4K OLED vs 4K IPS
Posted by Hungry_Orchid_8687@reddit | buildapc | View on Reddit | 120 comments
I need a monitor but I can't decide between a 1.4k 4K OLED monitor or a 4K IPS monitor that costs 600, need help asap. I have a 4090 that can run at 4K but i dont want to waste a kidney on a monitor. PC: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/jLgnPF
scoma321@reddit
For 600$ - wait for a sale on thr Odyssey NEO G8 MINI QLED. got kine for 700 new due to a sale and got NO regrets. Better than IPS but under an OLED. You won't be upset bro. 4k 240hz
nuhstawlgia@reddit
fr? how’s it compare to my VG28UQL1A? worth a jump to a OLED or this is good enough ?
ScreenwritingJourney@reddit
If you have 4090 money, you have OLED money imo
nuhstawlgia@reddit
fr lmao what about my 3090 with the IPS 4K VG28UQL1A that ran 800 for me a few years back? thinking of grabbing a OLED in replacement of this in the next year or two
Lewdeology@reddit
Exactly. People who even consider 4090 aren’t people whose next meal depends on the next dollar.
ScreenwritingJourney@reddit
“I don’t want to waste a kidney on a monitor”
Like bro, you wasted two and a half kidneys on your GPU to have pretty graphics. Wasting a kidney on a monitor that actually lets you see those graphics makes perfect sense.
Haxxorkid@reddit
I don't get why people don't prioritize monitor as they do their builds. If you spent so much and got the best of all components then why are you now hesitating to sell your kidney for a monitor which is actually your medium to enjoy all the best components you got there. If these guys just want to ignore the importance of a good monitor then just hook it up with a 18 inch 1366x768p monitor
drake90001@reddit
I mean, back before I knew much about PCs all I knew was higher resolution was harder to run. Can’t really blame people who get into gaming who have no monetary obstacles for not knowing what a big difference it makes. Especially when most if not all modern GPUs run 1080p perfectly fine.
real_gooner@reddit
1440p is not 4 times the pixel count of 1080p
drake90001@reddit
I said 1080p
iForgotso@reddit
You said the next step in resolution is 4x the pixel count of 1080p. That is 4k. The next step in resolution is 1440p, I think that's what he was pointing out.
drake90001@reddit
Ah, I get it now. Yeah I was skipped 1440p as it wasn’t super common for awhile. Funny because I have a 34” 1440p display lol.
ScreenwritingJourney@reddit
Better yet, a 32” 480p interlaced CRT.
RajeeBoy@reddit
I’m now a kidney and a half in debt, someone better pay up, cuz I ain’t got any more!!
sledgehammer_44@reddit
This.. the monitor is as important as the pc.. oled could make a cheaper pc look a lot better than the expensive one on ips.
Jumpierwolf0960@reddit
Agreed, OLED is a lot more affordable.
EnthiumZ@reddit
He probably already sold one of kidneys and was contemplating whether an OLED monitor was worth selling the other one too.
winterkoalefant@reddit
A white ROG 4090 too, those things cost hundreds extra for no functional benefit. And a liquid cooler with a display on it.
An OLED monitor purchase is much more sensible than those.
ScreenwritingJourney@reddit
Holy shit you’re right. And a 4TB Samsung SSD for $300?! And he’s concerned about spending $1400 on a top of the line monitor? Absurd.
BlackPet3r@reddit
I mean, its just a matter of how much picture quality matters to you.
These modern high hz gaming OLEDs are basically vastly superior in every way compared to IPS monitors.
The only downside is burn in, but even that wont be a problem as long as you're mostly gaming and not only doing work with it.
thedeathmachine@reddit
Been doing work on my OLED for 18 months now. No burn in. I do my best to not allow static images stay on screen, I move windows around, minimize and don't let my monitor sit on anything too long. Have a Screensaver. Still has a picture like new
DSMcGuire@reddit
Love how you state "No burn in" and then go on to list the amount of things you have to do to prevent burn in. I'll never have an OLED monitor.
blorgenheim@reddit
Burn in is a risk, period. That said I’d take the risk considering I’ve dealt with dogshit contrast ratios for a life time. Contrast ratio is the number 1 thing that impacts picture quality. But enjoy your grey blacks I guess..
