The Dell S3219D is a decent 1440p VA monitor with mediocre picture quality. It has a high native contrast ratio that can deliver deep blacks in a dark room but cannot get very bright to fight bright room glare. It doesn't support HDR and has disappointing viewing angles and poor out-of-the-box color accuracy. On the upside, the S3219D has excellent color gamut for normal use, good gray uniformity, and good reflection handling. It responds quickly to your actions due to its low input lag, and you can only see a small blur trail behind fast-moving objects due to the fast pixel response time. It supports FreeSync for a tear-free gaming experience, but the refresh rate is limited to 75Hz, which will deter most serious gamers. Overall, it is a good entry-level gaming monitor.
We buy and test more than 30 monitors each year, with units that we buy completely on our own, without any cherry-picked units or samples. We put a lot into each unbiased, straight-to-the-point review, and there's a whole process from purchasing to publishing, involving multiple teams and people. We do more than just use the monitor for a week; we use specialized and custom tools to measure various aspects with objective data-based results. We also consider multiple factors before making any recommendations, including the monitor's cost, its performance against the competition, and whether or not it's easy to find.
Our Verdict
The Dell S3219D is an alright monitor for mixed usage. It can display deep blacks but cannot get very bright, so it is more suitable for a darker room. It has low input lag and good motion handling with FreeSync support, and it is a good monitor for casual gaming. Unfortunately, it has bad ergonomics which will not make it easy for you to place it comfortably on your desk.
- Good dark room performance.
- Excellent resolution and size.
- Poor out-of-the-box color accuracy.
- Image degrades at an angle.
The Dell S3219D is okay for office use. While its large size and 1440p resolution allow you to easily multitask, its viewing angles are lacking. Sharing your work with a colleague is not easy, as they will not see the same quality image as you unless they stand directly in front. The bad ergonomics do not allow any swiveling to make things better.
The Dell S3219D is decent for gaming. It has a large screen size, high resolution, and a low input lag that makes it very responsive. A little motion blur is present in fast-moving content, but nothing too bad. It supports FreeSync for tear-free gaming sessions on both HDMI and DisplayPort.
The Dell S3219D is an okay monitor for consuming multimedia. It has a large screen size and its 1440p resolution is enough to display most content at its native resolution. It is a very responsive monitor due to its low input lag and it is more suitable for use in a darker room where it will display deep and relatively uniform blacks.
The Dell S3219D is alright for media creation. It has a large screen and 1440p resolution so you can display more of your work on the screen. Unfortunately, it does not favor collaborative work, as the viewing angles are disappointing and the ergonomics are terrible, so sharing your work is an issue. It has low input lag and good motion handling, and it is more suitable for a less bright room.
The Dell S3219D doesn't support HDR.
Changelog
- Updated Jul 02, 2021: Changed height adjustment result from 'N/A' to '0' to match our methodology.
- Updated Feb 28, 2019: The FreeSync range was incorrectly listed as 40-75 Hz. The actual FreeSync range is 48-75 Hz.
- Updated Feb 22, 2019: Review published.
- Updated Feb 20, 2019: Early access published.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the Dell S3219D, which is the only size of this monitor available.
If someone comes across a different type of panel or if their Dell S3219D doesn't correspond to our review, let us know and we will update the review. Note that some tests such as the gray uniformity may vary between individual units.
| Model | Size | Native Resolution | Refresh rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S3219D | 32" | 1440p | 75Hz | FreeSync support |
| S2719DGF | 27" | 1440p | 144Hz | FreeSync support |
Note: The Dell S3219D we purchased was manufactured in September 2018.
Popular Monitor Comparisons
The Dell S3219D is a good monitor for gaming and supports FreeSync variable refresh rate to ensure a tear-free gaming experience. See our recommendations for the best 32-inch monitors, the best gaming monitors, and the best budget gaming monitors.
The Dell S3220DGF is much better than the Dell S3219D. The S3220DGF has a much faster refresh rate and a lower input lag, which is great for gaming. The D3220 also supports HDR, and its more versatile stand allows you to place it in a comfortable position with ease.
The Dell S3219D and the Dell D3218HN have different panel types so they are better in different aspects. The Dell D3218HN has an IPS panel and wider viewing angles, so it favors collaboration, whereas the Dell S3129D has a VA panel and a better dark room performance. The Dell S3219D also has higher resolution and supports FreeSync, which is great for gaming.
The LG 32UD59-B is significantly better than the Dell S3219D. The LG has a better 4k resolution and can display more detail on your screen, and has a better out-of-the-box color accuracy. On the other hand, the Dell has a slightly higher refresh rate and marginally lower input lag, great for gaming.
The LG 32GK850G-B is better than the Dell S3219D. The LG 32GK850G-B has better ergonomics, and you can position it comfortably easier. It also has a faster pixel response time, lower input lag, and a much faster refresh rate, all of which contribute to a much better gaming experience. Also, the LG 32GK850G-B can get brighter, so it's more suitable for a bright room as it can easily fight glare.
Test Results
The design of the Dell S3219D is decent. The entire design does not resemble a typical Dell monitor and looks plastic. It has a sturdy stand coated with a silver finish that supports the monitor well, and the overall build quality is good; you should have no issues with it. Unfortunately, the ergonomics are bad, and you will have a hard time positioning the monitor comfortably. It is a very thin monitor, and it is a good choice if you plan to VESA mount it as it will not protrude at all.
The stand is plastic with a flat base and a metal finish. It feels quite sturdy, provides good support to the monitor, and prevents wobbling.
Update 07/02/2021: We previously had incorrectly listed the Height Adjustment as 'N/A' as opposed to '0'. The review has been updated to reflect this change, as the Ergonomics score has dropped slightly.
