Samsung M8 32in monitor review

Our review unit came in a Sunset Pink colour which is essentially a pastel colour shade. Even the green and blue are toned-down shades unlike the bright colours on Apple’s iMac. It’s also completely flat from the back and the front metal band that goes around the display is white. It looks very different from rusty old office monitors and if you’ve put down that ₹59,999 asking price then it better look like one premium chunk of tech. Happy to report that the M8 exudes premium quality through the great built and clean design.

The thin chassis doesn’t offer enough room for good audio though. The Samsung M8 could’ve had better audio quality and in our review unit, the right speaker had distortion and rattling sound. You can still watch movies and YouTube videos with its loud volume but it sounds tinny and lacks depth. You also don’t get a headphone jack for connecting external speakers. Connecting Bluetooth speakers is the only solution here.

Judging the Samsung M8 for its fast refresh rate and quick response time will leave you rather unsatisfied but if you approach the Samsung M8 with a spreadsheet fever and some willingness to edit 4K videos, the display can play out all your work fantasies. Even some sly Netflix binging while you’re at it. It will keep you joyfully entertained but not too focused at work. The Samsung M8 is brimming with smart features that work with devices from Samsung, Apple and Windows and also has its own app library. But we’ll get to the smart chops in a bit.

The 32in Samsung M8 we have with us is pretty much the size of a small telly but of course with monitor chops. It’s ideal for home offices. The screen real estate is plenty and the colours are bright and vivid. It’s not very accurate with Windows but you can adjust the colours from the Windows settings. There are a few presets on the Samsung M8’s settings but those are largely for content consumption. 

Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Disney+ Hotstar have hotkeys on the bundled remote which makes it very easy for a certain someone (the individual writing this review) to avoid writing their reviews and jump into a binge session of The Sandman. The dark and moody atmosphere of The Sandman was superb on the monitor (something I never expected to say in a review). There was very little backlight bleeding so the darker shots look more authentic and clean. The Samsung M8 also upscales FullHD content very well and does so without noise. If you happen to stream off a Windows or Apple app then the content looks downscaled and blotchy but streaming from the M8’s app library and the video decoding is clean. Cleaner than what you’d find on some budget tellies in this range.

The M8 has a rich and vibrant colour tone. Premier League matches on Hotstar are fun to watch and even the preset colour profiles are great for drama and serious content. Don’t expect tonal accuracy for colour grading. The M8 is more reliable as an office and entertainment tool rather than professional studio work. If you’re re-mastering James Cameron's Avatar in HDR format you may need something way more sophisticated than a mere office monitor.

Although, calling the Samsung M8 a mere office monitor downplays its colossal feature set. There’s AirPlay 2 for Apple devices and it works seamlessly. The M8 also has Samsung SmartThings connection which makes it an IOT hub of sorts for smart device control. There’s no Google Chromecast here so Chromecast features are seriously missing for Android folks without a Samsung device. However, you can download the Samsung SmartThings app on any Android device and just go on with your day.

You also get Samsung DeX built-in and Microsoft Office tools as well. We don’t think anyone who spends ₹60K would rely on the monitor’s office software to get important work done but hey, if your laptop or computer stops responding, the Samsung M8 can be the office mate.

You can also connect to Windows directly through the Windows Connect feature but there’s a fair bit of lag even on Wi-Fi 6 routers and the monitor is using the Wi-Fi 5 protocol.

Lastly, the remote charges using a Type-C port and it’ll last you a fairly long time. The remote is also very similar to Samsung TV remotes with the top three OTT platform's hotkeys. It also has a very good microphone to summon Bixby or Alexa or fill in search bars with your voice.

The Samsung M8 offers a multitude of connection possibilities no matter which device you use and that flexibility and ease of access are what makes the Samsung M8 one of the smartest productivity monitors around. Heck, it even comes with a camera that works with Google Duo and Microsoft Teams directly from the monitor. Although, we couldn’t get it to work with our Windows computer.

So to sum it up, the Samsung M8 is an expensive indulgence but one that will be your desktop monitor and your TV. If you’re looking to invest in an all-in-one solution, the Samsung M8 is very clean and premium. It will also support PlayStation 4K 60Hz gaming too. Although, our only gripe is that it has three ports, one HDMI mini and two USB Type-C ports. The lack of ports might upset a few folks.