Bottom Line
The Samsung S32BG65 and S27BG65 Oddysey G6 monitors are fast curved VA panel gaming monitors with built-in Tizen OS. While these monitors offer an enjoyable gaming experience thanks to their fast response time, 240Hz, high contrast ratio and wide color gamut, there are some issues with VRR performance and a lot of users don’t like the aggressive 1000R curvature.
The Samsung S32BG65 is a 32″ 1440p 240Hz curved gaming monitor with DisplayHDR 600, quick response time and built-in Tizen smart OS.
Image Quality
The monitor is based on Samsung’s VA panel and features a QDEF (quantum dot enhanced film) layer (also referred to as ‘QLED’) for improved colors and stronger brightness.
It supports a 95% DCI-P3 wide color gamut (equivalent to ~125% sRGB), which results in more lifelike and vibrant colors.
Other panel-related specs include 178° wide viewing angles, a 350-nit peak brightness which gets a boost up to 600-nits for HDR content, and a static contrast ratio of 2,500:1 for deep and vivid blacks.
The monitor has an edge-lit backlight with 8 dimming zones, which can further push the contrast ratio by dimming parts of the screen according to the displayed content.
However, as there are only 8 zones on the monitor’s big 32″ sized screen, the local dimming solution is not particularly effective.
For the true HDR viewing experience, a 32″ LED-backlit monitor would preferably need over 1,000 dimming zones, but this would also significantly increase the monitor’s price.
Regardless, thanks to the monitor’s wide color gamut, high contrast ratio, and strong peak brightness, it delivers a good HDR picture quality overall with notable improvement over SDR.
For the best HDR image quality, be sure to increase the monitor’s brightness as it’s set to only 30% out of the box.
Keep in mind that for non-HDR content, the monitor’s wide color gamut can make colors appear somewhat over-saturated, particularly reds and greens.
Moving on, the Samsung S32BG65 has the same pixel density as a 24″ 1080p monitor, which is ~93 PPI (pixels per inch). So, you aren’t getting the sharpest detail clarity, but it’s very good nonetheless.
In fact, at just ~3 ft/1 meter away from the screen, you won’t be able to distinguish the individual pixels.
The Odyssey G65B series also includes a 27″ sized variant, the Samsung S27BG65, with the same specifications. It offers a higher pixel density, whereas the 32″ model offers a more immersive gaming experience due to the bigger screen.
Performance
Thanks to the monitor’s rapid 240Hz refresh rate, you get buttery-smooth motion clarity while the input lag of only ~2ms makes for imperceptible delay.
The pixel response time speed is impressive, as well. In fact, the Odyssey G65B monitors are one of the fastest VA displays available at the time of this writing.
There are three response time overdrive levels: Standard, Faster, and Extreme.
We recommend using the Standard mode since the other two modes add too much overshoot (inverse ghosting).
The Fastest (MBR) mode is also very useful as even though it sacrifices picture brightness, the screen is more than bright enough under normal lighting conditions. However, you can’t use MBR and FreeSync at the same time.
Features
The Samsung Odyssey 32G6 supports variable refresh rate (VRR) and has AMD FreeSync Premium Pro certification. It lacks NVIDIA’s official G-SYNC Compatible certification, but VRR works with compatible GeForce cards too.
As long as your frame rate is within the 60-240Hz VRR range, there will be no screen tearing or stuttering as the monitor can change its refresh rate dynamically – according to your FPS.
When your frame rate drops below the VRR range, the refresh rate will be multiplied for tear-free performance (59FPS -> 236Hz, etc.). AMD calls this LFC or Low Framerate Compensation.
Sadly, it’s expected from VA panels to exhibit some VRR brightness flickering in some games, usually in those with fluctuating frame rates and in in-game menus and loading screens of some titles.
The ‘VRR Control’ option in the OSD menu prevents brightness flickering, but it introduces micro stuttering and increases input latency, so we don’t recommend using it. If you experience strong VRR brightness flickering in certain games, we suggest just disabling VRR in those titles and using V-Sync if you’re really sensitive to tearing.
