LG 45GR95QE Review: 3440×1440 240Hz OLED UltraWide Curved Gaming Monitor

If you want an ultrawide gaming monitor and the Dell Alienware AW3423DW/F is too small or too slow for you, check out the LG UltraGear 45GR95QE-B!

Image Quality

Based on an OLED panel, the LG 45GR95QE boasts an infinite contrast ratio thanks to its self-emissive pixels that can completely turn off for true blacks. Moreover, since there’s no backlight, you won’t get any backlight bleeding, blooming, IPS/VA glow or other visual artifacts associated with LCDs!

The monitor uses LG’s W-OLED panel, which in addition to the regular red, green and blue subpixels also has a white subpixel for increased brightness. This pixel layout will, however, cause some minor fringing on fine details and small text, but most users won’t be bothered by it.

What many users won’t find ideal, however, is the subpar pixel density of 83.8 PPI (pixels per inch), which is similar to that of 27″ 1920×1080 monitors.

Now, thanks to the 3440×1440 resolution, you still get plenty of screen real estate, it’s just that details and text won’t be particularly sharp. For games and videos, this won’t be an issue at all.

If you happen to do a lot of work that involves text, the LG 45GR95QE is obviously not ideal for you, but unless you’re particularly sensitive to this type of thing, we find that it’s tolerable. Just keep in mind that if you’re coming from a display with a much higher pixel density, it will take some time to get used to.

At a distance of roughly 41 inches (~104cm), the 3440×1440 resolution on a 44.5″ viewable screen becomes ‘retina’, meaning that you won’t be able to distinguish the individual pixels anyway.

This is a bit contradictory to the monitor’s 800R screen curvature, which implies that for the ideal viewing experience, you shouldn’t sit more than 80cm (31.5″) away from the screen.

Related:Curved vs Flat Monitor – Which Should You Choose

However, these are just ideal values and we find that there are no problems with the screen curvature or the pixels being too noticeable at a normal viewing distance for a monitor of this size.

An upside is that 3440×1440 is not nearly as demanding as 4K UHD (or 2160p ultrawide for that matter), allowing you to maintain decent frame rates even with a mid-range GPU. Most games also fully support the ultrawide aspect ratio, providing you with a wider field of view and a more immersive gaming experience.

There are a lot of movies shot at the ~21:9 aspect ratio, which are displayed without the black bars on the top and bottom of the screen as they are on 16:9 displays for a more cinematic viewing experience. The extra horizontal screen space is also very useful when it comes to productivity work and audio/video editing.

Moving on, the LG 45GR95QE monitor has gorgeous colors thanks to its wide 98.5% DCI-P3 gamut coverage (~135% sRGB relative size). There’s also an sRGB emulation mode, in case you prefer more accurate and natural colors for SDR content.

Additionally, the image is consistent regardless of the angle you’re looking at the screen, making the monitor suitable for professional color-critical work. It’s even factory calibrated and supports hardware calibration via the provided True Color Pro application.

*PC Mode, Game Optimizer enabled
**Uniform Brightness enabled

In SDR mode, the LG 45GR95QE can maintain ~190-nits. Some users might consider this too dim, but we find that it’s perfectly acceptable under normal lighting conditions (screen not facing a big window or studio lighting). If you are in a particularly bright room, you’ll need to dim your lights or shut the curtains for optimal image quality.

In the Vivid mode, it can reach up to around 370-nits for small window sizes, but then the 100% full-screen bright window brightness is reduced to 160-nits by ABL (Automatic Brightness Limiter). These jumps in brightness can be very annoying in SDR mode, so we recommend sticking to the standard preset (Gamer 1).

In HDR, the monitor can achieve a high 800-nit peak brightness for small bright highlights (<3%), a decent 650-nits for 10% white windows and 160-nits for full-screen bright flashes.

By default, the LG 45GR95QE has a high 8500K color temperature, which results in bluish whites, so we recommend changing this in the OSD menu by selecting ‘Color Temperature’, then ‘Manual’ and ‘C1.’ The ‘Warm’ preset also has a normal 6500K color temperature.

Another downside of OLED technology is the risk of permanent image burn-in and temporary image retention. However, as long as you’re using the monitor sensibly, it shouldn’t be an issue.

