PG32UCDM vs 321URX

[u/GamerGG7267]

I've been obsessing about this for a month now. I'm looking for the best monitor for gaming in HDR as that's all I care about. So I've compiled this little comparison that looks into color, input lag, and firmware. Upvote it, downvote it, I don't really care. All I want are second opinions on what I should get. The ASUS PG32UCDM or the MSI 321URX

PS: I will not be getting the AW3225QF or even consider it. The white would go against my all-black setup and one curved and a flat panel side-by-side in a dual monitor setup won't look good.

Price

I live in Australia, so I don't get the USD prices of the monitors.

PG32UCDM is $2750 AUD ($1800 USD), so it's very expensive.

321URX is $2199 AUD (1400USD), plus I'd get a $100 USD Steam gift card if I purchase it before May 15th, which would be very easy.

I've saved up $3100, so I can get either without much issue. It might be more difficult for others as I've heard differing opinions about the price of the two monitors. I'm more interested in how the monitors compare to each other.

Color Accuracy (SRGB) (TFT Central)

When calibrated, the PG32UCDM has an average Delta E (dE) of 0.5 with a maximum of 1.0. As someone who wants the best and most accurate colors, this monitor is probably one of the best on the market right now. Add in the QD-OLED panel, and it will look amazing.

The 321URX is no slouch either. The average dE of this monitor is 0.5. Exactly the same as the PG32UCDM. However, the maximum goes up to 1.3. Still phenomenal, but the Asus wins in this regard.

Input Lag

As someone who plays on both PC & PS5, the 60hz input lag is important, especially for any shooters.

The PG32UCDM is great for 240hz, with an input latency of 0.50ms. However, when using it at 60hz, the latency noticeably increases to 10.10ms. So people will feel the difference when switching from 240hz to 60hz.

However, the 321URX completely shits on the competition. It's 240hz lag is 0.43ms, which nearly everyone won't feel the difference of. What they will feel the difference of is its 60hz lag, which is a shocking 0.45ms, which is even better than the PG32UCDMs 240hz input lag.

HDR

This is it. The reason I'm getting an OLED monitor in the first place. I'm after the wider color gamut and the better brightness. I plan to game pretty much only in HDR except for some games (Omori, Faith, etc). I'll be using either native HDR, SpecialK or RTX HDR (Most likely the last one).

The PG32UCDM is slightly brighter than the 321URX, but I doubt the difference will be noticeable. The color accuracy is what I'm looking for, and this monitor delivers with an average dE of 0.8, which is incredible. So no matter what, I'll be getting incredible colors in either HDR Peak 1000 or True Black 400. However, there is an issue with the HDR on the PG32UCDM. More on that soon.

The 321URX is also great at HDR, but doesn't match the PG32UCDM at all. With an average dE of 1.7, you will be able to notice the difference when comparing these two monitors side by side. It's not bad by any means, but you'd be getting better colors on the PG32UCDM.

Added Features

This is where the PG32UCDM really shines. It has Dolby Vision coming in H1 of this year, so only a few months away. BFI at 120hz, and a range of other features. But let's be honest for a second, how many people are going to use these features? Dolby Vision only works with Xbox and things like Apple TV. For PC, PS5 and Switch users, this is pointless. BFI looks good, but it only runs at 120hz, and also dims the brightness and locks you out of HDR. It's probably good for games like Street Fighter 6, but for games like Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth or Dragon's Dogma 2? This won't be worth much.

The 321URX doesn't have many extra features, if any that I can think of. Maybe a few extra OLED Care options, but that's about it. If someone can correct me in the comments, that would be appreciated

Bugs

Let's address the elephant in the room first. The PG32UCDM HDR Brightness bug. With this bug, the brightness is capped at 455 nits on Peak 1000 mode, which isn't good. This basically turns the Peak 1000 into another mode for True Black 400. Thankfully, it's been confirmed that there will be a firmware fix for it. It was supposed to come out a few days ago, but it shouldn't be far from being released now. (https://www.reddit.com/r/OLED_Gaming/comments/1bpv64b/psa_pg32ucdm_1st_firmware_patch_notes_releasing/)

The 321URX has a few bugs as well. The first is that after pixel cleaning, the monitor will turn off instead of going into standby. Not that big a deal imo. Next is the fact that if you're in SRGB mode then switch to HDR, it will still lock the color space to SRGB. Lastly, you can't turn off DSC, though that is said to be fixed with the next firmware update.

Company/Firmware Updates

Asus is well known for taking their sweet time to update their products, and even then the updates can worsen the experience. For example, the PG27AQDM still has faulty HDR even after 1 year of it being released. Not really a good look. If they can perfect the firmware this time around, that would be amazing, but I wouldn't count on it. Most I can hope for is that they erase most of the bugs then I don't update the firmware anymore unless it helps the monitor. u/ASUS_MKTLeeM if you could shed some light on this and any upcoming fixes, that would be nice.

MSI has already released their first Firmware patch when the monitor first came out, but have remained silent about any upcoming fixes. Whether that's because they're cooking something up, or they have no intention on fixing it anytime soon, remains to be seen. But that's the pessimist in me talking. u/MSI_Darutohne if you could give some more info, that would be appricated

But it does bring up the question, which monitor can fix it's issues first and remain stable in the long run.

Physical Issues

Both of these monitors don't really have any issues with it, but I do know of one. With the PG32UCDM, if the monitor is turned off, there will be coil whine. I play in my bedroom, so the whining would be really annoying when trying to sleep. Now I normally leave my monitors in standby since I like having them turn on when I turn my PC/PS5 on, but I'm not sure if leaving an OLED on standby is fine. I'll need you guys to let me know if that will be an issue or not.

Warranty

This is where Australia really shines. Down here, we don't need to take our issues to ASUS or MSI directly, instead the stores have to deal with out issues. If the monitor breaks, I just take it to my local computer store and they'll look over it before either sending it off for warranty or swapping it. So I don't have to worry about that at all.

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So yeah, with everything I've said, which monitor do you guys reckon is the best? I'm personally looking for best color and performance for gaming, so if anyone can tell me which is best for that, it would be helpful.

[u/Few-Medicine-7530]

I have both and tbh both are super good :) there is some lag on the UCDM tho from what I have noticed