ASUS ROG Swift PG43UQ Review
Up Close Continued
On the side we find the audio jacks, USB 3.0 ports as well as the header, and the second of two HDMI ports. We’ve never been big fans of having HDMI ports on the side of our displays, even if we can appreciate the ergonomic benefits that having the USB ports there can bring.
The main connectivity comes in the form of two HDMI 2.0 ports and two DisplayPort 1.4. There is also a USB cable to enable the AURA Sync lighting. We’re somewhat surprised that the Swift doesn’t have HDMI 2.1 ports given how the next gen consoles will use that format, as will the next generation of GPUs. It’s a small thing, and with a 4K panel there is enough bandwidth on the 2.0 format to keep the panel fed, but we’d have liked a little future-proofing at this price point.
With such a large format many of you will be keep to wall mount the ROG Swift, and the VESA 100 mount on the rear makes this a cinch. Theoretically you could also mount the PG43UQ to a desk arm, but at near 20KG you’d struggle to find an arm capable of supporting it.
Rather than being built into the monitor the power brick is an external affair and one that, in our opinion, could do with more cable for our particular setup. It’s a minor thing, but considering how cheap cable is, we’re endlessly annoyed at how companies always provide you with the minimum possible amount. Anyone who has plugged the CPU 8-pin into their motherboard on a larger chassis will understand what we mean. It affects all hardware, and the PG43UQ is no exception.
Proving that the Swift PG43UQ straddles that line between the display fidelity of a monitor and the size/use of a television, it comes with a remote control. We have to think back to hybrid displays like the Samsung T240HD to remember the last remote we had.
With such a huge amount of technology packed into the PG43UQ it is no surprise that the OSD is a fully featured affair, whether you’re just fine-tuning the colour balance for your own preference and setup location, or delving deep into the heart of the additional toys you have to play with on a ROG monitor. Naturally the Swift comes with a software utility to enable you to control all of this with a mouse, which is our preferred method.
There are two different HDR modes available, with the regular HDR10 being okay, but not mind-blowing. The HDR sRGB mode though left us open-mouthed for a surprising amount of time. If you’ve got the hardware to utilise it, the difference is staggering.
