The best gaming monitors don’t have to be pretty to be functional. Top performance is certainly a key element, but gaming is much more fun when your display looks the part. Many manufacturers add an attractive aesthetic to their gaming screens, but AOC’s Agon line goes up a level from the rest thanks to a relationship with the famed Porsche Design.

Porsche Design isn’t only known for penning legendary sports cars with engines in the back. It also lends its name and expertise to various products, from watches to sunglasses. And it was indeed founded by F.A. Porsche, who conceived the original 911. If that isn’t a timeless piece of rolling art, I don’t know what is.

AOC has produced several gaming monitors with Porsche Design’s help, and the latest example is the Agon Pro PD49. It brings high performance and high style to a 49-inch 32:9 QD-OLED panel with 240 Hz, Adaptive-Sync, HDR400 and wide gamut color. Let’s take a look.

AOC Agon Pro PD49 Specs

Curved monitors have gone from the answer to a question no one asked to an essential gamer’s tool in just a few years. The pinnacle of the format is the 49-inch 32:9 category. This layout is becoming more popular as an alternative to putting two 27-inch screens on the desktop. With DQHD 5120×1440 resolution, you can have 109ppi pixel density and lots of screen area with no dividing line.

The PD49 brings every bell and whistle to the party. It’s an OLED with an 1800R curve, which is enough for greatness on its own. To that, it adds a Quantum Dot layer for wide gamut color. And it’s very wide; indeed, I measured over 115% coverage of DCI-P3 in my tests. That’s a whole lotta color. There is bonus saturation in every primary. Out-of-box accuracy is decent as well. Calibration isn’t strictly required, but there has been some improvement after a few tweaks.

The PD49 is certified for HDR 400 TrueBlack, and it easily met this spec in my tests using a 25% white window. With constant brightness turned off, you can expect peaks around 1,000 nits from small highlights. And as a premium OLED, it delivers the same perfect black levels as every other OLED I’ve reviewed. The picture quality is stunning.

With a 240 Hz maximum refresh rate, smooth motion is no problem. There is no need for overdrive, and there is no strobing option. But it isn’t too difficult to run at 240fps. And at speeds over 150fps, there is no motion blur whatsoever. Measured input lag is also very lo,w so you won’t have a problem dominating opponents in your favorite virtual battles.

Physically, the PD49 is nothing less than industrial art. The stand is a substantial piece of cast aluminum that weighs more than some complete monitors. The back of the panel is adorned with vertical lines and logos that glow with soft LED lighting. There are plenty of inputs, all the latest versions, DisplayPort 1.4, HDMI 2.1 and a USB-C for video. KVM is supported by one upstream and four downstream USBs. A pair of eight-watt internal speakers deliver quality audio with DTS tuning and user tweakability.

The PD49 sells for $1,200 at this writing, which is on par with other monitors in its class. The small upcharge for elegant design is appropriate. You can save a few bucks if you just want a competent 49-inch OLED gaming monitor but none I’ve seen look as good when the power is off.

Assembly and Accessories

The PD49 comes in a coffin-like enclosure with its contents protected by flexible foam rather than the crumbly stuff. The stand is already assembled and bolts onto the back of the panel with four included fasteners. A nice Phillips-head screwdriver is included for that purpose. If you’d rather use an arm, a 100mm VESA mount is provided. The cable bundle includes IEC power, two USBs, DisplayPort and HDMI. A USB thumb drive, by Porsche Design of course, contains manuals, drivers and an app to make the OSD accessible from the Windows desktop.

Product 360

It’s hard for today’s thin bezel monitors to set themselves apart from the front view, but the PD49 has a stand that can only be described as monolithic. It’s made from six heavy aluminum castings fused into a super solid mass that is a pleasure to look at. It offers full ergonomics with 3/13 degrees tilt, 20 degrees swivel and a 5.1-inch height adjustment. Movements are firm and smooth with the feel of a finely tuned machine. The PD49 is incredibly overbuilt and should endure many years of use.

The screen sports a thin flush bezel that’s a half-inch wide around the top and sides and one inch at the bottom. The front logo says Porsche Design, while AOC and Agon get their visibility in the back, where those logos include LED backlighting. That can be set to flash, breathe or remain steady in a variety of colors. Or you can turn them off for a stealth look. Another LED adds a soft glow to the desktop. The vertical line theme carries over with shiny molded in bits set off against a matte background. The stand includes a small cable management clip.

The 1800R curvature strikes a good balance between immersion and practicality. There are curvier screens out there, but the PD49 avoids any possibility of image distortion. It is extremely useful for productivity as well as entertainment. It is just like having two 27-inch QHD monitors, except there’s no dividing line.

The input panel is well stocked with one DisplayPort 1.4, two HDMI 2.1 and a USB-C for video sources. HDMI supports 2560×1440 resolution at 120 Hz for consoles. PCs can enjoy the full 5120×1440 at 240 Hz through DisplayPort or USB-C. There is also a KVM hub with one upstream and four downstream USB ports. A 3.5mm jack supports headphones and there are two internal speakers driven by eight watts of clean power. DTS tuning raises the audio quality to a high level, and you can tweak eq settings in the OSD.

OSD Features

All Agon Pro monitors, like the PD49, get AOC’s cascading menu rather than the bottom of the screen ribbon. A small joystick in the center of the panel’s bottom edge controls everything. Or you can use the app included on the thumb drive to change settings from the Windows desktop.

