Samsung Odyssey Neo G7 review: Mini-LED power for your gaming

With the Samsung Odyssey Neo G7 we're looking at another contender for one of the best 4K monitors on the planet right now – and our full Samsung Odyssey Neo G7 review will tell you everything you need to know about whether or not this is a good pick for you.

Note that this is the flat-screen, 43-inch version of the Odyssey Neo G7 – not the curved one. If you're checking online spec listings, we're reviewing the 'G70NC' model here. Previous models in the series, such as the Samsung Odyssey Neo G8, have impressed us in the past.

We've got plenty more expert advice when it comes to kitting out your computing and gaming setups at home. For example, you might want to take a look at our guides to the best gaming keyboard and the best lightweight laptops after you've read this review.

Samsung Odyssey Neo G7 review: price & availability

The Samsung Odyssey Neo G7 is out now and available to buy in both the UK and the US. For the latest prices on the web, check the widgets embedded alongside this review, but at the time of writing you're looking at paying around £1,200 or $1,000 for this monitor. If you're in the UK, you can pick it up from retailers such as Currys.

Samsung Odyssey Neo G7 review: design & setup

Samsung has gone for a really small stand here, which limits what you can do with the monitor in terms of positioning. On the plus side, there's a small footprint on the desk you're going to be using it on. We're fans of the small blue lights in each bottom corner (though you can't change the colour), though we're less enamoured with the mass of white plastic around the back. 

There are a few screws involved in the assembly, so you'll need to dig a screwdriver out, but overall the monitor doesn't take long to set up at all. Most people should be able to set up this device on their own without any assistance, too. The overall dimensions of the monitor and stand when put together are 961 x 635 x 254mm, and it all weighs 11.7kg.

The Odyssey Neo G7 certainly scores highly in terms of how many port options you get: one DisplayPort 1.4 and two HDMI 2.1, plus an Ethernet socket, a headphone jack, and two USB-A ports supporting USB 3.0 for connecting up any peripherals you have. These ports face to the left as you look at the back of the screen, which is slightly better in terms of access than having them face straight down – as is the case on a lot of other monitors.

You also get a little remote included in the box, which is essential for accessing all of the different settings and features in the on-screen menus, and there are quite a few of them to get through.

Samsung Odyssey Neo G7 review: features & picture

This is the first flat gaming monitor Samsung has produced using Mini-LED technology, with its smaller LEDs theoretically meaning improved contrast and clarity – helped further by 360 separate dimming zones. There's also a matte finish to reduce glare which we like. The other specs you'll want to know about are the 144Hz maximum refresh rate, the High Dynamic Range (VESA Display HDR600), AMD FreeSync Premium Pro support, and the 1 ms (MPRT) response time.

In actual use, the monitor produces an impressively bright and vibrant picture, with deep blacks and superior brightness that show the effect of Mini-LED technology. While there is some minor blooming in places and an occasional need to retune the monitor settings for different use-cases (which is as you would expect anyway), we like the performance of the Odyssey Neo G7 a lot. It's especially good for fast-paced gaming.

Differences in brightness and darkness are particularly well handled, and there's very little in the way of ghosting or trails that we could notice in games such as Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2 running on a Windows PC. We didn't test the monitor with a top-tier console like the PlayStation 5 or the Xbox Series X, but performance levels should be similar. 

It's also worth noting that the Odyssey Neo G7, like several other Samsung monitors, comes with the Tizen-powered TV Plus software built right in. With support for apps including YouTube, Netflix, Prime Video and Disney Plus, as well as serviceable speakers, you can quite easily use this as a television replacement in addition to a monitor – though the on-board software can be somewhat confusing to get around.

Samsung Odyssey Neo G7 review: Verdict

It's easy to see the appeal of this Mini LED monitor for gamers, especially with headline specs such as 144Hz refresh rate, plus the dedicated Game Bar which lets you adjust relevant settings as you're playing. Whether you're playing on PC or console, this is clearly one of the better options out there at the moment – whereas if you're doing computing first and gaming second, this kind of price point will likely feel like a mis-match.

That's not to say it's a bad monitor for working on documents. Not at all – but Samsung has clearly prioritised gaming here, and that should play into your decision. With its 4K resolution (3,840 x 2,160 pixels), 1,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, and typical 400 nits of brightness, it shows off games really well, and that extends to videos from the web or played over streaming apps too. It can cater for TV viewing too, so for some you'll want to consider this almost as a 43-inch gaming TV alternative, marrying the best of both worlds into one desktop solution.

As far as the price goes, well, it's Mini-LED – it's at the forefront of what you can get right now and, clearly, it's expensive. So if you're interested in this monitor, then it might be worth being patient and waiting for a good deal to grab it later down the like. Everything considered, though, it's another quality entry in the Neo series, especially for gamers seeking ace performance. 

Also consider

If you're looking for 43-inch alternatives for gaming, you might be better getting a TV rather than a monitor (though the lines are blurring between the two, of course). The Samsung Q60T brings with it Samsung's QLED technology and is available in a 43-inch size – it's also significantly cheaper than the Odyssey Neo G7, and so it might suit you better depending on what you're going to do with it (there is only one HDMI 2.1 out of its four ports, for example).

In terms of the best gaming monitors out there at the moment, the BenQ EX3410R offers a curved, ultrawide alternative to the Samsung that's significantly cheaper, though obviously it doesn't hit the lofty Mini-LED heights of the Odyssey Neo G7 when it comes to making your games look as good as they possibly can.