suited to viewing in brighter room conditions or where you have light sources and windows facing the screen. It’s a lot more reflective and produces mirror-like reflections which can be distracting in some situations. You will need to consider your usage environment to decide if glossy is right for you, or if you’d be better off with a matte anti-glare coating.
Useful Office Features
| Features | Notes | |
| USB type-C connectivity (DP Alt mode) | | |
| USB type-C power delivery | | |
| Daisy chaining support | | |
| KVM switch | | |
| PiP and PbP support | | |
| USB data ports | | 2x USB-A |
| Easy access USB data ports | | |
| Integrated speakers | | |
| Audio output / headphone out | | |
| Mic input | | |
| Integrated webcam | | |
| Ambient light sensor | | |
| Motion sensor | | Neo Proximity Sensor |
| Stand adjustments | | Tilt, height, swivel, rotate |
| VESA mount support | | 100 x 100mm |
| Integrated power supply | | Integrated |
| Tripod socket | | 1/4″ on top of stand |
| Firmware updates | | |
| Fan-less design | |
As this is part of Asus’s affordable OLED range it is missing USB type-C connectivity and associated functionality like a KVM switch, so keep that in mind if you’re looking to connect a laptop perhaps. There’s also no PiP/PbP support which you will find on some of their other OLED monitors. There are at least 2x USB-A data ports and a headphone connection which are useful, and the stand provides a great range of adjustments too.
Blue Light
| Blue light output | |
| Blue peak wavelength | 455 nm |
| Blue light portion | 35.42% |
| Low blue light modes available | |
| Low blue light mode temp | Levels 1 – 4 |
The native panel spectral distribution is shown above at a calibrated 6500K white point, where the blue peak is at 455 nm. The spectral distribution shows this is a previous-Gen WOLED panel before they shifted to a 4-layer structure for their Tandem WOLED technology in 2025.
There is a ‘Blue Light Filter’ setting in the menu with 4 levels available, but they are only accessible when you have Uniform Brightness disabled for some reason, which might make them a little pointless for office applications where you will probably want to have UB enabled. These modes get progressively warmer in appearance and we measured 5575K (level 1), 5445K (level 2), 5210K (level 3) and 4024K (level 4). The level 4 setting also has a locked brightness capped at a setting of 65 (with UB off) and is ridiculously yellow in appearance.
Flicker free
| Flicker | |
| Flicker free verified | |
| PWM / flicker frequency | n/a |
Grey banding
We also tested the screen for the ‘grey banding’ and ‘dirty screen effect’ (DSE) issues which affects many OLED panels, especially WOLED technology and the latest Tandem WOLED panel variants. The screen was adjusted to a 0.2 nits dark grey shade and the provided photos are adjusted to capture the image as close to what we see with the naked eye as possible to give a fair reflection of real-world experience.
Keep in mind that these are still “extreme” test scenarios with solid dark grey patterns, and the visibility of any banding in real usage will likely vary. Where present in these tests, you may experience it in dark-mode apps and some darker gaming situations, but outside of that it is often much harder to spot. This can also vary between different samples and over time, with a wear-in period recommended and several manually run pixel refresh cycles recommended.
For loads more detail on what the issue is, how we can test for it and what causes it, check out our detailed article here.
At native refresh rate (240Hz) the banding was at low levels on our sample and we never saw any issues with this during regular testing.
As is common, the banding reduced quite a lot at lower refresh rates for reasons we explored in our study on the topic.
HDR
Being an OLED panel, the XG27AQDMGR is well equipped to handle HDR content with its per-pixel level dimming allowing for true blacks, a basically infinite contrast ratio and the avoidance of all blooming and halos. In these regards it can easily surpass any Mini LED backlit LCD monitor. However, it cannot reach the same luminance levels as Mini LED screens, and carries a “peak brightness” spec of 1300 nits, which will then also lower as the content on your screen changes and the APL increases which is normal on this technology. This is one key area where Mini LED screens can look brighter and deliver a more impactful HDR experience.
The WOLED panel maintains better contrast and black depth in the presence of ambient light than alternative QD-OLED panels, which show raised blacks that start to go grey as ambient light increases, especially where those light sources are in front of the screen. Some improvements have been made with 2026 ‘QuantumBlack’ coated QD-OLED panels, but they still remain behind WOLED in this regard.
The glossy ‘TrueBlack’ glossy coating used on this screen also helps with black depth retention, as it doesn’t diffuse light across the panel like a matte AG coating would, but on the flip side you do need to be more mindful of mirror-like reflections with this coating and the screen is not as well suited to brighter viewing environments.
