ViewSonic XG321UG, analysis and opinion

Choosing a good monitor is a daunting task.. If you start looking for your setup, there are many parameters you need to take into account such as panel, aspect ratio, resolution, brightness level, support, refresh rate, color reproduction, etc.

If you want the best of the best, you’ll have to scratch your pocket, but until recently, even if you bought a very expensive monitor, you still didn’t have features that have been on TVs for years, like the latest generation of HDMI or high brightness levels.

However, we are now seeing models that already include HDMI 2.1 for consoles (like the Sony Inzone M9) and others like the ViewSonic XG321UG that have a Full Array backlit MiniLED panel capable of achieving impressive brightness.

ViewSonic XG321UG Analysis Sections:

• Design: A discreet aesthetic that does not attract attention, but with interesting details.
• Ports: Everything you need for the best PC experience, not so much on PS5 and Xbox Series X.
• Experience: Impressive panel with outstanding brightness
• Conclusion: one of the best monitors for PC gaming, although you have to pay for it

A discreet aesthetic that does not attract attention, but with interesting details

When we talk about monitors, we usually don’t have a custom design section. Yes, there are exceptions like the mentioned Inzone M9, but they are usually quite “serious” and traditional.

This ViewSonic, however, is not one of those that attracts attention to the naked eye, but it is not at all something negative and, in fact, It has a couple of details that I liked..

First, this is what assembly process is extremely simple. This happens in many monitors, but there are those that make you take a screwdriver. Not here, because the base (which I found to be very strong) is threaded to the bracket, and that to the monitor using the “click” system.

The monitor has a 100 x 100 VESA system, so you can hang it on the wall or on another desk bracket you already have (as long as it meets that standard, of course), making changing monitors a lot easier.

One of the things that I liked so much is that the bracket allows you to optimally view the monitor from different angles. You have tilt adjustment from -5º to 20º, it can be rotated 50º right and left and you will also be able to control the height in a very, very simple way.

It’s big, yes, since it’s still 32″, but if you need to control the angle, at least you won’t have to struggle with the base because the movement system is very fluid.

And around the perimeter of the VESA system we find the RGB LED. which gives some atmosphere to the room. It’s not a very powerful system, but if you play around with the dim lighting in the room, you’ll notice it. There are also LED strips on the lower ends that light up the desktop a little.

Operation is very simple thanks to both the navigation joystick and the very user-friendly OSD menu system. If you want to change any monitor settings, you won’t have to struggle with tabs or anything too complicated.

And something that stands out at the front (the only one, really) is the ambient light sensor located on the chin.

The monitor has a system that automatically adjusts the brightness panels depending on the ambient light, so that we do not have to constantly fiddle with the adjustment and thus always have optimal lighting.

It’s something I love and I think all monitors in a certain price range should have, as well as the headphone hanger on the left side of this model.

Everything you need to play fully on PC isn’t much on PS5 and Xbox Series X.

And a little more, I’m already saying that the design is not what excites me, but that did not stop ViewSonic from introducing small things here and there that play in favor of the quality of life.

This quality of life also largely depends on the ports and, in truth, we are served here. We have a 3.5mm output, DisplayPort 1.4, HDMI 2.0, three USB-A 3.2 and one USB-B 3.2..

These USB connectors are very useful because we can connect a USB-B PC and peripherals directly to a monitor that acts as a hub. This, for certain scenarios, is very convenient and comfortable, but I didn’t like something.

Although we have everything you need to play on PC in the highest quality (because of DisplayPort 1.4), HDMI 2.0 does not allow us to fully enjoy the latest generation of consoles.

Yes, it’s clear that you’ll be able to play on PS5 and Xbox Series X obviously, but you won’t be able to take advantage of technologies like 4K at 120fps or others like VRR. In another type of monitor, I wouldn’t care anymore, but in this one, which costs more than 2000 euros, I think this is a rather important drawback.

I really don’t understand why we don’t have HDMI 2.1, but a lot of manufacturers still forget to include it in their next generation monitors. At least we have free cables like USB-B, HDMI 2.0 and DisplayPort.

Impressive panel with outstanding brightness

But the most important thing, in the end, is the panel, and this is the main headache when buying a monitor. We have good news because I think this is one of the best PC monitors currently available for gaming. and, in addition, will allow you to work with images.

You already have the main characteristics in the table, which we leave to you at the beginning of the analysis, but with the main ones we go when playing. First, it’s 32 inches at 4K resolution, and I feel like it’s the perfect size for certain types of games..

Adventure like Spider-Man (which just came out on PC), God of War or Cyberpunk, I think this is an impressive monitor. Games like Gray and others with bold color palettes are also beautifully reproduced with this monitor’s color reproduction.

For a competitive first-person shooter, I find this size far from ideal. 32 inches at arm’s length, more or less, from our eyes, I think that’s a lot for Overwatch, for example, but it’s very personal and you might like it.

Secondly we have G-Sync Ultra technology and a maximum of 144 Hzalthough it is difficult. And it is, it’s a 10-bit panel, but those real bits will only be displayed at a 120Hz refresh rate.

If we set the frequency to 144Hz, we have 8 real bits, which causes image artifacts colloquially known as the “YouTube effect”. Obviously, I recommend setting the maximum value to 120Hz, because it’s easier for you to use 120Hz in 4K to begin with than 144Hz. On the other hand, we have a higher color depth in 10-bit mode.

And finally, we have glitter. We’ve had super-brightness in TVs for years, but that’s not the case with monitors, where the maximum brightness is typically 400 nits, in most cases.

Lately we are already seeing other highs with 600 or 800 nits, but this ViewSonic is one of the brightest, peaking at 1400 nits in HDR mode.. It’s impressive in that sense, and together with the automatic brightness control, it’s one of the best monitor experiences I’ve had.

As always, we measured and we have an average of 387 lux in SDR mode and an average of 985 lux in HDR. It doesn’t reach the limit noted by ViewSonic, but it’s a slightly different unit of measure after all, and ViewSonic is talking about a peak at a given time, not a constant.

In some types of games that allow you to activate HDR, this is a real blast. For example, Battlefield 5 while not the best in the series is far from it, it’s amazing on this monitor if your GPU can handle 4K, ray tracing and HDR.

Also, illumination via Full Array panel with 1152 lighting zones which do not allow light leakage and have very good contrast ratio due to deeper blacks than on monitors with conventional backlit panels.

Blacks don’t reach the level of OLED (logically, due to OLED technology), but they are a huge improvement on what we have in regular monitors.

And for editing photos and videos, this is also a very interesting panel both in terms of brightness and color gamut. It has 98% DCI-P3 and 99% AdobeRGB coverage. and, indeed, in the weeks that I worked with him, I had to edit the photos of the analyzes and a couple of videos to my liking.

One of the best monitors for PC gaming, although you have to pay for it

And, in the end, this is one of the best monitors I’ve tried for gaming. I also performed very well, yes, since this IPS panel has excellent color reproduction, but the truth is that I am not such an image specialist in photography or video as I am in video games.

That’s what I can tell you both in colors and in 10 bits and brightness levelthis is by far the best you can buy if you want to enjoy video games and above all if you have a PC that supports 4K moving resolution with graphics in high settings and HDR.

Of course it also works to connect consoles and the colors are still great, but the lack of HDMI 2.1 is an important drawback because we are talking about a monitor that costs more than 2000 euros and which, at this price, should offer the latest technologies on the market.

But if consoles don’t matter to you because you’re a PC Master Race and you can afford itThis is one of the best monitors you will find.