The Asus ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD offers a stunning 49-inch super ultrawide screen that uses OLED technology and all of its benefits and glory. It’s one of the most attractive upgrades for the holidays, but it only goes up to 144Hz versus the 240Hz of Samsung’s OLED G9. Let’s check to see if the performance it offers is worth the effort and the expense versus its faster competitor.
Asus ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD Specifications
- Screen Size: 49 Inches
- Resolution:5120 x 1440 QHD
- Aspect Ratio: 32:9
- Panel Technology: Quantum Dot OLED
- Refresh Rate: 144Hz
- Response Time: 0.03ms
- Contrast Ratio: 1500000:1 (Static)
- Brightness: 250 cd/m² (1000 cd/m² Peak)
- Speakers: None
- Stand: Height–Yes
- Stand: Tilt – Yes
- Stand: Swivel–Yes
- Stand: Pivot – No
- VESA Compatibility: Yes (100 x 100)
- Connectivity: DisplayPort 1.4 x 1, HDMI 2.1 x 1, USB-C PD90W x 1, USB 3.2 x 2, USB 2.0 x 2, 3.5mm Jack x 1
- Dimension (W x H x D): 47.1” x 20.84” x 11.14”
- Weight: 25.8 lbs
Design and Features
The Asus ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD looks different from the G9, which looks elegant since it is dedicated to the most hardcore gamers. The monitor has a matte black finish and a dot matrix RGB lighting feature at the back. The screen has a bezel-free design, but it still has panel borders like most modern options.
The most significant aspect you have to understand about the monitor before pulling the trigger is its size. It is four feet wide and a foot deep, so those with desks that are smaller than the 60-inch ones might want to think twice. It’s also quite heavy at 25.8 pounds, so having an extra set of hands to set it up is a wise choice.
Its build quality is comparable, if not better, than what we’ve seen on most ROG monitors in the market. The plastics used are tough and sturdy, plus there is plenty of reinforcement where it counts the most. The stand is firm and stable thanks to its large base, which keeps the gigantic monitor planted on your desk at all times.
The Asus ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD has an OSD joystick that’s flanked by customizable hotkeys. The layout is located in the center part of the lower back panel, so it is easier to reach than if it was on the side, like with most ROG monitors. Navigation is painless and quick thanks to this design, so you spend less time tweaking and more time playing.
The stand’s mechanism offers tilt, swivel, and height adjustments, so it is possible to get a comfortable view all the time. Pivoting wasn’t included since you can’t really use an extra wide monitor like this as a portrait display. You can use VESA mounts if you need to save space on your desk, but it’s unnecessary beyond that.
The Asus ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD’s connectivity layout is finally carrying what we’d like to see on a premium display. It has DisplayPort 1.4 and HDMI 2.1, but it also has a 90-watt USB-C port for better flexibility. You also get two ports each for USB 3.2 and version 2.0 for accessories and a standard 3.5mm analog jack for headphones.
What’s missing here is a pair of capable and immersive speakers that would enhance the monitor’s value. However, Asus isn’t widely known for including upgraded sets for its gaming variants, so it is most likely that it would get a 2-watt pair if it had it. That’s forgivable for us since headsets are better for immersion and focus anyway, but we do like addons that stretch the value of each dollar spent.
Display and Performance
The Asus ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD boasts a 49-inch super ultrawide panel with a 5120 x 1440 DQHD resolution, a 144Hz refresh rate, and a 0.03ms response time. The panel emits a 250 cd/m2 output and a 1000:1 peak, with a 1500000:1 contrast ratio. This is HDR 400 True Black certified, so it’s a few cuts above the standard HDR-certified monitor.
5120 x 1440 sounds larger than 4K, but it is actually a bit less than that when it comes to pixel count. However, it will not disappoint since it is equally comparable to two 27-inch screens with standard 2560 x 1440 resolutions. It’s not going to be sharp, but it gives you the perception of better visibility, legibility, visual area, and, of course, better performance from your GPU versus 4K.
The Asus ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD covers 100% sRGB and 99% DCI-P3 for stunning color in games and movies. The downside to that oversaturation is a deltaE average of 3.54, making it look unnatural in some scenes. However, gamers will love the extra color pop, so this is not entirely a deal-breaker for its primary audience.
Calibrating it reduced the deltaE average to 1.54, making it considerably better and balanced than the stock setting. It is not dead accurate like the ProArt monitors we wrote about, but that’s expected due to the wider gamut of this monitor. We can only recommend spending more on the colorimeter, but you can also use the monitor’s sRGB mode for content creation.
The Asus ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD’s panel reached 455 cd/m2 in SDR and it peaked at 1131 cd/m2 when HDR is active and ABL is disabled. Its contrast is incalculable for us, so it presents the truest black you can get out of a modern panel. This monitor is fantastic for HDR games with lots of dark scenes since all this happens at the pixel level.
Having pixel-level local dimming eliminates the need for a FALD backlight, so the monitor has no uniformity issues. It’s still prone to burn in, but that’s easy to prevent if you take care of it by not leaving it idle. This can still vary with every monitor made, but uniformity issues are less likely to happen on OLEDs compared to regular displays.
The Asus ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD’s pixel response time is near instantaneous as well due to its lack of backlighting. Fast-paced games look smooth and blur-free, so it is great for fast-paced games like Warzone. This model doesn’t need overdrive as well due to this special characteristic, even if it’s almost 100Hz slower than its closest competitor.
The Asus ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD is compatible with both FreeSync and G-Sync for tear-free gaming. Its nice to have both so you won’t need to spend this much again on a new monitor if you switch to the other GPU brand but would want to keep VRR. Its input lag sits at 4ms at 144Hz, so it is just as fast as the monitors that are rated for E-Sports.
Thoughts on the Asus ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD
The Asus ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD is a fantastic choice for immersive HDR gaming. Its expansive screen offers eye-popping colors and contrast along with blur and uniformity issue-free performance. It is not as fast as the G9 in refresh rate, but it’s just good when it comes to the latter characteristics.
It doesn’t have a lot of flaws, except for maybe the higher price than the G9 (at the time of review), its lower refresh rate, and poor color accuracy. Most of it can’t be helped except for the refresh rate part, but we’re looking past it based on performance. It is an excellent choice, but the Samsung G9 is more attractive for the price.
Pros:
- Fantastic Gamut Coverage
- Excellent HDR
- Superb Build Quality and Features
- FreeSyn and G-Sync Compatible
Cons:
- Limited to 144Hz
- Higher Price
- Poor Default Accuracy
About the Author: 
Paolo has been a gaming veteran since the golden days of Doom and Warcraft and has been building gaming systems for family, friends, and colleagues since junior high. High-performance monitors are one of his fixations; he believes that every citizen’s right to enjoy one. He has gone through several pieces of hardware in pursuit of every bit of performance gain, much to the dismay of his wallet. He now works with Monitornerds to scrutinize the latest gear to create reviews that accentuate the seldom explained aspects of a PC monitor.
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