HDR Demo and Test Video
Test and demo the HDR on your display using our handy compilation, highlighting black depth, contrast and peak brightness capabilities.
[View here]
HDR Modes and Operation
There are 4 HDR modes available within the OSD menu – Gaming, Cinema, Console and True Black 400. Most settings are locked by default, including for brightness, contrast and the whole colour menu. Asus provide an option called “adjustable HDR” which once enabled allows you to make adjustments in those other areas if you want to make tweaks.
HDR Testing Methodology Explained
Performance is measured and evaluated with a high degree of accuracy using a range of testing devices and software. The results are carefully selected to provide the most useful and relevant information that can help evaluate the display while filtering out the wide range of information and figures that will be unnecessary. For measurement, we use a UPRtek MK550T spectroradiometer which is particularly accurate for colour gamut and colour spectrum measurements. We also use an X-rite i1 Pro 2 Spectrophotometer and a X-rite i1 Display Pro Plus colorimeter for various measurements. Several other software packages are incorporated including Portrait Displays’ Calman color calibration software – available from Portrait.com.
We measure the screen at default settings (with all ICC profiles deactivated and factory settings used). The results presented can be interpreted as follows:
HDR accuracy section
- Greyscale dE – this graph tracks the accuracy of each greyscale shade measured from 0 (black) to 100 (white). The accuracy of each grey shade will be impacted by the colour temperature and gamma of the display. The lower the dE the better, with differences of <1 being imperceptible (marked by the green line on the graph), and differences between 1 and 3 being small (below the yellow line). Anything over dE 3 needs correcting and causes more obvious differences in appearance relative to what should be shown. In the table beneath the graph we provide the average dE across all grey shades, as well as the white point dE (important when considering using the screen for lots of white background and office content), and the max greyscale dE as well.
- RGB Balance and colour temperature – the RGB balance graph shows the relative balance between red, green and blue primaries at each grey shade, from 0 (black) to 100 (white). Ideally all 3 lines should be flat at the 100% level which would represent a balanced 6500k average colour temperature for all grey shades. This is the target colour temperature for desktop monitors, popular colour spaces like sRGB and ‘Display DCI-P3’ and is also the temperature of daylight. It is the most common colour temperature for displays, also sometimes referred to as D65. Where the RGB lines deviate from this 100% flat level the image may become too warm or cool. Beneath this RGB balance graph we provide the average correlated colour temperature for all grey shades measured, along with its percentage deviance from the 6500k target. We also provide the white point colour temperature and its deviance from 6500k, as this is particularly important when viewing lots of white background and office content.
- ST 2084 EOTF (PQ) tracking – this graph tracks the PQ curve in HDR mode, akin to gamma measurements in SDR. The yellow line represents the ideal PQ curve, while the grey line plots the monitors measured performance.
- Luminance, black depth and contrast ratio (top right hand table) – measuring the brightness, black depth and resulting contrast ratio of the mode being tested. The luminance figure captured here is from a standard 10% APL window area measurement, although further luminance measurements are included in a separate section to capture “peak brightness” and the luminance at other APL areas. This section also measures the black depth on the screen and the resulting contrast ratio.
For HDR, any local dimming is left enabled, and so we measure the black depth adjacent to a white test image and calculate the “local contrast ratio” from there. We also measure the black depth towards the edges of the screen, away from the white test area in order to calculate the “maximum full frame contrast ratio” across the whole panel. These figures will often be different on LCD screens with local dimming, as this dimming can be more effective for dark areas further away from light areas.
HDR colours section
- Gamut coverage (2D) – we provide measurements of the screens colour gamut for HDR relative to the very wide Rec.2020 colour space. Coverage is shown in absolute numbers as well as relative, which helps identify where the coverage extends beyond a given reference space. A CIE-1976 chromaticity diagram (which provides improved accuracy compared with older CIE-1931 methods) is included which provides a visual representation of the monitors 2D colour gamut coverage triangle as compared with Rec.2020. The higher the coverage, the better.
- dE colour accuracy – a wide range of Rec.2020 colours are tested and the colour accuracy dE measured. An average dE and maximum dE is provided along with an overall screen rating. These numbers are calculated based on the colour tone and hue, and ignore any luminance error. The lower the dE the better, with differences of <1 being imperceptible (marked by the green area on the graph), and differences between 1 and 3 being small (yellow areas). Anything over dE 3 needs correcting and causes more obvious differences in appearance relative to what should be shown. dE 2000 is used for improved accuracy and providing a better representation of what you would see as a user, compared with older dE methods like dE 1994, as it takes into account the human eye’s perceptual sensitivity to different colours.
