Alienware’s QD-OLED monitor sets a new standard for gaming displays

theverge.com:

High-end TVs and gaming monitors have been on a collision course for the past few years. The TV industry has pursued the best-looking picture, while monitors have opted for the fastest display tech. The crash that blends the two worlds together might have finally happened with Alienware’s latest curved gaming monitor, which has a QD-OLED screen. It’s the first device (of several more to come in 2022) to show what Samsung’s new QD-OLED display technology is capable of — for PC users, specifically.

The AW3423DW, as it’s officially (and clumsily) called, is now available for $1,299.99, beating Samsung and Sony’s forthcoming QD-OLED TVs to market. Actually, while it’s technically available, the soonest delivery date for new buyers of this QD-OLED is currently late June. So, those TVs might find their way into plenty of homes by the time people finally get their hands on this monitor.

But those will still be TVs, and this is a monitor. While this isn’t the first OLED targeted toward PC gamers, the AW3423DW is the kind of monitor that I have been waiting years for. I don’t want to have a tall TV on my desk, even if it is one of the “smaller” 42-inch LG C2 OLED TVs that are releasing this spring. The AW3423DW looks like a gaming monitor, with its immersive 1800R curve and 21:9 ultrawide (3440 x 1440) design. And, with a display capable of 175Hz refresh rate, it acts like one but has far better picture quality — and brightness — thanks to QD-OLED. At $1,299, Alienware’s pricing seems right on the money, coming in for less than next-gen TVs with many (but not all) of the same perks.

There’s a lot riding on QD-OLED panels given that Samsung Display claims they boast some key improvements over standard OLED. They promise a brighter