LG’s two new gaming monitors in the GK series will feature Nvidia G-Sync and AMD FreeSync, respectively. One of them also features “Sphere Lighting”, which is an ambience lighting system. HDR is still nowhere in sight
32” LG 32GK850G
The LG 32GK850G is the larger of the two monitors at 32 inches in diagonal. This one employs Nvidia G-Sync to improve motion reproduction. It also features 2560x1440 resolution and up to 144 Hz (overclockable to 165Hz) refresh rate.
- “Featuring fast refresh rate, LG 32GK850G delivers incredibly fluid graphic motion while its NVIDIA G-Sync graphic processing technology - which is taking the gaming community by storm - all but eliminates stuttering and screen tearing when in the heat of the action. This monitor will handily process all game genres without any afterimages while delivering rapid and fluid motion at a maximum brightness of 350 nits on its QHD (2,560 x 1,440) screen,” the company said.
In addition, the monitor is LG’s first with something that the company calls “Sphere Lighting”. LG explains that it “uses LEDs behind the monitor to create soft ambience lighting that increases the immersiveness of games and reduces eye fatigue while also adding a beautiful design element to the monitor”. In some ways, it sounds like Philips’ Ambilight but it is probably more akin to simple bias lighting.
The monitor stand offers tilt, height, swivel and pivot adjustments.
27” LG 27GK750F
The other monitor is the 27-inch 27GK750F, which offers AMD FreeSync technology. FreeSync is comparable to Nvidia G-Sync in being an adaptive frame rate system but is instead based on an open protocol. 27GK750F has 1920 x 1080 resolution and up to 240Hz refresh rate.
- “The more compact monitor is designed to take on all gaming needs with enhancements to improve the player’s chances of willing, such as 240Hz refresh rate, 1ms Motion Blur Reduction and AMD FreeSync technology. Features such as Black Stabilizer, Dynamic Action Sync and Crosshair - which places a target in the center of the monitor in order to enhance accuracy in FPS games - are designed to make the gaming experience second to none.”
A gaming experience "second to none"?
The specifications sound impressive but it is hard for PC monitor makers to escape the fact that continued improvements in monitors are relatively small. The market has become stale, with the gaming segment continuing to bet on adaptive frame rate systems and higher refresh rate to improve the gaming experience. At one point, Dell briefly flirted with OLED technology but besides that PC monitors are still exclusively based on contrast-poor LCD technology that does not allow for one of the more important innovations in gaming; High Dynamic Range.
Pricing and availability was not announced.
Specifications
| | LG 32GK850G | LG 27GK750F |
| Size | 32” 16:9 widescreen | 27” 16:9 widescreen |
| Resolution | 2560x1440 pixels | 1920x1080 pixels |
| Panel type | ? | TN LCD |
| Refresh rate | 144 (165Hz) | 240Hz |
| Adaptive frame rate | Nvidia G-Sync | AMD FreeSync |
