ViewSonic XG272-2K-OLED review: A gaming monitor in a suit

IDG / Matthew Smith

IDG / Matthew Smith

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    </div></figure><p class="imageCredit">IDG / Matthew Smith</p></div>

The ViewSonic XG272-2K-OLED is available only in an attractive sheer white colorway that seems to split the difference between gaming and professional monitor design. It pairs a customizable RGB light and swooping vents with a conventional panel shape and small, unobtrusive stand. The result isn’t as cohesive as design leaders like the Alienware AW2725DF or Samsung’s new Odyssey OLED G8, but it’s eye-catching.

As mentioned, the XG272 is graced with a compact stand that minimizes the monitor’s footprint on your desk. It’s flat, too, so the desk space it occupies remains usable. The stand has a small cut-out for the monitor’s remote control (more on that in a bit) and provides significant ergonomic adjustment including height, tilt, swivel, and pivot. The monitor also has a 100mm x 100mm VESA mount for attaching a third-party monitor stand or arm.

ViewSonic XG272-2K-OLED: Connectivity and menus

ViewSonic doesn’t skimp on the XG272-2K-OLED’s connectivity. On the contrary, it might be the best reason to buy the monitor.

It has two HDMI 2.1 ports, two DisplayPort 1.4 ports, and one USB-C port with DisplayPort Alternate Mode and 15 watts of Power Delivery. That’s a total of five video inputs, all of which support the monitor’s maximum resolution and refresh rate.

The monitor also has three downstream USB-A ports, which is excellent. Most competitors have two USB-A ports or, in some cases, none at all. The USB-A ports can be accessed over the USB-C port, which makes the XG272 a useful USB hub for a laptop, or over a USB-B connection, which is useful for connecting a desktop PC. The USB-C ports limited Power Delivery is a downside, though, as it’s not enough to reliably charge even the most miserly laptops.

ViewSonic’s on-screen menu system is logically arranged and well-labeled, though the font is a bit small. It can be accessed with a joystick centered on the lower bezel or the bundled remote control. The remote is an excellent feature for people who plan to change settings quickly, and the stand even includes a nook for the remote. However, the remote felt cheap and didn’t respond quickly to input. The remotes paired with some BenQ Mobiuz and Samsung M8 monitors are more responsive.

The on-screen menu offers significant image quality customization, but I wasn’t happy with some of ViewSonic’s decisions. Color temperature customization is included, but the color temperature settings have vague labels instead of numerical values (the manual clarifies this, but the overall range of preset color temperature adjustment is less than ideal). Gamma adjustment wasn’t available, and the monitor also lacks DCI-P3 and AdobeRGB presets. Six-axis color saturation adjustment is available, however.

Gamers will find a lot to dig into. The monitor has a black stabilizer feature (which increases the brightness of dark areas of the display to make foes easier to see). It also has a crosshair and several custom aspect ratio modes including a 24-inch 16:9 mode and 19-inch 4:3 mode. There’s also several VRR and BFI settings, which I’ll discuss in the motion clarity section of this review.

A pair of three-watt speakers are included, but they’re not great. The speakers are better understood as a back-up for situations where other speakers are unavailable than a sound system you’d want to use day-to-day.

IDG / Matthew Smith

            <div class="lightbox-image-container foundry-lightbox"><div class="extendedBlock-wrapper block-coreImage undefined"><figure class="wp-block-image size-large enlarged-image"><img decoding="async" data-wp-bind--src="selectors.core.image.enlargedImgSrc" data-wp-style--object-fit="selectors.core.image.lightboxObjectFit" src="" alt="ViewSonic, close up picture, buttons" class="wp-image-2358911" width="1200" height="800" loading="lazy" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption"> </figcaption></figure><p class="imageCredit">IDG / Matthew Smith</p></div>

    </div></figure><p class="imageCredit">IDG / Matthew Smith</p></div>

ViewSonic XG272-2K-OLED: SDR image quality

The ViewSonic XG272-2K-OLED has an LG WOLED panel similar to the Asus ROG Strix XG27AQDMG though, unlike the Asus, ViewSonic opts for an anti-glare finish. The XG272’s overall performance is similar to the ROG Strix XG27AQDMG and tends to slightly lag QD-OLED monitors in SDR content, though the difference is often so slim that most gamers wouldn’t notice it.