It’s not just for gaming
Top-tier gaming monitors are a dime a dozen nowadays, and if you’re someone like Samsung whose looking to break into the gaming monitor market, you need to offer something compelling to consumers so they’ll make the switch. Enter their CFG70 – it’s a gaming monitor that has all the bells and whistles you’d expect from a high-end display: 1ms response time, 144Hz refresh rate, AMD’s FreeSync Technology and a curved display. But after spending a lot of time with the CFG70, we found that it’s also a great monitor for folks who dabble with photo editing thanks to its Quantum Dot display tech and 125? of sRGB coverage.
Subdued design is a welcome change
Look for any kind of gaming related gear nowadays, and you’ll likely be bombarded by gaudy designs peppered with RGB lighting. Not the CFG70 though, as the monitor has an understated elegant all-black exterior that’s a welcome change from the usual gaming gear that we see offered in stores.
There’s a soft blue LED light that illuminates the base of the monitor (dubbed Arena Lighting) that you can program depending on your needs. Setting up the monitor is pretty simple – just attach the baseplate to the articulated arm via two screws, connect the monitor to your PC via its two HDMI ports or the Display Port and you’re ready to go.
The dual-hinge design allows you to position the CFG70 any way you want, and the monitor can actually rotate 90 degrees to portrait mode if you really want it to. The monitor’s full range of motion is 2 degrees back and 17 degrees forward for tilt, and 15 degrees left or right for swiveling.
The CFG70 has two HDMI and a single Display Port, which is enough ports to cover most users. Navigating through the CFG70’s interface is done via the joystick in the back. The UI is easy enough to understand and navigate, which is really a rare thing for a monitor like this.
Not just a gaming monitor
The CFG70’s spec list is impressive for a gaming monitor: 144 Hz refresh rate (only works if you’re connecting via the Display Port), 1ms response time, AMD FreeSync, 3000:1 contrast ratio and a curvature of 1800R. The monitor is built on a VA panel that utilizes the company’s Quantum Dot technology, which gives it 125? of sRGB coverage.
The CFG70 has no light leakage whatsoever at the corners of the curved display, which is typically what happens in other curved gaming monitors that use IPS panels. Color reproduction is excellent as well as viewing angles, since the curved panel eliminates most of the color shift that you get using VA displays when viewing it from an odd angle.
While the CFG70 performs really well as a gaming monitor, it’ll work equally well as a monitor of photographers and video editors. The 125 percent of sRGB coverage means that color accuracy wont’ be a problem, though it’s not the monitor to get if you require AdobeRGB or DCI-P3 presets since it doesn’t support it.
The high refresh rate and 1ms response time make the CFG70 a dream to play on, though keep in mind that your refresh rate is capped at 120 Hz if you’re connecting to the monitor via an HDMI cable.
We used the CFG70 in conjunction with ASUS’ ROG GX800 when we had it with us, and it was simply gaming bliss. No input lag was noticeable even on the slowest response time setting (there’s three available), though take note that the monitor locks the brightness down on the highest setting.
We have minor complaints though – the monitor runs at just full HD, which is a bit hard to swallow given the price range. AMD’s FreeSync tech isn’t that useful, considering that most high-end rigs nowadays use NVIDIA graphics cards and G-SYNC technology.
Verdict: expensive, but worth it
Samsung’s CFG70 cost a pretty penny: expect to shell out Php 20,899 for the 24-inch model and Php 31,099 for the 27-inch model. But despite that, it’s worth every penny – it’s an understated gaming monitor that has all the bells and whistles a gamer could ask for, and can pull double duty as a display for photographers and video editors. It’s easy to setup and use, and its elegant aesthetics make it stand out from the pack. If you’re planning your next build or want to upgrade to a better setup, you can’t do better than the CFG70.