The OSD is divided into eight sections, starting from the bottom with Game Setting. It has a selection of Game Modes, shadow control and boost for lighter blacks and a color slider to increase saturation. Game aids include a sniper mode and two aiming points that can be toggled by clicking the joystick towards you. One is always red and the other changes between red and black to maintain contrast with the background. You can also engage a frame counter.

The Luminance menu has picture modes (Standard is the only one you’ll need), three gamma presets and the Uniform Brightness option. Turn this off to see the PD49’s maximum light output. I did all my tests and gaming with it off. When it’s on, the picture is darker in tone and somewhat dull unless you turn all the room lights off and play at night.

The HDR options are found in Image Setup, where four additional HDR picture modes provide subtly different luminance curves to suit different content. Hint: stick with HDR TrueBlack for the best picture in all situations. HDR emulation is possible in SDR mode with the other three HDR modes. This menu also has PIP and PBP options to view two video sources at once.

In Color Setup, you can choose between three fixed color temps and a user mode with RGB controls. There are 10 gamut options that cover all standards currently in use from sRGB to BT.2020. Panel Native is the best choice there because it uses the PD49’s full capability which covers over 115% of DCI-P3.

The Audio menu offers five DTS sound modes plus TruVolume HD which enhances sound dynamically. If you want to tweak, there’s also a five-band equalizer. Light FX is the LED lighting feature, and it can be set to a variety of effects and colors. It employs the two backlit logos on the back plus a soft pool of light for the desktop.

The final menu, Extra, has several panel care options including a pixel orbiter and refresh tool. You can also set an off timer, change the image aspect ratio and return all settings to their factory defaults.

AOC Agon Pro PD49 Calibration Settings

The PD49 measured well out of the box in my tests and doesn’t strictly need calibration, but I found the image to be a tad warm in tone. A few tweaks of the RGB sliders took care of that and tightened up color saturation tracking as well. The improvement is subtle but worth the effort. My recommended settings are below. For HDR content, stick with TrueBlack as it is the most accurate choice with correct luminance tracking and near-perfect color. I also recommend leaving Uniform Brightness off for maximum image impact.

Gaming and Hands-on

Though OLED gaming monitors represent a premium (expensive) category, one thing about them is undeniable, all examples at a particular refresh rate perform the same. Where LCDs can differ in the quality of their overdrives and strobe features, OLEDs will always provide perfect motion resolution above 200fps. The PD49 showed no motion blur, no frame tears, and no artifacts at any time during my gameplay sessions. And its input lag is among the lowest of any monitor. A professional player might want the super low lag of a 500Hz screen but for most of us, the 21ms delivered by the PD49 will be plenty quick.

In my experience, this means precise aim and movement. I always play Doom Eternal because it’s familiar so comparisons are easy and accurate. Every 240 Hz OLED I’ve reviewed gives me the same feel. Run and gun maneuvers are easy because I can turn and shoot without overcompensating, even when the action is frantic. The aim point stops precisely on target, so I don’t waste ammo. And difficult jumps are nearly always successful. There’s nothing worse than erasing game progress with a fall off a cliff. The PD49 keeps that from happening.

The picture is a stunner as well. HDR is an addictive experience both for its bright highlights and rich color. The PD49 lets you play SDR games with that same wide color gamut but it’s more effective in HDR titles because that’s the way they’re encoded. Black levels are incredibly deep but never lacking in shadow detail. Though the PD49 includes two shadow enhancer controls, they are completely unnecessary because low-end gamma is on the mark. I noted gamma issues in the brighter areas though where a few highlight areas seemed disproportionately bright. This is a small problem that is more obvious to someone who plays on a lot of different gaming monitors, but it is worth noting.

For daily tasks, the PD49’s 1800R curve is perfect for keeping multiple documents and windows open. If you are a fan of multiple screens, a 49-inch 32:9 monitor delivers that same functionality without the dividing line. And at current prices, it’s less expensive than buying two 27-inch QHD OLEDs.

Things unique to the PD49 are, of course, its high style and build quality. I am not blessed with the means to own a Porsche automobile, but this monitor delivers the same feel as a luxury sports car. It’s gorgeous to look at and it drips with premium style. Moving the panel through its adjustments is an uplevel experience from most of the monitors I encounter.

I also noted the PD49’s excellent sound quality. Large monitors make it possible to include better speakers and AOC has delivered here. While there isn’t a ton of bass, the sound is rich and full, with excellent clarity. At half volume, I more than filled my personal space with game music and effects. The DTS modes are useful too with distinct differences heard between them.

Takeaway: The PD49 performs on par with the other 49-inch 240 Hz QD-OLED monitors I’ve tested. It’s extremely colorful and accurate. It delivers the contrast all OLEDs are known for. It’s the perfect gamer’s tool with no motion blur and super quick response. And it’s equally well suited for work and play. Plus, it rises above the rest with premium styling and build quality.

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Christian Eberle is a Contributing Editor for Tom’s Hardware US. He’s a veteran reviewer of A/V equipment, specializing in monitors. Christian began his obsession with tech when he built his first PC in 1991, a 286 running DOS 3.0 at a blazing 12MHz. In 2006, he undertook training from the Imaging Science Foundation in video calibration and testing and thus started a passion for precise imaging that persists to this day. He is also a professional musician with a degree from the New England Conservatory as a classical bassoonist which he used to good effect as a performer with the West Point Army Band from 1987 to 2013. He enjoys watching movies and listening to high-end audio in his custom-built home theater and can be seen riding trails near his home on a race-ready ICE VTX recumbent trike. Christian enjoys the endless summer in Florida where he lives with his wife and Chihuahua and plays with orchestras around the state.