The best has evolved even further. That's the natural conclusion of the new Samsung Odyssey Neo G9. After all, the original Odyssey G9 was already Samsung's top gaming monitor. And now it has been given a much-needed upgrade. Yes, the Neo G9 has a mini LED backlight.

Previously, the Samsung Odyssey G9 had a lot to offer, including a 49-inch 32:9 aspect panel with an extreme wraparound curve and the minor issue of 7 megapixels thanks to its 5,120 x 1,440 native resolution. In addition, the VA panel technology provided an eye-popping 1,000 nits of brightness while delivering 2,500:1 static contrast. In addition, the pixel response of the original G9 was rated at 1 ms from gray to gray, an achievement usually only achievable with IPS or TN panels.

As for features such as 240Hz refresh and adaptive sync, these are par for the course for ultra high-end gaming displays in this class. Of course, these amazing technologies are wrapped up in a suitably expensive and fancy thread, such as a chassis and stand that only a large company like Samsung could design. By some measures, the original G9 was truly unbeatable.

Now, the Samsung Odyssey Neo G9 inherits all its good qualities. Out of the box, it looks the same as the old G9. But deep down, the most obvious shortcomings of the original G9 have been addressed. And it's more than that. The original G9 had a rudimentary edge-lit backlight that theoretically delivered impressive HDR 1000 performance. Sure, it was very powerful. Sure, there were local dimming zones. But the number was only 10. In reality, its advertised local dimming was a bit of a scam. Instead, the G9 got by with the superior contrast inherent in VA panels.

The Neo G9 still has a great VA panel. But the new backlight is not only full-array dimming instead of edge-lit dimming; it has state-of-the-art mini-LED technology with over 2,048 zones. This is several steps more sophisticated than before. As if this wasn't enough, the Neo G9's peak brightness has doubled to a retina-destroying 2,000 nits. What a beast.

As a further upgrade, the Neo G9 now supports HDMI 2.1. So you can enjoy up to 144 Hz refresh via HDMI, including 120 Hz on the latest gaming consoles; full 240 Hz refresh is only possible via DisplayPort. Also keep in mind that, for now, neither Microsoft's Xbox Series X|S nor Sony's PlayStation 5 support the G9's extreme ultrawide aspect ratio and resolution; an HDMI 2.1 interface may come in handy someday, but for now, This spectacular panel is not suitable for any gaming console.

Nor, frankly, is it the technological tour de force we had hoped for. The problem with backlight-based rather than pixel-by-pixel local dimming technology is that compromises have to be made. Put another way, an algorithm must determine the brightness of an arbitrary zone based on image data. The result is never perfect.

Visible halos around small, bright objects are the kind of problem one would expect from full array dimming. However, the Neo G9 has some surprisingly crude, backlight-induced image quality issues. Indeed, it is most noticeable on a Windows desktop, not while gaming or watching video. For example, if you place a completely black window next to a completely white window, the edges of the former will be visibly darker. Or suppose you move a small bright object onto a dark background. The same thing happens. The small, bright object becomes dimmer. Even uglier, if something like a bright dialog box appears across the light and dark areas, the result is a brightness gradient across the entire box.

Incidentally, this all applies to both SDR and HDR modes, and on a Windows desktop, it all becomes rather cluttered and distracting. This monitor is not designed for serious content creation or office work. However, at this price point, it is definitely a serious flaw.

The question of whether it is a problem worth putting up with in exchange for an in-game experience is tricky. Everything that was great about the original G9 is still there. In terms of immersion in the game, the crazy 1000R curve, the massive 49-inch proportions, and the relatively high resolution combine to provide an experience like no other screen. Graphics-intensive titles like "Cyberpunk 2077" and "The Witcher III" are where the G9 excels the most. In that sense, the Samsung Odyssey Neo G9 provides arguably the best visual experience on PCs today.

It is also unbeatable when it comes to competitive online shooters. We don't know how Samsung recently produced such a fast VA panel. But in any case, it's impressive: even with the most aggressive of the three user-configurable overdrive levels in the Neo G9's OSD menu, there is no obvious overshoot. It is just plain fast. This is very, very fast.

Latency is similar: running at 240 Hz, the Neo G9 feels lightning fast if you have the megabucks GPU needed to drive at really high frame rates. Normally, this is a serious problem. But if you can afford this 49-inch monster, you can probably afford an equally expensive graphics board.

The final piece of the puzzle is HDR performance. Again, the story is a bit more complicated. The best HDR content is truly amazing. It is also much harder to pick up on backlighting issues, which are very noticeable on desktops. However, the Neo G9 is not as dramatic an upgrade from the old G9 as one might expect from a significant increase in dimming zones and doubling of peak brightness.

Furthermore, SDR content is not handled well in HDR mode. Some screens can be set to render SDR almost indistinguishably in both SDR and HDR modes. This is convenient because it allows the user to simply switch HDR modes. With the Neo G9, however, it is necessary to switch modes to get the best experience. Another surprising oversight is that both Pixel Overdrive and Adaptive Refresh cannot be enabled at the same time.

Overall, the Samsung Odyssey Neo G9 is both a great experience and a victim of the high expectations we initially implied. Its ancestor was a very good display with some fairly obvious shortcomings involving backlighting technology. On paper, the Neo G9 completely fills that shortcoming. In reality, the Neo G9's mini-LEDs cause as many problems as they solve. It is also worth noting that at this price point, there are many options. The most obvious choice would be a large 120 Hz OLED TV with an HDMI 2.1 connection.

In fact, for much less money, you can get an OLED TV with even better pixel response, perfect per-pixel illumination, and no bother with dimming zones and clunky algorithms. Of course, the OLED option has its own drawbacks, especially when used as a PC monitor rather than a console gaming panel. But in terms of cost-effectiveness, they are not as flattering.