LG 27GP950 Review: 4K 160Hz 1ms FreeSync Gaming Monitor

The LG UltraGear 27GP950-B is basically the HDMI 2.1 version of the LG 27GN950, allowing for 4K 120Hz support on the PS5 and the Xbox Series X. Here’s everything else you need to know about it!

Note that the ‘-B’ in the monitor name just stands for black design.

Image Quality

Based on a Nano IPS panel, the LG 27GP950 offers vibrant and rich colors, covering 98% of the DCI-P3 color space (equivalent to ~135% sRGB). You also get an sRGB emulation mode with adjustable brightness in case you want to view accurate SDR colors with ~100% sRGB gamut.

The IPS panel ensures 178° wide viewing angles and that the colors will remain consistent regardless of the angle you’re looking at them, which along with the wide color gamut and excellent factory calibration makes the monitor suitable for professional color-critical work.

It even supports hardware calibration via the provided LG Calibration Studio software.

Further, the 4K UHD resolution makes for stunning detail clarity with sharp text and plenty of screen real estate due to the high pixel density of 163 PPI (pixels per inch), though you will need to apply some scaling in order to make small text readable.

The LG 27GP950 monitor supports HDR (High Dynamic Range) and has VESA’s DisplayHDR 600 certification.

This means that HDR content gets a boost to a bit over 600-nits (from 400-nits maximum under SDR) for punchier highlights. There are 16 dimming zones that can dim parts of the screen where the image is supposed to be dark without greatly affecting the areas where the image is supposed to remain bright.

Alas, as there are only 16 zones and over 8 million pixels on the screen, the local dimming solution is not particularly effective. HDR scenes where bright and dark objects are far apart will look great, but more demanding scenes won’t look as good.

Still, you get a meaningful improvement over SDR as there’s at least some local dimming, along with the high peak brightness, wide color gamut and 4K UHD resolution.

As expected from an IPS panel, there is some IPS glow, while the static contrast ratio amounts to 1,000:1. So, you won’t get as deep blacks as that of VA panels with ~3,000:1 contrast ratio, but these panels have disadvantages of their own.

In some scenes, the local dimming can help boost the contrast ratio a bit. Also, keep in mind that unlike LG’s 1440p Nano IPS panels that usually have a contrast ratio of ~800:1, the LG 27GP950 is closer to the specified 1,000:1 and even gets slightly above that, depending on the unit.

Performance

The LG 27GP950 has a low input lag of around 4ms, which makes for imperceptible delay between your actions and the result on the screen.

The response time speed is impressive as well with 1ms GtG (gray to gray) pixel transition time. There’s no visible ghosting or overshoot in fast-paced games, making the monitor ideal for competitive first-person shooters.

There are four overdrive modes: Off, Normal, Fast and Faster.

The Normal mode offers excellent results at both the maximum refresh rate and at 60Hz, so if you’re using a variable refresh rate, you won’t have to change overdrive settings depending on your frame rate.

You can also overclock the monitor up to 160Hz over DisplayPort, while HDMI 2.1 is limited to 120Hz.

VRR is supported with both AMD FreeSync Premium Pro and NVIDIA G-SYNC Compatible certifications, ensuring smooth and tear-free gameplay up to 160FPS.

Sadly, Motion Blur Reduction is not available, but due to the slow red phosphor decay on Nano IPS panels, it wouldn’t have been possible to optimize it ideally anyway.

The backlight of the monitor is completely flicker-free and there’s a low blue light mode available (Reader Mode).

Features

For navigation through the OSD (On-Screen Display) menu, you can use the directional joystick placed beneath the bottom bezel of the screen or the On-Screen Control desktop application.

At the rear of the monitor, you’ll find RGB lighting that consists of 48 powerful LEDs that can reflect off of the wall and create atmospheric ambient lighting. It’s also possible to synchronize it with on-screen audio or video. To customize RGB, you can use the LG UltraGear Control Center application or the wheel that’s placed next to the joystick.

Other useful features include Black Stabilizer (improves visibility in darker scenes), crosshair overlays, a refresh rate tracker and various picture presets (FPS, RTS, two customizable Gamer profiles, etc.).

You’ll also find advanced image adjustment tools, such as four gamma presets, 6-axis hue/saturation, color temperature (in 500K increments for fine-tuning) and sharpness – besides the standard settings, such as brightness, contrast, etc.

Note that Picture in Picture and Picture by Picture modes are not supported. Auto Input Switch is also not available, so the monitor won’t automatically detect and switch to the new input source, you’ll have to change it manually.

Design & Connectivity

The LG 27GP950 has a 4-side borderless design, so you get ultra-thin bezels at all four sides of the screen!

Further, it has a light matte anti-glare coating that prevents reflections without making the image too grainy.

You can adjust the height of the screen by up to 110mm, tilt by -5°/15°, 90° pivot or VESA mount it via the 100x100mm pattern, but it cannot swivel to the left/right.

Connectivity options include DisplayPort 1.4 with DSC, two HDMI 2.1 ports (full 48 Gbps bandwidth), a headphone jack and a dual-USB 3.0 hub.

Price & Similar Monitors

The LG 27GP950 goes for $600 – $900, which is a bit steep considering the alternatives you can find around this price range. There’s also the LG 27GP95R version, which is the same monitor without the RGB lighting that can be found for $500 – $800.

The newer model, the LG 27GR93U can be found for as low as $450. It offers similar image quality, performance and features as the 27GP950, but it lacks local dimming, which is mostly useless anyway.

Note that the Acer XV275K P3 with a 27″ 4K 144Hz IPS panel and a 576-zone FALD solution for a proper HDR viewing experience can be found on sale for $550. So, if you want a high refresh rate 27″ 4K IPS display, we highly recommend just getting the XV275K P3 or investing in the Innocn 27M2V.

If you just want a decent 4K 144Hz IPS monitor for SDR content, consider the Gigabyte M27U. It offers similar image quality and performance as the 27GP950, but also has MBR and a KVM switch for $430.

To learn more about monitors and ensure you’re getting the model most suited for your personal preference, visit our comprehensive and always up-to-date best gaming monitor buyer’s guide.

Conclusion

All in all, the LG 27GP950 is an excellent monitor for both gaming and color-critical work. However, it’s too expensive as there are proper 4K 144Hz HDR displays in this price range.

Specifications

Screen Size	27-inch
Resolution	3840×2160 (Ultra HD)
Panel Type	IPS
Aspect Ratio	16:9 (Widescreen)
Refresh Rate	144Hz (160Hz OC)
Response Time	1ms (GtG)
Adaptive-Sync	FreeSync Premium Pro (DP: 48-160Hz, HDMI: 48-120Hz) G-SYNC Compatible (DP: 48-160Hz)
Ports	DisplayPort 1.4, 2x HDMI 2.1
Other Ports	Headphone Jack, 2x USB 3.0
Brightness	400 cd/m²
Brightness (HDR)	600 cd/m²
Contrast Ratio	1000:1 (static)
Colors	1.07 billion (8-bit + FRC) 98% DCI-P3
HDR	DisplayHDR 600
Local Dimming	16 zones
VESA	Yes (100x100mm)