DSMcGuire@reddit
Enjoy your constant panic over burn in.
OllieDodle325@reddit
Enjoy your panics after burn ins
Sparkee58@reddit
2 years, no burn in, and literally the only thing I do is don't leave my monitor on when I'm not using it which is just common sense
lcirufe@reddit
Which monitor? There are so many reports of other panels burning in in as little as 3 months, like the Odyssey G8.
I also just forget to turn off my monitor sometimes
fuckandstufff@reddit
The msi oled monitors have a 3 year burn in warranty. They also integrate pixel shifting and other oled care features. I have the 3440x1440p Meg something or other, and I love the shit out of it.
leadfoot71@reddit
Set your monitor to go to sleep when inactive. My oled reccomends a pixel refresh if you've had a static image on it for 8 hours straight.
Had it for 1 year now, i just set my pc to turn the display off after 30 mins of inactivity and i have zero problems.
fuckandstufff@reddit
Good for you, cheif. Suffer forever.
HappyGoLucky791@reddit
Oleds have evolved bro.
Gruphius@reddit
Modern panels are pretty safe when it comes to burn in. I mean, a YouTuber called WULFF DEN did a burn in test on the Nintendo Switch OLED and it showed first signs of burn in after displaying the exact same image for 3600 hours straight. Or from my personal experience: My phone has an OLED display too and I'm regularly leaving it on the same image for like half an hour, if not longer and I have yet to notice any burn in.
usernameplshere@reddit
I was using a LG OLED Smartwatch for 6 years straight with the same Watchface on aod. It had minimal signs of burn in after all that time. Brightness may not be comparable to computer monitors, but I wouldn't worry too much about it tbh.
JokerXIII@reddit
I've been using my 2020 LG65CX tv as my main and only monitor for 3 years for gaming but also word, excel, video editing and no burning sign, works like a charm.
vanillacupcake4@reddit
As someone who doesn’t game, is burn in really the only downside? I use my computer almost exclusively for productivity and I’ve heard IPS are better for text
blorgenheim@reddit
Text fringing and burn in are the only problems with the tech really. If you go 4k the text fringing issue is not really a problem any more. Lower res probably an issue. But eventually will be resolved in later gens
plasmqo10@reddit
wasn't there also another issue where you can get weird banding/splotchyness in certain shades of grey?
blorgenheim@reddit
Grey uniformity is mostly a problem for WOLED/LG panels. Not so much for the QD/samsung ones. But yeah it can be an issue
KookyPatient1964@reddit
Nah. OLEDs have much lower brightness and much higher power consumption (difference depends on a picture shown) and banding artifacts. There were also quite widespread problems with hundreds of dead pixels appearing on corners of a screen after some time but it's probably solved already.
Zoopa8@reddit
As far as I know, they don't have a much lower brightness at all. My LG G1 can go up to 700 or 800 nits, which is more than most IPS displays that usually reach around 300 or maybe 400 nits.
I also wouldn't say they require much more power. A monitor may use around 40 watts of power, while a 65" LG C3 uses around 80 watts. Although this is double the power usage, the LG C3's display is also considerably bigger. 4K monitors are usually between 27 and 32 inches, if I recall correctly.
Jumpierwolf0960@reddit
That's peak brightness and that doesn't tell the whole story. It's not even close when it comes to full screen brightness. I own a C2 and a 32" 4k QD OLED and these get insanely dim when there are a lot of bright elements on the screen. The QD OLED is a noticeable improvement over the C2 but it's still not enough at 250 nits and bright HDR scenes just feel like SDR with more contrast.
I tried a miniled monitor with 1152 zones and I was blown away by how much better those scenes look with 700 nits of full screen brightness. Movies that were set mostly during the day came to life and it felt like I was experiencing HDR for the first time again.
Zoopa8@reddit
Yup, my bad, that's indeed peak brightness. I have used both the Samsung Q90T and LG G1. The Q90T can definitely get brighter, but I don't have any issues with the brightness of the LG G1, especially considering the much better contrast it offers.
