The MSI Optix G273QF is a great gaming monitor. It has features most gamers would look for in a monitor, like FreeSync support, G-SYNC compatibility, and a 165Hz refresh rate. Its incredible response time results in smooth motion, and gaming feels responsive due to its very low input lag. It's also a good choice for co-op gaming thanks to the IPS panel's wide viewing angles, but that comes at the cost of a lower low contrast ratio, making black appear gray. It has good peak brightness and decent reflection handling, so visibility shouldn't be an issue in most well-lit rooms. However, its stand doesn't offer much in terms of ergonomics, so it may be difficult to place in an ideal viewing position. It also has limited extra features, lacking HDR support and USB inputs.
The MSI Optix G273QF is good for most uses. It's a great gaming monitor thanks to its 165Hz refresh rate, FreeSync support, and G-SYNC compatibility. It also has extremely low input lag and very quick response time. It's good for office use and decent for content creators because it has a large 27 inch screen and 1440p resolution. However, the stand has terrible ergonomics, so it may be hard to place in an ideal viewing position. Unfortunately, it doesn't support HDR and doesn't have many extra features.
The MSI Optix G273QF is good for office use. It has a large 27 inch screen, and its 1440p resolution helps deliver clear text. It has wide viewing angles, so the image remains accurate if you're viewing from the side. It gets bright enough to combat glare and also has decent reflection handling. Sadly, it has terrible ergonomics, so it may be difficult to place it in an ideal position.
The MSI Optix G273QF is great for gaming. It has a high 165Hz refresh rate with FreeSync support and G-SYNC compatibility. The response time is outstanding, resulting in minimal motion blur, and it has extremely low input lag as well. Unfortunately, it's not an ideal choice for dark room gaming as its low contrast ratio results in blacks that look gray.
The MSI Optix G273QF is decent for multimedia use. Its 27 inch, 1440p screen helps deliver crisp images. It has wide viewing angles, so you can easily watch your favorite content with a friend. However, it has terrible ergonomics, making it difficult to place in an ideal viewing position. It also has a low contrast ratio, so blacks look gray when viewed in the dark.
The MSI Optix G273QF is decent for content creators. The large screen and high resolution let you see more of your video's timeline without scrolling too much when editing. It also has wide viewing angles if you need to share your screen with a coworker or client. However, it may be difficult to place it in an ideal viewing position because it has terrible ergonomics.
The MSI Optix G273QF doesn't support HDR.
The MSI Optix G273QF looks similar to other monitors from MSI, like the MSI Optix G27C5. It has a simple design with a wide V-shaped stand and thin bezels. It's mainly made out of matte plastic, and there's a bit of glossy plastic on the back. Although it's geared towards gamers, it shouldn't stick out in an office environment either.
The back panel is mainly matte with a strip of glossy plastic. Sadly, there's no cable management.
The MSI Optix G273QF's build quality is decent. It's made mainly out of plastic, except for the metal feet. The plastic feels a bit cheap, and the back panel near the inputs is a bit loose. The bottom bezel also isn't uniformly flushed against the screen. On the plus side, the stand supports the monitor well, and there isn't much wobble.
The MSI Optix G273QF has a mediocre contrast ratio, which is expected from an IPS panel. Blacks appear gray when viewed in the dark, and it doesn't have a local dimming feature to improve it. It's higher than the advertised 1000:1 contrast, but this may vary between units.
This monitor doesn't have a local dimming feature. The above video is provided for reference only.
The MSI Optix G273QF has good peak brightness. It maintains its brightness extremely consistent across different content, and it gets bright enough to combat glare in most well-lit rooms. We tested peak brightness after calibration in the 'User' Picture Mode.
This monitor doesn't support HDR.
The horizontal viewing angle is excellent, which is expected from an IPS panel. The image remains accurate when viewed from the side, making it a good choice for co-op gaming. The colors start to lose accuracy quicker from the right than from the left, but it shouldn't be noticeable to most people.
The vertical viewing angle is decent. You still see an accurate image if you mount the monitor above eye-level.
The MSI Optix G273QF has great gray uniformity. The edges of the screen are noticeably darker, but there's almost no visible dirty screen effect in the center. Uniformity is much better in near-dark scenes. Note that gray uniformity may vary between units.
The out-of-the-box accuracy is mediocre, but this may vary between units. Most colors are inaccurate and white balance is noticeably off. Color temperature is colder than the 6500K target, giving the image a blue tint. Gamma follows the target curve well for the most part, but some dark scenes are over-darkened while bright scenes are slightly over-brightened.
After calibration, the accuracy is incredible. Any remaining color and white balance inaccuracies can't be spotted by the human eye. The color temperature is also really close to the target. Gamma follows the target sRGB curve better, but some dark scenes are too bright.
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.
This monitor doesn't support HDR.
This monitor doesn't support HDR.
There are no signs of temporary image retention, even immediately after displaying our high-contrast static test image for 10 minutes. This may vary between units.
The MSI Optix G273QF's reflection handling is decent, almost exactly like the MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD. It handles a moderate amount of light well, but it's best to avoid placing it opposite a window or a direct light source.
Overdrive Setting | Response Time Chart | Response Time Tables | Motion Blur Photo |
Normal | Chart | Table | Photo |
Fast | Chart | Table | Photo |
Fastest | Chart | Table | Photo |
The MSI Optix G273QF has incredible response time at its max refresh rate of 165Hz. Motion looks extremely smooth with almost no motion blur. The recommended overdrive setting is 'Fast' because it has quicker response time than 'Normal' and much less overshoot than 'Fastest'. However, it still has some overshoot in darker transitions. If that bothers you, 'Normal' has none, but has a slower response time.
Overdrive Setting | Response Time Chart | Response Time Tables | Motion Blur Photo |
Normal | Chart | Table | Photo |
Fast | Chart | Table | Photo |
Fastest | Chart | Table | Photo |
The response time at 60Hz is outstanding. Once again, fast-moving content has almost no motion blur. The recommended overdrive setting is 'Normal' because it has significantly less overshoot than 'Fast' and 'Fastest'. This means that you may have to change the setting if the frame rate of your game drops.
The MSI G273QF has a Black Frame Insertion to help reduce motion blur. However, it only works within a narrow frequency range, it can't be used with VRR enabled, and you can't adjust the brightness when it's enabled either.
Note: The BFI score is based on the minimum and maximum frequency at which it can operate, not the BFI's performance.
The MSI Optix G273QF has a remarkable refresh rate. You can only achieve its max 165Hz refresh rate over DisplayPort because it's limited to 144Hz over HDMI. Although it's not officially listed on AMD's website, FreeSync works natively. It isn't officially listed as G-SYNC compatible on NVIDIA's website either, but it's marketed as G-SYNC compatible, and it's automatically enabled in the NVIDIA Control Panel. G-SYNC only works over a DisplayPort connection.
The input lag is incredibly low whether you're gaming at its max refresh rate or at 60Hz. It slightly increases with VRR enabled, but it shouldn't be noticeable at all.