Samsung Odyssey OLED G9 Review | 49" of Insane Gaming Monitor Immersion

I wasn't surprised that Samsung's Odyssey  OLED G9 turned out awesome as Samsung's   slate of OLED monitors we've seen this  year have already been stunning what I   didn't expect going into this review is  that I'd actually be considering adopting   the unique 32:9 aspect ratio that I wrote  off for so many years at 49 in diagonally   and occupying more space than two 27in monitors  the Odyssey OLED G9 seemed too impractical to   be usable and I was certain that it would be  hard to recommend alongside some of the best   gaming monitors after spending some time with  it though it's clear that the monitor provides   unrivaled productivity prowess and one of the  most immersive gaming experiences money can   buy and as someone who uses a 20:9 monitor  daily it's going to be hard going back but   hey before getting into the rest of the review  make sure to leave a like on this video and get subscribed I already touched on it but we  need to start with the specs this is a 49in,   32:9 monitor which if you can spotted is basically  two 16:9 monitors stitched together it is a dual   1440p resolution or 5120x440 and it's OLED with  certification through vas's display HDR true black   400 unlike the previous version this monitor has  a subtle 1800 R curve and a refresh rate of 240 HZ   Samsung also claims a 1 million to1 contrast rate  ratio and a response time of 0.03 milliseconds but   neither of those really matter too much given  that this is an OLED panel finally the monitor   retails for $1800 but I've commonly seen it as  low as400 or even 1,300 [Music] bucks with the   specs done let's get the other obvious point out  of the way the Odyssey OLED G9 looks amazing like   the screen looks great sure uh but the design of  the monitor overall is stunning I'm a huge fan of   Samsung's Odyssey design this year which combines  a stark silver frame with just enough flare to let   you know that this is a gaming monitor it's an  entirely metal design with a slim silver frame   and that's a huge plus over Samsung's previous  version of this monitor it had a chunky plastic   back that made the display feel extra large and  it's already huge I mean don't get me wrong this   is a big monitor but the slim frame along with  a subtle 1800r curve makes it feel a lot more   manageable on a desk compared to the pr previous  version something Samsung carried over from the   previous version is the core sync ring there's a  layer of diffused plastic around where the stand   connects to the monitor that holds RGB lighting  you can set this as a static color but you can   also syn it with what's on your screen in a  dark room playing Allen wake 2 the extra bit   of lighting did a ton to draw me into the game  still the core sink ring is fairly dim so you   won't notice the effect and brightly lit rooms  Samsung includes a hefty metal stand in the box   that doesn't take up too much extra desk space  the stand is great but unsurprisingly it doesn't   offer a ton of room for adjustment you have a  narrow window of height adjustment and about 15   degrees of tilt but that's it thankfully Samsung  includes a Vasa adapter in the Box allowing you   to mount the monitor for more flexibility in  positioning now I was a little worried about   the Odyssey OLED G9 after reviewing the Odyssey  OLED G8 earlier this year make sure to check   out a review of that but that monitor relied  exclusively on Mini connections for the HDMI   and display port cables that's thankfully  not the case here you have full-size HDMI   2.1 and display port 1.4 ports along with a  micro HDMI 2.1 Port these are all recessed   on the back too making Cable Management super  easy the same isn't true for the integrated   USB hub you have three USB ports but they're all  USB-C most peripherals still aren't using USB-C   cables just yet so a single USB-A a port would  have gone a long way here still it's certainly   better than micro HDMI mini display ports like  the one of the OLED G8 but still something to note now reviewing the Odyssey OLED G8 did  clue me in on the exceptional image quality   I could expect here in the OLED G9 delivers this  is one of the best OLED displays you can buy with   fantastic color coverage great color accuracy  and the Deep contrast and Inky blacks that OLED   panels are known for but let's get some numbers  out of the way an SDR the monitor covered 100%   of SRGB 98% of DCP3 and 95% of adobe RGB for  those unfamiliar with color spaces those are   some of the highest numbers we've ever recorded  for a monitor showcasing excellent coverage the   color error was a bit higher than the Odyssey OLED  G8 coming in at 1.36 still that's fine for basic   color work even if you'd want to calibrate it for  any more serious work contrast is well infinite   due to the fact that OLED produces perfect black  levels but as we've seen with displays