KookyPatient1964@reddit
That's with 10% window. LG G1 Sustained 100% Window: 178 cd/m² - that's awful and probably lower than any non-OLED monitor or TV released in like past 2 decades.
Random QLED TV, Sony BRAVIA 9 QLED: Peak 10% Window: 2,919 cd/m², Sustained 100% Window 748 cd/m². Sustained 100% is the same as small 10% highlight on OLED.
Regarding power consumption: you source is you made it the fuck up, here's mine:
RTINGs graph - link
Hardware Unboxed, at 200 nits: link, 34'' OLED - 101W, 34'' VA - 30W. Sure, OLED may win at black screen, but that's only good if you're fan of staring at black screens (muh inky blacks, right?).
Yeah-yeah, you don't need brightness, OLEDs have plenty, everybody should live in dim basements, anyway. Don't bother - I've heard it all from OLED fanboys.
And LG C3 peak power consumption is 115W.
Zoopa8@reddit
Since OLEDs have considerably better contrast, brightness isn't as crucial. The numbers don't always match reality; it's a matter of technical specifications versus practical performance. According to a site similar to RTINGS, the LG C3 uses around 80W, which seems reasonably accurate given that its peak power consumption is 115W, as you mentioned.
How about we keep things civil?
TrueCookie@reddit
Bro is unhinged
Jumpierwolf0960@reddit
Fullscreen brightness isn't the best. I own a 32" QD OLED that does 1000 nits peak but falls down to around 250 full screen. So as you get more bright elements on the screen, it starts to adjust the overall brightness accordingly. For desktop use you can set it to SDR and forget about it. But it can be quite noticeable while gaming/watching content in HDR.
BlackPet3r@reddit
If you're coding a lot or working with a lot of documents an OLED is not the monitor you wanna get. Yes, small text is not as clear as it is on IPS panels because of the subpixel layout. OPs question seems to be regarding media consumption or mainly gaming and OLEDs are completely superior when it comes to that. (despite maybe higher power comsumption depending on how much black is in the current frame)
vanillacupcake4@reddit
Gotcha makes sense, thanks for clarification!
Greatest-Comrade@reddit
QD OLEDs are solid for text imo. Small text can sometimes look weird though.
sudosoup@reddit
Another downside is vrr flicker, been dealing with it since upgrading to 4k 240hz. And it is unique to OLED panels
Bloodhoven_aka_Loner@reddit
burn in won't even be much of a problem as long as you're not playing at 100% backlight brightness and general brightnness
Ejaculpiss@reddit
I've been working 8 hours a day on mine for over a year, not the slightest sign of burnin yet
Bloodhoven_aka_Loner@reddit
yeah, modern OLED panels are waaaay better at handling the light and regenerating crystals than panels from 5-10 years ago.
Bit I still advise people to turn down brightness/backlight to at least 70-75%... in most cases even 50% are more than enough to perfectly see everything. and as a bonus it is less tiring for your 3yes and wastes less electricity.
Toohigh2care@reddit
100% brightness since day 1 on my early lg 1440 240hz. It’s just not bright enough otherwise. If it burns in I’ll buy a newer one but it’s perfect so far and it’s been used daily since day one bought on release.
MagnanimosDesolation@reddit
This is pure hearsay. OLED suffers a bit from text rendering though that's less of a problem with newer panels. It also has much lower peak brightness.
Burn in isn't an issue unless you do the worst practices constantly.a
Dapper-Conference367@reddit
There are also a lot of anti burn in techniques implemented in newer monitors, unlike the first that came out.
Sure it's still an issue, but as you said if you mainly game in it then you'll most likely be fine by using their built-in software which they have in the OSD every now and then and avoid leaving it on for hours if you're idle.
Top-March-1378@reddit
Basically this , I’m currently on 4K 240hz QDOLED atm as my main monitor for gaming. My older IPS panel monitor I use it a secondary for work and other things. Nothing beats the picture quality of OLED atm, all my games look fantastic,
BlackPet3r@reddit
Yeah, a two monitor solution like you're doing is the way to go when going OLED while also still using the pc for work.
fuckandstufff@reddit
Oled is the answer. idc what anyone else says. The difference is night and day, and I will never go back. I'd get a 1440p oled over a 4k ips.
