Samsung Odyssey Neo G8 32" Review: The World's Best 4K Gaming Monitor?
The Neo G8 was the world's first 4K 240Hz monitor when it launched, and it still sets the bar with 1,196-zone Mini LED backlighting and 2,000 nits of HDR brightness. But it has real flaws. Here's the full picture.
Samsung 32" Odyssey Neo G8 (G85NB) 4K 240Hz Curved Gaming Monitor
World-first 4K 240Hz curved monitor with 1,196-zone Mini LED HDR and industry-leading contrast.
Our Rating
Reviewed by Chris Nakamura • June 1, 2023
Overall Score
What We Like
- ✓World's first 4K 240Hz monitor — CES 2022 Best of Innovation award winner
- ✓1,196-zone Mini LED backlight delivers near-OLED black levels in LCD
- ✓Up to 2,000 nits peak brightness in HDR (Quantum HDR2000)
- ✓HDMI 2.1 support for PS5 / Xbox Series X at 4K 120Hz with VRR
- ✓Dual NVIDIA G-Sync Compatible + AMD FreeSync Premium Pro
- ✓Factory calibrated — avg ΔE of ~1.91 out of box
- ✓HDR10+ support with dynamic metadata tone mapping
What Could Improve
- ✗Visible scan lines reported by some users at 240Hz refresh rate
- ✗Matte coating can look grainy on fine text — not ideal for productivity
- ✗1000R curve on a 16:9 32-inch panel is polarizing — feels aggressive off-axis
- ✗Cable management through stand is basic compared to older Odyssey G7
- ✗SDR brightness peaks around 350 nits — typical for VA panels
- ✗Local dimming can create 'halo' blooming around bright objects on dark scenes
Our Verdict
The Samsung Odyssey Neo G8 is still one of the most technically impressive gaming monitors available — a 32-inch 4K panel running at 240Hz with HDR performance that embarrasses monitors at twice its current street price. The 1,196-zone Mini LED backlight delivers contrast ratios and blacks that push into OLED territory in the right scenes. For pure gaming performance, nothing at this price comes close. The caveats are real though: scan lines at max refresh rate, an aggressive 1000R curve that hurts off-axis productivity use, and a matte coating that can look muddy on fine text. Buy it if gaming is your primary use case. Think twice if you split time between gaming and content creation.
Display Performance & HDR
The Neo G8's 1,196-zone Mini LED backlight is its defining feature. In SDR, local dimming pushes the contrast ratio to as high as 6,500:1 — extraordinary for an LCD — and in HDR it scales to a verified 2,000 nits peak. Tom's Hardware measured an SDR contrast of nearly 25,000:1 with local dimming active, which is in OLED ballpark territory. Color coverage reaches 100% sRGB and approximately 92% DCI-P3. Samsung ships the panel factory calibrated; most units land under ΔE 2.0 out of the box, which is excellent for a gaming monitor.
Gaming Performance — Speed and Smoothness
The world's first 4K 240Hz panel still holds up. Pixel response is outstanding — among the best of any LCD tested, bested only by OLED panels. Dual adaptive sync support (NVIDIA G-Sync Compatible + AMD FreeSync Premium Pro) covers every GPU on the market. HDMI 2.1 ports enable native 4K 120Hz with VRR on PS5 and Xbox Series X. The built-in OSD is Samsung's excellent four-button-plus-joystick design, making navigation faster than most competitors' four-way sticks.
Known Issues — Scan Lines & Matte Coating
Two flaws stand out across multiple reviews. First, some units exhibit faint horizontal scan lines at 240Hz — a hardware-level issue documented by several reviewers that Samsung has not fully resolved via firmware. It's not universal, but it's worth knowing before purchase. Second, the matte anti-reflective coating is the dense, grainy type that softens image quality noticeably on fine text and in bright scenes. It's functional for minimizing reflections, but it hurts sharpness compared to a glossy or lighter AG panel.
Design, Stand & Connectivity
The Neo G8's exterior is premium — a near-futuristic aesthetic with distinctive rear lighting. The stand is height, tilt, and swivel adjustable, though the two long narrow legs take up more desk depth than you'd expect. Cable management behind the stand is basic: a single rubber loop, which is a step backward from the routed channel system on the older Odyssey G7. Connectivity is comprehensive: two HDMI 2.1 ports, a DisplayPort 1.4, two USB 3.2 gen 1 ports, and a 3.5mm headphone output.
Who Should Buy This?
The Neo G8 is purpose-built for PC and console gamers who want the absolute highest performance from a 32-inch 16:9 display. If you game at 4K and have an RTX 4080/4090 or RX 7900 XTX, this monitor keeps up. Console gamers with a PS5 or Xbox Series X get full 4K 120Hz VRR over HDMI 2.1. If you split your time between gaming and color-sensitive work like photo or video editing, the matte coating and 1000R curve work against you — consider the Dell UltraSharp range or a flat panel instead.
Key Specifications
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Check Price on AmazonCommon Questions About Samsung 32" Odyssey Neo G8 (G85NB) 4K 240Hz Curved Gaming Monitor
Yes. The Neo G8 includes two HDMI 2.1 ports that support 4K at 120Hz with variable refresh rate (VRR) and auto low-latency mode (ALLM) on both PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. This makes it one of the best monitors available for next-gen consoles. Note that PS5 VRR is limited to 48–120Hz, so you won't hit 240Hz on console — that's exclusive to PC via DisplayPort.