Best cheap 32" 1440p monitor

MichaelAwkward · 27 Apr 2019 at 20:29

Hi all,

Hoping to hear from some owners as to which one of these monitors I should buy:

AOC Q3279VWFD8
Viewsonic VX3276-2K-MHD
Viewsonic VX3211-2K-MHD
Acer EB321HQUAwidp

All are around £200, all IPS. So far as I can tell the Viewsonic's are very similar just with different stands/bezel design.

My current spec is Core i5 4670k, 8GB DDR3, GTX 970 and I don't really plan on upgrading any time soon so I'm not too bothered about Freesync/Gsync. I'm not a hardcore gamer, just a few hours a week of Skyrim, Left 4 Dead, CS:GO, etc so most use will be general office, web browsing etc.

For reference my current monitor is 27" 1080p BenQ with a VA panel.

Thanks!

tamzzy · 27 Apr 2019 at 20:45

MichaelAwkward said:
AOC Q3279VWFD8

I own the vwfd8 and its older sibling the vwf.
The vwfd8 is the best value monitor outside of Korean imported monitors - which usually have dodgy warranties to begin with.
AOC monitors are grade 1 panels (rather than grade 2) so in effect they only allow 1 dead pixel or 5 dead subpixels (rather than 16 dead subpixels) before you are allowed to exchange under warranty.
Basically for £200, you'll be hard pressed to find a 32 inch, 75hz, free sync, IPS panel that isn't the vwfd8.
Review: https://pcmonitors.info/reviews/aoc-q3279vwfd8/

MichaelAwkward · 27 Apr 2019 at 20:47

tamzzy said:
I own the vwfd8 and its older sibling the vwf.
The vwfd8 is the best value monitor outside of Korean imported monitors - which usually have dodgy warranties to begin with.
AOC monitors are grade 1 panels (rather than grade 2) so in effect they only allow 1 dead pixel or 5 dead subpixels (rather than 16 dead subpixels) before you are allowed to exchange under warranty.
Basically for £200, you'll be hard pressed to find a 32 inch, 75hz, free sync, IPS panel that isn't the vwfd8.
Review: https://pcmonitors.info/reviews/aoc-q3279vwfd8/

Thanks for that.

How about Viewsonic/AOC? Do they use grade 1 panels too? Theirs are also 75Hz, and as I said Freesync isn't something I'll use any time soon. Their build quality/finish looks better than the AOC which looks a bit cheap with the glossy bezel finish.

Is it likely all of these monitor use the same IPS panel?

tamzzy · 27 Apr 2019 at 21:16

MichaelAwkward said:
Viewsonic

no idea

MichaelAwkward said:
AOC

tamzzy said:
AOC monitors are grade 1 panels

MichaelAwkward said:
Freesync isn't something I'll use any time soon

it's an additional bonus, i know you said you're not looking to upgrade, but one can keep a monitor for a long time, so if you do, then it's going to be used - since newer nvidia and all amd gpus support it.

MichaelAwkward said:
Is it likely all of these monitor use the same IPS panel?

possible? but i don't know about the viewsonics, so don't quote me on this.

fwiw: 2 32" monitors side-by-side

Andygully · 28 Apr 2019 at 09:42

AOC Q3279VWFD8
I have the older version but id 100% get the newer one.

Double07 · 3 May 2019 at 04:33

tamzzy said:
I own the vwfd8 and its older sibling the vwf.
The vwfd8 is the best value monitor outside of Korean imported monitors - which usually have dodgy warranties to begin with.
AOC monitors are grade 1 panels (rather than grade 2) so in effect they only allow 1 dead pixel or 5 dead subpixels (rather than 16 dead subpixels) before you are allowed to exchange under warranty.
Basically for £200, you'll be hard pressed to find a 32 inch, 75hz, free sync, IPS panel that isn't the vwfd8.
Review: https://pcmonitors.info/reviews/aoc-q3279vwfd8/

Haha looks like I am a bargain hunter then as I have the AOC and a PC Bank Korean 27" 1440p from years ago when they were crazy prices in the UK. It has lasted me way longer than I could have ever hoped for an is still as good as it ever was.

For the OP the AOC is great value for money, its not perfect but for c£200 I cant see how you could get anything better for the money.

HeX · 3 May 2019 at 13:34

Got the AOC Q3279VWFD8 recently and it's a fantastic monitor. Lovely image, bright colours, no black smearing, and the freesync is working as gysnc compatible on my 1060 no problems. Absolute bargain for under £200.

Double07 · 3 May 2019 at 14:50

HeX said:
Got the AOC Q3279VWFD8 recently and it's a fantastic monitor. Lovely image, bright colours, no black smearing, and the freesync is working as gysnc compatible on my 1060 no problems. Absolute bargain for under £200.

Just as a wee side note with this monitor. If you experience any issues with the monitor appear to go out of sync and the screen going weird, usually when gaming, switching the monitor off and on again fixes it. Happens when to me when I have GSync enabled, only now and then but its good to know its a simple fix (usually), rather than faffing about with drivers, etc.

Raptorpg · 7 May 2019 at 11:41

I can also recommend the AOC Q3279VWFD8, amazin value for money

GeordieStew · 7 May 2019 at 13:06

The VWF can be had for £180 at the moment. Is the VWFD8 worth £20 more?

Raptorpg · 7 May 2019 at 13:11

GeordieStew said:
The VWF can be had for £180 at the moment. Is the VWFD8 worth £20 more?

If you play games yes the pixel transition is way faster otherwise no

tamzzy · 7 May 2019 at 13:32

Personally, as I have both the vwf and the vwfd8, I would recommend spending the extra £20 and getting the IPS monitor rather than the va version.

GeordieStew · 7 May 2019 at 13:36

Thank you and sorry for the hijack!

Raptorpg · 7 May 2019 at 13:37

No problem

HeX · 7 May 2019 at 20:33

GeordieStew said:
The VWF can be had for £180 at the moment. Is the VWFD8 worth £20 more?

100% get the FD8

GeordieStew · 7 May 2019 at 21:09

My needs are mainly productivity (software dev). Not sure if I'd be better with 32" 4k. I have a couple of 28" 4k and they're just a bit small. I end up running with 125% scaling. No idea if the extra 4" would be worthwhile. Hmmm.

I should/will start my own thread.