LG Display unveils 'world's fastest' OLED monitor — get ready for 720Hz

News
By published

The battle for the fastest refresh rate is speeding up

LG OLED gaming monitor
(Image credit: LG Display)

This year, I’ve been on the hunt for the fastest refresh rate gaming monitors. It started with Zowie’s 600Hz panel, moved up to 610 Hz from Asus, and then we pixel peeped a 750Hz screen. But all of these have one flaw — IPS.

Not to say it’s a bad display technology, but they’re not so bright and not very colorful or immersive. OLED is the answer to this, and LG Display just debuted a new monitor that can run at a buttery smooth 720Hz. But that’s only half the story.

Smoothness without compromising the picture

What is IPS?

ZOWIE XL2586X+

(Image credit: Future)

IPS stands for in-plane switching, which is a technology that came to LCD screens that allowed for boosted refresh rates. It's been around for a while, and since it relies on LCD, doesn't have the same brightness or color reproduction potential of OLED!

So like I said, a lot of these esports-tier screens are usually low on the resolution side (typically 1080p) and come with a rather dim IPS display with poor color production. LG has just blown all those expectations out of the water at its K-Display event in Seoul.

For reference, this isn’t the first time we’ve actually heard about LG’s 4th Gen Tandem OLED panel, as SDC teased a monitor sporting it and shared some specs that we’ll get into here (thanks, VideoCardz).

SDC720HZ

(Image credit: SDC)

This is a tandem OLED panel, so brightness is no problem at up to a 1,500-nit peak, and of course you’re getting that inky contrast ratio and a flash flood of color here too (a 99.5% DCI-P3 color reproduction). Plus, you’re getting a 1440p resolution too at 540Hz.

But while LG gives with one hand with display quality, it takes away with a compromise to get that big number. It can be pushed to 720Hz using Dynamic Frequency & Resolution (DFR) technology, but you have to be prepared for a resolution downscale to 720p to make it work.

Definitely for the pros

LG OLED gaming monitor

(Image credit: LG Display)

Given that you see a lot of pro players downgrade in-game graphics and textures to extract the highest possible framerate with the lowest response time, that 720p resolution is probably not going to bother them. But no doubt it will annoy most other players.

That’s why I’m ultimately way more excited about getting the best of both worlds: QHD at 540Hz. It’s clear that with the likes of multi-frame generation with the RTX 50-series GPUs, the demand for higher frame rates is only going to skyrocket.

This number will futureproof you for a long time…that is if we ever get it. It’s been unveiled in South Korea after all, and I’m quietly praying it launches worldwide.

As for what else came to K-Display, I know the company’s 83-inch OLED panel is meant for commercial use, but with the new RGB tandem structure that can make it reach a blinding 4,000 nits, I really want it in my living room.

Follow Tom's Guide on Google News to get our up-to-date news, how-tos, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button.

More from Tom's Guide

TOPICS
Jason England
Jason England
Managing Editor — Computing

Jason brings a decade of tech and gaming journalism experience to his role as a Managing Editor of Computing at Tom's Guide. He has previously written for Laptop Mag, Tom's Hardware, Kotaku, Stuff and BBC Science Focus. In his spare time, you'll find Jason looking for good dogs to pet or thinking about eating pizza if he isn't already.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.