One of the newest display technologies is Mini LED, which aims to marry the glaring brightness levels and pleasant viewing angles of IPS LCD to the deep contrast ratios and punchy colors of OLED.
Not too long ago, it would’ve felt impossible to obtain a decent Mini LED monitor or TV for less than $1,000, but one company is aggressively pushing in the right direction. Xiaomi, the company known for making everything from lamps to literal cars, also makes the G Pro 27i, a mid-range, 27-inch gaming monitor with a Quantum Dot Mini LED display and a 180Hz refresh rate — all for less than $400.
The Xiaomi G Pro 27i feels unreal as a value play, netting you all the benefits of Mini LED and 1,152 individual local dimming zones but at a fraction of the cost. This monitor can get absurdly bright and its blacks can reach ridiculous depths, but Mini LED introduces some new compromises of its own… and you can see where Xiaomi had to cut corners to reach this price point.
I spend dozens of hours a week in front of at least one monitor just for my job, and that’s not counting extra time I put in for gaming and media consumption. With the tools for testing color accuracy and the experience gained from reviewing monitors of all shapes and sizes, I can tell you exactly what’s worth paying for.
This review was made possible thanks to a review sample provided by Xiaomi. Xiaomi had no input nor saw the contents of this review prior to publication.
Xiaomi G Pro 27i review: Pricing and specifications
- The G Pro 27i retails for $369.99, well under the $400 mark.
- That makes it one of the most affordable Mini LED monitors.
- You have few accessories in the box, though.
Xiaomi G Pro 27i
Price: $369.99 at Amazon
Display type: 27-inch IPS LCD w/ Quantum Dot & Mini LED
Display resolution: 16:9 aspect ratio, 2,560 x 1,440 resolution
Display features: 1,152 local dimming zones, 180Hz refresh rate, 1ms response time, 1,000 nits max brightness, VESA DisplayHDR 1000 support, AMD FreeSync support, 100% sRGB & 99% DCI-P3 color gamuts, VESA mounting support (75 x 75mm)
Weight: 6.8kg w/ stand (15 lbs)
Mini LED displays come with a lot of benefits over IPS LCD, but they’re also a lot more expensive. Prices have come down in recent years, though, and the Xiaomi G Pro 27i is one of the best deals you’ll find on a gaming monitor with these kinds of capabilities. The Xiaomi G Pro 27i is available for $369.99 at Amazon, and it is available around the world (not a guarantee with Xiaomi, a China-based company).
This is a 27-inch QHD (1440p) display combining IPS LCD, Mini LED, and Quantum Dot technologies to improve brightness levels, contrast ratios, and color reproduction. To help drive costs down, this monitor lacks some extra features like additional USB ports or integrated speakers, but you still get a factory calibration sheet with the monitor to verify its color accuracy.
In the box, you’ll find the Xiaomi G Pro 27i, the included mounting stand, a rear panel to cover the ports, and a DisplayPort 1.4 cable. This monitor is covered by Xiaomi’s standard 1-year global warranty.
Xiaomi G Pro 27i review: The good
- This two-tone design looks clean and is easy to set up.
- Image quality is also quite good, especially when it comes to gaming.
- Ridiculously high brightness and contrast levels make HDR great.
The Xiaomi G Pro 27i is far from the most premium monitor, and that’s reflected in the materials used to construct it, but I am a big fan of this two-tone, black-and-white design. Slim bezels on three sides of the display, a black frame, and a white protruding rear to house the internals, ports, and ventilation make for a sleek and clean design. Xiaomi also includes a removable plastic rear panel to hide the ports when you’re done setting up, and there’s a customizable rear RGB ring light to provide some character.
Speaking of the setup process, the G Pro 27i is straightforward, even if it’s not the simplest. The included stand (a traditional triangular, dual-leg design) snaps effortlessly onto the back of the monitor, but you have to manually attach the legs to the stand with four standard screws (rather than the toolless design most modern monitors use). The monitor also reacts to movement with shaking and wobbling while attached to its stand if you’re particularly sensitive to that. This monitor supports 75mm VESA mounting, but the bracket isn’t included in the box.
Turn it on, and you’ll be met with that 27-inch QHD display. This is an interesting one.
| Setting | Brightness | Black | Contrast | White point |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0% | 53.4 | 0 | 0:1 | 6,700 (0.312, 0.313) |
| 25% | 196 | 0.01 | 14,310:1 | 6,700 (0.312, 0.313) |
| 50% | 404.9 | 0.03 | 14,620:1 | 6,700 (0.312, 0.313) |
| 75% | 620.7 | 0.06 | 11,290:1 | 6,700 (0.311, 0.313) |
| 100% | 846.5 | 0.07 | 12,250:1 | 6,700 (0.311, 0.312) |
First, a brief breakdown. The underlying display tech in the Xiaomi G Pro 27i is IPS LCD, which you’ll see on most phones, laptops, monitors, and TVs. However, you also have 1,152 local dimming zones — basically, imagine that this monitor is hundreds of tiny IPS LCD displays all working together to become one major display, and you’ve got the gist of Mini LED. On top of that, Quantum Dot tech is here to make colors punchier and help the G Pro 27i hit a wider gamut of colors.
