An excellent all-purpose monitor with premium features.
I work in the nonprofit world. That is a world of tight budgets and scrimping to save on things that will ‘get you by’ until the next budget cycle. As a result of this field, you learn to live with what you have as being ‘good enough’. When I unboxed this LG monitor, I didn’t know what I had been missing. The 32” Class UltraFine 4K UHD LED Monitor is an incredible, elegant option for any style of workstation.
DETAILS
The 32’’ Class UltraFine™ 4K UHD LED Monitor has a 31.5” UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) display. It’s compatible with Thunderbolt 3 and can handle 4K video daisy chaining, which is great for video professionals. This monitor is also compatible with Apple computers.
4K with Detailed Color Grading: The display provides breathtaking clarity and fine detail with four times the resolution of Full HD (1080p).
Nano IPS Display: With this type of display users experience more accurate color and a broader contrast ratio. High dynamic range (HDR) is even brighter and darker than on a standard HD monitor.
Color Range with DCI-P3: This color standard makes it possible to edit on-site footage with full color expression.
Delicate Color Expression: Nanometer-sized particles on the screen’s LED absorb excess light wavelengths
VESA DisplayHDR 600: The monitor is rated for delivering peak luminance of 600 nits (VESA certified)
Thunderbolt 3 Versatility: This allows users to set up this display with a single cable for video/audio plus data transfer and laptop charging. The included Thunderbolt 3 port is rated to provide 40Gbps of data and high-bandwidth video.
On-screen Control: Allows for brightness, picture mode presets, Screen Split 2.0 and additional settings can be adjusted with mouse clicks instead of hard buttons on the monitor.
SPECS & FEATURES
PICTURE QUALITY
- Refresh Rate: 60Hz
- Resolution: 3840 x 2160
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Brightness: 360cd/m²(Min.), 450cd/m² (Typ.)
- Color Gamut: Yes
- Response Time: 5ms (Faster)
- Contrast Ratio (DFC): 910:1 (Min.), 1300:1 (Typ.)
- Viewing Angle: 178°(R/L), 178°(U/D)
- Surface Treatment: Anti Glare, 3H
- Dynamic Action Sync: Yes
INPUTS/OUTPUTS
- Headphone Out: Yes
- Display Port: Yes x 1
- USB: Yes x 2
- HDMI: Yes x 1
- Thunderbolt 3: Yes x 2 (in x 1 (PD 60W) / out x 1)
POWER
- DC Off: Under 0.3W
- Type: Adapter
- Input: 100 ~ 240, 50/60Hz
- Normal On (EPA Typ.): 70W
- Normal On (factory out condition Typ.): 200W
SPECIAL FEATURES
- Smart Energy Saving: Yes
- Super+ Resolution: Yes
- Black Stabilizer: Yes
- Speaker: Yes
- Color Calibrated: Yes
- Color weakness: Yes
- Adaptive Sync: RADEON FreeSync™
- Dynamic Action Sync:
- Reader Mode: Yes
- Wide Color Gamut: Yes
- Nano IPS™ Technology: Yes
- HDR Effect: Yes
- VESA DisplayHDR™: Display HDR 600
- HDR10: Yes
- H/W Calibration Ready (True Color Pro): Yes
DIMENSIONS/WEIGHTS
- Shipping Weight: 25.6 lbs
- With Stand (WxHxD): 28.3” x 23.5 x 9.1” (Up)/28.3” x 19.2” x 9.1” (Down)
- Without Stand (WxHxD): 28.3” x 16.3” x 1.8”
- Shipping Dimensions (WxHxD): 36.5” x 8.4” x 20.3”
- With Stand Weight: 16.1 lbs
- Without Stand Weight: 13.7 lbs
CABINET/ACCESSORIES
- Wall Mount Size (mm): 100 x 100 mm
- HDMI™: Yes
- Display Port: Yes
USER EXPERIENCE
The monitor does require minor assembly, but the set-up takes less than 5 minutes. The monitor itself is one piece while the stand is 2 parts — the base and the arm. The arm locks into place on the back of the monitor and the base then screws into the arm with a thumbscrew. One of the things I love about this design is it’s easy to disassemble it needed. The stand is a curved design and surprisingly it does not take up a lot of desk real estate. The arm is telescoping and so you can raise and lower the monitor to your desired height and it even twists so that you can change he viewing angle, too. The screen is virtually borderless and features the ArcLine stand.
After I powered on the monitor, I was shocked at how bright it is. My standard monitor is 24 inches in size and it does a remarkably great job of displaying vibrant images, but it was nothing like this beast from LG. Since this is a 4K monitor is provides UHD 4K resolution and detailed color grading. And, it’s designed to work with calibration devices for precise adjustments. With that in mind, it makes it the perfect monitor for photo editing, which is something I do on a daily basis. I was very impressed with amount of detail I was able to see when trying to adjust the exposure of some photos I took during ‘blue hour’.
One of things that was most eye-catching to me was how crisp text appears on the screen. For me, it was like moving from standard definition to high definition television programming. You really can see the difference between monitors when you put this LG into play. The UltraFine definition lives up to its name. I did run the Eizo Monitor Test, too, and found that this LG did a great job with all the 13 different checks the Eizo test runs. It looks at test pattern, defective pixels, uniformity, color distances, gradients, sharpness, viewing angle, gamma, and response time.
I was really impressed with the sound quality from the built-in speakers in this monitor. I turned on some music while I was working and couldn’t believe the what I was hearing. My fiancé walked into the room and thought I was using my desktop speakers and not the built-in ones from the monitor. Normally, we don’t talk a lot about the built in speakers on a monitor, but these really are exceptional. Now, I wouldn’t recommend them for sound engineers or for proofing detailed audio, but if you just need audio output available, these speakers will get the job done.
When a monitor I’m testing is specifically designed for gaming, I will see how a video game runs on it, but with this LG UltraFine, I saw right away that it was designed for entertainment, general productivity, and photo/video editing. To test this even further, I turned on Netflix and pulled up Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse. The video I was watching was also incredible. Part of the reason I chose that particular movie is because of its vibrant colors and quick action. I didn’t notice any pixelations or tearing with movement. The LG does a great job of displaying movies that are high quality like Spiderman.
CONCLUSION
I know that a lot of people these days are moving to UltraWide monitors, but I think this 32-inch beauty is worth a second glance based off of its easy set-up and gorgeous display of colors. It does an excellent job of showing off high-quality graphics and works well for detailed work like photo editing. At around $1300 it is quite an investment, but in the end, I think it’s worth the quality you get.
