Are OLED Monitors Worth It?

OLED monitors represent a major advancement in display technology and are worth getting if you’re looking for the finest visuals available. While they can be considered a premium investment compared to LED monitors, they also offer superior colors, contrast, viewing angles, and response times. QD-OLED gaming monitors take these benefits even further with greater color saturation and a wider color gamut.

Whether you love immersive gameplay, do color-critical work, or just really enjoy 4K streaming, both OLED monitors and QD-OLED monitors are superb options. Find out more about what makes OLED and QD-OLED worth it below, or browse ViewSonic’s OLED monitor lineup now.

If you’re thinking about getting a new monitor for gaming or everyday use, it’s important to understand how the panel type you choose will impact your overall experience, and OLED and QD-OLED represent a significant upgrade for many users. Let’s take a closer look at the reasons why.

Why OLED and QD-OLED Gaming Monitors Are Worth It

OLED and QD-OLED deliver the widest contrast of any display type and have the purest black levels. Comparatively, LEDs may show a very dark gray when attempting to depict black. Monitors based on organic light emitting diode (OLED) technology offer superb colors, which make them good for gaming, productivity, and entertainment.

They also have near-zero response times, a major advantage for latency-busting in the most response-focused games. And they offer the best viewing angles, so you have more freedom in where you choose to sit relative to the monitor. More people can comfortably view content at the same time together.

OLED and QD-OLED gaming monitors are among the most premium displays available. They’re not meant to be bought on a whim, but after much consideration. They are long-term investments in quality and, as such, very much worth it.

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How OLED and QD-OLED Benefit Gamers

Unlike LED displays, OLED and QD-OLED monitors use self-illuminating pixels and do not have a backlight. Their pixels turn on and off and respond instantly, with dependence on a backlight for indirect illumination.

All of that means they have response times near zero, in some cases even 0.1ms MPRT. That’s ten times faster than fast LED gaming monitors. You get the most responsive monitors available with the clearest motion, plus excellent colors and contrast to make game visuals pop. OLED and QD-OLED should be a high priority if those sound good to you.

How OLED and QD-OLED Benefit Content Creators

The infinite contrast and perfect black levels of OLED and QD-OLED monitors are worth it for people that want to accurately preview content before publication. OLED technology also offers wide color gamut support for superb color grading.

This means you can better see what your content will look like in its true form before you publish, be it videos, photos, or original graphics. You can be assured viewers won’t spot flaws that go unnoticed by you during preview.

With 97% coverage of the DCI-P3 color space, OLED monitors like the ViewSonic XG272-2K-OLED produce accurate color grades. You also get excellent color precision for Apple’s Display P3, although there are many other kinds of monitors suitable to Macs.

For increased color saturation and brightness levels, you may want to consider a new QD-OLED monitor such as the ViewSonic XG2738-2K-OLED, with its ultra-vivid colors and great HDR support. QD stands for “quantum dot,” and you’ll find a detailed overview of QD-OLED monitors here if you’re interested.

How OLED and QD-OLED Benefit General Use

Everything looks stunning with OLED and QD-OLED’s contrast, colors, black levels, and fast response. Mixed use works very well with the technology, from streaming and browsing to multitasking and productivity. OLED and QD-OLED are particularly great for movie watching.

But of course, gaming is where OLED and QD-OLED monitors really shine. Their near-zero response time adds to amazing visuals to create the flagship gaming display experience, making them a must-have for esports and competitive play.

Find out how QD-OLED monitors differ from OLED monitors.

Other Considerations

While OLED and QD-OLED gaming monitors offer class-leading performance, there are a few practical considerations to be aware of before making your decision. As premium display technologies, they come with different usage characteristics than traditional LED panels, and understanding these factors helps ensure you get the most value from your investment.

Mitigating OLED Burn-In Risk

OLED burn-in or image retention used to occur on a small percentage of older monitors. Static image elements like user interfaces, channel logos, and game heads up displays were the usual culprits. Images that didn’t move for extended periods would cause pixel degradation due to the direct illumination used by OLED.

While often talked about, this was a minor issue even with the earliest OLED panels. As materials and overall technology improved, burn-in became almost non-existent on OLED and later QD-OLED monitors.