This involves not leaving the image with bright static elements for too long, hiding your taskbar, hiding static HUD elements in games if possible and using LG’s implemented OLED Care features:

• Screen Move – moves the screen by a few pixels at regular intervals
• Screen Saver – screen turns off automatically when no movement is detected after a certain period of time
• Image Cleaning – pixels refresh after using the monitor for more than 4 hours
• Pixel Cleaning – pixels refresh after every 500 hours of use

Performance

Thanks to OLED’s instantaneous pixel response time speed, the LG 45GR95QE delivers an incredibly responsive fast-paced gaming experience with no visible trailing artifacts or overshoot.

The pixels transition rapidly regardless of the refresh rate, so there’s no need for different overdrive settings.

Further, variable refresh rate is supported via FreeSync Premium and HDMI 2.1 VRR, and while the monitor’s not officially certified by NVIDIA (at least not yet) as ‘G-SYNC Compatible’, VRR works without issues with supported GeForce GPUs (10-series or newer) for tear-free gameplay up to 240FPS.

Input lag performance is impeccable as well with ~2ms of delay, which is imperceptible.

Unfortunately, Motion Blur Reduction (Black Frame Insertion) is not supported.

Apart from slight dips in brightness due to the way OLED panels operate (which is not noticeable in real use), the LG 45GR95QE is flicker-free and there’s an integrated low-blue light mode.

Features

For quick and easy OSD (On-Screen Display) menu adjustments, you can use the provided remote controller or the On-Screen Control desktop application. There is no directional joystick on the monitor.

Useful gaming features include Black Stabilizer (improves visibility in dark scenes), crosshair overlays, a refresh rate tracker and various picture presets.

Besides the standard image settings (brightness, contrast, color temperature, etc.), the LG 45GR95QE also offers 6-axis hue/saturation, color temperature fine-tuning in 500K increments, sharpness, four gamma presets, aspect ratio control, Auto Input Switch and Picture in Picture/Picture by Picture support.

Using LG’s Dual Controller software, you can connect two PCs to the screen and control them via one set of keyboard and mouse, but both machines need to be connected to the same network and have the software installed.

At the rear of the monitor, there’s the customizable Hexagon RGB lighting with strong enough LEDs to reflect off of the wall in a dark room.

Design & Connectivity

The stand of the monitor is fairly sturdy and offers a good range of ergonomics, including up to 110mm height adjustment, -5°/15° tilt, +/- 10° swivel and 100x100mm VESA mount compatibility.

Next, the screen has a steep 800R curvature for added immersion, though some users might find it too aggressive for uses other than gaming and content consumption.

The screen also has a light matte anti-glare coating that prevents reflections without making the image too grainy.

Connectivity options include DisplayPort 1.4 with DSC, two HDMI 2.1 ports, a DTS headphone jack with HP:X support for 3D audio simulation, a digital audio output and a dual-USB 3.0 hub.

1440p 120Hz mode is supported on the PS5 with HDR and VRR, while the Xbox consoles support 1440p 120Hz with VRR or 4K 60Hz HDR with VRR.

Price & Similar Monitors

The LG 45GR95QE price amounts to $1,700. It’s quite expensive, but it’s not too crazy considering its image quality, performance and features.

Corsair offers a similar model, the Xeneon Flex 45WQHD240 with a bendable screen that can be bent to anywhere between 800R and flat. It also has a three-year warranty that covers burn-in, whereas LG’s two-year warranty does not.

Corsair’s model goes for $2,000, but if you’re spending $1,700 on a monitor already, we feel that the Xeneon is worth the extra $300 for the better warranty and ability to bend the screen, especially since 800R will be too steep for most users.

The Xeneon Flex also has a few downsides. Its design doesn’t support VESA mounting and it’s not adjustable (tilt-only). The stand is not removable as the connectivity ports are placed there. However, Corsair should be releasing a mounting accessory in Q1 2023.

Of course, there are other cheaper options worth considering as well, such as the Samsung Odyssey Neo G9, the LG OLED42C2, the LG 27GR95QE, the Innocn 32M2V and the Dell AW3423DWF – all of which offer excellent HDR image quality and smooth gaming performance.

There are also two exciting HDR monitors announced for 2023, the new Neo G9 with a 57″ 7680×2160 240Hz VA panel and the Odyssey OLED G9 with a 49″ 5120×1440 240Hz QD-OLED panel.

Conclusion

Overall, the LG 45GR95QE offers an amazing gaming experience thanks to its VRR support, high 240Hz refresh rate and instantaneous pixel response time speed, while the large 45″ ultrawide screen with decent brightness, infinite contrast ratio and gorgeous colors provides a stunning HDR image quality.

So, if you don’t mind the low pixel density, steep 800R curvature, risk of burn-in and $1,700 price tag, it’s one of the best gaming monitors!

Specifications