Ashamed_Macaroon_790@reddit
Why don’t you get a 1440p OLED instead of 4k then. It’ll still look very good
real_gooner@reddit
yeah if he’s really that worried about money, a 1440p oled will look better than a 4k ips. i just paid less than $600 for a 27 inch 1440p oled.
Ashamed_Macaroon_790@reddit
Honestly, even if I had to choose between a 1080p OLED and a 4K IPS, I’d still go with the OLED. Contrast is just way more important than resolution, in my opinion.
real_gooner@reddit
yeah i agree. my eyesight isn’t great though so that might be part of why resolution isn’t super important to me
Kaywin0@reddit
I see a lot of burn in concerns. Perhaps I'm an outlier but, I have a LG CX, I have had it for about 3 years now. I have left Elden ring on for hours, standing in one spot while I tend to RW responsibilities. Not once - have I seen a hint of burn in. Even this old CX has screen shift, which shifts the picture around to keep still images from burning in. If the choice is IPS vs OLED - get the OLED - sweet Jesus it's worth it.
Comfortable-Low-3067@reddit
what kinda of games are you playing?
rockqc@reddit
You wasted a kidney and liver on the 4090, what's another kidney?
Andrewx8_88@reddit
Consider QD-OLED or W-OLED.
Much better than regular oled.
LuRo332@reddit
Personally, if money wasnt an issue, I would pick the 4K OLED but only if its refresh rate was higher than 60Hz. After experiencing 120/144Hz monitors you just can go back really.
pmerritt10@reddit
There's also the middle ground....mini-led to consider.
Jumpierwolf0960@reddit
Look into miniled monitors. That is a nice compromise. Look into the innocn 27M2V/32M2V. They both have 1152 zones and are really cheap when they're on sale.
kyralfie@reddit
IMO 4090 is so much less worth it compared to a quality high-res OLED monitor. So I'd skimp on it rather than a monitor.
ObjectiveStick9112@reddit
Its worth it. 4k HDR gaming on an oled is the shit
Few_Specialist_8953@reddit
OLED are much better than IPS. The only downside is a huge hole in your wallet, but if you can afford OLED and don't mind shelling out the price of one, then go for it. Fair warning though, they're so good they might ruin other non OLED displays for you 😭
RW8YT@reddit
qdOled is the best of the best for gaming right now, 100% worth it
Theslash1@reddit
Snagged a c2 42” 4k@120hz zero hours open box for 350. Couldn’t be happier. 4k is an absolute must for me now, and I had to go big enough to not miss my ultrawides. I sit about 18” from it and the most immersive, beautiful thing I’ve seen. I can’t go back in res or size now. My 34 ultrawides feel so small and 1440p just kills it. Go for oled! Go for 4k, go for as big as you can fit.
bandita07@reddit
OLED only! Superior in every way! I do not like the HDR in mine, especially in windows 11. But the pure black and the colors are amazing.
3InchesPunisher@reddit
Once you go OLED , you never go back
timchenw@reddit
I went with OLED, but that was because the size I want the most (49") doesn't come in IPS except for TVs, and TVs don't really appeal to me because of the possibility of noticeable input lag.
There is also that I don't actually like IPS panels, but that's neither here nor there.
I have my own reservations about my specific monitor FO48u, but I have no real complaint about OLEDs in general, at least not yet
Toohigh2care@reddit
You won’t be happy if you don’t go oled.
Geeotine@reddit
Generally speaking good monitors last about the longest in any setup, whether it's for office, gaming or content editing.
As long as you choose well the monitor should easily last you 10 years. 4k gaming is still a luxury experience, and that being said, if you want true luxury, go with OLED. If you still want that budget experience because you aren't ready to go all in on 4K gaming, go with the IPS.
IPS is tried and true technology. The tech is reaching it's limits on what it can do.
OLED is relatively new tech, so no one really knows how long it truly will last. It might burnout in 7 years, or last you another 20... But, it's got an order of magnitude better contrast, true HDR capabilities, better response time and each iteration gets better at overcoming it's limitations like risks of image burn-in. It's unknown how long the features in a $1,400 will trickle down to $400 displays and lower, but you already purchased a 4090 that is guaranteed to depreciate twice as fast as whatever display you purchase....
redeyejoe123@reddit
If you have the budget, I would look into microled instead. No burn in risk and should last much longer. Has better brightness, as deep blacks, better contrast, and I suspect is better for work than oled.
