Corsair Xeneon 27QHD240 Review: Infinite Contrast and Stellar Game Performance

With the introduction of LG Display’s 27-inch OLED panel, it’s clear that the technology isn’t just for niche products. OLEDs is becoming more common among best gaming monitor It features richly saturated colors, infinite contrast, and next-level gaming performance. The panel’s response time is measured in hundredths of a millisecond and doesn’t require tricks like overdrive or backlight strobes.
We recently reviewed our first display using this new panel. ASUS ROG Swift PG27AQDM. Corsair’s version is called the Xeneon 27QHD240, but that model designation doesn’t suggest how special this monitor is. OLED is truly another dimension to Mini LED when it comes to image quality and gaming performance. The 27QHD240 is his QHD panel with 240 Hz, adaptive sync, wide color gamut and 1,000 nit HDR peak. It also boasts a 0.03ms gray-to-gray response, and he packs it all into a solidly built display that retails for $1,000 at the time of this writing.
Corsair Xeneon 27QHD240 Specs
Panel type | Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) |
Screen size/aspect ratio | 27″ / 16:9 |
Maximum resolution and refresh rate | 2560×1440 @ 240Hz |
Compatibility with FreeSync and G-Sync | |
Native color depth and color gamut | 10-bit / DCI-P3 |
HDR10 | |
Response time (GTG) | 0.03 ms |
brightness (manufacturer) | 450 nit SDR |
1,000 nits HDR | |
contrast (manufacturer) | 1,500,000:1 |
speaker | or none |
video input | 1x DisplayPort 1.4 |
HDMI 2.1 x 2, USB-C x 1 | |
audio | 3.5mm headphone output |
USB3.1 | 1x up, 4x down |
1x USB-C | |
power consumption | 30w, brightness @ 200 nits |
panel dimensions | 23.8 x 17.3 to 21.2 x 8.8 inches |
Width x Height x Depth (including base) | (605×439~539×224mm) |
panel thickness | Glass: 5mm |
Max: 1.9″ (47mm) | |
bezel width | Top/Side: 0.35″ (9mm) |
Bottom: 0.43″ (11mm) | |
weight | 21.8 lbs (9.9 kg) |
guarantee | 3 years |
Most of the specifications of the 27QHD240 are the same as the PG27AQDM, so let’s take a look at some of the differences. Corsair contains two HDMI2.1 The use of ports and Asus’s HDMI 2.0. However, QHD resolution does not require the extra bandwidth provided by HDMI 2.1, even at 240 Hz. Both panels have native 10-bit color, which is also perfectly preserved.
The 27QHD240 comes with a handy KVM feature that adds lots of USB ports. There are five traditional 3.1 connections and two USB-C ports, one of which offers DisplayPort functionality. The actual DisplayPort input is version 1.4 and uses Display Stream Compression (DSC) for low input latency. The 27QHD240 is one of the fastest monitors I’ve tested, even compared to the 360Hz and 500Hz models.
This panel is definitely the star with its infinite contrast and wide color gamut. Corsair claims he has 98.5% coverage of the DCI-P3, but when we measured a hair’s length, he got 99.01% to be exact. And the colors are as close to perfection as possible. The 27QHD240 does not require or benefit from calibration. My sample was perfectly optimized right out of the box.
OLED contrast is legendary in that it can’t really be measured. Currently available equipment cannot measure the black level of OLED panels. Corsair he claims 1,500,000:1 for the 27QHD240, but I can’t measure that. If a pixel is black, it is off, i.e. it does not emit light. It’s hard to explain what this means for image quality other than that it’s an image you can’t find anywhere else, even if it’s the best quality. mini LED panel. And you don’t need additional features like dimming zones or dynamic contrast. This performance is natively available in both SDR and HDR modes.
The build quality of the 27QHD240 is worthy of its $1,000 price tag. This falls firmly into the premium category, but it’s not exorbitant for what you get. 240 Hz means extremely smooth motion, and gamers will find this monitor suitable for all types of play, from casual to professional-level competition. There are some cool touches here as well, like the OSD that appears when you bring your hand over the control buttons, and inputs that are facing the back instead of the bottom for easier access. I love wringing displays like this, so let’s take a quick look.
Assemblies and accessories
Corsair will ship the 27QHD240 wrapped in brown plain wrapper and the panel, stand and base packed in frangible foam. There are no flashy or colorful graphics on the box, and the model number doesn’t even indicate that it’s OLED, so it’s not immediately obvious how special it is. However, a look at the ultra-thin panel is the first clue. Everything can be assembled without tools into a nearly one-piece, robust package. Cable bundles include USB-A/C and C/C as well as HDMI and DisplayPort. A slim brick serves as the power source.
Products360
The 27QHD240 has a semi-matte screen instead of the highly reflective layers of most OLED TVs. There are no downsides to this approach. I didn’t see any grain or other artifacts. The image is very sharp in every respect. The bezel is flush and very thin at 9mm on the top and sides and 11mm on the bottom. The controls are just below and to the right of center. Reaching for them will pop up a small menu showing the functions of the two keys and the joystick.
