The LG 32GN650-B is a 32-inch 1440p budget gaming monitor from LG's UltraGear lineup. It has a maximum refresh rate of 165Hz and FreeSync variable refresh rate (VRR) support to reduce screen tearing. While it doesn't have many productivity features or USB connectivity, it does have some additional gaming features, like crosshair support, black stabilizer, dynamic contrast ratio, and a 3.5 mm audio out port for gaming consoles or other attached devices.
The LG 32GN650-B is decent for mixed usage. It's great for gaming thanks to its high 165Hz refresh rate for smooth motion and low input lag for a responsive feel. It's also good for media creation and decent for office work. It has adequate text clarity, and its 32-inch size is large enough to open multiple windows at the same time. It also has great contrast and displays deep blacks in a dark room. It's also decent for media consumption, though it's not ideal for watching with friends, as the image is inconsistent from the sides. Finally, it's adequate for HDR, though it doesn't get bright enough for highlights to pop.
The LG 32GN650-B is decent for office use. It has adequate text clarity, and its 32-inch size is large enough to open multiple windows at the same time. It has decent brightness and reflection handling, and while it overcomes glare in most environments, it struggles with glare from strong light sources, like opposite a bright window. Also, in addition to having no swivel adjustment, images appear quite inconsistent from the sides, making it difficult to share the screen with others.
The LG 32GN650-B is a great monitor for gaming. It has a 165Hz refresh rate and VRR support for a smooth experience, low input lag for a responsive feel, and a decent response time, so fast-moving objects don't have too much blur behind them. However, there are black trails behind darker, fast-moving objects. Its 32-inch size and 1440p resolution create an immersive gaming experience. It's also a good choice for darker environments, displaying deep blacks next to bright highlights. While it doesn't have HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, it supports most console features.
The LG 32GN650-B is decent for media consumption. Its 32-inch 1440p screen provides plenty of space to immerse yourself in a movie or video. Additionally, it has a great contrast ratio and displays deep blacks in a dark room. However, it has narrow viewing angles, so it's not ideal for watching with a friend, as the image is inconsistent from the sides. Additionally, it overcomes glare in most environments thanks to its decent brightness and reflection handling but struggles with glare from strong light sources, like opposite a bright window.
The LG 32GN650-B is good for media creation. It has adequate text clarity, and its 32-inch size is large enough to open multiple windows at the same time. It also has great contrast, and the monitor displays deep blacks next to bright highlights, even if you're editing images in a darker room. However, it doesn't display blue or green accurately in Adobe RGB and has limited coverage of that gamut, so it's not ideal for professional publishing. It's also difficult to share the screen with others, as images appear quite inconsistent from the sides, and it has no swivel adjustment.
The LG 32GN650-B is adequate for HDR. It has great contrast, and the monitor displays deep blacks in a dark room, though it has no local dimming feature to improve the display of darker colors. However, it doesn't get bright enough for highlights to pop in HDR content. Finally, it's only fair in displaying HDR colors, so they look washed out and aren't realistic.
We tested the 32-inch LG 32GN650-B, part of LG's UltraGear gaming lineup. This model has a variant known as the LG 32GN63T-B, which is sold at different retailers and has only one HDMI port instead of two. The results of this review are valid for the 32GN650-B and the LG 32GN63T-B.
Model | Size | Panel Type | Max Refresh Rate | HDMI Ports |
---|---|---|---|---|
LG 32GN650-B | 32" | VA | 165Hz | 2 |
LG 32GN63T-B | 32" | VA | 165Hz | 1 |
The LG UltraGear 32GN650-B we tested was manufactured in November 2020. You can see our unit's label here.
The LG 32GN650-B is a budget 32-inch gaming monitor with few extra features but solid gaming capabilities. If you want a 32-inch screen with great gaming performance and don't need additional features, this monitor is a good choice. If you can increase your budget and want an improved response time, a brighter display, and a wider viewing angle, consider the LG 32GP850-B.
For more options, see our recommendations for the best budget gaming monitors, the best 1440p gaming monitors, and the best 32-inch monitors.
The LG 32GP850-B and the LG 32GN650-B/32GN63T-B use different panel technologies, each with strengths and disadvantages, but the 32GP850-B is better for most people. The newer 32GP850 uses an IPS panel, and it has better viewing angles, better reflection handling, higher peak brightness, and a much better response time. The 32GN650 uses a VA panel, and it has better contrast, making it a better choice for a dark room.