On paper, this combination of technology makes for a truly stellar display. Factory-calibrated to 100% and 99% of the sRGB and DCI-P3 color gamuts (which the G Pro 27i does indeed hit), this display is color-accurate enough for creative work. I also clocked a max brightness of 846.5 nits, a retina-burning maximum that’ll be overkill for most people and offices (but it’s certainly nice to have).
Despite that brightness, the Xiaomi G Pro 27i still boasts very impressive contrast levels. Thanks to local dimming zones, this monitor can hit contrast ratios over 10,000:1 — still shy of the “infinite” contrast ratio of OLED displays but far better than the 1-3,000:1 ratios you can expect from IPS LCD and VA displays. Basically, blacks look black. This all works together to make HDR content on the G Pro 27i truly stand out, although there’s no Dolby Vision license built in.
Where this monitor truly shines is with gaming. A 180Hz refresh rate with a 1ms grey-to-grey response time is very solid for a 1440p LCD display in this price range, and overall performance is excellent. Games look and feel great with no hint of ghosting or screen tearing (AMD FreeSync support is here, but not NVIDIA G-Sync).
Xiaomi gives you a respectable number of options for customizing the G Pro 27i in its OSD menus, including adjusting the image quality, response time, local dimming, and displaying refresh rate information on-screen at all times. The OSD is simple, responsive, and easy to navigate with the thumbstick on the back of the monitor.
For ports, you get the 65W DC power port (with a very compact adapter), two DisplayPort 1.4 ports, two HDMI 2.0 ports, and one 3.5mm audio jack. It’s a modest assortment, but you at least aren’t lacking in display input options.
Xiaomi G Pro 27i review: The bad
- Local dimming can cause noticeable halo effects with latency.
- Some content, especially web browsing and Office, can display oddly.
- You also won’t find any USB ports or additional display cables.
While the Xiaomi G Pro 27i excels at gaming, it doesn’t necessarily keep that energy with other content. Inconsistent brightness levels across the display and a shaky algorithm that doesn’t always control the local dimming zones correctly means that more static content like web pages, Office applications, or other productivity-related tasks can look odd. Text also doesn’t look as sharp on the G Pro 27i as on other 27-inch QHD displays.
Having 1,152 local dimming zones makes a massive difference in improving display contrast, but you’re also bound to notice a halo effect around smaller display elements, especially your mouse curse. This halo effect is distracting, can spill over and negatively affect other displayed content, and even introduces latency with moving elements. It’s one of the downsides of Mini LED versus the “perfect” blacks of OLED panels.
It can be a little tricky to calibrate the G Pro 27i to your needs, too. By default ,the monitor isn’t set to its ideal “Native” mode, which is the only display mode that lets you customize all of the display settings like contrast, hue, and saturation (the other presets lock most options away). This is even true when High Dynamic Range (HDR) is active, where you can’t even adjust brightness. This display has a lot of strengths, but it has its fair share of compromises, too.
Look outside the display, and the Xiaomi G Pro 27i reveals its other price-cutting measures. There are no USB data ports for your laptop or desktop to use, no USB Type-C display input with Power Delivery, and no integrated speakers. In the box, you’ll only find a single DisplayPort 1.4 cable, with no HDMI or other display cables included. You don’t even get the VESA mounting bracket.
Xiaomi G Pro 27i review: Also consider
Xiaomi G Pro 27i review: Final thoughts
You should buy this if …
✅You want a very bright monitor that still has great contrast ratios
IPS LCD displays can get bright but lack contrast. OLED displays have the best contrast ratios but are often dim. Mini LED bridges the gap between the two, and those who desire an ultra-bright display that still boasts some inkier blacks (and don’t want to spend a ridiculous sum) will be pretty happy with the G Pro 27i.
✅You’re mostly planning to play games
The Xiaomi G Pro 27i absolutely excels at gaming above anything else, with excellent performance and visual quality. Those looking for an all-purpose monitor may have better options in this price range, but from a gaming-centric perspective, this monitor is hard to look past.
You should not buy this if …
❌You need additional features like a USB hub or KVM support
If you prefer to connect your accessories to your monitor or have multiple devices you want to seamlessly switch between and control, the G Pro 27i lacks all of those additional features. All you’ll find here are four display input ports and an audio port.
In a similar vein to how OLED displays have become far more accessible in smartphones, tablets, and laptops in recent years, it’s great to see Mini LED displays become both more commonplace and more affordable. The Xiaomi G Pro 27i is a showcase for how great Mini LED can be even when you’re not pulling out all the stops (and are actually cutting some corners).
This flat 27-inch gaming monitor is stunningly bright, with excellent contrast ratios, HDR performance, and color accuracy. With a 180Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time, it’s also a strong performer when it comes to gaming. For the price, the Xiaomi G Pro 27i feels like an unreal deal. It’s just too bad that you can see the cracks in the Mini LED display when it comes to productivity content and that you’re giving up on some luxuries to achieve this price point.
The Xiaomi G Pro 27i Mini LED gaming monitor is now available for $369.99 at Amazon. As more companies begin adopting Mini LED tech and driving costs down, I think we could see a real renaissance among mid-range gaming monitors because of releases like the G Pro 27i.
One of the most accessible showcases for Mini LED technology, the G Pro 27i is an excellently priced mid-range gaming monitor with impressive brightness, contrast ratios, color accuracy, and gaming performance. The viewing experience isn’t flawless, but the pros outweigh the cons.
