Bottom Line
The Samsung Odyssey OLED G6 is an excellent gaming monitor thanks to its 1440p 360Hz QD-OLED panel. It’s a unique offering due to its matte anti-glare coating that some users might prefer.
The Samsung Odyssey OLED G6/G60SD is yet another gaming monitor based on the 27″ 1440p 360Hz QD-OLED panel.
However, what makes it different from the other models is that it’s the only version with a matte anti-glare coating instead of the usual glossy screen surface!
Image Quality
In terms of image quality and performance, the Samsung G60SD performs the same as the other 27″ 1440p 360Hz QD-OLED panels thanks to OLED’s inherent panel characteristics, including per-pixel dimming for infinite contrast ratio and instantaneous pixel response time speed.
It has a wide 99.3% DCI-P3 gamut coverage for vibrant colors and true 10-bit color depth support for smooth gradients without noticeable banding.
The monitor’s native color gamut will over-saturate colors when viewing regular SDR content, but there’s an sRGB emulation mode, which you can activate by changing the Color Space setting from ‘Native’ to ‘Auto.’
Next, the brightness performance is also on par with other QD-OLED panels.
The Samsung Odyssey OLED G6 monitor reaches 250-nits in SDR and HDR for 100% APL (Average Picture Level, white window size), whereas HDR content gets a boost in brightness for smaller APLs – up to 1000-nits for < 3% and around 500-nits for 10% APL.
LG’s newer W-OLED panels can reach up to around 1300-nits for < 3% APL, 700-nits for 10% APL and 250-nits for 100% APL, but it’s important to note that these measures refer to white luminance.
QD-OLED panels actually have a higher color luminance (colors can get brighter instead of white), which in addition to the wider color gamut makes for an overall higher perceived brightness.
For the best HDR viewing experience, make sure that ‘Peak Brightness’ is set to ‘High’ and we recommend using the ‘Basic’ Game HDR mode.
Moving on, the Samsung Odyssey OLED G6 uses a third-generation QD-OLED panel with an improved diamond-shaped RGB subpixel layout.
You may still notice some very minor fringing on small text and fine details, but it’s completely tolerable and even negligible, depending on your sensitivity. In games and videos, it’s not an issue at all.
Further, the monitor has a decent pixel density of roughly 111 PPI (pixels per inch), resulting in sharp details and text, as well as plenty of screen real estate. Another upside is that 1440p is not nearly as demanding on the GPU as 4K UHD, allowing you to maintain higher frame rates in games.
Performance
The Samsung Odyssey OLED G60SD has a maximum refresh rate of 360Hz, which provides you with a small but noticeable boost in motion clarity as opposed to 240Hz.
You also get lower input lag – at only ~4ms of display latency, there’s no perceptible delay between your actions and the result on the screen.
All OLED panels have instantaneous pixel response time speed, so there are no ghosting artifacts behind fast-moving objects.
There’s also no need for overdrive, meaning that there’s also no overshoot (inverse ghosting) regardless of the refresh rate or frame rate.
Next, the monitor supports variable refresh rate (VRR) for tear-free gameplay via AMD FreeSync Premium, NVIDIA G-SYNC Compatible and HDMI 2.1 VRR.
As is the case with all VA and OLED monitors, you may notice some VRR brightness flickering in dark scenes of games with fluctuating frame rates.
Samsung offers a ‘VRR Control’ option that prevents brightness flickering, but increases input lag instead. Therefore, if you do encounter some flickering in a game, we recommend just disabling VRR instead.
The monitor is flicker-free and there’s a dedicated low-blue light mode available (Eye Saver mode).
Features
At the rear of the monitor, there’s a directional joystick for quick and easy navigation through the OSD (On-Screen Display) menu.
Besides the standard image adjustment settings (brightness, contrast, color temperature, etc.), the Samsung G60SD also offers a few advanced features, including sharpness and gamma adjustments, tint, aspect ratio control (4:3, 16:9 and Screen Fit) and Auto Source Switch. Picture in Picture is supported too.
You’ll also find a lot of gaming features, such as Black Equalizer (improves visibility in dark scenes), crosshair overlays and UltraWide GameView (displays the image with black bars at the top/bottom of the image with an extended field of view).
One thing to keep in mind about OLED displays is the risk of permanent image burn-in and temporary image retention. Basically, if an image with bright static elements remains on the screen for too long, those static elements have a chance of being permanently visible as an afterimage.
However, if you’re using the monitor sensibly and playing varied content, it shouldn’t be an issue. Samsung even offers a few burn-in prevention features, including Screen Saver, Pixel Refresh and Adjust Logo Brightness (dims the image when it detects bright static elements, such as logos and taskbars).