ScharhrotVampir@reddit
Check monitors unboxed, go for whatever they recommend.
Jroc5141@reddit
I have LG OLED TV for my TV watching and PS5 couch gaming and have a BenQ Mobius 32in IPS 4k 144hz monitor for gaming they both look phenomenal. Id say depends on games you play. I play a lot of NCAA football, Diablo and FpS online games darker games like Diablo the OLED shines but other games it's hard to really tell a difference. Just my opinion having sat in front of both.
Supreme_Being_115@reddit
I have a 4k oled and a 4k ips the ips is 700 cad and picture quality is amazing and there is no backlight bleed, in my opinion the ips is better because there is no risk of burn in so I can leave my monitor on all day and not worry about it, plus oled have an issue where certain text might not align with the subpixels on some software like Microsoft Word and this makes the text fuzzy which to me is a major downside because I have good vision and this text fringing strains my eyes more.
mrawesome1q@reddit
Form my perspective the question is how comfortable are you with spending the difference. Is it worth it? - Yeah / does that mean it won’t hurt? - No / if you’d rather save the different then get a 1440 IPS set the other $300 aside for the next buy…
Hexagon90x@reddit
As someone who owns QD OLED monitor I tell you that picture quality, smoothness and colour range is simply unmatched and straight up shocking when coming from an IPS
UngodlyPain@reddit
You can get other OLED panels less than 1.4k
Pretty sure even some of the current gen 4k 120hz or 240hz ones are as low as like 900 on sales. And if you're willing to go down to the 1440p ones or like some of the last gen ultra wides (3440x1440) you can find some of them as low as like $600-700 on sale...
EnolaGayFallout@reddit
Not sure for other brands.
LG has 2 years burn in warranty for monitors. If you primary only game on ur PC it should be okay.
If U do idle work / chrome it might get burn in on the taskbar etc.
Not sure as oled monitor still pretty new.
If U can afford go for it. Worst case U get burn in and RMA within 2 years lol.
andrew-js99@reddit
OLED > IPS 100% for gaming and media
Ship_Fucker69@reddit
OLED. It's a must
Diligent_Mastodon105@reddit
If you have the money there is no reason to even consider ips
D33GS@reddit
For me I'm too worried about burn in on OLED to get one for a computer monitor. They make great TVs but I'd avoid them for monitors. OLED will give you objectively the best picture quality but you may end up replacing it sooner due to image burn in.
redditingatwork23@reddit
I'd say get the oled and live the dream. I've had an AW3423DWF going on 18 months, and it is by far the best upgrade I've ever made in PC gaming. Better than going from a 3060ti to a 4080 lol.
Greedy_Bus1888@reddit
Surprised nobody mentioned Mini Leds. Not all IPS are built the same. 600usd can get you a good 4k Mini led with high refresh rate. The blacks on them are not far from Oled with no burn in risk and brighter screen for better bright HDR content, normally at least HDR1000. For reference most Oleds normally go to around HDR500.
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reportedbymom@reddit
You go 4090 and over priced intel and save from monitor? Dude... OLED is the only way. And if you have not bought the parts yet, change that intel to 7800x3d and am5 if you plan on gaming.
tf3091@reddit
4K OLED is the gold standard for display quality IMO. I use mine for work as well and love it. I think burn in risk is overblown on the newer generation panels personally
Gregardless@reddit
OLED
brandon0809@reddit
I mean, you already spent over 1.5k on a GPU… So you bought the BEST GPU in the world only to pair it with a IPS?
Drages23@reddit
It would be stupid to pay for a 4090 but talking about kidney about the monitor you will connect to that card.
So you already gave one kidney for 4090?
Econ_Pro@reddit
Personally, I recently went with a mini led monitor and to me paying over 1k for OLED was not worth it. How I use my computer there is burn in risk and I also use my computer for things other than gaming on it. Mini led was the compromise in terms of quality, black levels, response times, and hz.
etfvidal@reddit
Best 4K Gaming Monitors of 2024 - Monitors Unboxed
greggm2000@reddit
Or see their June Update.
