LG 32UN880 UltraFine Display Ergo review

A beautiful display at any angle

(Image: © Future)

TechRadar Verdict

The LG 32UN880 has incredible color accuracy and an approachable price tag, making it an easy recommendation for creatives and gamers alike, but with just 350 nits of brightness, the HDR10 compatibility is a bit of a waste.

Pros

  • +

    Versatile monitor stand

  • +

    Beautiful picture quality

  • +

    Approachable price

Cons

  • -

    Not bright enough for true HDR

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Now that we're all spending more time working from home, monitors like the LG 32UN880 are probably going to get even more popular. There is a lot to be said about having a big, color-accurate display that you can easily maneuver around to view the most comfortable angle you can get – double points if they're reasonably priced. 

The LG 32UN880 UltraFine Display Ergo is an ultra-color-accurate 32-inch 4K monitor, with HDR 10, that covers 95% of the DCI-P3 color gamut. That all sounds like an incredibly high-end monitor, but it comes in at just $699 (£599, AU$1,203), which makes it one of the most approachable 4K monitors for creative professionals working from home. 

At $699 (£599, AU$1,203), the monitor falls in line with other prosumer models like the BenQ PD3200U, which comes in at the same price point at $699 (£649, AU$1,299) but the LG 32UN880 brings much narrower bezels, HDR compatibility and an ergonomic clamp stand that really puts the product on a whole other level.

(Image credit: Future)

That's right, the default stand for the LG 32UN880 is the type of ergonomic stand that clamps to your desk, not only saving a ton of space, but allowing for a freedom of movement of the monitor that is really second to none. 

You can move this monitor up and down, rotate it 90 degrees to have a vertical display, rotate the actual stand to change where on your desk it appears, and tilt it in any direction. This is the type of monitor stand that you typically have to shell out extra cash for and have to install yourself – but this model just included right out of the box. It's a nice touch, and easily makes this monitor worth the cash. 

Not that the rest of the package lags behind or anything. This is a 32-inh 4K monitor with a beautiful IPS display. It covers 95% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, which when combined with the 350 nits of brightness makes for an extremely comfortable experience when editing photos. Over the course of a couple weeks and editing dozens of photos for reviews and features, we're still amazed by just how accurate and bright colors appear on this monitor. 

(Image credit: Future)

However, that 350 nits of brightness presents a problem for the HDR here. 350 nits of brightness just isn't enough for true HDR, so while the LG 32UN880 does support the HDR10 standard, and it does make a slight difference in games like Horizon Zero Dawn, it's nothing like what you would get on an average 4K HDR TV. 

Speaking of gaming, PC games look amazing on this display, as color accuracy is more than just for the creatives out there. Whether we're getting through the main story quest in Final Fantasy XIV or bracing through the low framerates in Horizon Zero Dawn with the HDR enabled, the color accuracy here just makes everything pop. And, when you combine that with the sharpness that a 4K display naturally brings to the table, it's kind of the definitive gaming experience – depending on what you're into. 

The refresh rate is locked at 60Hz, not that many graphics cards are really capable of driving 4K above 60 fps right now. However, it does have FreeSync support, which is good news for the legions of creatives with an AMD GPU that want to get some gaming done on the side. 

(Image credit: Future)

There's also a wealth of different input options available at the back of the display. You get two HDMI, a DisplayPort and one USB-C, along with two USB-A ports – though the latter will only work if you've connected your PC to the monitor via USB-C. 

While laptop displays have been adopting narrower and narrower bezels, mirroring what we've seen in smart phones, monitors are a bit behind. Luckily, that's not quite true here. The LG 32UN880 has incredibly thin bezels at the top and the sides, with a bit of a thicker one at the bottom, where you'll find the LG logo. Combined with the ergonomic stand, this makes the 32UN880 have an incredibly modern aesthetic. 

Finally, to interact with the settings, there's a solitary button on the bottom of the display that is luckily totally out of sight. Just push it in and a sleek circular menu will pop up, with which you can tilt the button in any direction to change inputs or go deeper into the settings. 

(Image credit: Future)

Buy it if...

You're a creative working from home
If you're a creative and you just want a solid monitor for photo and video editing that isn't ludicrously expensive, the LG 32UN880 ticks a lot of boxes. 

Color accuracy is important
The LG 32UN880 is incredibly color-accurate, which makes it a great choice for anyone that needs or even wants a colorful display. Playing games and watching movies on this monitor is a treat. 

You want a flexible stand
With the included flexible monitor stand that comes with this display, no matter what kind of angle you need, no matter whether you need the display high or low, or even if you need to be able to swivel the display to show something to a colleague, the LG 32UN880 can do it all. 

(Image credit: Future)

Don't buy it if...

You want great HDR
With a rated brightness of just 350 nits, the LG 32UN880 is just barely out of SDR territory, so HDR won't make a world of difference. 

You have limited space
The ergonomic monitor stand does reduce the footprint of the monitor somewhat, as it clamps down on the edge of the desk, but it's still a 32-inch display, which some folks simply won't have the space for. 

Jackie Thomas

Jackie Thomas is the Hardware and Buying Guides Editor at IGN. Previously, she was TechRadar's US computing editor. She is fat, queer and extremely online. Computers are the devil, but she just happens to be a satanist. If you need to know anything about computing components, PC gaming or the best laptop on the market, don't be afraid to drop her a line on Twitter or through email.