Lately, we noted that AOC was looking to take over your desktop with the recent launch of a PC peripheral lineup. Nothing makes that sentiment clearer than the brand new AOC Agon 4 Pro AG324UX, a 32 inch UHD gaming display that demanded attention when we took it for a test.
Announced back in September and available for the best part of £899 or local equivalent, the AOC AG324UX is a monitor focused on getting the best gaming experience possible on next generation consoles and PC. Packing in a UHD resolution, an IPS panel, some seriously fast response times, and a 144hZ refresh rate this display might tick all the boxes before it is unpacked but the full specifications are certainly worth a look.
Display information
SCREEN SIZE (INCH) – 31.5
PANEL TREATMENT -Antiglare (AG)
PANEL RESOLUTION – 3840×2160
RESOLUTION NAME – UHD
ASPECT RATIO – 16:9
PANEL TYPE – IPS
BRIGHTNESS IN NITS – 350
BACKLIGHT TYPE – WLED
LOCAL DIMMING ZONES – 16
REFRESH RATE – 144Hz
RESPONSE TIME GTG – 1 ms
RESPONSE TIME MPRT – 1 ms
DYNAMIC CONTRAST RATIO – 80M:1
VIEWING ANGLE (CR10) – 178/178
DISPLAY COLOURS – 1.07 Billion
SYNC TECHNOLOGY (VRR) – Freesync Premium after AMD certified & G-Sync Compatible
SYNC RANGE – 48-144
HDR (HIGH DYNAMIC RANGE) – Vesa Certified DisplayHDR™ 400
SPEAKERs – 8W x 2 + DTS
MULTIVIEW (PBP, PIP) – PbP, PiP
KVM – On board
RGB – LIGHT FX (RGB) & Led Logo Projector
Connectivity information
HDMI – HDMI 2.1 x 2
DIGITAL HDCP (HDMI VERSION) – HDCP 2.2
DISPLAY PORT – Display port 1.4 (DSC) x1
USB-C CONNECTIVITY – USB-C 3.2 x 1 (DP alt mode, upstream, power delivery up to 90 W)
USB HUB – USB 3.2 hub – 4x Downstream, including 1 fast charge
AUDIO INPUT – Microphone in
AUDIO OUTPUT – Headphone out (3.5mm)
Product Dimensions
PRODUCT DIMENSIONS INCL. BASE (H X W X D) – 499.57~629.57 (H) ×714.07 (W) × 400.13 (D)
GROSS WEIGHT INCL. PACKAGE (IN KG) – 15.2
Out The Box
Breaking the AOC AG324UX out of its box is, for a display of this size, a straightforward endeavor. Sandwiched between a pair of polystyrene sheets, this brand new gaming monitor from AOC might be securely strapped in but is not terribly hard to get to. Before liberating the panel, an AOC branded box needs to be unpacked and comes brimming with all the peripherals you’ll need to get connected, alongside the accompanying monitor stand.
The aforementioned collection of cabling clocks in with a standard kettle lead, a sizeable AC power brick, A USB C cable, a USB A to C cable, an additional micro USB attachment, cable management clips, a USB B attachment to hook up an on board hub, as well as a physical control switch that is definitely not a sporting feature. While AOC can’t be expected to cover every option. Before even getting as far as cable management, you’ll need to clear some serious space on the desktop to use the AOC AG324UX. While my other 32 inch display manages to sequester plenty of my oversized gaming desktop, the AOC AG324UX perches on a sizeable chunk of metal forged into a tripod style base and screwed into a black and red core that seems intent on intimidating all the other electronics in my home. This over engineered stand is well suited to the job of supporting AOC’s latest option, quickly coming together at a single screw point and never feeling like it will falter under the weight of some top tier specifications.
Looking Good
The core of the AOC AG324UX is an IPS panel with a nearly edgeless design. A barely perceptible rim of plastic protrudes around three edges of this 32 inch panel, which is nicely underlined by an AGON branded bezel at the bottom. Just to set things off, a svelte LED strip runs along the base of the AGON branding and this joins the latest trend of adding a branded projector too. The sides of the same display are uninterrupted by buttons or led dials. Instead, this flows into an angular shell at the rear. set around the VESA compatible mount in the center, an obvious set of LED elements come clawed into the back of the AOC AG324UX. This apes the same aesthetic as the stand, tying the whole construction together and reminding everybody in the room that this is a gaming display.
Less Room More Options
The AOC AG324UX is more than jsut an aggressive mix of metal mounts and plastic wrap, however. The hefty display houses a total of 4 downstream USB A ports via a USB 3.2 hub. At least one of these adds a fast charge option, delivering extra power to your phone or mobile devices, while a USB C connection adds to the connectivity with a DP alt mode, upstream data, and power delivery. This impressive lineup quickly makes amends for a frame that seems to hog every inch of available desk space. While a minimalist decoration might seem like the sensible approach after deploying this behemoth, the built in USB options combine with plenty of cable management to keep things tidy whether you’re using a single PC or mixing things up with a duet of gaming devices.
It is clear that AOC is aware that the AOC AG324UX takes up some serious space and if cramming in a PlayStation, Xbox, or extra PC onto a dwindling desktop is important, then this display really starts to stand out. Thanks to some genuine forethought by AOC, I was able to ditch separate setups for work and play. I went from two keyboards, mice, mics, and headsets to a single KVM supported setup for all scenarios. This is largely thanks to the upstream bandwidth and 90W power provided by the USB C port, while AOC joined the dots between these to allow easy switching from one computer to another without disconnecting any peripherals.
