Asus ROG Strix XG27UCS gaming monitor review: Reasonably priced 4K, with some sacrifices

Good monitors are an integral part of a complete desktop gaming setup. Unlike with other components, such as a gaming headset that can become uncomfortable or a subpar microphone that impedes your ability to stream or play with friends, even a merely okay monitor will get the job done with minimal impact on your actual gameplay.

However, with budget-friendly and midrange monitors becoming more and more capable, you really don’t have to settle unless you want to. The Asus ROG Strix XG27UCS is a gaming monitor perched on the fence between the magical midrange and premium product territories. It’s not the absolute best of the best – that would be an OLED screen, in many gamers’ opinions – but it’s still a bright, snappy display that combines high refresh rates and a crisp 4K display for an overall gaming experience unrivaled by other IPS monitors.

About this review: Asus provided me with a ROG Strix XG27UCS monitor for the purpose of this review. Asus had no input in this article, and did not see its contents before publishing.

Price, specs, and availability

Expect to invest between $400 and $600 on a 27/28-inch 4K gaming monitor. With an MSRP of $500, the Asus ROG Strix XG27UCS falls in the middle of that range, beating out comparable monitors from brands like Gigabyte and Acer in terms of affordability.

Asus’ own US storefront is a good place to look for this gaming monitor, but it’s also available through Newegg and Amazon.

Design and connectivity

The XG27UCS lacks a little in the input department

The XG27UCS is business in the front, party in the back. With its scheme of dark grays and blacks, the accentual red ring around the monitor stand base is the most visually alluring component of the monitor – from the front. Asus’ artistic detail comes to life on the back of the display, where an intricate, circuit-board-like linework connects the controls and spreads across half of the panel. It’s almost a shame to see this design hidden in the back.

All the ports and buttons can be found on the rear – notably, there are no buttons along the monitor’s bottom edge. For ports on the Asus ROG Strix XG27UCS, we have one HDMI 2.1, one DisplayPort 1.4, and a USB-C port, as well as a 3.5mm jack for external audio devices. Some gamers may be disappointed to see only one HDMI 2.1 and only one DisplayPort. There’s no speakers on the monitor itself.

Despite the majority of this monitor’s aesthetic flair being on the back of the display, where visual appeal makes little difference, I do like the look of the XG27UCS. It mixes a mostly matte finish with gloss accents, in a very true-to-ROG style. You’ll certainly never forget what brand of monitor this is, with ROG branding appearing multiple times across the monitor base, stand, and display case itself, including a large ROG cutout on the back of the panel.

What I liked about the Asus ROG Strix XG27UCS

Good range of motion in the stand and (mostly) true-to-life color

The joystick-navigated on-screen display is fantastic. During its testing, the Strix XG27UCS replaced my aging AOC monitor, the menu navigation on which had required cumbersome button menu cycling.

On Asus’ monitor, I can quickly access core display settings like color profiles and input selection, as well as gamer-tailored perks like an on-screen FPS counter (although I have to admit that Asus’ on-screen counter is way too big for my liking) and cross-hairs for shooting assistance, without a bunch of annoying button presses.

Asus pays close attention to functional details with the XG27UCS. There’s a slit in the stand base to prop up your phone (or a small tablet), and a large cut-out in the stand itself to neatly funnel cables through. The stand’s range of motion is great, too.

While I encountered some ghosting during my ghosting test, the ghosting was actually imperceptible during any actual use of the monitor, including 4K gameplay and daily productivity.

What’s most important is the monitor’s color and clarity, and I didn’t have any complaints that aren’t already acknowledged by the limitations of an IPS panel. Asus rates the maximum brightness of the XG27UCS at 450 nits; by my measurement, the screen doesn’t get brighter than 446 nits, so that’s a negligible discrepancy.

Assuming you have a rig that can put out 4K games at 160 frames per second, this is a gorgeous monitor for gaming. I tested the XG27UCS with Baldurs Gate 3, Cyberpunk 2077, and Call of Duty, plus a handful of smaller indie titles, and the display was sharp and vibrant across the whole roster. Even Cyberpunk 2077’s ultra ray tracing gameplay looked sharp and clear, as much as can be on 160 fps anyway. I don’t typically play with Nvidia G-Sync turned on, but doing so does boost the XG27UCS’s motion clarity by a slight amount.

What I didn’t like about the Asus ROG Strix XG27UCS

IPS limitations still apply

Even a very, very good IPS monitor is still bound to the limitations of an IPS monitor. The area where the XG27UCS struggles most is contrast. Any true black shade will appear a very dark gray on the monitor; when I tested true black on the panel with a colorimeter, it consistently read as dark gray.

For many gamers, this won’t be a huge deal, and to most naked human eyes even those dark-dark grays are perceived as black. I even stopped noticing it as much over time. But if you have the XG27UCS on your desk next to an OLED or even a VA panel, like the Asus ROG PG32UCDP, you’re more likely to notice the difference.

Along the same lines, while 160 Hz will still output smooth, high-clarity, tear-free gaming, perhaps serious players, especially those focused on shooters, would want to consider a 240 Hz display instead.

One last thing. The XG27UCS lacks any RGB accents, something that I’m quite neutral on when it comes to monitors, but still worth mentioning with any gaming-dedicated form of hardware. There’s also the absent onboard speakers to consider, if that’s important to you.

Should you buy it?

You should buy the ROG Strix XG27UCS if:

• You’re a casual gamer prioritizing a quality display, but without going over budget
• You want a 4K display without spending more than $500
• You’re not ready to take the plunge into OLED territory
• You’re looking for a monitor with Nvidia G-Sync support

For $500, it’s a lot of monitor, but if you have an extra couple hundred dollars to invest in your display, 4K OLED options are within your reach.

You should NOT buy the ROG Strix XG27UCS if:

• You prioritize super color accuracy, with a stark contrast in particular
• You prefer your monitor to have onboard speakers
• You want an ultra-bright monitor

Is the ROG Strix XG27UCS worth it? I like that this monitor offers the Fast IPS technology that minimizes streaks and ghosting. Plus, the panel’s real-world performance aligned, for the most part, with its spec list. The display’s black tones turn out to be more of a dark gray, but this really isn’t that perceptible during regular use unless you have the XG27UCS right next to an OLED monitor.

Asus ROG Strix XG27UCS

$468 $499 Save $31