Good-quality monitors use technologies like ViewSonic OLED Care, which includes pixel shifting, screen refresh, static image detection, and automatic picture adjustment, to provide protections against even the possibility of OLED burn-in. And they do this without compromising image quality or causing lag, as OLED and QD-OLED look so good and respond so fast that additional image care comes at no performance cost.

Still, if you choose to get an OLED or QD-OLED monitor, there are some screen care best practices to keep in mind:

Use screen savers and screen dimmers where available
Choose dark mode, which looks best on OLED and QD-OLED
Avoid leaving a static image unattended for too long or too often
Make sure all screen care features offered by the manufacturer are active

Deciding on OLED vs. QD-OLED

As the most premium monitors available, OLED and QD-OLED displays represent great value as a long-term investment that requires careful consideration. Keep in mind what your main usage types are, the refresh rates your hardware supports, and whether you want QHD (2K) or 4K.

The biggest decision once you’re set on OLED is whether you might want to go with a QD-OLED monitor. As mentioned above, QD-OLED has more vivid colors and more brightness than OLED. As such, QD-OLED may be a better fit for creatives and content creators.

However, the best OLED monitors are worth it for even the most demanding user. They deliver spectacular visuals for gaming and mixed usage out of the box. QD-OLED simply improves certain aspects of the experience.

There are great monitors in addition to OLED and QD-OLED you may want to consider. It’s wise to examine a full range of gaming monitors before making your decision.

Final Thoughts

If you want outstanding monitor performance and image quality for gaming and general use, then OLED and QD-OLED monitors are worth it. You get the best gaming monitors have to offer with regards to:

Response time, as OLED and QD-OLED monitors are the fastest, with close to zero latency
Contrast, which reaches virtually infinite levels on OLED and QD-OLED
Black levels, the deepest of any panel type
The best viewing angles of any panel category
Wide color gamut and high color accuracy, especially on QD-OLED monitors

Ready to choose your next OLED or QD-OLED gaming monitor? Start exploring ViewSonic OLED monitors now.

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Frequently Asked Questions About OLED Monitors

Are OLED and QD-OLED monitors better than LED displays?

In many areas, they can be. OLED and QD-OLED monitors offer true blacks and near-infinite contrast, faster pixel response times, and wider color gamut coverage. However, LED displays can still be better for very bright environments, long static workloads, or budget-conscious buyers. ViewSonic offers a variety of monitors that include LED, OLED, and QD-OLED panel types.

Is OLED better for gaming?

Yes, especially for competitive and immersive gaming. Benefits of OLED and QD-OLED monitors for gaming include extremely fast response times, low input lag, smooth motion, and minimal ghosting. QD-OLED models like ViewSonic’s XG2738-2K-OLED also tend to deliver higher brightness and more vivid colors, which enhance HDR gaming.

Are OLED monitors good for professional work like design or video editing?

Yes, they can be excellent for creative professionals due to delivering accurate colors, infinite contrast, and deep blacks for precise shadow detail. That said, professionals who work long hours with static UI elements (timelines, toolbars) should consider burn-in management features like ViewSonic OLED Care or alternative display technologies.

Do OLED monitors burn in?

Burn-in risk has been nearly eliminated with modern panel technologies. Many OLED and QD-OLED monitors now feature built-in protections such as ViewSonic OLED Care, which includes pixel shifting, screen refresh cycles, automatic brightness limiting, and static image detection. For gaming or general usage, burn-in is unlikely.

Are OLED and QD-OLED gaming monitors worth the higher price?

They are worth it if you prioritize image quality, gaming performance, color accuracy, and contrast. For general office work or cost-sensitive setups, traditional LED monitors may offer better value. ViewSonic offers both LED and OLED monitors to serve a broad range of user needs.

Do OLED and QD-OLED monitors work well for everyday use?

Yes, but usage patterns matter. They’re great for gaming, media consumption, and creative work. For users who spend a lot of time on static spreadsheets or documents, an LED monitor may be more practical long-term. If you still want the benefits of OLED but are worried about static content and the risk of burn-in, it’s important to make sure you get an OLED monitor that includes anti-burn-in technology like ViewSonic OLED Care.

Should I buy an OLED monitor?

OLED and QD-OLED monitors are ideal for gamers seeking top-tier performance, content creators who value color and contrast, and users who want the best possible visual experience. They may be less ideal for strictly office-focused or budget-driven users. ViewSonic’s monitor lineup includes both OLED and QD-OLED options to consider when planning your next monitor purchase.

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