The LG 32GN650-B/32GN63T-B and the LG 32GN600-B are nearly identical. The only significant difference between them is the stand. The 32GN650-B has a more advanced stand with much better ergonomics, so adjusting it to an ideal viewing position is easier.
The Dell S3222DGM is slightly better than the LG 32GN650-B/32GN63T-B. The Dell has a faster response time, especially when gaming at 60Hz, but the LG has a slightly better stand, as it can switch to a portrait orientation. The LG supports HDR, but can't display a true HDR experience, so this doesn't add much.
The LG 32GN650-B/32GN63T-B and the LG 27GN850-B/27GN880-B are both good monitors overall, although they use different panel types with different advantages. The 32GN650-B is much better for dark room gaming thanks to its high-contrast VA panel, but the IPS panel on the 27GN850-B has wider viewing angles that are better for co-op gaming. That said, the 27GN850-B has some advantages that might make it a better option if you don't need a larger screen. Both are 1440p monitors, but the smaller size of the 27GN850-B means it has a greater pixel density, resulting in a crisper image. It also has significantly faster response times for clear motion. On the other hand, the 27GN850-B has a lower refresh rate of 144Hz compared to the 165Hz on the 32GN650-B.
The Gigabyte M27Q (rev. 1.0) and the LG 32GN650-B/32GN63T-B are very different. The Gigabyte has a 27-inch IPS screen with wider viewing angles, while the LG has a 32-inch VA panel that produces deeper blacks for a better dark room viewing experience. The Gigabyte performs better gaming-wise because it has a much faster response time to deliver a clearer image in fast-moving scenes. It also gets brighter and offers more features, like a USB hub with USB-C input, a Picture-in-Picture mode, and a KVM switch.
The LG 32GN650-B/32GN63T-B and the LG 32GK650F-B are similar monitors, but the 32GN650-B has some extra features that make it a better choice. The biggest difference is its 165Hz refresh rate, compared to the 144Hz of the 32GK650F-B. The 32GN650-B has a faster response time and a lower input lag, offering slightly better gaming performance. The only downside is that the 32GN650-B doesn't swivel at all, resulting in a little worse ergonomics. All in all, though, the 32GN650-B is a solid step up at a similar price.
The Dell S3221QS and the LG 32GN650-B/32GN63T-B are both good 32-inch monitors, although each is better suited to different uses. As a gaming monitor, the LG has a 165Hz panel, a much faster response time, and a lower input lag. The Dell, on the other hand, is limited to a 60Hz refresh rate. That said, the Dell has a 4k resolution that ensures a crisp image despite the larger size, so it's well-suited to multitasking and anything that requires a lot of screen real estate. The Dell also gets brighter and has better reflection handling, so it's more suited to well-lit rooms.
The Dell S2721DGF and the LG 32GN650-B/32GN63T-B are both gaming monitors, but they use different panel types with different advantages and disadvantages and are differently sized. The Dell is a 27-inch IPS monitor, so it has much wider viewing angles, resulting in an image that stays accurate when viewed from the side. However, it has a much lower contrast ratio than the VA panel on the LG, meaning that blacks appear grayish in the dark. The LG is better suited to dark room gaming. Its larger screen size also means it has a lower pixel density than the Dell, so the image isn't quite as sharp. The Dell also has a faster response time for clear motion, and it gets brighter, making it more suited to well-lit rooms.
The LG 32GN650-B/32GN63T-B and the LG 32UL500-W perform similarly overall, but they're meant for different uses. The 32GN650-B is a gaming monitor with a high 165Hz refresh rate, 1440p resolution, and significantly higher response time for smooth gaming. The 32UL500-W, on the other hand, is a good all-purpose monitor with a 4k resolution that's great for productivity or media, but it's limited to a 60Hz panel. While the 32UL500-W supports VRR like the 32GN650-B, its slower response time and higher input lag make it less suited to fast-paced gaming.
The Dell S3220DGF and the LG 32GN650-B/32GN63T-B perform similarly overall, although the LG has a slight edge when it comes to gaming. They're both 32-inch VA panels with 1440p resolution and a 165Hz refresh rate. One of the biggest differences is that the Dell is curved, while the LG is not. Most importantly, the LG has a faster response time and even includes a Black Frame Insertion feature. If you do a lot of HDR gaming, the Dell may be a better option, though, since it gets a bit brighter and has a wide color gamut.