It also has built-in Tizen smart OS with the usual features, such as Gaming Hub, Bixby, Microsoft 365, streaming apps, etc.
The OSD (On-Screen Display) menu of the monitor is user-friendly and offers a bunch of useful features. Navigation through the menu is quick and easy thanks to the joystick placed beneath the bottom bezel of the screen.
For gaming, you get Black Equalizer, which improves visibility in darker games by altering the gamma curvature, Virtual Aim Point (cheat crosshairs), and various picture modes (FPS, RTS, RPG, and AOS as well as PiP/PbP).
The Samsung G6 monitor has a flicker-free backlight and an integrated low-blue light filter. In the OSD menu, it’s also possible to disable local dimming.
Design & Connectivity
The monitor’s 1000R curvature is supposed to match the curvature of the human eye. Whether this is a good thing or not depends on personal preference. Some absolutely love it, some despise it, and some don’t really care that much.
It does add extra depth to the picture, and it may seem a bit weird in the beginning, but you get used to it.
The stand of the Samsung S32BG65 monitor is robust and versatile with up to 120mm height adjustment, -12°/10° tilt, 90° pivot, +/- 15° swivel, and 100x100mm VESA mount compatibility.
Connectivity options include DisplayPort 1.4, two HDMI 2.1 ports, a headphones jack, and a dual-USB 3.0 hub.
Price & Similar Monitors
The Samsung S32BG65 price ranges from ~$450 to $800, while the Samsung S27BG65 27″ sized model goes from ~$400 to $700.
There are newer Samsung Odyssey G6 G65D S32BG65D and Samsung S27BG65D variants, but these offer the same specs and are just Best Buy exclusives.
There are also older Samsung Odyssey G7 C32G75T and C27G75T models without built-in smart OS and HDMI 2.0 instead of HDMI 2.1, but they’ve been discontinued.
While these displays offer an enjoyable gaming experience, they are a bit expensive, considering that you can get true HDR displays around this price range, such as the Innocn 27M2V and 32M2V with 4K 144Hz IPS panels and 1152-zone mini LED backlights.
You can also get the AOC Q27G3XMN with better HDR image quality for less than $300, though it’s not quite as fast.
If you don’t care about HDR and just want a fast 1440p 240Hz display, there are better options in our best 1440p 240Hz monitors buyer’s guide. In case you want a 1440p 240Hz display with built-in smart features, it’s worth considering.
Conclusion
If you’re a fan of aggressively curved screens and built-in smart OS, the Samsung Odyssey G6 is an excellent 1440p 240Hz gaming monitor as you get a high contrast ratio and quick pixel response time speed.
Specifications
| Screen Size | 31.5-inch |
| Screen Curvature | 1000R |
| Resolution | 2560×1440 (WQHD) |
| Panel Type | VA |
| Aspect Ratio | 16:9 (Widescreen) |
| Refresh Rate | 240Hz |
| Response Time (GtG) | 1ms (GtG) |
| Adaptive Sync | FreeSync Premium Pro, HDMI 2.1 VRR (60Hz-240Hz) |
| Ports | DisplayPort 1.4, 2x HDMI 2.1 |
| Other Ports | 2x USB 3.0, Headphone Jack |
| Brightness | 350 cd/m2 |
| Brightness (HDR) | 600 cd/m2 |
| Contrast Ratio | 2500:1 (static) |
| Colors | 1.07 billion (8-bit + FRC) 95% DCI-P3 |
| HDR | VESA DisplayHDR 600 |
| Local Dimming | Edge-lit 8 zones |
| VESA | Yes (100x100mm) |
The Pros:
- High contrast ratio, strong peak brightness
- Wide color gamut
- Plenty of features including VRR up to 240Hz
- Fully ergonomic stand and rich connectivity options
The Cons:
- 1000R curvature too steep for some users
- Prone to VRR brightness flickering