Peak white Luminance Measurements
We expect most people will want to use the screen at its maximum brightness for HDR, so having pushed the brightness setting up to the maximum 100, we measured the peak white luminance in each mode. In most situations the two modes delivered the same peak white luminance, although the Gaming/Cinema/Console modes pull away for the darkest, low APL scenes where they can reach a higher peak luminance. We measured up to 1155 nits in those modes which was a bit shy of the advertised 1300 nits, but a decent peak luminance for an affordable-range OLED monitor like this. The True Black mode capped out at ~750 nits when brightness was pushed to the maximum, or around 430 nits in default configuration.
This is a familiar pattern, but doesn’t tell a complete picture as we need to evaluate other areas for real-world performance, beyond simple white measurements.
EOTF Measurements
The EOTF tracking varies a little between each of the 3 higher brightness modes (brightness set to 100 in each). The Gaming mode has a little over-brightening in darker scene highlights, but that helps reduce the roll-off in brighter scenes and preserve some overall brightness. Console HDR mode seems to offer the most accurate overall EOTF tracking in these tests and is our preferred option.
If you want the most accurate EOTF tracking then the True Black 400 mode provides this in its default configuration (with brightness set to 90). You’ll get less overall ABL dimming as well in that mode as it simply never pushed the brightness that high, and it won’t reach anywhere near the same peak brightness as the other modes, reaching only around 423 nits peak in fact.
You can push this to higher peak luminance levels (~730 nits) if you bump up the brightness setting to 100 but this leads to over-brightening of the EOTF as you can see and some loss of detail in brighter content. If you’re going to use the TB400 mode for accuracy purposes and to reduce ABL dimming, it’s probably best just to stick to the default setup and 90% brightness level. We think most people will want to use the brighter overall Gaming/Cinema/Console modes though.
Dynamic Brightness Boost
Asus provide an additional setting called ‘Dynamic Brightness Boost’ which is available in the Gaming/Cinema/Console modes and this serves to boost the brightness in real-world HDR content by altering the EOTF tracking, helping primarily to avoid the roll-off we saw in brighter overall scenes (higher APL). You sacrifice some detail in darker scenes with brighter parts of the image, but it does improve overall HDR content brightness so this is likely preferrable for most people for a more impactful experience.
We measured an average 31% higher luminance with DBB turned on in real-scene measurements which was good, and this configuration helped avoid some of the roll-off and dimming you otherwise see from this OLED panel. Some detail is lost though so you’ll have to experiment to see if you like it.
EOTF and Greyscale Measurements
Having settled on the Console mode as delivering the most accurate performance of the 3 brighter HDR modes, we measured this in a bit more detail to evaluate the greyscale accuracy and temperature. Note that this was with D.B.B. turned on so we had some over-brightening of the EOTF in order to offer a more impactful and brighter overall HDR experience.
There’s a good RGB balance in HDR mode with a decent overall greyscale temp and a good white point as well which was good news. There is access to the colour temp setting when you use the ‘adjustable HDR’ option, should you want to switch to a warmer or cooler profile for any reason. Shadow detail was also good in HDR mode also, with the first visible greyscale shade being RGB 3 at both native 240Hz and at 60Hz.
HDR Colours
The colour gamut in HDR mode seems to be clamped back slightly compared with SDR mode, but it was very close and we had a good match to the DCI-P3 colour space used for a lot of HDR content. Colour accuracy was good overall with dE 2.2 average, if we ignore the 100% primaries from Rec.2020 which this panel cannot reach.
Gaming
The XG27AQDMG Gen 2 is well-suited to gaming, using an OLED panel which is well-known for its near-instant response times and excellent motion clarity capabilities at high refresh rates. It can also support HDR gaming very well with amazing blacks and contrast ratio. The ‘TrueBlack’ glossy coating provides a super clear and clean image although you need to be mindful of the positioning of external light sources relative to the screen to reduce reflections.
| (at native resolution) | Refresh Rate |
| Maximum Refresh Rate DisplayPort | 240Hz |
| Maximum Refresh Rate USB type-C | |
| Maximum Refresh Rate HDMI | 240Hz |
| VRR range | 48 – 240Hz |
| ClearMR certification tier | |
The screen has a lower refresh rate (240Hz) than many other recent OLED monitors, which now offer 360 – 540Hz commonly. This is a more mid-tier refresh rate, but it’s certainly not slow and still provides great motion clarity and frame rate support. There’s many people who don’t want or need anything higher than this, either because they’re not playing competitively, don’t play games that support super high frame rates, or don’t have a powerful enough system to drive it anyway. Having a lower refresh rate on this new panel helps ensure a more affordable price point too.