The LG 32GN650-B/32GN63T-B is much better than the Lenovo D27-30 for most users. The LG has much better viewing angles, supports HDR, and is much brighter. The LG also has a faster refresh rate and a significantly faster response time, resulting in much clearer motion at any refresh rate. On the other hand, if you're often in a completely dark room, the Lenovo might be a better choice regardless, as it has much better contrast and better black uniformity.
The ergonomics are satisfactory. While it has excellent height adjustment and can rotate into portrait mode, it doesn't swivel, and its tilt range is somewhat limited. The back of the monitor is simple, with a red circle similar to other UltraGear monitors. The stand features a clip for cable management.
This monitor doesn't have a local dimming feature. We still film these videos on the monitor so you can compare the backlight performance with a monitor that has local dimming.
The SDR brightness is satisfactory. It gets bright enough to fight glare in many environments, though it struggles to overcome glare in very bright situations like the sun shining on it. Additionally, its brightness stays consistent across different content. These results are from after calibration in the 'Gamer 1' Picture Mode with the Brightness at its max.
The brightness in HDR is mediocre. Its brightness remains consistent across different content, and it doesn't get bright enough for highlights to pop. Most scenes display at their correct brightness because the monitor follows the PQ EOTF curve fairly well.
These results are from the 'Gamer 2' Picture Mode, with HDR enabled and Brightness at its max.
The horizontal viewing angle is disappointing. The image looks washed out from the sides, making sharing content with a friend or co-worker more difficult.
The vertical viewing angle is disappointing, and the image is inconsistent if you stand up and look down at the monitor.
The monitor has great accuracy before calibration. Most colors have slight inaccuracies, though the color temperature is close to ideal. Gamma doesn't follow the target very closely, so darker scenes are darker than they should be, and brighter scenes are a bit brighter than they should be. This monitor doesn't have an sRGB mode.
The accuracy after calibration is superb, and doing so fixes most inaccuracies. The color temperature is almost perfect, and the gamma follows the curve extremely well.
The SDR color gamut is fantastic. The monitor has near-perfect coverage of the commonly used sRGB color space. However, it has fair coverage of the Adobe RGB color space. It doesn't accurately display light blue or green in that gamut, so it isn't well suited to professional image or video editing.
The HDR color gamut is mediocre. Its coverage of the DCI-P3 color space is adequate, though it doesn't accurately display white, green, and teal. Additionally, it has poor coverage of the Rec. 2020 color space.
The LG 32GN650 supports FreeSync and is G-SYNC compatible, though G-SYNC only works over DisplayPort.
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 the max refresh rate of 165Hz is decent. However, there are black trails behind darker, fast-moving objects. The recommended Response Time setting of 'Faster' produces the best results, though there's some overshoot. If you change the Response Time setting to 'Fast,' the rise/fall and total response times are slightly slower, but there's a significant reduction in overshoot.
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 120Hz is decent. However, there are black trails behind darker, fast-moving objects. The recommended Response Time setting of 'Fast' produces the best results. If you change the Response Time setting to 'Faster,' the rise/fall time is slightly faster, but response time is considerably slower, and there's significant overshoot. Since the recommended overdrive setting varies between the maximum refresh and 120Hz and if you're using VRR, you may want to change the overdrive setting if the framerate of your game drops.
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 60Hz is adequate. It's noticeably slower than at the max refresh rate, but there's much less overshoot. The recommended Response Time setting of 'Normal' produces the best results. If you change the Response Time setting to 'Fast,' the rise/fall time is slightly lower, but there's a significant increase in total response time and overshoot.
The input lag is low, so you won't notice any delay and get a responsive feel.
The monitor works well with the Xbox Series X|S. However, while it can downscale a 4k signal from the console, which results in a more detailed image than native 1440p, it can't do so at 120Hz.
Unfortunately, this monitor doesn't have any USB ports.
Unfortunately, there are some issues when using this monitor with macOS. With macOS, the variable refresh rate feature flickers both in-game and on the desktop when the framerate drops below 60 fps, and HDR doesn't work. When using a MacBook, windows return to their original position when waking the laptop up from sleep, though not when reopening the lid.
The LG UltraGear 32GN650 has a few extra features, including: