Lightning-fast refresh rates over DisplayPort 2.1
The LG 27 UltraGear OLED (27GX790A) ($999) is a gaming monitor that combines the fidelity of an OLED screen with dramatically high maximum refresh rates. Designed for hard-core gaming, the latest UltraGear is a QHD (2,560-by-1,440-pixel) monitor with a whopping 480Hz ceiling. It’s an impressive display, made even better thanks to its excellent color coverage and gamer-friendly accoutrements like a DisplayPort 2.1 input. For the deep-pocketed gamer who wants to flex their latest and greatest GPU, the LG 27GX790A is a winner. It earns an Editors’ Choice award as a top-notch esports monitor.Design: Maximum Performance, Maximum Future-Proofing
Last year was chock full of QHD 27-inch OLED monitors, including heavy hitters like the MSI MPG 271QRX QD-OLED, the Asus ROG Strix OLED XG27AQDMG, the Alienware AW2725DF 360Hz QD-OLED, and the Sony Inzone M10S, The 27GX790A has the most in common with the Sony model. Both are QHD OLED monitors that support refresh rates of 480Hz. Higher refresh rates will certainly entice hard-core, competitive gamers because, with the proper GPU to push extreme frame rates, they can achieve lightning-fast reaction times.
The key difference between the Inzone M10S and the 27GX790A is the latter monitor’s support for DisplayPort 2.1. This latest DisplayPort connector has had a slow adoption rate—the only monitor to come across our test bench sporting one in 2023 was the Samsung Odyssey Neo G9. It wasn’t until recently that monitors like the HP Omen Transcend 32 OLED (our current top pick for premium gaming monitors) began including it. While GPUs like the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT and RX 7900 XTX supported DisplayPort 2.1, you can thank the latest crop of Nvidia GeForce RTX 50-series graphics cards for helping it finally break into the mainstream.
DisplayPort 2.1 can handle more than double the bandwidth of DisplayPort 1.4 (80Gbps versus 32.4Gbps). Why is this a big deal? DisplayPort 1.4 uses Display Stream Compression (DSC), an algorithm to compress each frame in real-time as it’s transmitted from the source to the monitor or TV. It’s considered lossless to the eye, but the signal is actually compressed 3:1. The additional bandwidth of DisplayPort 2.1 means you can maintain higher resolutions and refresh rates without that compression that erodes color accuracy.
DisplayPort 2.1 effectively future-proofs your monitor, but it’s not the 27GX790A’s only connector. The monitor’s port hub also includes two HDMI 2.1 ports, two USB-A ports, and a USB-B upstream port. Overall, the monitor is light on ports, but these are likely all you’ll need for a gaming monitor. If you’re looking for a productivity-focused monitor with ports to spare, we recommend the Dell UltraSharp 27 4K USB-C Hub Monitor (U2723QE).
The monitor ditches internal speakers, offering a headphone jack enhanced by DTS:X instead. This audio tech has shown up on LG monitors before, promising to enable life-like 3D audio and spatial sound. In addition, LG touts this monitor’s four-pole headset/headphone port, which can be used for mic-equipped headsets as well as output-only headphones with three-pole plugs. Monitor-side headphone jacks of any type are a rarity these days, so it’s nice to see one at all here, let alone one that supports headsets.
The 27GX790A measures 22.8 by 23.8 by 9.8 inches (HWD) with the stand fully extended, and it weighs 20.
