Dell G3223Q review: Better than the 4K competition, but far from perfect

Price When Reviewed

$1099

Best Prices Today: Dell G3223Q

Looking for a 32-inch 4K monitor that’s nice for each PC and console gaming? You face a tough selection. HDMI 2.1 help with excessive refresh charges is now widespread, however excessive pricing and so-so efficiency stays an issue for this class. The Dell G3223Q is among the many higher choices, however removed from flawless. 

Dell G3223Q: The specs

The Dell G3223Q’s specs lean in the direction of console gaming. It has two HDMI 2.1 ports, a refresh price of as much as 144Hz, and AMD FreeSync Premium Pro. This is the perfect mixture for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X house owners.

• Display measurement: 32-inch
• Native decision: 3,840 x 2,160
• Panel sort: IPS
• Refresh price: Up to 144Hz
• HDR: VESA DisplayHDR 600 licensed
• Adaptive sync: AMD FreeSync Premium Pro
• Ports: 2x HDMI 2.1, 1x DisplayPort, USB Type-B upstream, 2x USB-A with Power Charging, 3.5mm headphone jack
• Stand adjustment: Height, tilt, wwivel
• VESA mount: Yes, 100x100mm
• Speakers: None
• Price: $1,099 MSRP, round $825 typical

That’s to not say the G3223Q sacrifices PC gaming. It has a DisplayPort port, after all, making high-refresh gameplay simple to entry regardless of the machine you personal. The monitor can be VESA DisplayHDR 600 licensed— although, as I’ll clarify, HDR stays a sore spot.

Dell G3223Q: Design

The Dell G3223Q riffs on the identical design cues in all Dell gaming displays. You can anticipate a primary, unexceptional look from the entrance, with modest bezels and a backside chin that features the Dell brand. The again is an expanse of gunmetal plastic adorned with blue LED accents. Dell’s design selections will please players preferring much less aptitude. 

Matt Smith

Though fully plastic, the G3223Q feels sturdy when dealt with. There’s minimal creak or flex to surfaces and most plastics have a tough, barely tough texture that appears doubtless to withstand and obscure scratches. Build high quality is a match for Acer Predator and Asus ROG shows, and barely higher than Samsung’s Odyssey and LG’s Ultragear line.

A modest stand with a flat base holds the G3223Q in place. It’s not as hefty because the stand discovered on premium Alienware, BenQ, and Samsung displays, however nonetheless retains the monitor balanced. In reality, I want this stand to these of costlier options. The flat, small base and slender neck reduces the monitor’s footprint in your desk. A 100x100mm VESA monitor mount is out there for including a third-party monitor stand or arm.

Dell G3223Q: Features and menu

This monitor ships with two HDMI 2.1 ports. That, together with a refresh price of as much as 144Hz and AMD FreeSync Premium Pro, makes the Dell G3223Q an excellent show to be used with fashionable sport consoles just like the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. It additionally has DisplayPort for connecting your PC, after all.

Matt Smith

USB connectivity is modest. There’s a single USB Type-B upstream port which drives two USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 ports on the entrance left chin. Their location makes them simple to entry, not less than, however extra ports can be appreciated. I additionally discover it odd that Dell’s cheaper G3223D consists of USB-C, whereas this high-end mannequin doesn’t.

The monitor’s on-screen menu system is managed with a joystick. It’s simple to make use of and gives entry to quite a lot of changes. This consists of devoted sRGB and DCI-P3 colour modes; customized colour with hue, achieve, and saturation changes; and several other gamma choices. 

More demanding creators will like these options, however there’s an issue. They’re tied to very particular modes. The Creator mode permits adjustment of colour gamut and gamma, however not colour. The Custom Color mode gives detailed colour adjustment, however not gamut or gamma. There’s additionally restricted colour temperature adjustment.

Gamers won’t care about these options. Many will probably be pleased to depart the monitor in customary mode. The RPG mode additionally seems good. For creators, although, this might be a deal breaker.

Dell G3223Q: SDR picture high quality

The Dell G3223Q’s SDR picture high quality gives purpose to miss the quirks of its menu system. Though not distinctive, it’s all-rounder and doesn’t have the weaknesses which can be present in some opponents. 

Matt Smith

Maximum SDR brightness is available in at 466 nits, which is much greater than the competitors and glorious for any monitor. This interprets to a placing picture that may maintain up in brightly lit rooms that would make opponents look dim. 

Those utilizing the monitor in a light-controlled room will doubtless need to use the monitor at far beneath its most brightness. I discovered a setting of round 40 p.c most comfy. 

Matt Smith

The distinction ratio take a look at reported a most ratio of 1150:1. This ratio just isn’t spectacular, nevertheless it’s a lot better than lots of Dell’s direct opponents. The G3223Q seems richer and gives a greater sense of depth than lots of its friends. 

This is noticeable in video games, streaming exhibits, and films, the place the low distinction of opponents just like the BenQ EX3210U and Viewsonic XG320U can have a flat, easy look. 

