For a brief moment in time, Asus let one of its cats out of the bag. A webpage showed up on the company's website about a fancypants new 32" display, the ROG Swift PG32UCDM3. This new model has a 4K QD-OLED running panel at 240 Hz, complemented by a BlackShield filter that claims to offer an even deeper black level than the already-inky hue common in OLED displays and dramatically improved scratch prevention.
Technically speaking, the new display is the third generation of the existing PG32UCDM lineup. Note that the specs list we managed to dig up came from unofficial sources, but they all look in line with what we'd expect for a new revision.
The standard OLED fare is present, in the form of an effectively infinite 1,500,000:1 contrast ratio, 99% coverage of the DCI-P3 color space, and factory calibration with a Delta-E average of 2 or under. Things get more interesting with Dolby Vision support, standard HDR10, and DisplayHDR 500 True Black certification, which guarantees at least 500 nits of brightness in HDR mode.
Those are pretty good specs already, especially with the assumption the monitor a fourth-gen LG QD-OLED panel with higher and more stable brightness versus previous offerings. The true star of the show here, though, is the BlackShield Film, which Asus purportedly says offers a 40% deeper black level, along with 2.5x higher scratch resistance than before.
Although OLED displays are self-emissive and have zero black level by nature (and superior to any other display type), any ambient light is reflected on the panel surface, making pure black colors look ever so slightly grey or purple, especially in brightly lit rooms. Glossy coatings are the best to fix that, but those introduce distracting screen reflections, so panel and monitor makers often have to find a balanced trade-off, or come up with novel ideas, as Asus apparently has done.
The rest of the specifications are about what you'd expect from a high-end OLED display: 90 W USB-C power delivery, connectivity options including Display HDR 2.1a UHBR20 and HDMI 2.1, and an integrated hub. It's safe enough to assume that the included stand will be height and tilt-adjustable, and there will be RGB lighting on tap.
Given the specs of this unit, don't expect it to be affordable. The current PG32UCDM is often priced at $900 to $1,000, so the new version should command a premium over that figure.
