The LG 27GN850-B is an impressive gaming monitor. It replaces the LG 27GL850-B and is an overall improvement. Gamers should appreciate the incredible response time at its max refresh rate of 144Hz, resulting in minimal motion blur, and it remains fast when gaming at 60Hz. It has FreeSync support and G-SYNC compatibility to reduce screen tearing, and the input lag is also incredibly low. It has a large 27 inch screen with a 1440p resolution, which helps deliver an immersive gaming experience without being too heavy on your graphics card. It has an IPS panel with wide viewing angles, so the image remains accurate when viewing from the side. However, that comes at the cost of a low contrast ratio, and without local dimming, blacks appear gray when viewed in the dark.
The LG 27GN850-B is very good overall. It offers impressive gaming performance because it has a high 144Hz refresh rate with VRR support, the response time is incredible, and input lag is extremely low. Its 27 inch, 1440p screen makes it good for office use and content creators, and it has wide viewing angles if you need to share your screen with someone else. Sadly, it has a low contrast ratio and lacks local dimming, so blacks appear closer to gray when viewed in the dark.
The LG 27GN850-B is good for office use. Its 27 inch screen size allows you to open multiple windows at once, and its 1440p resolution delivers clear text. It has wide viewing angles, making it easier to share your screen with others. However, it has disappointing ergonomics as you can't swivel it. Lastly, reflection handling is decent, and it gets bright enough to fight glare in well-lit rooms.
The LG 27GN850-B is impressive for gaming. It has an incredible response time whether you're gaming at its native 144Hz refresh rate or 60Hz, and the input lag is incredibly low. It has FreeSync support and G-SYNC compatibility to reduce screen tearing. Sadly, it's not a good choice for dark room gaming because of its low contrast ratio and poor black uniformity.
The LG 27GN850-B is good for consuming multimedia content. Its 1440p resolution helps deliver crisp images, and it has a large, 27 inch screen. It performs well in bright rooms thanks to its decent reflection handling and good peak brightness. However, it's not a good choice for dark rooms because it has a low contrast ratio that makes blacks appear closer to gray.
The LG 27GN850-B is very good for content creators. The large screen and high resolution mean you can easily open multiple windows side-by-side, which is great for multitasking. It has wide viewing angles, so people viewing from the side get the same accurate image as if they would be directly in front. However, it has disappointing ergonomics, making it difficult to position your screen to share with someone.
The LG 27GN850-B is decent for HDR gaming. It has impressive gaming performance thanks to its incredible response time, extremely low input lag, and VRR support. HDR content looks alright on it because it displays a wide color gamut, but it doesn't get bright enough to make highlights pop, it has a low contrast ratio, and lacks local dimming.
The LG 27GN850-B has the same style as most of LG's UltraGear monitors from their 2020 lineup, such as the LG 27GN950-B. It has thin borders on three sides with a thicker bottom bezel. It's mainly black with red accents throughout. Unlike the LG 27GL850-B, the V-shaped feet don't sit flat on the desk and are a bit elevated. There's cable management through the stand, and overall it's a fairly well-built monitor.
Like most LG monitors, the ergonomics are disappointing. The tilt range is limited, and you can rotate the screen into portrait mode, but since you can only do it in the clockwise direction, the inputs would be on top. This could be an issue if you have short cables.
The back of the monitor has the same red ring found on most UltraGear monitors, but it doesn't light up. There's cable management through the hook in the stand.
The LG 27GN850-B's build quality is decent. It's similar to the LG 27GN950-B, and it's made entirely out of basic, plastic materials that feel solid. There aren't any obvious gaps or loose parts. The stand supports the screen well, and there isn't much wobble. However, the hook for cable management feels a bit flimsy, but this may only be a problem if you're constantly removing cables from it.
The LG 27GN850 has a low contrast ratio, which is expected from an IPS panel. Blacks appear gray when viewed in the dark, and there's no local dimming feature to help improve it. This is lower than the advertised 1000:1 contrast, but it may vary between units.
The LG 27GN850-B doesn't have a local dimming feature. The above video is provided for reference only.
The LG 27GN850-B has good SDR peak brightness. It maintains its brightness extremely consistent across different content, and it gets bright enough to combat glare. However, this is lower than the advertised 350 cd/m². We measured peak brightness after calibration in the 'Gamer 1' Picture Mode with Brightness set to max.
