Optix G27CQ4 curved monitor review from MSI

Generally, it will be difficult to choose and buy a monitor with significant technical specifications and at the same time high quality and good price, and usually buyers get confused in a wide range of different choices and a long list of models; But the monitor Optix G27CQ4 With impressive specifications and a decent price tag, MSI seems on paper to be an ideal choice for gaming purposes.

The Optix G27CQ4 monitor is included in MSI’s economic gaming monitor category, and its most prominent features include a 27-inch curved VA panel with a resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels and a 165 Hz refresh rate. One millisecond response rate and 3000:1 dynamic contrast are other features of the MSI gaming monitor. Next, be with Zomit by reviewing the Optix G27CQ4 curved monitor.

MSI Optix G27CQ4 monitor port design and set

The MSI design team is one of the boldest teams in the digital world; So that by looking at the various products of this Taiwanese company, you can clearly see the use of a different design from the competitors. The appearance of the Optix G27CQ4 monitor tries to harmonize itself with office environments; But MSI’s gaming spirit somewhat hinders this goal and affects the design a bit by adding sharp lines and rough bumps; Therefore, the Optix G27CQ4 monitor cannot be considered a gaming product only, and it will be an ideal option for more normal tasks.

The design of the back part of Optix G27 has an H-like protrusion and the monitor ports can be seen in the depression of its central part. There is also a Kensington lock slot on the right side of this section. The base is connected to the body through a screw, which may cause a little trouble at the very beginning of setting up the monitor. Perhaps it would be better to use metal tabs to fasten the base to the body so that the user can connect or disconnect the monitor base without using a screwdriver.

The Optix G27CQ4 monitor base is very similar to the Optix MAG273 model, which you read about in Zomit before, and the device will weigh 5.4 kg, including it. As expected, most of the front of the monitor is dedicated to the display panel, and the Taiwanese have significantly reduced the borders around the monitor by using a design called Frameless Design. The matte protective glass helps to reduce the reflection of the monitor surface; But the distance between the edge of the glass and the frame around the screen is relatively large; so that a sheet of paper can be placed between it.

The device, including the base, has dimensions equal to 225.4 x 457.9 x 611.5 mm; Therefore, you don’t need much space to place the monitor on the table, and the occupied space will be similar to normal monitors. Unfortunately, just like other economic devices, the monitor base cannot be adjusted in height or change the horizontal angle, and only the vertical angle can be adjusted from -5 degrees to 20 degrees, on the other hand, there is no cable organizer on the back of the device.

Personalization of the monitor settings is done through a five-way red button, which has a much better performance compared to monitors with several buttons; Even the thought of 5 or 6 buttons on the back of the device without knowing the function of each one will create a boring experience that will eventually lead to the user’s anger after pressing the wrong buttons. Fortunately, the mentioned button has a very smooth function except when pressed.

The last part in the design section is dedicated to the number of ports on the device, the number and description of each of which is given below:

• A 3.5 mm headphone jack
• Two HDMI 1.4b ports
• A DisplayPort 1.2a
• DC input power port

To output the image of 1440 x 2560 pixels with a refresh rate of 165 Hz, you will have to use DisplayPort; Because using HDMI 1.4b limits the image output to 1440 x 2560 pixels with a refresh rate of 144 Hz.

The 27-inch Optix G27CQ4 monitor panel uses 1500R curvature. As the R number increases, the curvature decreases. In fact, the number before R refers to a circle with a radius equal to that number in millimeters. In other words, the bending of the 1500R panel will be equal to the bending of a circle with a radius of 1500 mm. Monitor manufacturers generally increase the curvature of the panel by making it wider.

The reason for the increase in curvature as the panel becomes wider can be found in the mechanism of the human eye. If you look at different parts of a wide and flat monitor for a long time, due to the constant change of focus, the user’s eyes will get tired in a shorter time; But by bending the panel, the distance of the panel from the user’s eyes will always be the same, and as a result, eye fatigue will happen much later.

MSI Optix G27CQ4 monitor image quality

As mentioned earlier, the G27CQ4 monitor uses an LCD panel with VA technology and a resolution of 1440 x 2560 pixels. Due to the VA technology, this monitor can be expected to offer higher contrast compared to its IPS counterparts. On the other hand, the device’s resolution of 1440 x 2560 pixels in the dimensions of the 27-inch panel provides a suitable pixel density of 109 pixels. Therefore, at standard intervals, the pixels cannot be separated and the displayed images will have high resolution.

MSI Optix G27CQ4 monitor includes 7 default settings profiles, including 4 Game Mode profiles by game style and 3 Designer, Cinema and Reader profiles in the Pro Mode section. The Reader profile is specifically used for reading long texts and helps to reduce the fatigue of the user’s eyes by reducing the blue light. The cinema profile also increases the sharpness of the images a little, in addition to producing cooler colors.

FPS, Racing, RTS, and RPG profiles also fall under the Gaming Profiles category, each optimized for their respective styles. For example, in the FPS profile, the monitor helps the gamer focus more on the target by reducing the green color and increasing the sharpness of the image. Or the Racing profile, which displays more saturated colors to enhance the game’s appeal. In both the Game Mode and Pro Mode sections, there is an option called User, which is actually the user’s personalized profile.

The Eco Mode feature is enabled by default to reduce monitor energy consumption; While this option, by reducing the brightness of the panel, deprives the user of the possibility to change the profile and other settings of the device; So the first step for most users will be to disable the Eco Mode option; Because its activation will directly affect the brightness level of the panel. According to MSI, the maximum brightness of the Optix G27 monitor is 250 nits; But in the initial reviews of Zomit, we did not reach a number higher than 180 nits; While the brightness settings displayed the number 100%.

After deactivating the Eco mode, the brightness was changed to 80%, and by re-checking, we reached an average brightness of 230 to 260 nits, and we also measured the minimum brightness of 31 nits, which makes working in dimly lit environments a challenge. MSI’s curved monitor produces 318 nits of brightness at its brightest, which is achieved in the Cinema profile.

The exposure of the pixels is done through the LEDs placed on the edge of the panel, and there is no local dimming; Despite this, we measured the maximum black brightness of Optix G27 equal to 1.4 nits, which is an acceptable number for an LCD panel. On the other hand, the VA panel’s benefit from deeper black and 146 contrast helps to provide a better image; Of course, the existence of background light leakage, as one of the common problems in curved panels, can slightly reduce the pleasure of watching a movie.

The weak point of the Optix G27 monitor can be the production of not so many colors. In fact, in all the 7 mentioned profiles, the MSI representative cannot achieve a better number than DeltaE 4.7. The strangest issue is the very low color accuracy of the panel when selecting the Designer profile; While by activating this option, the user expects that the display will help him in the process of better imaging or more accurate editing by producing better colors, surprisingly, we see one of the most inaccurate colors. In fact, by obtaining DeltaE 16.2 in the sRGB color range, we thought at first that there was a problem with the review process; But after doing the test again and again and changing the parameters, we did not get a different number.

The most suitable settings profile to achieve the highest color accuracy is the RPG profile, which displays colors in the Adobe RGB color space with DeltaE 4.4; Of course, keep in mind that color accuracy is not very important in a gaming monitor, and generally, at the time of purchase, factors such as refresh rate and image resolution, response time, and input lag are considered.

Another downside is the lack of HDR standard support. Although currently the world of computer games is not very familiar with the concept of HDR, but with the arrival of the 8th generation consoles and the emphasis of Sony and Microsoft on HDR support, it is hoped that as these consoles become more widespread, the gaming community will also become more familiar with this standard. . In addition, the lack of HDR will be considered a negative issue for movie lovers. A weakness that is partially resolved by activating the Cinema profile.

Gaming capabilities of MSI Optix G27CQ4 monitor

Definitely, the nature of a gaming product is not limited only in its appearance, and the Optix G27 monitor is also accompanied by various software features. The most important feature of the MSI product can be considered the support of AMD’s FreeSync technology, which brings variable frame rates to the user.

Despite the FreeSync technology, image fragmentation will not occur due to the difference in the refresh rate of the monitor and the output image. Thanks to the FreeSync support, you can use the dynamic frame rate feature on the 9th generation Xbox Series X and S and PlayStation 5 consoles.

The next useful feature is called Night Vision, which increases the brightness of dark parts of video games. This feature includes 4 options: Normal, Strong, Strongest and AI, each of which changes the Gamma intensity. The user cannot manually adjust the Gamma level. By activating the AI ​​option, as the name suggests, the task of controlling the gamma level is entrusted to the monitor itself, and this value changes according to the content and the darkness of the screen.

Finally, we should mention the Refresh Rate and Screen Assistant features, which are used to show the refresh rate of the game in the desired part and display the gun indicator, respectively. The Screen Assistant feature can be considered a kind of cheat for games that sometimes do not display the location of the bullet, and the gamer can always know the location of the bullet with this trick.

Conclusion

In the price range of 9 to 10 million Tomans, there are wide choices to buy a gaming monitor; But none of the competitors in this price range offer 1440p resolution with a 165Hz refresh rate and a curved panel; Of course, the absence of a speaker in Optix G27 can be considered a strong point for other models; But keep in mind that monitors generally use a 2-watt speaker, which does not provide much quality and power. Therefore, to get a better experience, it will still be necessary to prepare a speaker.

According to the factors discussed in this review, the MSI Optix G27 monitor ranks high in terms of purchase value; Of course, only for gamers and movie lovers. Because the color accuracy of the panel is relatively low, it will not be a suitable option for designers.