As you start ticking boxes on monitor specifications—bigger screen, faster refresh rate, higher resolution, and so forth—the price can quickly go up. MSI’s Optix MAG322CQR ticks a lot of them, hence its $429.99 list price, but you can get it on sale today for a much lower $269.99.
It’s actually marked down to $339.99 at Newegg, which is $60 lower than B&H Photo, and the same sale price as Micro Center. However, this is a ‘Shell Shocker’ deal with a $70 off promo code (93XRD53) that you can apply at checkout, to save a staggering $160 over its list price.
MSI Optix MAG322CQR 32-Inch Curved Monitor | 1440p | 165Hz | FreeSync | $429.99 $269.99 at Newegg (save $160)
This is a big and fast gaming monitor with FreeSync support, and if you apply coupon code 93XRD53 at checkout, you can get it for well below its list price.View Deal
That’s a heck of a bargain. And spec for spec, it qualifies it as the least expensive 32-inch gaming monitor on Newegg. The next cheapest is a Gigabyte model that’s on sale for $305.99 (down from $369.99). It’s even less expensive than the smaller (27-inch) and slower (144Hz) Gigabyte G27Q, which we consider the best gaming monitor with FreeSync support.
MSI’s monitor is built around a curved (1500R) VA panel with a 2560×1440 resolution. It has a fast 165Hz refresh rate and low 1ms response time (MPRT), and FreeSync support to boot. And while not listed as a G-Sync Compatible display, some folks on Reddit say it works just fine with G-Sync.
The spec sheet also lists this as being HDR-ready, though with a 300 nits max brightness rating, I wouldn’t recommend it specifically for HDR content—brightness matters when it comes to LCD screens and HDR. Most everything else looks swell, though, including (and especially) the high color gamut (96% and 124% coverage of the DCI-P3 and sRGB color spaces, respectively).
As for connectivity, you’re looking at DisplayPort 1.2a (x1), HDMI 2.0b (x2), and USB Type-C (x1, DisplayPort alternate) for video inputs, as well as two USB 2.0 ports and a 3.5mm headphone jack.