| Other Features | |
| Black Frame Insertion (BFI) | |
| Gaming extras | FPS counter Crosshair Sniper Timer Stopwatch Display Alignment Shadow Boost |
| Emulated gaming sizes | 16:9 – Full and pixel by pixel modes 24.5″ model (16:9) Square – full, equivalent, pixel by pixel modes |
There’s a familiar wide range of gaming settings and extras on offer here too from the ‘Game Visual’ menu. This includes their ELMB (Extreme Low Motion Blur) mode which operates a black frame insertion function for improved motion clarity in certain gaming situations which we will test in a moment.
There’s an aspect ratio option to simulate a 24.5″ sized screen area as well if you want a smaller area to focus on for competitive gaming situations.
Response Times and Motion Clarity
The OLED panel offers the usual near-instant response times you’d expect, and there’s a native 240Hz refresh rate which offers very good motion clarity. Powering these kind of frame rates at 1440p will be easier than on 4K equivalent screens.
You can find much higher refresh rates from some other OLED monitors now, but let’s not lose sight of the fact though that 240Hz on an OLED is still very good, equivalent in motion clarity to a ~360Hz LCD and likely more than enough for most gamers. If you’re a serious or competitive gamer or focused on taking gaming experience further then other options are available but at a higher price point. The Asus ROG Swift PG27AQWP-W for instance uses the fastest currently available OLED panel and has a 540Hz native refresh rate, plus a dual-mode function for 720Hz at 720p.
Variable Refresh Rates
| VRR capabilities and Certification | |
| AMD FreeSync certification | FreeSync Premium Pro |
| Native NVIDIA G-sync module / G-sync scaler | |
| NVIDIA ‘G-sync Compatible’ certified | |
| VESA ‘AdaptiveSync’ certification | |
| HDMI-VRR (consoles via HDMI 2.1) | |
| OLED VRR Anti-flicker modes | |
To help support the demands of 1440p @ 240Hz the screen features adaptive-sync, giving Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) support for both NVIDIA and AMD systems which is great news. It has received certifications under the AMD ‘FreeSync Premium Pro’, VESA ‘AdaptiveSync’ and NVIDIA ‘G-sync Compatible’ schemes.
VRR Flicker
All OLED monitors can show flicker and gamma fluctuations in VRR situations and this is something we studied and tested in detail in our article here. Remember that just because a screen can show flicker, doesn’t mean you’ll necessarily experience it during your usage and from your system. Please see our detailed article for loads more information about this issue on OLED monitors.
Asus have included their OLED Anti-flicker settings on this screen, with options for ‘off’, ‘middle’ and ‘high’ available in the OSD menu. The screen switches to black for a couple of seconds when you change this setting.
With the anti-flicker modes turned off we saw an active VRR range of 48 – 240Hz with LFC used below that. Like other WOLED technology panels we tested in our detailed study, the gamma response is directly tied to the frame rate during VRR situations. For instance at RGB 10 this gets progressively brighter up to RGB 12.8 as the frame rate drops from 240fps to 48fps. This only applies when using VRR we should reiterate.
As a result it is large swings in frame rate that cause the most potential flicker and gamma shift. The trick with this panel would be to keep frame rates as consistent as possible, at whatever level you can achieve, to reduce the likelihood of flicker. Remember that this data represents the maximum potential flicker, and it would be less with more steady frame rates. We saw the most noticeable flicker in darker scenes and content where it reaches moderate/high levels, but nothing too severe to be honest; with basically none visible in lighter content which was very good.
The anti-flicker modes restrict the VRR range in an effort to reduce the gamma shift that can occur with large frame rate swings. It introduces a “dead zone” in the range where VRR is turned off altogether which obviously eliminates VRR flicker for that portion completely, but means that VRR are not actually being used so that could perhaps introduce some tearing artefacts in some cases potentially. It also adjusts the point at which LFC kicks in, shifting that to kick in earlier at 120fps instead of the previous lower 48fps level.
These measures reduce the potential gamma shift as when using the ‘middle’ setting the lowest true frame rate without LFC is now 145fps, and in the ‘high’ mode it is 210 fps. As a result we saw an improvement in VRR flicker as you would expect.
