AOC launches a 31.5-inch 144Hz Freesync 2 HDR monitor for $550

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A big and fast gaming monitor that leaves few boxes unchecked.

AOC has added another member to its premium Agon monitor family, and if you own a Radeon graphics card, this latest model is worth looking into. That's because it's certified as a 'Freesync 2 HDR' display, making it the first Agon monitor to support HDR visuals.

Let's unpack what that means. A few months ago, AMD rebranded its Freesync 2 technology to Freesync 2 HDR to reflect one of the biggest changes versus the original Freesync specs, that being high dynamic range (HDR) support. There are other qualifications, but if you're in the market for a Freesync display with HDR support, that's the badge you're looking for.

As it applies to AOC's AG322QC4 model, it passes VESA's entry-level DisplayHDR 400 certification as well. Among other things, this calls for a minimum brightness of 400 nits. That's exactly what AOC's new monitor is rated to deliver. The caveat here is that 400 nits doesn't do HDR content justice, not like a monitor that can get much brighter, preferably 1,000 nits or higher. Those types of monitors cost much more, though, so there's a trade off.

Moving on, the AG322QC4 is built around a 31.5-inch curved VA panel with a 2560x1440 resolution and fast 144Hz refresh rate. It has a 3,000:1 static contrast ratio (80,000,000:1 dynamic), 178 degrees viewing angles (vertical and horizontal), and covers 85 percent of the NTSC color spectrum. That latter measurement is pretty high, though it doesn't necessarily mean color reproduction is accurate.

The AG322QC4 has a pair of built-in 5W speakers and a 3.5mm headphone jack. It also serves up a pair of USB 3.0 ports. Display inputs include VGA, two HDMI 2.0 ports, and two DisplayPort 1.2 connectors.

Amazon has the AG322QC4 up for preorder for its listed MSRP in the US, and £391.38 in the UK. The US listing says it will be released on October 15, whereas the UK listing shows a handful of units in stock.

Paul Lilly
Paul Lilly

Paul has been playing PC games and raking his knuckles on computer hardware since the Commodore 64. He does not have any tattoos, but thinks it would be cool to get one that reads LOAD"*",8,1. In his off time, he rides motorcycles and wrestles alligators (only one of those is true).