The LG 27GN850 has mediocre HDR peak brightness. It only gets a bit brighter than in SDR, and highlights quickly lose their brightness the longer they stay on the screen. It's not enough to make highlights pop the way the creator intended in HDR. We measured the HDR peak brightness in the 'Gamer 2' Picture Mode.
The LG 27GN850 has an excellent horizontal viewing angle, which is normal for an IPS panel. The image remains accurate as you move off-center, which is great if you want to use it for co-op gaming.
The vertical viewing angle isn't bad. You may notice a loss in image accuracy if you mount the monitor above eye level.
Our unit of the LG 27GN850 has excellent gray uniformity, but this may vary between units. The edges of the screen are a bit darker, but there's no dirty screen effect in the center. Solid colors across the screen, like on a web page or document, look great. Uniformity is even better in near-dark scenes.
The LG UltraGear 27GN850-B has good out-of-the-box accuracy. White balance is only a bit off, and most colors are slightly inaccurate. The color temperature is a bit on the cold side, giving the image a blueish tint. Sadly, gamma doesn't follow the target curve at all, and most scenes are brighter than they should be.
There's an 'sRGB' Picture Mode, but we didn't use it because it resulted in a less accurate image:
The LG 27GN850 has remarkable accuracy after calibration. Any remaining inaccuracies with white balance and most colors can't be spotted by the naked eye. Gamma follows the target curve very well, and the color temperature is extremely close to the 6500K target.
You can download our ICC profile calibration here. This is provided for reference only and shouldn't be used, as the calibration values vary per individual unit even for the same model due to manufacturing tolerances.
The LG 27GN850-B's color volume is fantastic. Helped by its incredible color gamut and good peak brightness, it displays colors at a wide range of luminance levels. However, it can't display deep colors due to the low contrast ratio.
The LG 27GN850-B has a good HDR color gamut, and it's an improvement from the LG 27GL850-B. It has great coverage of the commonly-used DCI P3 color space and decent coverage of the wider Rec. 2020.
The DCI P3 coverage is much lower than the advertised 98% coverage. This is normal and is due to the way we measure DCI P3. We measure DCI P3 by sending a Rec. 2020 signal, but unlike most reviewers, we limit the colors we're sending to the DCI P3 primaries. This results in a lower, but arguably more accurate measurement.
There are no signs of temporary image retention on our unit of the LG UltraGear 27GN850, but this may vary between units.
The LG UltraGear 27GN850-B's reflection handling is decent, similar to the LG 34GN850-B. It performs well in moderately-lit rooms, but the reflections may be too distracting if there's direct sunlight on it.
Overdrive Setting | Response Time Chart | Response Time Tables | Motion Blur Photo |
Off | Chart | Table | Photo |
Normal | Chart | Table | Photo |
Fast | Chart | Table | Photo |
Faster | Chart | Table | Photo |
The response time at its max refresh rate of 144Hz is incredible. The recommended overdrive setting is 'Normal' as it results in crisp motion and minimal blur with almost no overshoot. The 'Fast' and 'Faster' settings result in too much overshoot and motion blur.
Overdrive Setting | Response Time Chart | Response Time Tables | Motion Blur Photo |
Off | Chart | Table | Photo |
Normal | Chart | Table | Photo |
Fast | Chart | Table | Photo |
Faster | Chart | Table | Photo |
The LG 27GN850's response time at 60Hz is outstanding. Like at its max refresh rate, the 'Normal' overdrive setting results in a lot less overshoot than the 'Fast' and 'Faster' settings, and motion looks buttery smooth. This means that you won't have to change the overdrive setting if the frame rate of your game drops.
Unfortunately, the LG UltraGear 27GN850-B doesn't have an optional Black Frame Insertion feature to help reduce motion blur.
The LG 27GN850 has an outstanding 144Hz refresh rate. It has native Adaptive Sync support, meaning it supports both FreeSync and is G-SYNC compatible as well. Both FreeSync and G-SYNC work over a DisplayPort connection at its full range, and over HDMI, only FreeSync works between 20-100Hz. If you prefer something with a higher 165Hz refresh rate, then check out the MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD.