As someone who reviews gaming monitors for a living, I've been wowed by gorgeous 4K OLED panels with 240Hz refresh rates. For PC and PS5 games, they have always been my go-to screens, but that changed when I finally picked up an OLED TV.
I recently moved home and, without a proper TV to call my own, I decided to treat myself to a 55-inch Samsung S90D OLED TV. It was my top choice after seeing my fellow TV expert at Tom's Guide, Ryan Epps' review and comparison, and while it didn't see the same major discount we've been seeing over Labor Day, it was still a great deal on Samsung's 2024 TV.
I was excited to see all of its features in action, from its stunning OLED panel offering deep blacks, rich colors and even its HDR10+ support when watching shows on the best streaming services, to its incredibly high level of SDR and HDR brightness (a whopping 476 nits and 1,187 nits, respectively) with excellent anti-glare capabilities.
But what really blew me away was when I booted up Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 on PS5. Immediately, I was stunned by the difference in colors and details this 4K OLED TV delivered compared to my usual 4K gaming monitor: the 32-inch BenQ Mobiuz EX3210U 4K.
That's not to say the best gaming monitors have their perks over TVs, especially when it comes to fast-paced competitive gameplay that demands minimal input lag and low response times. But for that cinematic splendour for blockbuster AAA gaming, the Samsung S90D has opened my eyes to jaw-dropping gaming visuals.
Cinematic gaming
As my colleague Tony Polanco has detailed, it's hard to top playing in front of an OLED TV. While my BenQ monitor, with its 4K (3840 x 2160) resolution, 144Hz refresh rate and Black eQualizer (to balance out lighting and dark areas displayed onscreen), does a great job making the latest PC and PS5 games shine, the Samsung S90D brings this up a level.
Now set as my main display for PS5 gaming, I've tried out many of my favorites, including Expedition 33, Silent Hill 2, Alan Wake 2, Returnal and a few others. As mentioned, getting onto Act 3 of Expedition 33 and floating around on Esquie showed off what the S90D could pump out. From the splattering of colors that engulfed the world leading up to the forboding, cracked Monolith where The Paintress resides, to the buttery smooth visuals of waves washing ashore, it was a glorious cinematic experience.
Even in gameplay, when successfully pulling off a Gradiant Attack that sucks up all the deep blacks onscreen and releasing a devastating splash of color, the OLED TV nails the grandeur of the Painted World.
Sharp details and perfect blacks were also evident in Alan Wake 2 and Silent Hill 2, which bumped up the immersion (and scare factor). Plus, the bullet-hell that is Returnal was mesmerizing, with floods of colorful (yet deadly) beams of light flying past Selene as I tried to dodge each shot.
For console gaming, especially on a PS5 Pro, Xbox Series X or Nintendo Switch 2, I'm more than happy to give an OLED TV the spotlight over a gaming monitor. I'm making the most of my Samsung S90D in my bedroom, thanks to it being well-sized for my room without being too far away, either.
But gaming monitors still have their place
Of course, not all games are prime for an OLED TV. Sure, the S90D just brought visual details, color accuracy and the like up a notch, but when it comes to games that require a whip-fast trigger finger, I'd always switch to a gaming monitor.
To put that into perspective, the Samsung S90D comes with up to a 144Hz refresh rate, even at 4K, a fast input latency of 9.2 milliseconds according to our testing and even a low response rate (ranging from 1ms to 5ms). But a gaming monitor, like the LG UltraGear 45GX950A-B, can deliver up to 360Hz at 1080p and switch to 165Hz at 4K, and comes with a near-instant 0.03ms response time.
For games like Street Fighter 6, Counter-Strike 2 and more, a gaming monitor gives the games an edge over an OLED TV. It's significantly more natural, accurate and snappier to pull off moves or fire a weapon to get a headshot, and those smoother frame rates can make a real difference when it comes to those fast-paced competitive shooters.
As I've seen myself, OLED gaming monitors can also pull off superb visuals in AAA games, whether it's on console or PC, and of course, it's all made better when matched with one of the best gaming PCs.
That's all to say my gaming monitor won't be gathering dust any time soon (even more so when I test or grab one of the latest monitors on the market). However, an OLED TV like the Samsung S90D is a spectacular way to make the most of high-quality console and PC games, and if you've yet to experience yet, your eyes will thank you later.
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