The Samsung U32J590 is a decent 32 inch, 4k monitor. It delivers decent picture quality, with a very good native contrast ratio and decent black uniformity. It supports FreeSync VRR and has a great response time. Unfortunately, it can't get very bright to overcome glare in a bright room, and the image degrades when viewed at an angle. It also has a fixed stand that can only tilt, so you might not be able to place it in an ideal viewing position.
Our Verdict
The Samsung UJ59 is a decent monitor for mixed usage, but it doesn't excel at any one usage. It delivers decent picture quality, but can't get very bright, and it has disappointing viewing angles. The stand has terrible ergonomics, making it difficult to place. Good motion handling for gaming and movies, but there's PWM flicker at low backlight settings.
- Good dark room performance
- Lots of screen real-estate
- Disappointing peak brightness
- Terrible ergonomics
The Samsung UJ59 is decent for office use. The large, high-resolution screen and picture-in-picture/picture-by-picture support are all great for multitasking. Unfortunately, although it has good reflections handling, it can't get very bright to overcome glare, and the stand has terrible ergonomics.
The Samsung UJ59 is a decent monitor for gaming. It has decent motion handling and a great response time, as well as FreeSync support, which is nice. It also has excellent low input lag. Unfortunately, there's PWM flicker at low brightness levels, and the max 60 Hz refresh rate may disappoint more serious gamers.
The Samsung UJ59 is decent for multimedia. The large, high-resolution screen is great for watching the latest 4K movies. It can't get very bright but has good reflections handling, a very good contrast ratio, and a great response time. Unfortunately, the image degrades when viewed at an angle and it doesn't support HDR.
The Samsung UJ59 is a decent monitor for media creation. The large, high-resolution screen allows you to see more of your project at once. Unfortunately, the stand has terrible ergonomics, and the image degrades when viewed at an angle.
The Samsung UJ59 doesn't support HDR.
Changelog
- Updated Dec 16, 2022: Simplified the monitor's name to Samsung U32J590 and made changes throughout the review to reflect that.
- Updated Jul 02, 2021: Changed height adjustment result from 'N/A' to '0' to match our methodology.
- Updated Aug 04, 2020: Converted to Test Bench 1.1.
- Updated May 10, 2019: We have retested FreeSync on the UJ590 with NVIDIA driver version 430.39, and FreeSync is now working properly on recent NVIDIA cards.
Check Price
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the Samsung U32J590 version LA01 (lu32j590uqnxza), which is the only size available.
If someone comes across a different type of panel or if their Samsung U32J590 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 | Resolution | Refresh Rate | Notes |
| U32J590 | 32" | 4k | 60 Hz | FreeSync |
| U28E590D | 28" | 4k | 60 Hz | FreeSync |
| C27F398 | 27" | 1080p | 60 Hz | FreeSync |
The U32J590 we reviewed was manufactured in October 2018.
Popular Monitor Comparisons
The Samsung U32J590 offers decent performance, but there are similar monitors that outperform it.
See our recommendations for the best 32-inch monitors, the best 4k gaming monitors, and the best 4k monitors.
The BenQ EW3270U is better than the Samsung U32J590. The BenQ supports HDR, and the backlight is completely flicker-free. The BenQ EW3270U is also much brighter than the Samsung U32J590, and it has two full-bandwidth HDMI 2.0 ports that can display 4k @ 60Hz.
The LG 32UD59-B is better than the Samsung U32J590. The LG has a completely flicker-free backlight, and the stand has an adjustable height. The LG is also much brighter and has two full-bandwidth HDMI 2.0 ports that support 4k @ 60Hz.
The Samsung U32J590 is better than the UE590. The newer U32J590 has a much better native contrast ratio, thanks to the VA panel. It also has better viewing angles, and much better Adobe RGB color volume. The older UE590 is a lot brighter.
The Samsung U32J590 is slightly better than the Samsung CF398. The U32J590 has a higher resolution, 4k screen that is better suited for multitasking. The CF398 is flicker-free, whereas the U32J590 has PWM flicker at low brightness levels.
We buy and test more than 30 monitors each year, all of which we purchase ourselves, without 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, custom tools to measure various aspects and deliver objective, data-driven results. We also consider multiple factors before making any recommendations, including the monitor's cost, its performance compared to the competition, and whether it's easy to find.
Test Results
for pictures & test results
for pictures & test results
for videos & test results
for pictures & test results
for pictures & test results
for pictures & test results
for videos & test results
for pictures & test results
for pictures & test results
for pictures & test results
for pictures & test results
