Asus ROG’s Massive Swift OLED Gaming Monitor Epitomizes Excess in the Best Way

Can we truly achieve a blacker OLED screen?

Your average OLED panel is technically already capable of near-infinite contrast. It’s the nature of the screen type. So I was skeptical when Asus claimed its $1,300 third-gen ROG Swift OLED (PG32UCDM) monitor has a “BlackShield” screen film that “improves the monitor’s black level in scenarios with brighter ambient lighting by up to 40%.” The film is also supposed to diffuse some of the red glow that can burden a screen when you shine a light directly onto it.

If “blacker blacks” is what you came here for, you can shuffle off and find a cheaper QD-OLED monitor. The BlackShield film is not nearly as big of a deal as it seems unless you’re playing in a room dominated by studio lights. Even so, the Swift OLED is still capable of damn good picture quality. Save for the lack of any in-monitor speakers, there’s little this screen leaves off the table.

And there will be little left on your table as well. This 32-inch gaming monitor is huge, both in wingspan and because of its massive tripod stand. This is a screen meant to dominate your desk space.

A style with substance kind of monitor

© Raymond Wong / Gizmodo

Whereas competing displays ask you to simply screw the base together, attach the stand, then lift it out of the box onto your desk, the Swift OLED requires several extra steps. That’s because the three-pronged base includes an extra LED lamp on the bottom. You need to screw on the added filter and make sure it all feels tight before setting the hefty monitor to its final resting place. That filter blares the ROG eye logo on your desk, as if you would ever forget who made your $1,300 monitor.

The extra-large tripod base felt sturdy when I finally hefted it up on our office desk. Make sure to lift with your legs, because the entire monitor with the base weighs nearly 20 pounds. At least, you know the Swift OLED won’t skitter around on your desk with a careless swipe of your hand. That may be especially important to you if you hope to maximize the stand’s full 15 degrees of swivel to either side or the 20-degree upwards and -5-degree downwards tilt. It’s really not enough to cover every angle you may want to field this monitor.

© Raymond Wong / Gizmodo

The stand takes up far more room on a desk compared to other displays that use smaller tripods or single flat stand bases. More minimal stands also allow more room for additional soundbars.

The team at Asus ROG opted for capital “G” gamer style above everything else. Three sides of the stand also display a subtle red glow to match the downward-facing LED. I wish there were some way to change the LED light’s color to match my usual unicorn puke gamer aesthetic. However, the most glaring flaw with this stand design is how it limits the monitor height. You can raise and lower the monitor by 80mm, or just over 3 inches. The screen won’t duck below the stand or dare hide any of those sacred RGB lights.

At least the cable management system is top-tier with the stand. There’s a large cavern running through both the bottom ends to keep cables organized. The left end of the monitor supports two HDMI 2.1, a single DisplayPort 2.1 port, and an extra USB-C port that can also be used for DisplayPort connection and 90W power passthrough. Oh, and there’s a headphone jack. On the right side of the screen there’s a selection of three USB-A ports. This can be handy for charging a few extra peripherals, but you’ll still need to plug your mouse and headset dongles into your PC or console itself.

If you were hoping for a monitor that looked the part on a gaming desk, the bottom LEDs certainly do the trick. The back of the Swift OLED also sports a large, glowing RGB ROG symbol. Unlike many other gaming monitors with rear RGB, the glow isn’t bright enough to illuminate the wall behind your desk. The three-pronged stand makes it impossible to back it up enough to do so.

The QD-OLED you know and love

Look which little plant came to join me as I mowed down the Tyranid horde. © Raymond Wong / Gizmodo

While the Swift OLED design is a mixed bag, the actual display quality is some of the best I’ve seen from a QD-OLED. It supports resolutions up to 4K (3,840 x 2,160 pixels) and a 0.03ms response time typical of OLED screens. That near-instantaneous response time means the screen can update pixels quicker than practically any LCD-based display. All told, it makes the Swift OLED especially good for gaming.

The panel manages a 240Hz refresh rate with VRR (variable refresh rate) and support for both Nvidia G-Sync and AMD FreeSync. Even better, the anti-reflectivity doesn’t make the display seem that much less glossy, which helps keep the colors vibrant for when you’re playing games or watching content.

