ASUS VA326H review: A little older but still competitive

Decision:

The ASUS VA326H is a really competitive gaming monitor in its segment. Given that we are looking at the Indian market, there is hardly any other 31.5-inch 144 Hz curved monitor than the BenQ EX3200R. The latter has the upper hand in terms of color accuracy and uniformity. And it’s even more adjustable than the VA326H, although that all comes at a 10% price increase. The VA326H sports a fairly even panel, but loses out in some areas that aren’t critical for gaming, so at the end of the day, you have a pretty decent gaming monitor in the VA326H.

ASUS VA326H Detailed Review

ASUS is probably one of the few companies that has something to offer in almost every PC product category. The only thing they’re lacking right now is a CPU, and that’s not going to change for a long time. For everything else, there are plenty of ASUS SKUs to choose from. Display is one category where Asus has been bringing out new technologies time and again. However, the VA326H we’re reviewing here isn’t a new offering. It has been around since late 2016 and came to India earlier this year. The monitor, however, remains priced competitively for its segment. The only other 32-inch/31.5-inch 1800R 144Hz monitor would be the BenQ EX3200R which also features a VA panel. Let’s see how the VA326H stacks up.

ASUS VA326H 31.5-Inch 1800R 144Hz Gaming Monitor

144Hz would be the current sweet spot for high-refresh rate monitors. You get a really high-refresh rate and it doesn’t break the bank. Sure you can get 240Hz monitors from top brands today, but they will leave your kidneys short. The VA326H uses an AHVA panel with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 and has plenty of I/O options. However, you’ll only be able to make the most of the VA326H if you use HDMI or dual-link DVI and analog D-Sub is limited to 75Hz.

The monitor’s curvature adheres to the 1800R standard and the AHVA panel offers 178-degree viewing angles along both planes. As far as tilt is concerned, the VA326H supports -3 to +10 degree tilt forward and backward which makes it a total of 13 degrees. The BenQ EX3200R, in comparison, offers a tilt of 25 degrees along the same axis.

The stand is quite wide and the center of gravity is low but the fact that there is no height adjustment is a bummer, especially considering the price range. Installing the stands is simple as they are mounted using only a pair of screws. If you prefer to wall mount, the VA326H also supports 10×10 VESA.

For I/O, the VA326H uses standard IEC C14 which means the power board is built into the monitor and for video cables, there’s DL-DVI, HDMI and VGA as mentioned earlier. In addition, there is also an audio pass.

The packaging comes with the monitor, stand and cables for all the ports present. Overall, the VA326H comes in a very standard package with no extra bells and whistles.

ASUS VA326H Specifications

ASUS VA326-Series Curved Gaming Monitor
		Asus VA326H
Panel		31.5 AHVA
native resolution		1920×1080
refresh rate range		144Hz via HDMI, DL-DVI 50~75Hz via D-Sub
Response Time		4 ms (gray-to-gray)
Glow		300cd/m²
Difference		3000:1
viewing angles		178°/178° Horizontal/Vertical
camber		1800 r
Input		1 × HDMI 1.4 with HDCP 1 × DL-DVI with HDCP 1 × D-Sub
Audio		audio in/out port
proprietary enhancements		Trace Free Technology Skin-Tone Selection: 3 Modes Color Temperature Selection: 4 Modes GamePlus Mode: Crosshair/Timer/Display Alignment Low Blue Light: Yes VividPixel: Yes GameVisual Modes: Scenery/Racing/Cinema/RTS/RPG/FPS/sRGB
power consumption	idle	~ 5 W
	Active	28 W at 200 cd/m²

Display

The VA326H has bright colors, but the AHVA panel doesn’t quite stand up to some of the flagship units we’ve seen over the past year. However, at its budget, the VA326H stands tall and shines. Or should we say bright and punchy.

The tone response seems to be slightly off the ideal curve. We don’t expect it to be bang in the center of most panels, especially those built for gaming.

Coming to color uniformity, we can see that the panel has a degrading gradient as we pan to the right. Values ​​as high as 3.8 are rarely seen. Generally, we see these moving towards the edges at 2.6-2.8. That being said, these numbers are still really good for any panel.

Luminance uniformity also experiences a similar gradient towards the right hand side of the panel. Double digit numbers are worrying, single digits where at best.

Here’s a summary of the best of the VA326H. We do see that the panel loses out somewhat in color accuracy and brightness uniformity, and even contrast levels. But that’s what you get for a non-manufacturer oriented panel. For something gaming-friendly, the VA326H is a great monitor.

Decision

The ASUS VA326H is a really competitive gaming monitor in its segment. Given that we are looking at the Indian market, there is hardly any other 31.5-inch 144 Hz curved monitor than the BenQ EX3200R. The latter has the upper hand in terms of color accuracy and uniformity. And it’s even more adjustable than the VA326H, although that all comes at a 10% price increase. The VA326H sports a fairly even panel, but loses out in some areas that aren’t critical for gaming, so at the end of the day, you have a pretty decent gaming monitor in the VA326H.