MSI OPTIX MAG321CURV
A budget 4K gaming panel?
WE’RE HERE, we’ve finally made it. It’s taken a few years, but at last we’re at the point in our technological lives where 4K gaming is not only feasible, but also affordable. Well, if you ignore the graphics card cost. Here we have MSI’s Optix MAG321CURV. This large and impressive 32-inch 4K gaming monitor comes packed with a curved VA panel, a 60Hz refresh rate, FreeSync as standard, and a 1ms G2G response time. That’s a lot of spec, especially as it comes in at just under $450 at retail. In fact at the time of writing it’s currently on sale for $390 at Amazon. Go back three years, and this thing would’ve been over twice that price.
So before we head into reviewing this screen, the question has to be asked: Is it viable to game at 4K today? Well, sort of. If you’re after that 60fps sweet spot, you’re looking at a minimum of an Nvidia RTX 2080 in your build. You can get away with less than that (the 2070 Super is a fine card, averaging around the 40fps mark in most AAA titles), especially in lower fidelity titles and indie games, but for the AAA big boys, you’re going to be needing to drop the graphical settings if you do decide to go that route instead.
So how’s the screen? It’s around what you’d expect for a monitor at this pricepoint. It’s got a VA panel at its heart, but it’s lackluster compared to some of the other IPS and VA screens we have in the office. Admittedly, its comparisons here are both artworker-certified $1000+ monitors, but nonetheless the technology at the base of these designs is effectively the same, so color performance should be somewhat similar. That’s unfortunate, as VA is meant to be particularly good at dealing with dark blacks and contrast. With the MSI MAG321CURV this is actually the one area where we felt it struggled most. There was some inconsistency with the deeper blacks in particular, seeming washed out compared to some of the other offerings. Now that’s to be expected to a degree, as this is a fairly affordable 4K gaming monitor, and it also comes with a hefty chunk of overdrive to enable that 1ms response time, so to expect absolute color perfection would be unfair.
Outside of the darker tones, the MAG321CURV performed well. Brighter colors really popped, and on the whole it was an enjoyable experience, far superior to some of the 4K TN panels we’ve seen recently—many of which come in at the same price. There was some ghosting, but after a while it was barely noticeable, and the pixel density made for a good experience for desktop and everyday use.
As for physical features, the stand is robust and easy to put together (requiring four screws to mount the monitor to an arm, then an additional base, secured by notches and a single screw). It can tilt and you can adjust its height, but don’t expect full pivot or swivel here. One thing we also don’t quite get is the inclusion of that RGB in the back of the monitor. It’s such a fireand-forget thing. It makes sense at a LAN party, maybe, to show off your epeen, but otherwise it serves no purpose. It’s not bright enough to illuminate the wall behind, and after playing with it for five minutes you’ll get bored and forget it.
So we’ve got a mixed bag here. It’s not the perfect VA panel: It struggles a bit at the lower-end of the spectrum—though you will get used to it over time—but it throws up some foibles if you’re looking at this from a professional perspective. That said, it is an exceptionally nice entry-level 4K gaming and entertainment monitor. It’s very good for media enjoyment, and that pricing makes it a solid choice for the future.
VERDICT 8
MSI Optix MAG321CURV
OPTOMETRIST Affordable(ish), great pixel density, colors
really pop.
OPTICAL ILLUSION Darker tones struggle; RGB lackluster.
$ 390, www.msi.com