Not everyone is comfortable paying a lot for a gaming monitor, no matter how pretty the picture or fast the screen. To attract gaming monitor buyers who are in love with OLED but don’t want to spend Alienware’s normally upscale prices, the company’s taking it down a notch, starting with its 27-inch AW2725D, a 2,560×1,440-pixel 280Hz display that’s expected to hit about $550 — pretty low for its class — when it ships this summer.
The company also revealed that the the AW2725Q, announced at CES as one of the displays incorporating a new 27-inch 240Hz 4K panel (older 4K QD-OLEDs were 32 inches) is now shipping for $900. The monitor doesn’t support DisplayPort 2.1 and uses Display Stream Compression for HDR, which is disappointing, as is its DisplayHDR True Black 400 certification, which means it isn’t too bright. But its HDMI 2.1 supports 4K (via FRL, which increases the bandwidth to enable higher refresh rates in 4K) and variable refresh to connect to a console (and PC).
The Alienware AW3425DW
Its original 34-inch, 3,440×1,440-pixel QD-OLED, one of the first to be available, gets a refresh to the new AW30 design switch to indigo, along with some updates like a bump to 240Hz and a port upgrade to HDMI 2.1 with FRL.
Alienware hasn’t given up on other panel technologies, though. New are:
- An esports-focused 320Hz 25-inch model which uses a 1080p Fast IPS screen (AW2525HM, $250)
- A budget 27-inch 1440p IPS with a 180Hz refresh (AW2725DM, $270)
- A low-to-midrange 32-inch 1440p, 180Hz display using a VA panel ($320, AW3225DM)
- A 34-inch, 180Hz 3,440×1,440 wide version of the AW3225DM, also with a VA panel ($400, AW3425DWM)
The Alienware AW2725Q, announced at CES, is now shipping for $900.
Not all the monitors are shipping this month. One (the 34-inch QD-OLED refresh model) is coming in April, and a couple, including the low-priced OLED model, are slated for the summer.
- Alienware 27 4K QD-OLED (AW2725Q), $900, available March 4
- Alienware 27 IPS Monitor (AW2725DM), $270, available March 6
- Alienware 32 VA Curved Monitor (AW3225DM), $320, available March 6
- Alienware 34 VA Curve Monitor (AW3425DWM), $400, available March 6
- Alienware 34 240HZ QD-OLED Monitor (AW3425DW), $800, available April 2
- Alienware 25 320HZ Monitor (AW2525HM), $250, available this summer
- Alienware 27 280Hz QHD QD-OLED (AW2725D), $550, available this summer
Support for the monitors is finally going under the Alienware umbrella, with the paid tier dubbed Alienware Care; it was previously handled by Dell’s support. The basics are free: access to support techs and basic hardware troubleshooting 24×7 with one to two business days’ turnaround and fast exchange for displays deemed defective. Alienware Care adds “expert” Alienware techs and help with setup.