by Another day, another messiah 32-inch, 240Hz, 4K OLED monitor, this time from Gigabyte. This is actually the third such panel we’ve reviewed in recent weeks, so it’s safe to say we’re getting a lot of exposure to what was, until recently, a radical new segment of the monitor market.
In fact, for some time, the basic proposition of combining 4K pixel density with OLED image quality promised something like the ultimate in PC display technology. And the Asus ROG Swift OLED PG32UCDM and the Alienware 32 AW3225QF did not disappoint. We love 32 inches of 4K OLED goodness.
So, the question is how does the new Gigabyte Aorus FO32U2 stack up against the direct competition and what extra, if anything, does it teach us about this brave new world of 4K OLED gaming.
On paper, there are few surprises. The only arguable exception is the price. Gigabyte screens tend to be priced very competitively and at $1,099 this OLED is no exception. It’s about $100 cheaper than the Alienware and $200 less than the Asus.
Specifications Gigabyte Aorus FO32U2
Screen size: 32-inch
Resolution: 3,840 x 2,160
Brightness: 250 nits full screen, 1,000 nits max HDR
Color cover: 99% DCI-P3
Response time: 0.03ms
Refresh rate: 240 Hz
HDR: DisplayHDR 400 True Black
Aspects: Samsung QD-OLED 3rd Gen Panel, Adaptive Sync, 1x DisplayPort 1.4, 2x HDMI 2.1, 1x USB-C with 18W PD
Price: $1,099 | £1,258
It’s also worth noting that there have been some really good deals on the various 49-inch ultrawides lately. The original Samsung G9 launched at around $2,000, but the Gigabyte Aorus CO49DQ uses exactly the same QD-OLED panel but can currently be had for $999. That’s a lot of monitoring, even if the pixel pitch is pretty clunky and the text looks pretty blurry.
Like every other 32-inch 4K OLED you can actually buy right now, the Gigabyte Aorus FO32U2 uses Samsung’s QD-OLED panel technology. LG has a 32-inch WOLED in the works, but monitors based on that panel aren’t available yet.
Either way, as well as 3,840 by 2,160 pixels, you’re looking at 250 nits of full-screen brightness, 1,000 of peak HDR brightness in a 3% window, and a 0.03ms GTG pixel response. Oh, plus 240Hz refresh. All those figures are identical to the Asus and Alienware alternatives.
Likewise, just like the competition the Gigabyte Aorus FO32U2 has a glossy panel coating. Gigabyte has also gone for the flat option, just like Asus, although the Alienware offers a gentle curve. Flat or curved is a personal preference and we would be happy with either option in this particular category.
For connectivity, Gigabyte gives you two HDMI 2.1 ports, plus Displayport 1.4 and USB-C. All four will do the full 240Hz refresh and the inclusion of USB-C gives the Gigabyte an advantage over the Alienware, as does the inclusion of the audio line out.
At least, the USB-C would be an advantage if the power delivery was not limited to 18W only, which limits its utility a lot. For the record, there is another FO32U2P model that raises the USB-C power delivery to 65W and upgrades the Displayport interface to 2.1 spec while supporting Displayport out and daisychaining. Even this non-P model also has full KVM switch capability, which is nice to see though.
Styling and build quality wise, this is a nicely put together monitor with a fully adjustable stand, including rotation in portrait mode. That said, the power supply is external, which is not our favorite and usually adds to clutter, not to mention the risk of misplacing the PSU.
The styling is a bit on the gamery side, with some slightly half-hearted RGB lighting accents on the back inevitable. But it’s a pretty slick thing. Just remember that the bezels are more medium than super slim.
To a point that is an inevitable consequence of QD-OLED technology and the need for some spare pixels around the edge to accommodate pixel shift, or to periodically move the entire image slightly around the screen as one of some anti-burn mitigation measures .
Forget text fringing, it’s not a problem with these high-DPI OLEDs.
Speaking of which, this Gigabyte has the necessary sub-menu in the heaving OSD with OLED care options, including pixel shifting, pixel cleaning, and more. The panel also shrinks a bit when your mouse isn’t moved or when you hit the keyboard for a while, which can be a little annoying.
