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Iiyama G-MASTER G3266HS-B1 Design and Build
The G3266HS-B1 comes in an imposing box that certainly lives up to the G-MASTER name, since its all-caps spelling makes it a little imposing itself. Turns out there’s good reason for this largeness, however, as the monitor arrives completely pre-assembled making setup a doddle: take it out of its generous Styrofoam surround, plug it in, and you’re good to go.
Given the price you would not expect any extras and, for the most part, you would be right. However, in addition to the Quick Start Guide, HDMI cable and power cable, there was a rather nice surprise in the form of a stylish metal headphone hook, which can be screwed into a dedicated little hole to the left or any of the available VESA mounting holes near the centre.
The chassis of the screen itself is nothing too exciting yet holds up well. It sports a matt, lightly textured black finish that doesn’t show dust or fingerprints easily. The top and side bezels are relatively slim at around 1cm, though you need to add a few mm for an internal border. The bottom bezel comes in at just a smidge over 2cm, and is decorated with a few cheap and cheerful (and most importantly, removable) stickers. Iiyama has kept the top half of the monitor’s casing quite trim, at around 2cm again, but for the bottom half – which houses the speakers, connections and sundry – that extends to around 5.5cm.
Build quality is impressive for the price, with a very solid feel and almost no flex anywhere around the G3266HS-B1’s body. Only a little creak here and there betrays this display’s humble aspirations, and it’s still significantly more sturdy than some monitors costing three times as much. The stand, meanwhile, is solid enough to batter down a small door.
Its unusual and rather attractive metal stand raises the G3266HS-B1’s design language from another dull matte black plastic offering to a premium-looking gaming display, once again proving that the devil’s in the details. The stand in question is a beautiful two-piece affair that will require around 46cm of width for those using risers. The finish on its sleek metallic parts is reminiscent of the rear of an iPad, and all the edges are rounded to provide a great visual and ergonomic experience. Because the feet are slim and low-profile, they also take up very little space and allow plenty of knick-knacks, or indeed a gaming keyboard, to be stored on them.
Iiyama G-MASTER G3266HS-B1 Adjustability and Connectivity
As with many budget-oriented monitors, the G3266HS-B1 doesn’t offer much in the way of adjustability. There is a decent amount of tilt which incidentally can be smoothly adjusted with just a single finger thanks to the solid stand, but that’s pretty much it. If you want height, swivel or pivot, you’ll have to attach a third-party solution. As is, this G-MASTER’s stand provides 11.5cm clearance from the desk to the bottom of the display’s chassis.
We dislike the trend of down-facing connectivity on displays without pivot. While this does keep the rear cleaner it also makes hooking anything up a real pain, and that goes double if the monitor has no swivel functionality. Unfortunately, this is the case with the G3266HS-B1.
Moving from left to right at the monitor’s rear, you’ll find the power input for the kettle lead on one side of the stand, and the video and audio connections on the other. This includes DVI, HDMI 1.4, DP (DisplayPort) 1.2, and even an analogue VGA port, which is becoming something of a rarity on displays these days. So if you’re the owner of a (very) old gaming PC or laptop, this Iiyama may be the monitor for you. At the G3266HS-B1’s native Full HD resolution, all its digital inputs support 144Hz.
Next to the video ports – and just as difficult to access – we have dual 3.5mm audio jacks, one for line in and the other an output for headphones. We recommend anyone who swaps between speakers and headphones regularly to get an extension cable.
Last and most unusually, on the monitor’s side you’ll discover a lone USB port. With no data input we were initially a little surprised as to this port’s functionality; turns out, Iiyama added it so that you can charge compatible devices from here. It’s not a full USB hub as many gaming displays offer but, given the G3266HS-B1’s price, this is a really neat and genuinely useful compromise, so kudos where they’re due. We just wish Iiyama could have added some of the other connections here too for easier access.
