Corsair Xeneon 32QHD165

Does premium-priced 1440p gaming make sense?

- JEREMY LAIRD

NEARLY 800 BUCKS for a 1440p panel? In 2021? This thing needs to be very good indeed. Enter the new Corsair Xeneon 32QHD165, a 32-inch IPS gaming panel with a 1440p native resolution, 165Hz refresh, and sub-3ms pixel response.

On paper, that’s not a hugely impressive core feature set, especially for the money. But there’s more to a subjective gaming experience than mere numbers. Some things require a more subjective, qualitative assessment. But, let’s cover the 32QHD165’s speeds and feeds. The 1440p resolution translates into 2,560 x 1,440 pixels on an 16:9-aspect panel and sub-100dpi in terms of pixel density. An Apple Retina-style display this isn’t.

Speed-wise, it has a 165Hz refresh and response of below 3ms by the grey-to-grey standard and 1ms in the alternative MPRT metric. VESA DisplayHDR 400 certification ensures peak brightness of 400 nits, though there is no local dimming and this is not a true HDR display. Static contrast, meanwhile, is pegged at the usual 1,000:1 for an IPS panel.