27 inches, 2K (2560 * 1440P resolution), and a refresh rate of not less than 144Hz, these parameters combined together will get one, in addition to 1080P@60Hz, the most mainstream game monitor. The main reason why 2K@144Hz monitors have become the mainstream of many resolutions and refresh rates is that 2K resolution is much clearer than 1080P, which is a big upgrade for AAA masterpieces; and the refresh rate of 144Hz or above is friendly for e-sports games, and can also give players a more coherent and smooth game screen.
Display specifications
ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A should be the first 32-inch 2K display in the TIF series, and the TIF series has always been dominated by high-end products, so the positioning of this display is also very clear, that is, the mainstream large-screen players.
In terms of specific specifications, the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A has a 2K resolution and a maximum 170Hz refresh rate, which combines to be the level of mainstream monitors on the current PC game, and should be the same in the next year or two. The 2K resolution is much less stressful to the graphics card than 4K, so it also has a great advantage in terms of frame rate.
In terms of color, ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A has 8-bit + FRC 10-bit color depth, the color gamut can reach 99% DCI-P3, compared to the general only 100% sRGB display, not to mention how Windows color management, in terms of display effects, ASUS TUF VG32AQL1A can be more vivid and moving, for players who pursue visual effects This is better.
The ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A has 2 HDMI 2.0 and 1 DP 1.2 interface, which is sufficient for the average gamer without accidents.
In terms of panels, ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A uses fast IPS panels, which have improved response time and smearing compared to general IPS panels, so the experience in the game should also be able to improve a lot.
In addition, asus TIF VG32AQL1A also supports VESA DisplayHDR 400, which can turn on the HDR function in the game. Although the display effect of HDR400 is not ideal, if the game supports HDR adjustment, can limit the maximum brightness and adjust the PQ curve, then the player can also open HDR to feel the potential effect of HDR. Of course, HDR videos and videos can't.
VRR, a feature that is crucial to the gaming experience, is of course also featured on the ASUS TUF VG32AQL1A. The display has G-Sync Compatible and FreeSync Premium certification, which can well support the VRR embodiment of NVIDIA and AMD graphics cards.
The overall adjustable angle of the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A is also relatively good, with a pitch angle of -5 to 20 degrees, which can be rotated horizontally by 10 degrees left and right, and can be raised by up to 90mm.
Monitor appearance
The appearance of tuf series displays is basically based on the ROG series, with more calm elements. Like other displays in the same series, the screen part of the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A uses a 3-sided narrow bezel design, the lower part of the screen is asus's English name ASUS, and the left and right sides of the lower border are designed with diagonal lines, which will appear more layered visually.
The design of the bracket part is a bit of a shadow of the ROG series, but in terms of color matching, it is only black. Like most games or esports monitors, the asus TIF VG32AQL1A's stand base is forked, but it's completely attached to the desktop, rather than other forked stands that raise the entire monitor.
In addition, the bracket has an opening for cable management, which is because Asus moved the place of the cable management to the back of the bracket this time, and the player can pull all the wires around the bracket and pull out from the opening at the back, which can be said to be very good.
On the back of the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A, we can see that it is equally technological. The left and right sides are designed with wing-like lines, and there are also no RGB lighting effects. This is a great design for players who want to play the game quietly and quietly, free from any RGB lighting effects.
On the left side of the back is where the OSD controls are located, and the pure black 5-axis joystick and 4 buttons are located in this area, which is also relatively easy to control.
Overall, the appearance of the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A is excellent, and the pitch-black color scheme of the entire display undoubtedly adds a bit of mystery, while the technological shape also makes it look monotonous.
OSD features
Shadow Boost
Shadow Boost is Asus's Shadow Enhancement feature, which was created to increase the brightness of those dark areas of the screen without affecting the highlights. Anyone who has played an FPS game should have more or less experienced being overshadowed by LYB, many times because they couldn't see each other around the corner. After opening Shadow Boost, the light on the screen will not be affected too much, and the dark part will not be adjusted to very bright, and the overall brightness of the picture will be more reasonable.
ELMB Sync
This is an upgraded version of the ELMB feature. ELMB is Asus's motion image clarity technology, and its role is to reduce motion blur by inserting a black frame in two frames. In the past, if you wanted to open ELMB, you needed to turn off AMD FreeSync Premium or various variable refresh rates, but after ELMB Sync, players can have both ELMB and variable refresh rates, and basically there will be no screen tearing.
After turning on this function, the picture will indeed be much clearer, and the details on the UFO can be clearly seen even in the test of the UFO small flying saucer. This will be a better feature for esports FPS players.
GamePlus
GmaePlus is home to gaming accessibility features on the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A, such as cross sight, timer, FPS counter, sniper, and monitor alignment.
For example, the cross sight, which displays a third-party independent crosshair that can be covered in all games, is a good accessibility for FPS games with a real ballistic trajectory, at least to know roughly where the center point of the gun is.
Monitor basic performance test
We recently updated a wave of devices and software, so this display test will also be measured using the new i1 Pro 2 photometer in addition to the previous i1 Display Pro Plus color calibrator. In terms of software, we will use Calman Ultimate color correction software, which is currently the most professional color calibration in the industry. Since the test equipment and software have been replaced, we will try to measure the monitors we have previously evaluated in the new measurement mode.
