One of my favourite 4K OLED monitors just got updated with Samsung's latest Tandem OLED panel tech

I like a 4K 32-inch OLED, I do. And MSI's models have offered one of the most affordable options to achieve that 4K OLED experience. So, the good news is that MSI has updated its 32-inch 4K OLED offering with Samsung's latest panel tech. So, it's brighter and mostly fixes at least one weakness of Samsung QD-OLED tech versus the LG alternative.

The new MSI MPG 322UR X24 is essentially an update to the MSI MPG 322URX I reviewed last summer, which in turn was a revised version of the MSI MPG 321URX, which I sampled in 2024.

But where the previous revisions had been basically fiddling around the edges using essentially the same generation of Samsung QD-OLED panel tech, the latest model looks like a much more substantial revision, offering Samsung's latest technology.

At this stage, the various generations of OLED panel tech from Samsung and LG have become completely baffling. I've rounded it all up here, if you dare to read up on the details. But for this new MSI, I'll try to keep things tolerably brief.

Highlights of Samsung's latest QD-OLED revision are based around a new five-layer Tandem OLED panel. It's a fair bit brighter than previous QD-OLED generations, albeit the specs are a bit confusing. MSI is quoting peak HDR performance at 1,000 nits, which is no change from previous panels, though full-screen brightness jumps from 250 nits to 300 nits.

The HDR rating is odd because I've seen this panel tech before, at least a very close relation to it in the MSI MPG 341CQR, where it's rated at 1,300 nits HDR and 300 nits full screen. Just to confuse things further, MSI has revealed that the new MSI MPG 322UR X24 has been awarded VESA DisplayHDR True Black 500 certification, an upgrade from the True Black 400 of previous 4K 32-inch models.

Whatever, I'm pretty confident that this new 32-inch 4K model will feel punchier. That will be helped by what MSI calls "DarkArmor Film", but I believe it is actually a Samsung technology. Again, I've seen it on the MSI MPG 341CQR, and it's claimed to "eliminate the purple tint common on previous QD-OLEDs, enhancing light absorption to boost black levels by 40% for superior contrast in well-lit rooms."

It didn't totally eliminate the issue from the 341CQR, and I expect it won't from the new 322UR X24, either. But it does reduce the problem sufficiently that it's only now present in really extreme ambient light conditions that I really can't see being relevant for most gamers. For the record, LG OLED panels don't have this problem at all.

Oh, this monitor is also getting MSI's improved HDR handling, which, to cut a long story short, means a single mode is good for both dark scenes with bright highlights and really bright outdoor game scenes. I really liked it on the 341CQR, so it's great to see it applied here, too. Huzzah.

One thing this new model doesn't have, as far as I can tell, is the so-called RGB-stripe subpixel structure that debuted on the 341CQR. That's a pity, but perhaps not a major omission. For the 341CQR, it really helped because that's a low pixel density monitor with a 1440p-class panel.

This 32 incher is 4K with elevated pixel density and, in subjective viewing terms at least, suffers from fewer of the issues that RGB stripe sets out to fix in the first place, like fuzzy text.

MSI hasn't priced up the MPG 322UR X24 just yet, and this particular variant with USB-C and 98 W power delivery and 240 Hz refresh will probably be a bit spendy. However, MSI has always offered slightly cut-down variants using the same base panel tech for less money, and when that is very likely released, I expect we'll see something down around the $800 / £800 or even lower soon enough. And that really will be pretty tempting.