Extreme Low Motion Blur (ELMB), BFI mode
Like other recent Asus OLED monitors, the XG27AQWMG has an added BFI (Black Frame Insertion) mode for blur reduction. Asus call this ELMB (Extreme Low Motion Blur) and it’s the alternative to a strobing motion blur reduction backlight you might find on some LCD monitors. Rather than the backlight being strobed off and on rapidly (because there is no backlight on an OLED panel), a black frame is inserted periodically in to the image instead.
| Motion Blur Reduction Mode | ||
| Motion Blur Reduction mode / BFI | | |
| Refresh rates supported | 120Hz only | |
| 60Hz single strobe operation | | |
| Blur reduction available with G-sync/FreeSync VRR | | |
| Available in SDR mode | | |
| Available in HDR mode | | |
| Viable with games consoles | | |
| Lag penalty | ~7ms | |
| Brightness capability (SDR, max refresh rate supported) | ||
| Brightness control available | | |
| Independent brightness between on/off modes | | |
| Motion blur OFF – Max brightness | ~262 nits (uniform brightness mode) | |
| Motion blur ON – Max brightness | 172 nits | |
ELMB is available only in limited scenarios as it is on other OLED monitors. It can only operate at half the maximum refresh rate of the panel, and so in this instance it runs only when you manually set your refresh rate to 120Hz. You also have to disable adaptive-sync in the menu, turn off uniform brightness and low blue light modes; and so the operation remains pretty clunky. It’s only available in SDR and not in HDR too like on Asus’ other OLED monitors with this feature. There is a lag penalty of ~7ms when using ELMB mode, which seems to align with other recent Asus OLED screens we’ve tested with this function.
With ELMB enabled, the brightness control is at least still available all the way up to 100, which is good news and is remembered independently to the off state which makes life easier. We measured a maximum brightness of 172 nits in ELMB mode, but this does vary a little as the content changes due to ABL dimming, dropping down to 132 nits for full screen white for instance.
That is about typical for an OLED monitor with this feature, although we’ve seen more recent WOLED panels reach even brighter, especially the 4th Gen Tandem WOLED offerings like the XG27AQWMG and PG27AQWP-W.
Pursuit camera photos captured at 960 px/sec scroll speed
Above is the perceived motion clarity of the screen at 120Hz and 240Hz when running in normal mode, and then also at 120Hz with ELMB enabled. You can see that the motion clarity looks the same at 120Hz with ELMB as it does at 240Hz with the mode turned off. This is to be expected given the 50:50 duty cycle of the BFI function. This clarity is the same across the entire screen though thanks to the super-fast response times of the OLED panel, you don’t need to worry about which area of the screen is the cleanest and clearest, like you do on an LCD screen with a strobing blur reduction backlight.
This mode can help improve perceived motion clarity at 120Hz nicely, and so might be useful if you can only power up to around 120 fps from your system, or if you’re using a device which only supports that refresh rate maximum, such as a modern games console. You could game at 120Hz and use ELMB in that mode to bump your motion clarity up to the equivalent of 240Hz – a shortcut if you will to reaching 240Hz-like motion clarity.
If your system is more powerful, you can get the same motion clarity if you stick with 240Hz and can reach up to 240fps. That’s along with the improved latency and frame rates that running that high will offer. You can also then use VRR and other settings, so if you can power the screen at that level you will probably want to try and just use the screen in normal mode instead where possible. Had this BFI mode also been available at 240Hz, it could have offered another step up in motion clarity, reaching 480Hz-like levels. Sadly it’s only possible at half the native refresh rate at the moment.
Lag
Read our detailed article about input lag and the various measurement techniques which are used to evaluate this aspect of a display. The screens tested are split into two measurements which are based on our overall display lag tests and half the average G2G response time, as measured by our oscilloscope. The response time element, part of the lag you can see, is split from the overall display lag and shown on the graph as the green bar. From there, the signal processing (red bar) can be provided as a good estimation of the lag you would feel from the display. We also classify each display as follows:
Lag Classification (updated)
- Class 1) Less than 4.17ms – the equivalent to 1 frame lag of a display at 240Hz refresh rate – should be fine for gamers, even at high levels
- Class 2) A lag of 4.17 – 8.33ms – the equivalent of one to two frames at a 240Hz refresh rate – moderate lag but should be fine for many gamers. Caution advised for serious gaming
- Class 3) A lag of more than 8.33ms – the equivalent of more than 2 frames at a refresh rate of 240Hz, or 1 frame at 120Hz – Some noticeable lag in daily usage, not suitable for high end gaming
There is an extremely low lag on the XG27AQDMG Gen 2 at native refresh rate, measured at 0.167 ms total display lag, and leaving us with only 0.04 ms of estimated signal processing lag which is basically nothing and is perfectly fine for competitive gaming situations. Even at lower refresh rates like 120Hz and 60Hz there is very little additional lag which is great news for console gaming and lower refresh rate devices. The ELMB mode adds around 7ms of additional lag compared with the native 120Hz mode and is in keeping with other recent Asus OLED monitors we’ve measured in this regard.
