Samsung - Odyssey OLED G8 34" Curved Ultra-WQHD AMD FreeSync Prem Pro 175Hz 0.03ms Smart Glare Free Gaming Monitor - Silver

I'm a Samsung fanboy, I have a Samsung phone, tablet, earbuds, and TVs. It being a Samsung monitor, and being my first Oled monitor, I was very excited to get this. I upgraded from an led monitor, and man! I was blown away by the colors and deep blacks! So the panel itself is great, but they ruined it by adding the useless Tyzen OS. It took me longer to sign into the monitor with my Samsung account, go through a bunch of settings, user agreements, and familiarizing with the menus to find the input for my PC than pulling it out of the box and finding a good spot on my desk. It's a monitor! I should not have to go through all that to set up a monitor, that's all on my PC, which I plan to use. It's because Samsung, with their infinite wisdom, decided they needed to make the monitor double as a TV, which is completely useless since people will use it with a PC or even a console. And when I wake my PC, the game menu pops up, then I have to wait for it to go away. The result is a bad monitor and a bad TV. If thinking about getting this monitor, get one that doesn't have Tyzen and doesn't try to be a TV. I already ordered one from LG, with 240hz.

I have never had a TV that is as impressive in so many areas as this Samsung 34 inch monitor. The sound is incredible so rich and as loud as you need it, the colors are so vibrant both the white and the blocks and it is a very, good TV to listen to music when you want to play your console gaming or to watch football or just regular TV watching. The only difference is that it looks so much more clear and vibrant than any TV that I’ve owned and I’ve owned some very good ones One thing I did was enable the zoom to fill from the settings and this way it stretches without losing any resolution to fill the screen when you’re gaming and also when you’re watching TV, it seems like for me at least I have enjoyed it and it does not affect the quality of the Screen at all from what I’ve noticed This TV has made my PlayStation five so much more fun to play with and also whenever my wife is wanting to watch a show on the other larger TV I can just going to my area and watch whatever I want. Also, I use the Alexa voice on it which works flawlessly and what one thing that’s cool. It also has a TikTok App, which I have not seen any other streaming services that I’ve used which is interesting and useful I love it sooooo much! Will be my favorite monitor/tv for a very long time!

Samsung Odyssey G8(G85SD) - What’s in the box- Ultra high speed HDMI cable Display port cable Usb A to B cable Solar powered remote Monitor and power cord -First Impressions- Upon unboxing the G8 I was pleasantly surprised how intuitive the set-up process was from packaging to staging. Assembling the stand was the easiest I’ve ever experienced and could be done without any extra help. Albeit, a bit on the hefty side, weighing nearly seventeen pounds. As expected, Samsung stuck to their guns with their signature silver color option. I believe it integrates seamlessly with most desk aesthetics, though that’s subjective. The singular median stand is also the perfect way to support the monitor while not taking up much room. As most of us know, desk real-estate is very important. As mentioned above, setting up the monitor was quick and easy, logged into my network, installed a small update to firmware and I was off to the races. -Design- The G8 itself is stunning with a beautiful 34” curved display and an exceptional 178 degree viewing angle. The main draw is obviously the OLED panel, and Samsung always knocks it out of the park. The slim outer shell and the rgb ring make it feel premium, more on the rgb later. Instantly upon viewing any content, the crystal-clear colors and darkened areas maintain high quality even in shadows. Detail is crisp and one of my favorite new additions is the inclusion of anti-glare, dubbed, oled glare free. Perfect for sun lit rooms where visibility could otherwise be hindered. Interestingly the paired standard smart remote can be charged via solar so no need for usb charging. Also integrated, are a number of connectivity options, something that was sorely lacking in last year’s model which only allowed native micro hdmi input. The G8 was built to allow more plug ins and less headache. -Functionality/Features- As stated, what you’re getting here is a top of the line oled ultra-wide panel with all the bells and whistles like, an impressive 0.03 ms response time, smart tv with smart things, and gaming hub to name a few. Yes, the Odyssey G8 is not just a pc monitor but also a full-fledged smart tv. Samsung believes you can have a best-in-class gaming monitor and a tv experience, and it works. You’ve got all your favorite apps, from streaming, to music, to cloud gaming. It can do it all. Whether I was watching a movie or playing a fast-paced twitch shooter like XDefiant, it all looked incredible and felt great too. A variety of game mode options including vrr and amd freesync, meant I wasn’t sacrificing quality for performance. The gimmick of syncing your content via core lighting can enhance your immersion and turned on/off at any time. With it, you can change the rgb settings of the back of the panel to sync with the on-screen colors, a nice addition but nothing we haven’t seen before. When it comes to audio it’s worth mentioning if you can pair an external speaker, that’s always the better option. Its not particularly great but I always say having native speakers are better than not. -Performance- So, you’re probably wondering, with all the extra software running in the background, does it bog down your gaming experience? Short answer, no. You can treat the odyssey solely as a gaming monitor or solely as a smart tv, the choice is yours. The beauty is you get the best of both worlds and the premium price tag is justifiable. The G8 is powered by Tizen and its only gotten better with each new product release. Navigating the various menus always felt smooth and I like the layout of the new interface. I found myself streaming a film on downtime and when I was ready to get back to the game, no extra steps were necessary. Voice recognition is also a nice touch though admittedly, I didn’t experiment with it much like some may. That’s just personal preference. The ultra-fast 175hz refresh rate isn’t by any means the highest I’ve seen, but it gets the job done. And the clarity of moving objects at said speeds were fluid. -Overall Thoughts- Comparatively to last years model of the same size, it’s a huge step forward in all areas, from the responsiveness of the UI/UX, to the gaming hub, to doubling as a standard smart tv. Samsung continues to iterate and perfect their design language and product eco system with every new release. The Odyssey OLED G85SD is no exception.