MSI MAG 273QP QD-OLED X24 26.5 Review UK 2026

The specification sheet and the actual display are often two very different things, which is why the spec list is only ever half the story. Manufacturers quote 0.03ms response times, 99% DCI-P3 coverage, and infinite contrast ratios, and most of those numbers are technically defensible in some narrow test condition that bears no resemblance to how you'll actually use the monitor. So this review of the MAG 273QP QD-OLED X24 reads its spec sheet with that in mind.

The MAG 273QP sits in an interesting position. It's a 26.5-inch WQHD QD-OLED panel running at 240Hz, which puts it squarely in the upper mid-range bracket. The MSI product page makes bold claims about colour accuracy and motion clarity. The job here is to put those claims in context.

The short version: this is an impressive panel with a few caveats that matter depending on your use case. The longer version follows below.

The panel is rated at 240Hz with a claimed 0.03ms grey-to-grey response time. The response time section puts that figure in context, but the headline is the self-emissive OLED advantage: pixel transitions happen at the organic compound level, so there's no liquid crystal alignment delay. The 240Hz refresh rate is supported over both DisplayPort 1.4a and HDMI 2.1; an older HDMI 2.0 port couldn't carry 1440p at 240Hz without compression.

Connectivity is built around video inputs. You get one DisplayPort 1.4a and two HDMI 2.1 ports, but no USB ports of any kind. The DisplayPort 1.4a standard supports up to 32.4 Gbps bandwidth. MSI has also included a headphone jack, which sounds basic but helps when you're switching between speakers and headphones during a session.

The practical consequence of this architecture is that the MAG 273QP delivers viewing angles that are essentially perfect. This is one area where OLED simply cannot be matched by IPS or VA panels. IPS glow at the corners is a non-issue here because there's no backlight to bleed. VA panels have better native contrast than IPS but still suffer from the characteristic corner glow and slow pixel transitions in dark scenes. Neither of those problems exist on this panel.

Black levels are genuinely black. Not "very dark grey" like a good IPS, not "deep black with some blooming" like a Mini-LED. Actual black, because pixels that aren't receiving a signal simply don't emit light. This transforms dark scene rendering in games and films. Shadow detail in dark games is presented with a clarity that backlit panels can't replicate, because the bright elements don't wash out the dark areas around them. The one trade-off worth mentioning is OLED burn-in risk. MSI includes pixel refresh cycles and a pixel shift feature to mitigate this, and modern QD-OLED panels have improved significantly in this regard, but it remains a consideration if you display static content for extended periods. MSI backs the panel with a three-year warranty that explicitly covers OLED burn-in, which takes much of the sting out of that risk.

MSI describes the screen as anti-reflection but doesn't say how glossy it is. What's true of QD-OLED generally is that the panel has no polariser, so in a bright room ambient light lifts blacks towards grey and reflections show more than on a matte IPS. If your desk faces a window, factor this in.

There's no backlight uniformity issue because there is no backlight. SDR brightness is lower than a high-brightness IPS panel but sufficient for typical indoor use. The real brightness story is in HDR mode, where the panel can hit significantly higher peaks on small highlights, covered in the HDR section.

Adaptive sync support covers both AMD FreeSync Premium Pro and NVIDIA G-Sync Compatible certification. The VRR range runs from 48Hz to 240Hz, which is a reasonable window. Low Framerate Compensation (LFC) kicks in below 48Hz to prevent tearing when frame rates drop significantly, though if you're regularly dropping below 48fps on a 240Hz monitor, you probably need a GPU upgrade more than a monitor upgrade. In practice, with a mid-to-high-end GPU targeting 1440p, you'll spend most of your time well within the VRR range.

Motion clarity at 240Hz is where this panel stands out. Because OLED pixels respond so quickly, there's no trailing or smearing behind fast-moving objects that you see on slower panels. In competitive shooters, that should make tracking enemies across the screen cleaner than on a 144Hz IPS, and it's where the rest of your setup from our best gaming peripherals guide pays off too. The high refresh rate also means each frame is displayed for a shorter duration, which reduces the persistence blur that makes motion look soft even on fast panels. OLED panels don't use backlight strobing, which some competitive players prefer for maximum motion clarity, but at 240Hz the natural persistence blur is already low.