It’s a 27-inch QHD screen with a pixel density of 109ppi, so you can see the dot structure if you sit within two feet. It’s not 4K, but the difference is negligible in a side-by-side comparison, and the high refresh rate and blazingly fast panel response ensure perfectly smooth images, even when there’s some movement.
Looking at the side view, you can see that the actual panel is only 5mm thin. The bulge of the components brings the overall depth to just under 2 inches (47 mm). A 100mm VESA mount is hidden under the stand’s mounting points and includes fasteners for use with aftermarket arms and brackets.
The stand is pretty solid, wide and upright with a deep metal base. Height adjustment is 100 mm (3.9 inches) with 7/15 degree tilt, 30 degree swivel and 90 degree portrait mode available. Movement and build quality are adequate for a monitor in this price range. The 27QHD240 will serve you for many years.
There are numerous connections on either side of the rear stanchions. On the left side are two HDMI 2.1, one DisplayPort 1.4 and one USB-C that acts as a DisplayPort input. The power supply is connected to the bottom of this bank. On the right is another USB-C and four USB 3.1 downstream ports for peripherals and charging. The jack panel is finished with a 3.5mm audio output. I use this to connect headphones or powered speakers as there is no internal audio.
OSD function
When you reach for the 27QHD240’s control keys, a small menu reveals the functions and locations of the two buttons and the joystick. This is something we have never seen before. Pressing the joystick reveals Corsair’s simple, intuitive text-based OSD of him.
The 27QHD240’s OSD is divided into 6 logically arranged sub-menus starting with “Picture”. There you will find a complete set of calibration options and 6 image modes. The standard is fully tunable and features a native color gamut that covers nearly 100% of DCI-P3. The sRGB mode is also adjustable and has independent color temperature and gamma options. This is a rarity among professional monitors. All I had to do was adjust both gamuts and switch modes as needed. The HDR signal runs an additive mode that cannot be adjusted. Additional image options include a refresh rate indicator and aiming point with customizable color and shape.
The 27QHD240 has PIP and PBP to display two video sources side-by-side or windowed. System settings allow you to toggle Adaptive-Sync and take advantage of panel maintenance features such as pixel refresh and orbiter. They work in the background or when the monitor is in standby mode and are designed to reduce the effects of image retention. In my own experience, I had no issues with his 2 year old LG TV in daily use.
Corsair Xeneon 27QHD240 Calibration Settings
Not only does the 27QHD240 require no calibration, setting both DCI-P3 and sRGB image modes failed to affect the improvement. You can get near-perfect accuracy using a standard color temperature combined with 2.2 gamma for a wider color gamut in SDR mode. User color temperature has precise RGB sliders, slightly improving the numbers but not the visuals. The mode is also very accurate when using sRGB color for SDR. If desired, you can also adjust the color temperature individually. I have shown my settings below. Note that the brightness setting of 31 is derived using a window pattern of 25%. May appear dim when viewing actual content. After using the 27QHD240 for a few days, I increased the value to 80. This depends on the ambient light level in your particular space.
There are no color options in HDR mode, only the contrast slider is used to adjust peak brightness. Since the 27QHD240 varies in brightness depending on the average image level (all OLEDs do this), it’s best to leave everything at the default values.
picture mode | standard or sRGB |
Brightness 200 nits | 31 |
Brightness 120 nits | 7 |
Brightness 100 nits | 1 (minimum 98 nits) |
contrast | 50 |
gamma | 2.2 |
color temperature custom | Standard – Red 99, Green 98, Blue 86 |
sRGB – Red 95, Green 99, Blue 100 |
games and practice
If you’ve read my review of the Asus PG27AQDM, you already know what I mean about the 27QHD240. These are the same monitors in every way that matters to gaming. After experiencing several OLED monitors over the past year, I’m starting to see this technology as a game changer. game. Like, they got it. Simply put, there is no better gaming experience than an OLED panel running at a high refresh rate.
We’ve said that OLED offers smoother motion than LCD at certain frame rates, and the 27QHD240 lives up to this axiom. No need for overdrive here. The Blur Busters test pattern is literally perfect, every pixel renders perfectly regardless of whether there is motion or not. Resolution is unaffected no matter how fast objects move or the screen pans.
it’s like a shooting game Doom Eternal and call of duty wwii, This creates a near-predictable feel where control inputs are instantly translated on-screen and movements are highly precise. When you stop moving the mouse, the aimpoint is exactly where you want it. It allowed me to go deeper into every game I played.
The image is great in every way. HDR is the strength of the 27QHD240, proving to be bright enough to render perfectly detailed and saturated images in a sunlit office. Concerns about OLEDs being darker than Mini LEDs weren’t a factor for me. Yes, you can get more output from a bright LCD, but not enough to choose it over an OLED.
Color saturation was impressive for both SDR and HDR content. You can easily choose sRGB for SDR by changing the picture mode. However, I’m happy to keep the wider color gamut as well, and I think most users will probably do the same. I found that I only needed to switch to sRGB when grading photos. With 27QHD240 accuracy, the images are so beautiful that you can watch them for hours. A low blue light mode is also available, but I never felt the need for it.
For both work and entertainment, the 27QHD240 is exemplary in every way. After hours of use, it’s well worth it. It’s a bargain when compared to professional displays. No other LCD has this level of image fidelity and quality.
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