OLED has tradeoffs. OP, if you are mostly gaming or watching full-screen video, and where you would be using it in a room where there is not a lot of ambient light, then OLED is excellent.
On the other hand, if you doing a lot of desktop stuff (be it web stuff or even gaming in a Windows while you have Discord on the screen too, or you are doing work/school stuff with occasional gaming, then IPS is a much better choice.
Alternatively, have 2 screens: one OLED for gaming + full-screen video, and a IPS for everything else.
If you want a “do everything” monitor that has the best possible refresh rate, motion blur, pixel response times, is bright, no subpixel issues, not too expensive…. well, sorry to say, that tech doesn’t exist yet… well, ok, it technically does (MicroLED), but you can’t buy that yet. All existing screens have compromises, you just need to choose what best fits your use cases.
elemnt360@reddit
Are you in the US? It's the hardest to get but I "only" paid $950 for my MSI 321URX. I had a 4k 144hz IPS monitor for 3 years before this. It really is a day and night difference. If you already have a 4090, I would 100% go for the OLED.
Fin_Heo@reddit
Don't save money on proper monitor. If you have 4090, get a monitor that let you enjoy it at fullest.
himmyyyyy@reddit
in Australia a 4090 costs double the price of a 4k 240HZ OLED and almost 3 times the cost of a 360hz 1440p OLED lmao
polarBearMascot@reddit
oled is the end game, and the display has to be GLOSSY, antiglare just spreads the glare all over your screen but removes the distracting pure reflections such as your face. 4k ips isnt impressive enough. I agree that it’s overpriced but then again you have a 4090. ROG 32” 4K 240Hz OLED (PG32UCDM) is whats shroud is using i think
Healthy_BrAd6254@reddit
"So I spent 1.6k on a GPU, but I don't want to spend the money to get a good monitor to make good use of the expensive GPU" Yeah that makes sense
OllieDodle325@reddit
At that point it's just preference. I run a 4k IPS at 144hz. You would also need to factor in any burn-in risks with the OLED. If you are wanting someone to tell you what to do and money is not an object then go with the OLED. Otherwise the IPS is more than adequate...not the IPS in your pp tho, that one is trash.
2high4much@reddit
I couldn't imagine having a 4090 and still buying a screen with no/bad hdr while also agreeing with everything you said
BlackPet3r@reddit
Yeah, I kinda find it funny how people are ready to pay 2000$ for a 4090 and then skimp on the display, like what are you even doing.
Lewdeology@reddit
Yeah, it’s like if you’re balling for a 4090, don’t neglect the rest of your setup. Either go all in or go home.
chrissage@reddit
I concur that this appears to be completely illogical to me as well.
Lewdeology@reddit
Since you don’t want to “waste” a kidney on a monitor, I think you’ve answered your own question.
Chaoseater999@reddit
I would save money by going for a 7800x3D with a am5 socket mobo and just get the oled display. The performance difference in most games betwen processor on your list and the amd cpu will be barely noticeable, but the difference between most ips displays and oled are huge enough, specially for gaming.
Soft-Substance-3684@reddit
Definitely worth it. If you dont have the money, just buy the IPS. Or you can save money by buying a 7800x3d with an am5 motherboard instead of a i9 14th generation, since its better for gaming, will pair really well with the 4090, and Intel is known to having crashing issues on 13th and 14th generations.
chrissage@reddit
I recently purchased two 4K OLED monitors. They have been excellent and are well worth the investment. I upgraded from two OLED ultrawide monitors. Personally, I would not use anything other than an OLED with my gaming rig. I am also running a 4090 setup.
PolyDipsoManiac@reddit
I have IPS and OLED 4K displays, the color is better on the OLED but the IPS is much brighter. I think OLED looks better on my Razer (4K 15”) or Alienware (1440p 13”) laptops honestly, they can get brighter.
theSkareqro@reddit
OLED is the best thing you can buy right now. Dell covers their monitor 3 years for burn-in. I splurged for OLED because I tend to use my monitors very long.