like the LG   Ultragear OLED 27 the tradeoff is peak brightness  for a 10% window The Odyssey OLED G9 peaked at   237 nits which is a hair below what we've seen  with displays like the Alienware 34 QD OLED I   was able to hit 283 nits in HDR with a smaller 5%  window which is a little better switching over to   HDR color accuracy unsurprisingly takes a dip  with an average error of just over four that's   not the worst we've seen for HDR color accuracy  but there's no doubt that the HDR experience is   for media consumption not creation contrast  was once again excellent though Peak bright   was just barely over 200 nits for a 10% window on  screen the image quality on the Odyssey OLED G9 is   stunning but you can get that with 16x9 monitors  like the AC Rog pg27 aqm the unique aspect ratio   is where the Odyssey OLED G9 really shines it's a  productivity machine giving you ample screen real   estate to multitask now my preferred way to work  is with a 21:9 display work and I have two windows   side by side but the aie OLED G9 takes that idea  to the extreme here essentially getting two 16x9   displays just without all the problems of most  multi-monitor setups you can expand this idea   further too stacking up Windows horizontally to  have three or four large views at once the Aussie   OLED G9 is a massive display sure but it actually  saves you some space compared to a traditional   multi-monitor setup all while providing the  same level of screen space for productivity but   let's not lie this is a gaming monitor first  and foremost and that's probably what you're   going to use it for and I'm here to tell you the  gaming experience is great I truly mean this I've   never had a more immersive gaming experience  than on the aOLED G9 the massive 32:9 aspect   ratio captures your peripheral vision and it just  does not let you go even at like a solid viewing   distance you have no other option but to absorb  the game world you're experiencing funnily enough   one of the first games I booted up was the recent  Allen wake 2 which I had to turn off about half   an hour because it was it was just a little too  scary in that format it's not remotely close to   VR okay okay but it provides that same feeling of  immersion The Odyssey OLED G9 wrestles your senses   away sucking you into games in a way that even  21:9 monitors just can't manage I spent nearly   an hour driving around night City in cyberpunk  2077 ignoring all of my various objectives just   riding on the high of the feeling of living in  this dense futuristic World it brings you in   that much the unique aspect ratio is what matters  most but the OLED G9 has plenty of gaming grunt   otherwise the 240 HZ display delivers incredible  motion clarity with the ultra low response   times of OLED making titles like do maternal feel  ruthlessly responsive Freesync Premium Pro is also   here giving you variable refresh rate regardless  of your graphics card you should however keep in   mind how demanding this resolution is the monitor  has a 5120 X4 1440 resolution and if you do the   math that's not far off of 4K it has 7.3 million  pixels while 4K has 8.3 million for reference a   21 1x9 monitor with a 3440 x440 resolution is  just shy of 5 million while a 1440p monitor has   about 3.6 million you'll definitely want a PC  equipped for 4K gaming if you plan on picking   up the Odyssey OLED G9 now when the monitor is in  its prime form there is nothing else even remotely   close to it the problem is that it often won't  be in its prime form now the unique aspect ratio   leads to consistent immersion breaking scenarios  where it becomes clear just how silly playing   games a 32:9 monitor is it's not just cutcenes  either every time I opened the menu in Marvel   Spider-Man the UI looked cramped on the screen  as it just quickly adjusted to the typical 16x9   aspect ratio there are also plenty of games that  just simply won't support the 32:9 aspect ratio   Indie titles for example like Tunic are almost  universally locked to 16x9 forcing to either Run   the game in Window mode or sacrifice about half  of your screen real estate to black bars this can   definitely come up in larger games too such as  Overwatch 2 where 32:9 resolutions just aren't   supported in addition the wide field of you can  actually work against the gaming experience well   again this isn't VR but the Odyssey OLED G9 can  give you a little bit of motion sickness depending   on the game I mean I don't want to play it up too  much it's really not that big of a deal but it   can come up in games with extreme motion blur and  heavy vignetting where long gameplay sessions can   cause some queasiness and that's something I've  never experience with another monitor for gaming   The Odyssey OLED G9 is an experience monitor if  you spend a few hours with it you'll be floored   by the immersion and quality it's a little tougher  to settle in for long gameplay