I just tested the HyperX QD-OLED gaming monitor — and it's a pretty sweet deal for under $500

At $499, the HyperX Omen OLED 27q is arguably a lot to spend on a 1440p 240Hz gaming monitor. That’s especially true when you compare it to the wide selection of 1440p monitors on Amazon, most of which sit under $200. Some of those sub-$200 monitors even have higher refresh rates than the HyperX Omen. However, compared to pricier competitors offering similar specs, it's a great deal.

Considering that four of the five displays on our best gaming monitors list have OLED panels, there’s a reason critics keep turning back to the technology, even as more competitive miniLED panels are hitting the market.

OLED has benefits that standard IPS displays have yet to match. From vivid colors to eerily dark blacks, the richness on display is hard to match. OLED does suffer from lower peak brightness, but given that most people sit inches from their monitors, it should still be bright enough for most.

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If budget is a concern, then it ultimately comes down to the type of work you’ll need the monitor for outside of gaming. For creatives who need the color accuracy of OLED, the 27q is an easy choice. For everyone else, there might be more to consider. Still, if you've eyed a more expensive monitor at $1,000+, this one is a steal.

Here's my full HyperX Omen OLED 27q review.

HyperX Omen OLED 27q review: Specs

HyperX Omen OLED 27q review: Cheat sheet

• What is it? A flat 27-inch 2560 x 1440 QD-OLED monitor with a 0.03ms response time and 240Hz refresh rate.
• Who is it for? Creatives and enthusiast gamers who want the richest colors and top gaming performance.
• How much does it cost? It’s marketed at $499, but at time of writing, it's $399 on HP's website.
• What do we like? It’s hard to match OLED's vividness, and the 240Hz refresh rate makes it a top performer for gaming.
• What don’t we like? There’s no forward tilt, so the display looks like it’s leaning back slightly when on its stand.

HyperX Omen OLED 27q review: The ups

The HyperX Omen OLED 27q delivers the good thanks to its vivid picture quality and fast performance.

OLED or nothing

Fans online jest that once you go OLED, you never go back. That’s the case with the HyperX Omen OLED 27q, or any other OLED gaming monitor on the market.

Given the richness of color and the near-instantaneous response time, jumping to an IPS display can feel like a significant downgrade. Although miniLED monitors are starting to hit the market, the gap in color contrast is closing.

At a 2560 x 1440 resolution, it won’t take the highest-end graphics cards to push this monitor. However, getting all 240Hz out of a game like Cyberpunk 2077 or Alan Wake 2 will require an Nvidia RTX 5080 or above. Actually, when testing Cyberpunk 2077 on my gaming rig, which is equipped with an RTX 5090, it struggled to maintain a consistent 240 fps. Granted, that framerate is totally overkill for this type of game.

The HyperX Omen OLED 27q has eight display modes, with some dedicated to genres like RTS, RPG, and FPS. There are also some creator-centric modes, such as Display P3 and sRGB. These modes are the same as you'd get on similar monitors, albeit with more balance between gaming and creativity.

For creative work, that’s where color accuracy and brightness come into play. In our testing, the 27q spanned 116% of the sRGB and 82% of the DCI-P3 color gamuts in the monitor's sRGB display setting. For creatives, the 27q will likely suffice for photo editing and other use cases.

Like all OLED gaming monitors. HDR brightness isn't exactly impressive. This is a small knock, but not out of the ordinary for similar monitors.

Esports performance

My competitive game of choice on PC is Overwatch. My personal monitor is a Samsung Odyssey G9 OLED, a 49” behemoth of a display with an absurdly wide 32:9 aspect ratio. When playing Overwatch, however, it crops down to a 21:9 aspect ratio. It’s also a 240Hz panel, making it a fair comparison to the 27q.

While playing Overwatch, I noticed no difference between the two displays aside from their aspect ratios. I was still able to land headshots with Kiriko’s kunai as efficiently as I always do, depending on how sharp my mind feels at the moment.

That’s the thing with OLED. The technology is rather standardized, meaning the colors, depth, and response times will feel very similar across similarly spec'd monitors. So, if you’ve decided to take the plunge on an OLED gaming monitor, it simply comes down to the size you want and how much you’re willing to pay, in my opinion.

For competitive gamers, the 27q features a crosshair, which places a reticule at the center of your display to make aiming easier. I personally don’t use this function, so I can’t speak to it at greater length. But if it’s a feature you prefer in your gaming displays, know that it’s here.

The 27q also includes a speedrun and countdown timer, which is handy when trying to run through Super Mario Bros. or Sonic Adventure 2 as quickly as possible. I’m not a speedrunner, so this is less useful to me, but I’m sure those in the speedrunning community might find this to be a valuable add-on.

More importantly, the 27q does feature both Nvidia G-Sync and AMD FreeSync Premium. While on HP’s website and on the monitor's box, only G-Sync is advertised, in the settings, you can enable FreeSync.

HyperX Omen OLED 27q review: The downs

As a gaming monitor, there really isn't much to ding the 27q on. It delivers the performance advertised on the box.

Bland design

I also noticed that the 27q, while being able to tilt backward or turn 90 degrees, had limited forward tilt when affixed to the included stand. As a result, the monitor leans back slightly, making it a bit awkward to look at it directly. Although I did have the monitor rather close to me when it was on my desk. If you move the monitor a few inches back, it should make for a better experience.

The number of ports is also rather limited. It only sports two HDMI 2.1 ports, a DisplayPort 1.4, and a 3.5mm audio jack. Granted, given that this monitor is relatively small at 27 inches, it’s not like you’d be using a KVM switch to use two computers on it simultaneously.

The monitor's design is kind of boring. There also aren’t any fancy RGB lights on the back, although some may prefer that. But other than that, there really aren’t many demerits to throw at the 27q.

Good enough but not standout

There are certainly faster OLED monitors on the market, such as the MSI MPG 341CQR QD-OLED X36. But at $870, it's more than double the price of the 27q.

And honestly, at that price, I feel it might be better to opt for a super ultrawide monitor, like the Samsung Odyssey G9 OLED, which is also around the $900 range, depending on sales. That's also assuming your desk can accommodate it.

HyperX Omen OLED 27q review: Verdict

The HyperX Omen OLED 27q is a solid monitor at a competitive price, but it doesn’t do much to set itself apart. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as most OLED displays on the market are rather standardized, meaning that manufacturers don’t have incredible leeway in making their displays more unique. At most, consumers are faced with choosing between higher refresh rates, wide aspect ratios, and sometimes gimmicky AI features.

But this is good for consumers, in my opinion. The commodification of OLED technology means it can reach more people at a wider range of price points. The fact that someone can walk into a Best Buy and pick up a 27-inch OLED monitor with a 240Hz refresh rate would have been unheard of a decade prior. After some online research, I found that 1440p IPS monitors with a 144Hz refresh rate from 2016 were over $700.

Ultimately, I recommend the 27q. I would tell someone with a $200 budget to consider saving up for the 27q. Also, yes. Would I personally opt for the 27q when there are 21:9 and 32:9 ultrawide OLED monitors available on the market? No. But that’s me. For many, a 27-inch display is the perfect sweet spot. It’s compact and is ideal for esports titles like Counter-Strike 2 and Overwatch.

If you’ve been in the market for an OLED display and have the cash to spend, go for it.

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