Console Gaming
The screen has a native 2560 x 1440 resolution (1440p) panel, but can accept a “virtual 4K” input signal, allowing for wide support of modern games consoles. Importantly this allows for HDR support from an Xbox Series X which can only run in HDR mode at 4K.
The update to HDMI 2.1 ports on this Gen 2 model offers a useful upgrade for games consoles as the previous version could only support 4K 60Hz maximum due to the bandwidth limitations of HDMI 2.0. You could use it at 1440p 120Hz which is fine from a PS5, but creates a limitation for Xbox Series X where HDR can only operate when set to 4K output. It’s good to see HDMI 2.1 added here for better console support.
| Console Gaming | |
| Native panel resolution | 2560 x 1440 |
| Maximum resolution and refresh rate supported | 4K 120Hz |
| Virtual 4K support | |
| 4K at 24Hz support | |
| 4K at 50Hz support | |
| HDMI connection version | 2.1 |
| HDMI-CEC auto switch | |
| VRR (variable refresh rates) | |
| Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM) | |
| HDR10 support | |
| Dolby Vision HDR support | |
| Black Frame Insertion (BFI) support | |
| Integrated speakers | |
| Headphone connection | |
| Ultra high speed HDMI 2.1 cable provided | |
We confirmed via an Xbox Series X that 4K 120Hz works fine along with HDR10 support and features like VRR and ALLM. Unlike some of Asus’s other OLED monitors there is no support for Dolby Vision HDR content on this screen at this time. You can use the ELMB blur reduction mode when running at 120Hz which is potentially useful to boost motion clarity, and there’s support for 4K 24Hz and 4K 50Hz video content too.
Note that there are no integrated speakers on this model unlike some competing screens, and so you’ll need to connect headphones or some kind of external soundbar/speaker system when using a console. That’s one potential gap for the XG27AQDMG Gen 2 if you’re looking to play console games or connect other external devices but that’s one of the few things it’s missing.
Conclusion
The XG27AQDMG Gen 2 (aka XG27AQDMGR) offers some nice improvements over the original version from a couple of years ago, and is a nice addition to the Asus OLED monitor range. The improved ‘TrueBlack’ glossy coating offers a super-sharp and clear image, and removes the very minor grain visible on the original glossy coating from 2024, while also improving the reflection handling a little. For fans of glossy finishes, it’s bound to be very welcome as this is still a niche offering in the WOLED market.
It’s good to see Asus improve the feature set a bit here as well, adding their useful Neo Proximity Sensor to their extensive OLED Care options, and updating the HDMI ports from v2.0 to v2.1 which brings better support for both PC and console connections. Maybe they could have added USB-C connectivity, a KVM switch and PiP/PbP support, but these would have increased the cost and the aim here was to keep it competitively priced.
This new model continues to offer a more affordable OLED option as well and at the time of this review the pricing is identical to the original version – there’s no additional price premium, despite the improved feature set. It’s available at a price of $549 USD in the US at the moment, or on offer at £409 GBP in the UK (down from £479). If you’re interested in a 27″ glossy OLED monitor then it’s a no-brainer to get this Gen 2 model compared with the original.
If you want to push the budget a bit further then the (similarly named) XG27AQWMG is a great option, offering a latest-gen Tandem WOLED panel, a brighter panel and a slightly increased refresh rate of 280Hz. That’s available for around $/£ 100 more at $649 USD / £519 GBP but is another excellent screen to consider.
| Pros | Cons |
| Improved ‘TrueBlack glossy’ coating enhances picture quality | Older sub-pixel layout means more text fringing than more recent WOLED monitors |
| Added Neo Proximity Sensor for enhanced OLED Care | More limited feature set due to price point |
| HDMI ports updated to v2.1 bringing better PC and console gaming support | Older generation WOLED panel, missing some of the Tandem WOLED improvements from the most recent panels |
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