LG Display is doubling down on the professional esports market with the launch of its latest 25-inch Tandem WOLED monitor panel at a time when the industry has all but abandoned its former favourite display technology, LCD.
When it launched its slate of four new 25-inch OLED gaming monitors last month, Asus confidently proclaimed that “LCD is dead,” pointing to the newer technology’s superior response times, colour reproduction and contrast. However, Asus did not say at the time where it sourced the OLED panels from, but we can now confirm that at least one was supplied by LG Display, for the ASUS ROG Swift OLED PG259QWS.
LG Display made that clear yesterday as it officially announced its latest 25-inch 720Hz Tandem WOLED panel, claiming that it boasts the “world’s highest” refresh rates, and that’s certainly true as far as OLED displays are concerned. The company said the panel is designed specifically for competitive video gaming, meaning its primary market is going to be professional esports gamers. The 720Hz refresh rates, combined with super-fast response times of just 0.02 milliseconds and a proprietary algorithm that’s customised to keep the graphics smooth at all times, should be enough to satisfy the lust of all but the twitchiest, most demanding gamers.
The monitor panel offers FullHD resolution, not 4K, but the company nevertheless promises “highly vivid picture quality” and maximum immersion with the on-screen actions, whether that involves breakneck racing games, chaotic first-person shooters or any other kind of game where even the slightest delay can make the difference between a glorious victory or an ignominious death.
“Refresh rates refers to the number of times per second a screen updates,” LG Display helpfully explained. “So 720Hz means the screen refreshes 720 times per second. The core technology lies in a stable algorithm, going beyond simply displaying scenes.”
In a statement, LG Display’s Head of Large Display Hyeon-woo Lee said the company is trying to “accelerate its strategy to target the esports market,” and that its immediate roadmap also includes monitor displays ranging from 20-inches through to 40-inches. Many of them will also incorporate the company’s proprietary Dynamic Frequency & Resolution technology, and feature “AI transformation” that’s set to be deployed “across all areas of gaming display development,” Lee added.
Although LG Display is deadly serious about winning in the esports market, it’s also looking to expand OLED technology into other applications with the expected launch of its first OLED panels featuring an RGB-stripe pixel layout. The RGB-stripe pixels are designed to more accurately render text and graphics for professional editors and others who need the utmost accuracy. However, the new 25-inch panel does not feature the RGB-stripe tech, as gamers are more than willing to sacrifice picture quality and detail clarity for raw speed and performance.