These opponents additionally endure barely extra noticeable “IPS glow,” giving a hazy forged to scenes that ought to be a deep shade of black. The G3223Q additionally has this drawback—simply to a lesser diploma.

Matt Smith

Color gamut is technically a weak spot when in comparison with some comparable options. The monitor can attain solely 94 p.c of DCI-P3 and 89 p.c of AdobeRGB. 

This is true on the border of what is likely to be thought of a “wide gamut” monitor. BenQ, Viewsonic, and Asus provide displays with a considerably wider colour gamut, which suggests they will show colours the G3223Q can’t obtain.

Still, the G3223Q’s colour gamut is strong. Most video games are usually not created for a large colour gamut, so the distinction is much less vital to gaming. This will stand out most to creators who’ve very particular wants.

Matt Smith

It’s an analogous story for colour accuracy. The G3223Q had a mean error of 1.1, which is technically mid-pack for this set. Still, this can be a good consequence for out-of-box colour accuracy and ought to be satisfactory for many house owners. Colors seem lifelike and plausible, although typically over-saturated on the extremes. However, in my expertise most individuals want the oversaturated look, so I wouldn’t name this an issue. 

My testing reported a default gamma of two.4, which is off the desire of two.2. This means content material will usually seem darker than meant. This can add to the sense of distinction however might also obscure particulars in darkish areas of a picture. Gamma could be adjusted, though, as famous, solely in Creator Mode. The colour temperature got here in at 6200Okay, which is a bit heat and reddish however exhausting to note outdoors of a direct comparability with one other monitor.

On stability, the Dell G3223Q delivers a pretty expertise that beats equally priced competitors. The monitor’s good distinction ratio, strong colour, and excessive brightness make it prepared to supply a punchy, vibrant picture in any room. And don’t overlook—this can be a 32-inch, 4K monitor. Sharpness is great. Games with detailed textures look nice. Fine edges on 3D fashions present little shimmering, even in video games with lackluster anti-aliasing, corresponding to Final Fantasy XIV. 4K decision additionally means creators can work on UltraHD video content material and high-resolution pictures whereas viewing this content material at (or, not less than, near) the native decision.

Dell G3223Q: HDR picture high quality

Unfortunately, the Dell G3223Q continues the corporate’s issues with HDR.

The monitor’s default HDR is labeled Desktop. It activates or off relying on whether or not HDR is enabled in Windows 11 or the applying you’re utilizing. The G3223Q at all times detected an HDR sign and activated HDR robotically. I measured a most sustained brightness of 526 nits, which could be very excessive.

However, this default mode is a bit lackluster. It seems undersaturated and flat. The VESA DisplayHDR 600 mode is healthier however activates native dimming, a way that selectively activates or off parts of the backlight relying on what’s displayed. This is an edge-lit monitor with only a handful of dimming zones, so this habits can result in noticeable vibrant stripes and blotches.

There are two different HDR modes: Game HDR and Movie HDR. These don’t seem to have the backlight dimming, however I nonetheless seen variance in brightness in transitions between vibrant and darkish scenes. 

This is an issue for the G3223Q, as this monitor particularly targets HDR gaming on each PC and console. HDR video games do ship extra punch than SDR, however no HDR mode delivers good outcomes.

Dell G3223Q: Motion readability

The Dell G3223Q has a most refresh of 144Hz. This permits  4K/120Hz gameplay on the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 and 4K/144Hz on PC. Gameplay is extraordinarily clean at a refresh price of 120Hz or 144Hz, as is true of most high-refresh shows.

AMD FreeSync Premium Pro is the one official adaptive-sync customary supported. However, Nvidia G-Sync labored in my testing on an RTX 3060 laptop computer and a GTX 1080 Ti graphic card. 

Motion readability is great at excessive refresh charges. Fast-moving objects retain important element and quick digital camera pans produce minimal blur. This makes it simple to choose small objects in a scene whereas transferring rapidly. 

The G3223Q is carefully matched by the competitors. Quite a lot of 32-inch displays present good movement readability at as much as 144Hz. These embody the Viewsonic Elite XG320U, BenQ EX3210U, and Gigabyte Aorus FI32U, amongst others.

Final ideas

Dell’s G3223Q is a conflicted monitor. It has good SDR picture high quality, very good movement readability, and works very nicely with the newest sport consoles because of HDMI 2.1 help and a refresh price as much as 144Hz. The monitor’s HDR is disappointing, nevertheless. It additionally misses the mark for creators resulting from some choices within the monitor’s menu system. 

Your selection is difficult by the truth that none of the 32-inch 4K HDR displays on this worth vary are splendid. Those who need nice HDR might want to improve to a way more costly Mini-LED monitor, such because the Viewsonic XG321UG or Asus ROG Strix PG32UQX, or side-step to Alienware’s ultrawide OLED.

I can suggest the Dell G3223Q if you need a 32-inch 4K HDR monitor for lower than $1,000. The G3223Q outperforms most options. Just be warned the expertise just isn’t excellent. If you’ll be able to, await higher Mini-LED monitors that (hopefully) ought to begin to arrive later this 12 months.