Samsung 24" S3 Full HD 120Hz Review

The Samsung 24" S3 is a budget 1080p monitor that punches above its weight with 120Hz smoothness and excellent connectivity, including Thunderbolt. Its IPS panel is fine for everyday use, but color accuracy and brightness are major weak points. At $100-$140, it's a great value for a secondary screen or a basic primary, but gamers and creatives will want to look elsewhere. Get it for the ports and the fluidity, not the image quality.

Let's be real, the monitor market is flooded with 4K beasts and ultrawide wonders, but sometimes you just need a solid, no-fuss screen that gets the job done. The Samsung 24" S3 (S32GF) is exactly that. It's a 1080p, 24-inch IPS panel with a 120Hz refresh rate, and it's priced to move. This isn't the monitor you buy to show off your rig, it's the one you buy because you need a reliable second screen, a budget-friendly primary for a home office, or a decent step up from a basic 60Hz panel for casual gaming.

Who is this for? Honestly, it's a jack-of-all-trades workhorse for the budget-conscious. Our database scores it highest for office work, which makes sense given its connectivity and ergonomics. It's a great fit for students, remote workers on a tight budget, or anyone building a multi-monitor setup without breaking the bank. The 120Hz refresh rate is the interesting bit here. It's not a gaming monitor per se, but that extra smoothness is a nice perk for everyday scrolling and even some light esports.

What makes it stand out in a sea of similar panels? Two things. First, its connectivity lands in the 96th percentile, which is wild for a monitor in this price range. Having Thunderbolt alongside dual HDMI is genuinely useful for laptop users. Second, its compact and ergonomic scores are strong, meaning it's easy to fit on a desk and adjust to a comfortable viewing angle. It's a monitor that understands its role: be affordable, be easy to use, and throw in a little extra pep where it counts.

Performance-wise, the S3 sits in the middle of the pack. Its overall performance score lands in the 56th percentile, which is about what you'd expect. The 120Hz refresh rate is the headline act, and it does make a noticeable difference over standard 60Hz panels. Windows feels snappier, scrolling is smoother, and fast-paced games like Valorant or Rocket League benefit from the reduced motion blur. Just don't expect it to compete with dedicated 144Hz or 240Hz gaming monitors. The 5ms response time is adequate, but you might see some ghosting in the most twitchy competitive scenes.

The display quality is where the budget nature shows. With a color score in the 0th percentile and a display score in the 40th, this is not a monitor for color-critical work. The 200-nit brightness is also on the low side. In a brightly lit room, you might find yourself cranking it to max. For everyday web browsing, document work, and casual media consumption, it's perfectly fine. Colors from the IPS panel are consistent off-axis, which is a plus. But if you're editing photos or watching HDR movies, you'll want to look elsewhere. The performance here is all about that smooth 120Hz experience within the constraints of a very basic panel.

This monitor's value proposition is crystal clear: it's cheap. With prices floating between $100 and $140, it's one of the most affordable ways to get a 120Hz IPS panel. You're paying for core functionality—a decent screen with above-average smoothness and great connectivity—and not much else. Compared to other vendors in this ultra-budget space, Samsung's brand name and the inclusion of Thunderbolt give it a slight edge.

Is it the best value? For a pure office monitor, you can find cheaper 60Hz options. For a pure gaming monitor, you can often find similarly priced options with FreeSync. The S3's value is in its specific blend: if you want that 120Hz smoothness for everyday tasks and you need those extra ports for a clean laptop setup, the price is right. Just know exactly what you're giving up in panel quality.

The competitors listed in our data are hilarious overkill—we're talking 4K OLEDs and massive curved screens. Let's talk real rivals. The Acer Nitro XV240Y is a direct competitor often in the same price bracket. It typically has similar specs but adds AMD FreeSync, which is a big win for gamers. The trade-off? The Samsung S3 usually has better build quality and that Thunderbolt port.

Another competitor is the Dell S2421HGF. It's a bit more gaming-focused, with a higher 144Hz refresh rate and better response times, but it often costs $20-$30 more. If your budget is absolute rock bottom, the S3 wins. If you can stretch that budget slightly for dedicated gaming features, the Dell is worth a look. Finally, compared to a basic office monitor like the Dell P2422H, the S3 offers that 120Hz smoothness but gives up some ergonomic adjustments and professional color presets. It's a trade-off between fluidity and polish.

Creative professionals should run the other way. With a color score in the 0th percentile, this monitor is essentially color-blind for any serious work. If you're editing photos, videos, or doing graphic design, the inaccurate colors will lead to frustration and incorrect results. You'll want a monitor with at least 99% sRGB coverage and factory calibration.

Hardcore competitive gamers should also skip it. While 120Hz is nice, the lack of adaptive sync means you might experience screen tearing, and the 5ms response time can lead to noticeable ghosting in fast scenes. For the same budget or a little more, you can find monitors with 144Hz, FreeSync, and 1ms modes that are built specifically for gaming. If your primary goal is gaming performance, this monitor makes too many compromises.

So, who should buy this? If you need a reliable, affordable secondary monitor, or a primary screen for a basic home office/student setup where smooth scrolling is a nice-to-have, the Samsung S3 is a solid pick. Its connectivity is a genuine strength, and the 120Hz is a pleasant surprise at this price. It's the 'good enough' monitor that does a few things very well for not a lot of money.

Who should look elsewhere? Creative professionals, hardcore gamers, and anyone who values a bright, vibrant image should skip this. The panel quality is its Achilles' heel. If you're into competitive esports, spend a little more for a monitor with adaptive sync and a faster response time. If you edit photos or videos, this monitor's color performance will actively work against you. For those users, the value proposition falls apart completely.