Wide gamut cuts both ways for content creation. If you're editing photos or video intended for sRGB delivery (which is most web content), a wide-gamut panel running unclamped will display oversaturated colours that don't reflect what your audience will see. MSI's OSD Pro Mode includes sRGB, Adobe RGB and Display P3 presets, so you can clamp the panel to the colour space you're working in. The trade-off is that those presets lock settings such as colour temperature, low blue light and contrast.

The DCI-P3 colour space is the standard for digital cinema, and 99% coverage means this panel suits video colour grading if you're working in a DCI-P3 pipeline.

HDR is where this monitor separates itself from LCD-based alternatives. The combination of infinite contrast and 1000-nit rated peak highlights produces HDR content that looks like HDR content, not just slightly brighter SDR. In HDR10 games, the difference between a torch flame against a dark background and the same scene on a 400-nit IPS panel is stark. The OLED's black floor means the flame appears to float in true darkness rather than sitting on a dark grey background. This is what HDR is supposed to look like, and most LCD monitors, even expensive ones with local dimming, can't replicate it.

DisplayHDR certification requires HDR10 support, and for gaming HDR10 is the format that matters. One note: HDR mode does reduce the effective brightness ceiling in SDR areas of the image, which is a characteristic of tone mapping rather than a panel deficiency.

In SDR mode, MSI rates typical brightness at 250 nits, lower than a high-brightness IPS panel, which can reach 400-500 nits in SDR, and this does mean the MAG 273QP is less suitable for very bright rooms. If you work near a south-facing window in summer, you may find yourself fighting reflections and wishing for more brightness headroom. In a controlled or dim environment, that matters far less.

The ABL (Automatic Brightness Limiting) behaviour is worth understanding. Like all OLED panels, the MAG 273QP reduces brightness on large bright areas to manage heat and power consumption. A full-white screen will be noticeably dimmer than a screen with a small bright element on a dark background. This is a fundamental characteristic of OLED technology, not a defect. For gaming and video content it's rarely noticeable, but for productivity work involving large white document backgrounds, the brightness will be lower than the peak figures suggest. It's not a dealbreaker, but it's a real characteristic that LCD panels don't share.

The monitor body itself is slim, as you'd expect from an OLED panel without a thick backlight assembly.

VESA compatibility is 100x100mm, the standard pitch for monitors in this size class, so any standard 100x100mm VESA arm will work, and one with integrated cable management is the tidiest option for a clean desk setup.

• 1x DisplayPort 1.4a
• 2x HDMI 2.1
• 1x 3.5mm headphone output

There are no USB ports at all: no USB hub, no USB-B upstream and no USB-C. That's an omission that matters if you want to connect a laptop with a single cable for both video and data, or plug a keyboard and mouse into the monitor. At this price point, USB-C with Power Delivery is becoming more common, and its absence is a legitimate criticism.

The OSD is navigated with MSI's Navi Key, a small multi-directional joystick on the back of the panel.

For a comprehensive overview of options in this category, see our guide to the best PC accessories and monitors. Against IPS alternatives at a similar price, the OLED advantage in contrast and motion clarity is substantial. A 240Hz IPS panel at this price tier will have better peak SDR brightness and no burn-in concern, but it cannot match the black levels, colour volume, or response time of the QD-OLED. The choice between OLED and IPS at this price point comes down to use case: if you spend significant time in bright rooms or display static content for hours at a time, IPS is the safer choice. For gaming and media consumption in a controlled environment, the QD-OLED is the better display by a meaningful margin.

The value calculation depends on your priorities. If you're a competitive gamer who wants fast, clear motion at 1440p, the combination of 240Hz and OLED motion clarity is difficult to match at this price. If you're primarily a productivity user who works with large white document backgrounds in a bright room, the OLED brightness characteristics make a high-brightness IPS a more practical choice.

That edge case is real but specific. The QD-OLED panel quality is not something you can replicate with a cheaper LCD alternative.

The limitations are real but bounded. The screen needs some thought about room lighting. SDR brightness is lower than high-brightness IPS alternatives. And burn-in, while much improved on modern QD-OLED panels, remains a consideration for static content use. None of these are dealbreakers for the target audience, but they're worth knowing before you buy.

Affiliate disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you purchase through our links, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. This does not influence our editorial scores or recommendations.