It's not cheap at £1,299, but the Samsung is still more affordable than the Asus ROG Swift PG32UQX, which costs £3,199 and includes 1,152 backlighting zones across its 32in IPS screen, alongside a weaker 144Hz refresh rate.

On the outside, the G8 has glossy white plastic and good movement options. Around the rear, the G8 deploys two HDMI 2.1 ports, a DisplayPort 1.4 socket and two USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, but no USB Type-C connection. The G8 also has front and rear-mounted RGB LEDs that aren’t bright or versatile enough to be useful. An absence of tool-free building disappoints as well, and the shallow, unresponsive D-pad undermines the slick on-screen display.

Those physical issues occasionally irritate, but the G8 fully redeems itself in benchmarks. Out of the box, the G8 supplied a sensational contrast ratio of 9,600:1 thanks to a 0.02-nit black point – this panel delivers more depth and vibrancy than any conventional IPS or VA screen. Not surprisingly, the G8 also performed well in HDR tests, with a peak brightness of 1,411 nits, creating a revised contrast ratio of 70,550:1. The Asus is great here too, but the Samsung is even better, and it makes games look fantastic.

The Samsung’s delta E of 2.17 and colour temperature of 6,065K are middling but accurate enough for gaming, although the Asus is marginally better here. The G8 also rendered 99.5 per cent of the sRGB gamut with 129.8 per cent volume and 91.2 per cent of the DCI-P3 space at 92 per cent volume, so it produces a broad, vibrant range of colours in both gamuts without looking oversaturated.

Meanwhile, the G8’s 240Hz performance is crisp and smooth, with only modest ghosting visible in dark areas – it’s better than most 240Hz screens. The G8’s average initial response time of 7.58ms is also good for single-player games, but it’s a little slow if you’re serious about super-fast esports.

With adaptive sync deactivated and the Standard overdrive setting applied the response time improved to 3.47ms, which is excellent, and a minor, manageable halo effect then replaced the ghosting. In the Faster and Extreme overdrive modes, the response times improved further to 2.7ms and 2.38ms, but overshoot increased dramatically and the halo was more noticeable. If you want extra speed while games remain visually impressive, we’d stick with the Standard option.

Conclusion

The G8’s VA panel might not quite have the responsiveness required for top-tier esports, but it has the speed for any other gaming scenario, alongside good colour reproduction, incredible contrast and a rock-solid core spec. While you’ll need to spend a lot of money on this monitor, and a GPU that can output to 4K at high frame rates, there’s no denying that the G8 delivers the best all-round 16:9 gaming experience around today.

Price
£1,299 inc VAT

Verdict
Incredible technology supplies a near-unmatched 4K experience, despite some design niggles.

Scores
IMAGE QUALITY 28/30 | GAMING 27/30 | FEATURES 18/20 | VALUE 17/20 | OVERALL 90%

HOMER
+Sensational contrast
+Fantastic backlight
+Good colours
+Excellent core specification

MONTGOMERY
-Needs a mighty GPU
-Some exterior design issues
-Not the best for serious esports

SPEC
Screen size 32in
Resolution 3,840 x 2,160
Panel technology VA
Maximum refresh rate 240Hz
Stated response time 1ms
Stated contrast ratio 1,000,000:1
Active sync AMD FreeSync Premium Pro, Nvidia G-Sync compatible
Display inputs 1 x DisplayPort 1.4a, 2 x HDMI 2.1
Audio N/A
Stand adjustment Height, tilt, swivel
Extras 100 x 100mm VESA mount, 2 x USB-C 3.2 Gen 1
HDR standard Quantum HDR 2000