sessions though the   black bars for games that don't support 32:9  are very distracting much more so than even   a 21:9 monitor so you'll often have to sell for  playing games and Window mode that said the worst   experience you'll find on the OLED G9 is simply  what you'd get with a 16x9 monitor while the   best experience is far ahead what you'd find on a  standard display and as I'll get to next there are   plenty of ways to take advantage of the extra  screen real estate I just spent a lot of time   talking about how 32:9 is Impractical for gaming  but with a little bit of effort it can actually be   a huge asset a lot of that comes down to Samsung  Multi View which lets you split the screen display   different sources it works great on the OLED G9  and it's a feature you want to take advantage of   in a lot of cases the only downside here is that  Samsung doesn't support a ton of apps from the   built-in OS for Multi View you're mainly limited  to YouTube and Samsung TV plus but the upside here   is that you can add the built-in web browser as a  source so you can basically unlock any app with a   little bit of effort the biggest problem with  this setup is actually finding something to   occupy the rest of the screen in those situations  where you can't fill the full 32:9 aspect ratio   you'll want something else to build the remainder  of the screen and it's possible you won't have a   second Source Samsung thankfully allows you  to mirror the screen on your phone or laptop   I mean Android iOS Mac OS and windows are all  supported which gives you a ton of options to   take advantage of the rest of the display now as  I kind of alluded to the Odyssey OLED G9 isn't   just a monitor it includes Samsung's Tizen TV  operating system giving you access to streaming   apps like Netflix and Hulu uh Samsung gam home for  Xbox game pass and GeForce now and even some live   TV with Samsung TV plus that's not really what's  important here though you probably won't use the   built-in apps very much I mean this is a high-end  gaming monitor that you'll probably connect to a   high-end gaming PC but the OS opens up Bluetooth  and Wi-Fi connections a monitor update is just   an option in the menu not a frustrating process  involving a USB drive and Bluetooth allows you   to connect a controller or keyboard and mouse if  you want to navigate the OS without the included   remote it opens up a ton of display options  as well you can quickly access things like   Samsung Multi View with the remote through the  quick access menu as well as dig into picture   settings that you wouldn't normally find on a  monitor's onscreen display even without features   like color calibration with sport smartphones  controlling the monitor this way is leagues ahead   of a traditional OSD Samsung built some hardware  for this experience as well the built-in speakers   are surprisingly loud and they do a great job at  positioning audio in games with surround sound   you'll still want dedicated speakers or headphones  for the best audio experience but the speakers   sound excellent compared to what you normally  find on gaming monitors if you find speakers at all but okay on to some closing thoughts the  AI OLED G9 isn't for everyone it's for the most   intense PC Gamers who want Peak immersion in games  ample room for productivity and a feature set that   you just cannot find anywhere else and it delivers  on all fronts all while producing one of the best   images you can find on a gaming monitor those  looking for those types of PC experiences know   that they usually carry some unforeseen quirks  though and the OLED G9 is definitely no exception   as mentioned 32:9 doesn't play nicely with all  games and the Deep immersion can quickly be thrown   off when a cut scene plays still when the Baseline  experience is simply what you'd get with a 16x9   monitor the OLED G9 can scale much higher now we  need to talk a little bit about pricing before I   get out of here though Samsung ask $1,800 at list  price for the display but I would not buy it for   that much it's not so much that it's overpriced I  mean there really isn't another monitor quite like   this one but that it frequently goes on sale uh at  the time we're recording it's available for $1,400   putting it within spitting distance of some of the  21:9 QD-OLEDs we've seen and at that price it's an   absolute steal for high-end PC Gamers assuming  you can adopt the unique aspect ratio but I want   to know your thoughts is OLED enough to make 32:9  worth it or do you want something that's just a   little more manageable let me know in the comments  below while you're down there make sure to leave a   like and get subscribed all right thanks for  watching everyone I will see you in the next video

Channel: Digital Trends

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Id: V1ItdyB0vBY

Length: 13min 55sec (835 seconds)

Published: Thu Nov 09 2023