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Before moving onto the actual panel analysis though, we do need to spend some time talking about the TrueBlack Glossy coating which ASUS has fitted to this panel. This is an exclusive according to ASUS, with a ‘zero-haze' finish that improves on both the Glossy WOLED panels of last year, while also promising much better black depth than competing QD-OLEDs.
I’ve tested it side-by-side with a QD-OLED, which is known to deliver raised black levels in brighter environments due to its lack of a polarising layer. We can see the difference straight away putting this XG27AQWMG next to a 27in QD-OLED – even before the screens are turned on, with bright ambient conditions, the QD-OLED looks a lot more grey, whereas the ASUS screen remains perfectly black.
Now there are some advantages to QD-OLED in that it’s more of a semi-gloss finish, so it does mute reflections somewhat, whereas the ASUS is more of a mirror finish, so that's something to keep in mind.
However, if you are gaming in brighter environments, the difference in black levels is honestly huge, as you can see above, with the image looking a lot flatter and generally less contrasty on QD-OLED, for want of a better term!
Of course, if you can control the lighting or you mostly game at night, there’s very little difference between the two – with the lights turned off, as you can see above, blacks look very deep and both images look superb, so it does depend on your conditions.
You also may not want a mirror finish if you have a window facing the monitor for instance, so there are pros and cons to each approach. Speaking personally though, now I’ve seen the PureBlack Glossy coating, I do think it will be hard to go back to QD-OLED – it really does make a difference!