Test platform
SDR peak brightness
Asus's TIF VG32AQL1A default SDR brightness is about 260 nits, which can be said to be very bright, which is enough for the general indoor environment. If the player turns the brightness to the highest, the maximum brightness of the display can reach about 370 nits. In terms of brightness is completely fine.
Actual picture contrast
Center contrast
In this test, we will keep the central brightness of the display at 100 cd/m2, and then measure the contrast in its central area, the higher the contrast, the better the picture expressiveness, and the color and light and darkness can be more natural. As for why we don't let the entire screen go black, it is because many monitors will automatically reduce the brightness to improve the contrast when they detect that the whole black content is being played, which affects the actual contrast and also has a certain impact on the player experience.
After testing, the asus TUI VG32AQL1A has a screen ratio of 1100:1, which is a normal level in the IPS panel display and is not bad.
Average screen contrast
ANSI Contrast is a more comprehensive contrast testing method designed to measure the zonal contrast of a display. By dividing it into 16 zones and measuring the contrast of each partition, the contrast ratio is higher than the average contrast of the entire display. The larger the contrast gap between each area, the more it means that parts of the screen may cause uneven pictures when playing high-contrast content.
The average contrast ratio of the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A is 1099:1, which is exactly the same as the contrast ratio of the center point of the screen. However, the contrast between the upper left and lower right areas is slightly lower, but overall it is still very average.
Default color set
In this objective quality test, we will restore the monitor to factory settings, and then set the brightness to 100 cd/m2 to test. The factory gamut of the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A itself is DCI-P3 gamut, so it is also tested for its performance within the DCI-P3 gamut. If the display itself has other color modes, it will also be measured in this section.
In the default match mode, the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A has a gamma value of 2.25 and a white balance ΔE of 3.1. Compared to the standard 2.25, the gamma value may be a little darker in color, but it will not have much effect on the normal experience.
In terms of color gamut, the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A has a DCI-P3 color gamut of 88.42%, sRGB of 99.56%, and Adobe RGB color gamut of 85.73%. This color gamut is relatively good in gaming monitors.
After measurement, asus TIF VG32AQL1A in the default game mode and warm color temperature settings, the color temperature is about 6100K, in theory, the player should be able to observe the picture has a little yellow and green, especially when comparing white scenes or pictures are more obvious.
In terms of color accuracy, the performance of the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A is in the upper middle level in the game monitor, with the default DCI-P3 color accuracy averaging ΔE of 2.41 and the maximum ΔE of 5.45, the average ΔE of 2.85 and the maximum ΔE of 5.46 in terms of color saturation. This is a good result, because some gaming monitors have an average ΔE that is smaller than the Asus TUF VG32AQL1A, but the maximum ΔE is much higher.
Later, the author also measured the color accuracy performance of the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A in sRGB mode, but the author found that the color gamut displayed on this monitor under sRGB mode is still DCI-P3, and there will be more color overflow, so the author does not recommend using its sRGB mode.
Color accuracy after correction
In this link, the author will first set the display to the closest brightness of 100 cd/m2 and the more balanced color temperature RGB value, and then with Calman's color correction function to adjust the display, and the white balance ΔE target will be set to 0.5.
After color correction, the color of asus TIF VG32AQL1A has improved a lot, although the gamma value remains at 2.25, but the white balance ΔE drops to 1, which is similar to the target value of 0.5. The color temperature is also reduced to the standard 6500K, and there is basically no color cast.
As for the color accuracy, it is also further improved, the average color accuracy of DCI-P3 is 1.81, the maximum is 4.84, and the color saturation ΔE is an average of 1.57 and the maximum is 4.84.
Spectral distribution
The spectrum of ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A is actually not the same as the VG32AQL1A we tested before, and it belongs to the red light level is relatively high, so it can achieve a wider color gamut. Another important point is that the peak band of Blue Light is after 460nm, so basically players will not be affected by "harmful Blue Light", which is also better.
Smearing
From top to bottom, they are "level 0", "level 3", "level 5"
So what will this gaming monitor look like? I tested it on Testufo with its default 144Hz refresh rate. The default OD boosting option for the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A is Level 3. The author found that under the 3-level OD pressurization, the display basically does not have much smear, and there is no reverse residual shadow, which can be said to be just right. Of course, the most advanced level 5 is that there will be reverse residual shadows, and the shadow below level 0 is not serious, so overall, ASUS's adjustment of this screen can be said to be quite good.
summary
Overall, the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A performed well. It doesn't have much of a problem in terms of color, and with a slight adjustment of white balance, it's already possible to get a good color accuracy on a gaming monitor; in terms of gameplay, the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A doesn't have many smearing problems, even if used at the default pressurization level. And its own large-screen attribute can also allow players to get a stronger sense of presence and more shocking visual effects when playing. Having such a good quality, coupled with its current price of 3499, is also more attractive. Therefore, if you are looking to get a mainstream large-screen gaming experience, then the ASUS TIF VG32AQL1A will be a good choice.