Samsung Odyssey G90XF 27" Mercury Silver 2025

The glasses-free 3D is a cool party trick that actually works, and the 2D panel is top-notch. But the software required to use the 3D is a crash-prone nightmare that sours the whole experience. Unless you're a die-hard 3D fan with money to spare, skip this and buy a fantastic OLED for less.

In standard 2D mode, this thing is a champ. You get a crisp 4K resolution at a smooth 165Hz refresh rate with a 1ms response time, and it plays nice with both FreeSync Premium and G-Sync. For creative work, our database puts it in the 89th percentile for color, which is fantastic for an IPS panel not aimed solely at professionals. The 3D performance is a different story. When the eye-tracking and Odyssey 3D Hub software cooperate, the effect is immersive and has real depth. But the software crashes on launch for a lot of people, there's no simple manual toggle to force 3D on or off, and you'll see some ghosting and crosstalk in fast-moving scenes. The edge-lit backlight also can't keep up with the action, leading to some uneven lighting in dark scenes.

Stacked against the competition, the G90XF is in a strange spot. A pure gaming beast like the ASUS ROG Strix XG27AQDPG or the MSI MAG 271QPX QD-OLED E2 will give you a superior 2D gaming experience with perfect blacks and faster response times for less money. The Gigabyte M Series OLED MO27U2 SA is another strong 4K OLED contender that outclasses this Samsung in pure image quality. Even the LG UltraGear 45GX950A-B offers a more immersive experience through sheer size and a curve, rather than a software trick. The G90XF only wins if you absolutely must have that glasses-free 3D, and you're willing to trade overall panel quality and stability to get it.

Value is the G90XF's biggest hurdle. This monitor is expensive, with a price spread that's frankly absurd, ranging from $980 to nearly $13,000 across different vendors. The sweet spot seems to be around that lower end, but even at $980, you're paying a huge premium for the 3D feature over a standard 27-inch 4K 165Hz IPS monitor that would cost half as much. You're not paying for a premium panel technology like OLED, you're paying for the experimental 3D layer and the software. If the software were flawless, you could maybe justify it as a unique experience. But given its current state, it feels like paying to be a beta tester.

Samsung's Odyssey G90XF is a genuinely weird monitor, and I mean that as a compliment. It's a 27-inch 4K IPS panel running at 165Hz, which is already a solid foundation for gaming and creative work. But the headliner is the glasses-free 3D tech. Using eye-tracking cameras, it creates a spatial 3D effect that feels like a giant Nintendo 3DS, and when it works, it's pretty stunning. The 2D picture quality is excellent too, with 99% sRGB coverage and punchy colors that make games and movies pop. The problem is the software that makes the magic happen is a buggy mess, and that turns a cool piece of hardware into a frustrating gamble.

If you need a reliable, no-fuss monitor for competitive gaming or professional color work, look elsewhere. The buggy software and edge-lit backlight's ghosting issues make it a liability. You can get a superior OLED panel with true HDR and better motion clarity for less money, and you won't have to fight with crash-prone software to use your monitor.

The Samsung Odyssey G90XF is a brilliant tech demo that's not quite ready for prime time. The hardware is capable and the 3D effect is a genuine crowd-pleaser in short bursts, but the unreliable software makes it impossible to recommend as a daily driver. This is for the hardcore 3D enthusiast who has cash to burn and the patience to troubleshoot. If you just want a fantastic gaming monitor, there are better, more reliable, and cheaper options all over the market.