LG 27GN950 160Hz 4K UHD Nano IPS model

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The combination of excellent pixel density and strong responsiveness provided by 144Hz ‘4K’ UHD models like the Acer XB273K really hits the sweet spot for some users. The LG 27GN950 (27GN950-B owing to black stand and rear) offers an alternative, expanding on this sweet spot with support for a 160Hz refresh rate and the use of a new LG Display Nano IPS panel. The monitor has a dual-stage bezel design that includes the very slim bezel and slender panel border that’s flush with the rest of the screen. In keeping with other members of the ‘UltraGear’ gaming monitor lineup, the OSD is controlled by a small central joystick on the underside of the bottom bezel.







The monitor uses a 27″ Nano IPS panel from LG Display with a 3840 x 2160 (‘4K’ UHD) resolution. A 160Hz refresh rate (144Hz native + factory overclock feature in OSD) is supported, alongside Adaptive-Sync. This includes AMD FreeSync for compatible GPUs and systems as well as Nvidia’s ‘G-SYNC Compatible Mode’ – the latter of which this model is specifically certified for. The monitor supports VESA Display Stream Compression (DSC), allowing it to support high refresh rates and bit depths simultaneously. In contrast with the earlier models using the AUO AHVA panel, which required a 4:4:2 reduced chroma signal (chroma subsampling) to be used. Other notable aspects include support for 10-bit colour, an assumed 1000:1 static contrast ratio and 178° horizontal and vertical viewing angles. A WLED backlight is employed with a typical maximum luminance of 450 cd/m² (boosts to 600 cd/m² + under HDR) and a generous 98% DCI-P3 colour gamut coverage.

Also of note is that VESA DisplayHDR 600 is supported, allowing the monitor to respond to HDR10 content. This puts the bit depth and colour gamut to good use whilst giving a degree of local dimming support from the backlight to enhance contrast. Also of note is that hardware calibration is supported, allowing a compatible colorimeter to address the monitor’s LUTs directly. An interesting addition for a gaming monitor. A 1ms grey to grey response time is specified, but you certainly shouldn’t put too much weight on this figure. The stand of the monitor offers height, pivot and tilt adjustment and can be removed to make way for an alternative 100 x 100mm VESA compatible solution. There’s a ‘Sphere Lighting 2.0’ RGB lighting feature surrounding the stand attachment point. This is a newer and possibly slightly brighter variant of the feature we quite enjoyed on the 32GK850G. It can be controlled using a dedicated horizontal scroll wheel beside the OSD joystick. UltraGear Control Center software can also be used to configure the lighting feature, as well as other functionality. The lighting feature includes a ‘Sound Sync’ setting that allows it to react to sound passed through the monitor and ‘Video Sync’ mode where it will react to on-screen content. The ports include DP 1.4a, 2 HDMI 2.0 ports and 2 USB ports.







Further information can be found on the manufacturer’s website. The monitor is listed for ~$800 USD (~£750).