Color Me Impressed
First impressions of the AOC AG324UX are worth the 5 minutes of build time and are, thankfully, very impressive. The flat 32 inch surface is a huge playspace from across any desk and the entire UHD screen manages crisp image resolution and can handle the full 4K offerings of anything Microsoft and Sony have to offer at almost any viewing angle you’ll reasonably contort the AOC AG324UX into. This excellent introduction is partly due to the IPS panel housed in this unit, backed by white light emitting diodes across a total of 16 separate dimming zones. Combined, this gives a bright and present image across a wide variety of viewing angles when stacked up against many curved or flat panel alternatives.
When HDR mode is enabled, the bundled HDR400 certification gives images a fabulous dynamic range, where colors really pop and atmospheric titles like Shadow of the Tomb Raider and Metro Exodus really get to shine. Minute details are easily discernible where they might otherwise be flattened into the background and brand new cards like the Nvidia RTX 30 series get to exploit this when Ray Tracing turns on to absolutely steal the show. Although colors are fantastic looking, things took an odd turn when I set aside my own enthusiasm out of the and ran calibration using a Spyder X Pro. The results below are consistent across a range of settings and lighting conditions, giving coverage in the sRGB space and Adobe space that, while still great, is marginally below the expected numbers. This isn’t to say that 96% gamut in the sRGB color space is bad. It is still considerably better than much of the market and difficult to discern with the human eye, but it does raise some eyebrows given AOC’s own advertised numbers.
Speed and Performance
The AOC AG324UX might be better suited to plugging in a next gen console or blowing an esports tournament than working on professional-grade photography, but gentle landscapes aren’t going to win you any Grandmaster placements. Boasting an out the box refresh rate of 144 Hz, with a few more potentially on offer with 4 levels of auto overclock, the AOC AG324UX does keep up with even the twitchiest of League of Legends fans. When I jumped into Apex for several rounds of run and gun, pictures were as responsive as you might expect when a 1ms GtG time is plastered on the box and the monitor performed far better under pressure than I did. When breaking out of the battle royale arena and making for UFO tester, we managed to find ghosting at 144Hz so negligible it is barely worth mentioning, and couldn’t even clock any issues when down at 120 Hz. Where things get a bit odd is during overclocking. While response times were still fantastic and this display didn’t drop any frames, on screen ghosting became visible to the naked eye and we would recommend keeping things at 144Hz for an otherwise seamless experience.
Configuration and Options
There’s more to the AOC AG324UX than simply putting up a good fight in the Apex arena. This versatile purchase houses a ton of options, meaning switching from a horizon filled with spreadsheets to an HDR movie doesn’t require more than a few button presses. The supplied control switch proves invaluable for accessing the OSD controls, reconfiguring the aforementioned input and USB controls, but also allowing the use of Picture in Picture or Picture by picture mode, meaning multitasking is always an option.
Personally, I preferred to keep navigating between video feeds using the on screen menu, but with a business laptop and a gaming rig competing for my attention, the maze of color, luminance, audio DTS settings, and external lighting options could easily, prove tiresome. Thankfully AOC also add a Gamer Settings sub section to the OSD that, despite its rather opaque name, lists three pre-set profiles alongside another three user defined variations to make switching configuration nothing more than a few simple few clicks.
Despite looking fantastic on screen, the AOC AG324UX still manages a distinctive presence in any room. Audio is loud enough to actually be useful but can feel hollow. The DTS Audio pre-sets are a great solution to this problem and tighten the output, making this set of monitor cans a viable option if you want to bathe in the sound. While the AOC AG324UX might have solid enough audio oomph, the addition of an RGB light strip, a logo projector, and six additional elements on the back provide enough lighting that Thanksgiving fireworks are barely necessary. Much like other AOC branded peripherals, the decorative lighting here is simple to setup, can be independently arranged using the on screen settings, and is easily synched with other AOC purchases via the G-Tools desktop app. It does, however, feel wasted at times. Most of this display is decorated along the back, as you will see from our unboxing, meaning monitors up against a wall won’t really have the same impact as something sitting in the middle of a room.
My only other gripes with this offering continue to be with the illumination. The back facing RGB zones on the AOC AG324UX can’t be independently addressed, while the desktop control switch seems set to be red at all times, or at least can’t be changed using the company’s software. While the AOC projection can be modified using the OSD, all these feel like they should be present in the G-Tools software. This seems to be down to the linked Light FX settings. The G-Tools desktop app is limited to any lighting configuration shared by your peripherals, taking some of the AOC AG324UX’s more advanced options off the board.
Final Opinions
I’ve spent a couple of weeks testing the AOC AG324UX and it’s been something of a revelation for my office setup. The massive horizontal space might not be as immersive as a curved alternative and the jump from 27 to 32 inches is a costly one, but AOC isn’t looking to simply add to your desktop. The AOC AG324UX is intent on taking it over in every possible scenario. As somebody who mainly works from home, I cannot stress enough how much this changed my workflow, allowing me to simply turn off my additional monitors, cast aside the extra keyboard and mouse, free up some desk space and still be able to power all my peripherals whether I was on the clock or not. The AOC AG324UX plays jsut as hard as it works. It manages solid competitive performance and great responsiveness and oozes charisma while exploring AAA adventures on PC and console. With plenty of configuration options, great HDR support, and a capable sound setup, you’ll want to sit back and simply forget the world for the AOC AG324UX. You can check out the AOC AGON 4 Pro AG324UX in full on the official AOC website and find out where you can pick up one display to rule your desktop.
