LG 27GN950-B 4K 144Hz Monitor Review: One Fast Pixel Mover

One of the fastest 4K monitors we've ever tested

LG 27GN950-B
Editor's Choice
(Image: © LG)

Why you can trust Tom's Hardware Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.

Viewing Angles

(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

IPS viewing angles are the order of the day for the 27GN950-B. The side angle shows an obvious green tint with a small reduction in brightness. Detail remains visible in the darker steps. The top view shows a blue shift, but detail is better than average with only a slight drop in gamma and brightness. This is a little better than most IPS panels we’ve tested.

Screen Uniformity

To learn how we measure screen uniformity, click here.

LG 27GN950-B

(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

None of the screens here have perfect uniformity; they all have some visible issues, but the 27GN950-B comes out on top with only slight hotspots in the corners. They can just be seen when all room lights are off, and a black field pattern is displayed. We couldn’t see any issues in real-world content. Color uniformity also showed no visible aberrations.

Pixel Response and Input Lag

Click here to read up on our pixel response and input lag testing procedures.

The LG 27GN950-B ties for the fastest 4K monitor we’ve tested. Though it posts the same 7ms response time as nearly all 144 Hz panels, it has lower input lag than all but the XG27UQ. Only the 240 Hz Samsung can beat it in a twitch contest. Even at the 110-120 fps speeds we were able to play at, we never saw a moment’s hesitation in any control input. The overdrive and Adaptive-Sync combine to provide perfect video processing that is almost completely blur-free.

Christian Eberle
Contributing Editor

Christian Eberle is a Contributing Editor for Tom's Hardware US. He's a veteran reviewer of A/V equipment, specializing in monitors. Christian began his obsession with tech when he built his first PC in 1991, a 286 running DOS 3.0 at a blazing 12MHz. In 2006, he undertook training from the Imaging Science Foundation in video calibration and testing and thus started a passion for precise imaging that persists to this day. He is also a professional musician with a degree from the New England Conservatory as a classical bassoonist which he used to good effect as a performer with the West Point Army Band from 1987 to 2013. He enjoys watching movies and listening to high-end audio in his custom-built home theater and can be seen riding trails near his home on a race-ready ICE VTX recumbent trike. Christian enjoys the endless summer in Florida where he lives with his wife and Chihuahua and plays with orchestras around the state.

  • CXB
    The most recent firmware to the LG 27GN950-B pushes the display rate to 160Hz at 4k (the firmware takes a nervous 30+ minutes to load)
    A very nice monitor, well-suited to DisplayPort, DSC and the new graphics cards coming out (I was lucky to bag an RTX3070)
    Reply
  • Wanderingm00se
    Honestly, if this had an HDMI 2.1 it would have been an instant buy for me running this well. Maybe a refresh next year will have it. Got a series X as video card prices in Canada are insane right now if available and consoles are almost readily available and are cheaper than US pricing after conversion.
    Reply
  • tomy_12
    I heard with this monitor cannot cancel the option that the monitor will go to deep sleep, is kind of big let down when the monitor fall a sleep and can't wake up. I don't want my monitor to fall a sleep, I can make the pc set to sleep mode alone. would be nice if you can mention it in the review.
    Reply
  • CXB
    Well, you may have heard that, but I've just left my PC and my LG 27GN950 alone for 4 hours, and as soon as I hit my space bar on the keyboard, everything just woke up where it had left off.

    What I do find is that sometimes, with a second monitor, the GPU gets in a twist. But that's not a problem related to this monitor.
    Reply