The Dell S3219D's ergonomics are terrible. Your only option is tilting and that is available only within a narrow range. You may have a hard time positioning the monitor in a comfortable position.
The back of the monitor is plain. All of the inputs are housed in the opening where the stand is attached to the monitor. Cable management is serviced by the small opening on the back of the stand, as you can see here.
The borders of the monitor are of average thickness and they will not please those who plan a multi-monitor setup. The glossy finish is prone to fingerprints.
The Dell S3219D is a thin monitor. Both with the stand and without the stand, it ranks among the thinnest monitors we've tested. It will not protrude if you decide to VESA mount it.
The build quality is good. Although entirely plastic, there are no gaps or loose ends, and just like most Dell monitors, you should have no issues with it.
Just like most VA monitors, the native contrast ratio of the Dell S3219D is very good. The monitor has good dark room performance with deep blacks that enhance the picture quality, just like in the case of the Samsung CF398.
Local dimming is not supported on the Dell S3219D. The above video is for reference only.
The Dell S3219D has mediocre SDR peak brightness. It is remarkably constant at delivering the same brightness levels regardless of the window size and this is great. However, if you plan to place it in a very bright room, it will not be able to fight glare.
The measurements were made on the "Custom Color" picture mode.
HDR is not supported.
The Dell S3219D has disappointing horizontal viewing angles. As soon as you move off the center axis, the image loses accuracy. Anyone looking at the monitor from the side will see a much different image from someone who is sitting directly in front. If you are a gamer and you sit up close, you will notice the uniformity issues at the edges.
The vertical viewing angles are just as lacking as the horizontal ones on this Dell S3219D. If you sit up close, the edges will look darker.
The Dell S3219D has excellent gray uniformity. It is slightly brighter at the center of the screen than the edges, but it is not noticeable under normal use, and there is almost no dirty screen effect.
In dark scenes, the uniformity is even better, and there are no issues. This is very similar to the Samsung CF398.
The Dell S3219D has decent black uniformity. In a very dark room, you'll notice a few flashlighting spots if you're sitting directly in front. In general, black uniformity is among the best we've measured.
The Dell S3219D has poor out-of-the-box color accuracy. The best results are obtained with the "Cool" picture mode, although the "Standard" picture mode is also acceptable and has a better color temperature. The color temperature in the "Cool" mode is very cold, way above the target of 6500K, and the white balance dE and color dE are high enough that most people will notice the inaccuracies. Gamma doesn't follow the target curve, and some scenes will be brighter, while others will be darker.
After calibration, the Dell S3219D is almost perfect. Gamma follows the target curve very closely, and the color temperature is almost right on the 6500K target. Color and white balance errors are almost entirely corrected and it is virtually impossible to spot any inaccuracies without a colorimeter.
You can download our ICC profile calibration here. This is provided for reference only and should not be used, as the calibration values vary per individual unit, even for the same model, due to manufacturing tolerances.
s.RGB Picture Mode: Custom Color (calibrated)
Adobe RGB Picture Mode: Custom Color
The color gamut of the Dell S3219D is excellent. It almost entirely covers the s.RGB color space, which is great for normal use. However, if you are a professional in the publishing industry, the coverage of the wider Adobe RGB color space is not enough.
s.RGB Picture Mode: User
Adobe RGB Picture Mode: User
Excellent color volume. The monitor can display its excellent s.RGB gamut within a large luminance range. The Adobe RGB volume, though, is not as good due to its limited gamut.
Our test was able to detect some slight image retention even after 4 mins of recovery. However, you will not notice it in normal use, and it shouldn't worry you.
Excellent gradient banding on this monitor. The transition from a darker shade to a lighter one is smooth. The monitor was tested at a 60Hz refresh rate, as it supports 10-bit color depth at this rate. However, at 75Hz, the monitor cannot display a 10-bit color depth and switches to 8-bit.
There is no noticeable horizontal or vertical bleed when large areas of uniform color are displayed, which is great.
Decent reflection handling, similar to the LG 32GK850G and the BenQ EW3270U. Reflections are diffused due to the matte finish, but if there is a large bright source, like a window, right behind you, reflections might become annoying.
Response Time Normal
Response Time Fast
Very good response time on the S3219D. Only a small blur trail is visible behind fast-moving objects. The best Overdrive setting is the "Normal," as the "Response Time Fast" one creates significant overshoot. If you have an NVIDIA graphics card, you will notice that if you switch the Overdrive to "Response Time Fast," it does not affect the response time and the image looks exactly the same as in the "Normal" setting. This is not the case if you have a Radeon graphics card.
The Dell S3219D has a flicker-free backlight, which is great. Unfortunately, it does not have an optional flicker feature to make motion look crisper. This very similar to the LG 32UD59-B.
Update 28/02/2019: The FreeSync range was incorrectly listed as 40-75Hz. The actual FreeSync range is 48-75Hz.
The Dell S3219D's refresh rate is 75Hz. This is great for most people, but it will disappoint the more serious gamers looking for something faster. It supports FreeSync VRR on both the HDMI and the DisplayPort, although its range is not very wide. You do not have to do anything to enable FreeSync, as it is automatically enabled.
With the NVIDIA GTX1060 6GB, FreeSync works perfectly.
The Dell S3219D has excellent low input lag. The input lag remains low when the monitor is at 60Hz and while it is in FreeSync mode. Most non-native resolutions aren't supported at 75Hz.
Excellent size and resolution on this monitor. The large screen size and the high resolution allow you to display most of the details of your project.
This monitor has a multitude of inputs. One of the two USB 3.0 ports supports the BC 1.2 fast-charging standard, and there is also a USB B upstream port that allows the monitor to serve as a USB hub. The analog audio out port is essentially a line out, as there is no option on the monitor to control its volume.