As with other OLED monitors, there’s a slight sense that you’re dealing with beta technology in this regard. OLED is definitely more complicated to live with and care for than LCD. But like the competition, Gigabyte throws in three years of burn-in coverage for peace of mind.
But what about image quality? Just like the 4K OLED competition, the basic combination of good pixel density with OLED panel technology is simply amazing. Forget text fringing, it’s not a problem with these high-DPI OLEDs.
This monitor feels like any LCD panel is dated and a bit clunky in terms of everything from contrast and viewing angles to pixel response. We are really introducing to improve the art of 2D display technology with these 4K OLEDs. They are bloody gorgeous.
Gigabyte has calibrated the FO32U2 with a slightly warmer color temperature than other QD-OLEDs.
They’re not perfect, though, and there are some differences here despite the shared Samsung QD-OLED panel. Gigabyte has obviously calibrated the FO32U2 with a slightly warmer color temperature than the other two we tested.
On its own, it is not very disruptive to each other. But sat next to another monitor, such as the closely related Alienware, it is quite clear. It also seems to be worse at elevated ambient light. We have known for some time that QD-OLEDs have a slight problem with ambient light as a result of not using a polarizing filter and the quantum dots marked by the “QD” prefix being excited by incoming ambient light and kicking some light. back out of the panel, and the panel can look a little gray even when it’s off.
One consequence of use is that QD-OLED panels can look a bit gray when rendering black tones if there is a lot of ambient light. I wonder if the same issue is causing the slightly too warm color temperature of this Gigabyte as well. Anyway, the problem is that it is not easy to tune out using any of the OSD settings. It could probably be solved with a full calibration. But how many gamers have the necessary calibration tools available?
That said, the slightly wonky heat aside, both the default SDR and HDR modes are very nicely calibrated. You can run this monitor full time in HDR mode and still enjoy punchy, mostly accurate SDR colors, saving you jumping between modes.
As with other monitors in this class, there’s a fairly baffling range of HDR mode options. However, the default HDR mode gives good results and arguably doesn’t fiddle with the others.
If there’s any exception, Gigabyte seems to be a bit more conservative with overall screen brightness in SDR mode, which doesn’t feel as punchy as the competition. It’s arguably of little consequence as we’d be running this panel in HDR mode all the time anyway.
If you do that, there’s only a little brightness variance when resizing, say, a mostly bright browser window. But it’s limited enough not to be a distraction. Ultimately, as with other 32-inch 4K OLEDs – and indeed all other OLEDs – we’d prefer a tiny space with more full-screen brightness. But these latest panels are certainly approaching brightness levels we can get behind.
If all of the above is to be successful it seems that we are a little less enthusiastic about this new Gigabyte model than the 4K OLED competition, which mostly reflects the reality of the information. You can’t be as upset the third time as you were the first.
But make no mistake, this monitor is amazing. The in-game HDR experience is out of this world. The lighting and contrast control is another thing. Sure, Cyberpunk looks great with HDR and ray tracing set to full reheat. But even playing CS:GO is a little special thanks to the pixel response and 240Hz refresh rate.
Of course, you’ll need the GPU to make the most of the latter with any demanding game. And for that, not to mention the $1,099 price, this is still a nice niche product.
Buy if…
✅ You want 4K OLED solitude for less money: At $1,099, this OLED panel is still expensive. But it’s the cheapest 4K model we’ve reviewed.
Do not buy if…
❌ You expect pixel-perfect calibration: Gigabyte has set this monitor a little warmer than other OLEDs, and a little too hot for our liking.
On the other hand, it has slightly more usability bandwidth than, say, a 27-inch 1440p OLED. Those panels suffer greatly in terms of text rendering thanks to the low pixel density and non-standard sub-pixel structure. And that makes them much less usable as all-in-one computing devices.
Pretty much, this is the pick of the new 4K OLED brigade. You get the same 4K 240Hz QD-OLED technology for less money, while avoiding the Alienware’s connectivity limitations. It’s also flat rather than curved, which we think most gamers will prefer on a standard 16:9 panel compared to an ultrawide panel.
So our only gripe is the slightly too hot calibration. It’s one of those snags that will change in importance on a completely subjective basis. In the game, you hardly notice it. On the desktop it is a little more clear. But either way, it’s enough to prevent another excellent monitor from slotting right at the top of the 4K OLED segment.