Samsung’s 3-year monitor warranty also covers burn-in.
Design & Connectivity
The stand of the monitor is sturdy and offers full ergonomic adjustability, including up to 120mm height adjustment, -4°/27° tilt, +/- 30° swivel, +/- 90° pivot and 100x100mm VESA mount compatibility.
Unlike the other QD-OLED panels with a glossy screen surface, the Samsung G60SD has a matte anti-glare coating.
The QD-OLED panel still doesn’t have a polarizer, so it will raise the black level and add a somewhat purplish hue when hit by direct lighting, it’s just that the reflections are now not mirror-like – they are diffused.
This makes the monitor more suitable for use in brighter environments.
Connectivity options include DisplayPort 1.4 with DSC, two HDMI 2.1 ports with 40 Gbps and DSC, a headphone jack and a dual-USB 3.0 hub.
Samsung also boasts a new pulsating heat pipe cooling solution that’s supposed to improve burn-in resistance.
Price & Similar Monitors
The Samsung G60SD price ranges from $665 to $900. At $665, it’s the most affordable 1440p 360Hz QD-OLED gaming monitor and definitely worth considering.
Now, we feel that if you’re really worried about reflection handling, you should consider the 27″ 1440p 240Hz models, such as the LG 27GS95QE or the upcoming 27″ 1440p 480Hz W-OLED variants.
If you prefer glossy screens, check out the ASUS XG27AQDMG with a glossy W-OLED panel (with a polarizer, so black levels aren’t raised under direct lighting) or one of the glossy 1440p 360Hz QD-OLED panels, such as the MSI MAG 271QPX and the Dell AW2725DF.
The main reason to consider the G60SD is if you really want the extra color saturation of the QD-OLED panels and the jump to 360Hz but definitely don’t want a glossy panel, so it’s still a good in-between option that’ll appeal to some gamers.
Here’s how it compares to other 27″ 1440p 360Hz QD-OLED options.
| Dell AW2725DF | MSI MPG 271QRX | MSI MAG 271QPX | Samsung G60SD | Gigabyte FO27Q3 | |
| Screen | Glossy | Glossy | Glossy | Matte | Glossy |
| Video Ports | 2x DP 1.4, HDMI 2.0* | DP 1.4, 2x HDMI 2.1, USB-C 90W | DP 1.4, 2x HDMI 2.1, USB-C 15W | DP 1.4, 2x HDMI 2.1 | DP 1.4, 2x HDMI 2.1 USB-C 18W |
| Other Ports | 3x USB-A, USB-C | 2x USB-A, USB-B, HP | HP | 2x USB-A, USB-B, HP | 2x USB-A, USB-B, HP, Mic, 2x5W |
| KVM | No | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Cooling | Active (Fan) | Passive (Heatsink) | Passive (Heatsink) | Passive (Pulsating Heat Pipes) | Passive (Heatsink) |
| Burn-in warranty | 3 years | 3 years | 3 years | 3 years | 3 years |
| Price (MSRP) | $900 | $800 | $750 | $900 | $800 |
Conclusion
Overall, the Samsung G60SD is an amazing gaming monitor thanks to its QD-OLED panel with an infinite contrast ratio, exceptional color gamut, decent brightness and buttery smooth performance provided by VRR support up to 360Hz with instantaneous pixel response time speed. While its screen coating may not appeal to many users, it’s always good to have more options!
Specifications
| Screen Size | 26.5-inch |
| Resolution | 2560×1440 (WQHD) |
| Panel Type | OLED |
| Aspect Ratio | 16:9 (Widescreen) |
| Refresh Rate | 360Hz |
| Response Time | 0.03ms (GtG) |
| Adaptive-Sync | FreeSync Premium (48-360Hz) |
| Ports | DisplayPort 1.4, 2x HDMI 2.1 (40 Gbps) |
| Other Ports | Headphone Jack, 2x USB 3.0 |
| Brightness (1 – 3% White Window) | 1000 cd/m² |
| Brightness (10% White Window) | 500 cd/m² |
| Brightness (100% White Window) | 250 cd/m² |
| Contrast Ratio | Infinite |
| Colors | 1.07 billion (true 10-bit) 99.3% DCI-P3 |
| HDR | VESA DisplayHDR 400 True Black, HDR10+ Gaming |
| VESA | Yes (100x100mm) |
The Pros:
- Infinite contrast ratio, decent peak brightness, wide color gamut
- Instant response time
- Plenty of features, including VRR up to 360Hz
- Fully ergonomic design
The Cons:
- Risk of burn-in (not covered by warranty)
