Upgrading your monitor is akin to making a huge commitment — you're basically mandating a corresponding GPU upgrade to make the most of your new display. This is what I did when I switched from a 1080p 60Hz monitor to a 1440p 144Hz monitor back in 2020. The higher resolution as well as the higher refresh rate meant that my trusty old GTX 1050 Ti was now woefully inadequate. So, I had to buy a GTX 1660 Ti to get the best gaming experience my monitor could offer.

I'm now at a crossroads once again where I'm contemplating a monitor upgrade, but am also worried whether my RTX 3080 will be able to drive the latest games with all the bells and whistles. I already struggle with ray tracing in Cyberpunk 2077, even with the help of DLSS. The best gaming monitors almost always need the best graphics cards to flex their muscles.

Nevertheless, I've made a personal checklist of items — features that, if present all together on a relatively affordable display, would compel me to drop the cash for another monitor upgrade (and a new top-tier GPU too, sigh!)

5 Ultrawide screen

Need me some curved large-scree action

The current monitor I'm rocking — LG 27GL850 — is not bad at all. But after years of using flat displays, I feel a burning desire to experience what a truly huge ultrawide display would feel like every day. The best ultrawide monitors have some truly gorgeous beasts with 49-inch, 32:9 panels capable of transforming my gaming experience — at least that's what I expect.

And if I'm dropping a fortune on my next monitor, a 16:9 or 21:9 display wouldn't cut it for me. I would really want a truly massive 32:9 ultrawide panel to completely envelop my senses. Something like the 57" Samsung Odyssey Neo G9 Dual UHD is probably what I have in my imagination, but that thing costs a whopping $2,000. I don't want a new monitor that bad.

Here's hoping that 2024 would help cut prices for some of these 2023 models, so they're at least part of my consideration set.

4 4K resolution

I'm talking true 4K

Resolutions like 3840x1600 or even 5120x1440 are pretty common in ultrawide monitors, and they don't cost all that much (all things considered). But these are still more or less two 1440p monitors stacked next to each other. They're super immersive, but they don't take things all the way. The ultrawide monitor I'll be interested in would need to be 2160p at least. Again, the Odyssey Neo G9 57 already boasts this "world's-first" dual 4K resolution.

The best 4K monitors can be had for around $500, but getting a true 4K ultrawide, like the one I want, at a reasonable price is still a dream. While CES 2024 wasn't promising for those waiting for sub-$1500 4K ultrawide displays, we can still hope that the year will bring some respite in terms of affordable next-gen displays.

3 OLED panel

All hail the king of panel tech

Let's get real — my LG Nano IPS panel is a far cry from some of the best OLED monitors we see today. No matter how good the colors look on my IPS display, it can't even come close to the true blacks, insane contrast ratio, and blazing-fast response time of OLED monitors. And with the prevalence of excellent QD-OLED monitors from Samsung, Asus, and Alienware, the market is full of options for those with the necessary moolah.

Burn-in concerns and brightness drawbacks have mostly become non-issues due to panel advancements and decent warranty coverage. Besides hunting for a great deal, the only thing that could throw a spanner in the works for me is the competition from mini-LED monitors. The Odyssey Neo G9 series is just one of the many great and more affordable mini-LED options. But they still can't reach peak display quality like the OLEDs. Maybe I'll just wait for Micro-LED monitors.

2 240Hz refresh rate

The sweet spot

The jump from 60Hz to 144Hz was night and day for me. And there's a reason I haven't felt the need for anything faster than that. Even the best graphics cards in the world struggle to output more than 120 FPS at maxed-out settings and high resolutions like 4K. But, if I'm upgrading every other facet of my display, I would want to experience 240Hz as well.

The benefits would extend far beyond gaming — where I'd probably be seeing a lot fewer frames even with an RTX 4090. The overall responsiveness of the display would increase, thanks to the reduced input lag. And considering I spend the bulk of time writing, the added fluidity would no doubt enhance my workflow.

1 True HDR

No DisplayHDR 600 nonsense

A high-end ultrawide OLED is almost guaranteed to come with at least 1,000 nits of peak brightness, but I still feel the need to include this point. This is because "HDR" as a term is thrown around a lot when talking about HDR monitors, without an adequate focus on the quality of the HDR experience that a display is capable of delivering. 400 nits or 600 nits aren't really great when you're talking about spending over $1,000 on a monitor.

And today, the very best OLED, QD-OLED, and mini-LED monitors can even reach 2,000 nits. If such options are available, consumers shouldn't be misled into buying sub-par displays with inferior HDR capabilities. Besides brightness, your display also needs to have enough dimming zones (if it's not an OLED) to be able to avoid annoying artifacts.

Next-gen monitor or a next-gen GPU?

With all the things I've listed that'll make up my dream monitor, I'm still conflicted. Even if a hypothetical monitor with all these high-end features were to be available for under $1,000, I'd have to think twice before pulling the plug on the purchase. This is because I'd also need to have enough budget left to spend on a new high-end graphics card. Here's hoping for a heavily discounted 4K-grade gaming graphics card that doesn't cost a grand (and no, I don't want an RX 7900 XTX).