OLED, or organic light-emitting diode, displays use an array of self-emissive lights. This allows for deep “inky” blacks and vibrant colors. The “QD” in the name refers to a layer of quantum dots—specifically, semiconductor nanocrystals—sitting in front of the diodes. These are supposed to enhance the overall picture quality and make colors look more vivid than they normally do. QD-OLEDs are also normally brighter than regular OLED screens.

That rear RGB symbol won’t be enough to illuminate your desk. © Raymond Wong / Gizmodo

Asus claims its Swift OLED PG32UCDM hits a peak of 1,000 nits in HDR. The brightness levels were enough to survive a direct stream of sunlight coming in through the window of Gizmodo’s office. There was very little reflectivity as well, which meant I could game no matter if it was the middle of the day or the late evening.

Along with the anti-reflective coating, that “BlackShield” film is just that: an extra overlay on top of an already quality QD-OLED. The film also adds an extra layer of scratch resistance. In regular use, I wouldn’t say the “perceived” black levels were any better or worse than competing QD-OLED gaming monitors.

However, thanks to all the work to minimize glare, this ROG monitor offers clarity in more viewing scenarios. If you’re a budding streamer with a ton of studio lights behind you, the film could reduce potential distractions. You’ll still see hints of those lights and the red aura around them when light reflects against the quantum dots layer. However, it will be better than another, cheaper display.

The Swift OLED supports regular HDR10 and Dolby Vision for high dynamic range. So while you’ll find games look great paired with a high-end gaming PC, you have to remember that very few titles support the enhanced Dolby Vision. As for all my usual games I use to test contrast, the PG32UCDM held up with aplomb. Games like Cyberpunk 2077, Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2, and the recent Resident Evil Requiem (thankfully, with no DLSS 5), which rely on heavy atmospheric lighting, look phenomenal running at 4K resolution.

Smaller indie titles, whether it’s the cell-shaded Cairn or the ultra-stylized Hades II, also look extra crisp on the Swift OLED. It was also a great monitor for plugging in a PlayStation 5 Pro and running through some of the latest games that support the console’s new PSSR upscaling model. If I had to replace a TV with a monitor, 32 inches is just big enough to not make me long for a TV and couch setup.

Sneaky power button

One of these buttons turns off the monitor. © Raymond Wong / Gizmodo

The monitor’s main controls are all housed in a small four-way thumbstick just behind the small ROG emblem at the bottom of the screen. I spent two weeks with this monitor, searching high and low, before I realized the power button was housed just next to the thumbstick in a spot you can’t easily see from either the front or back sides.

While the Swift OLED has volume controls built in, it doesn’t have any speakers itself. Most people will inevitably default to a quality gaming headset, a soundbar, or a full surround sound speaker system. Still, I find it annoying how many high-end gaming monitors that cost more than $1,000 can’t be bothered to include some basic backup speakers.

© Raymond Wong / Gizmodo

Like most monitors, the Swift OLED isn’t built for easy menu navigation. Clicking on the joystick brings up the larger menu options, but trying to find where VRR or HDR settings are can be a small headache. Hitting down on the joystick opens up the option to switch between inputs. The left offers volume control, and the right gives you a handy frame rate (FPS) counter, a crosshair, and a timer. If you don’t want to bother with on-device controls, you can use the Asus DisplayWidget Center app. It’s what I would suggest unless you don’t want to overload your PC with even more bloatware.

Asus is also using its own custom heat sink inside this monitor to discharge the excess heat generated by the QD-OLED. It’s not the only gaming monitor to use its own unique thermal design, but at least the Swift OLED was dead quiet after days of use. I didn’t see any other issues with it or during its routine pixel repair sessions, either. Like many OLEDs, the screen routinely wants to go offline to cut down on burn-in risk. It’s a common issue with all these types of screens. All it means is users need to take a little extra care of their monitor than a traditional LCD.

A gaming monitor for capital “G” gamers

You don’t need a monitor with this much pizazz. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t look very nice. © Raymond Wong / Gizmodo

The other QD-OLED monitors I’ve personally used, like the Alienware AW2725Q 27-inch monitor, have had similar visuals to the Asus ROG Swift OLED monitor. You can find that monitor and other comparable screens going for around $650 on sale. The BlackShield layer is not enough of a boon to make anyone spend twice as much for a new screen.

The Swift OLED is thicker, heavier, and takes up more space on a desk. And for all that, it feels more premium. It looks like a gamer’s gaming monitor, with all its loud LED accents and tripod stand that’s literally in your face. But if money were no object, the Swift OLED comes out on top.