Corsair Xeneon Flex OLED

OLED display tech guarantees a lot. However to this point, it has delivered painfully little on the desktop for PC players. The one true OLED PC gaming monitor—versus a thinly-disguised TV—we have to this point seen is the superb 34-inch Alienware 34 AW3423DW. Till now, that’s, and the arrival of the brand new Corsair Xeneon Flex 45WQHD240.

Strictly talking, you possibly can debate whether or not the brand new Xeneon Flex is pure monitor tech, given its 45-inch ultrawide panel is derived from LG’s newest TVs, right all the way down to its WRGB fairly than RGB sub-pixel construction. The comparatively lowly 3,440 by 1,440 native decision and 84PPI pixel density likewise belie the TV origins of the panel tech. However that is rather more than mere a reboxed TV with added DisplayPort connectivity. There’s some genuinely intriguing engineering occurring right here.

For starters, and because the Xeneon Flex branding implies, this OLED is not simply curved, it truly bends. You may manually set the quantity of curve wherever from utterly flat by to a really tight 800R curve. For comparability, the ultra-curvy Samsung Neo G9 sports activities an solely barely much less intense 1000R curve. So set to most curve, this Corsair monitor is fairly excessive.

Maybe unsurprisingly, given the complexity added by the versatile panel, different bodily changes are restricted. Solely tilt is supplied, with no peak or swivel obtainable. As for broader specs, Corsair charges the LG-supplied OLED panel at 1000 nits peak brightness and 150 nits full display—plus 450 nits in a 25% window and 800 nits in a ten% window.

As these sophisticated specs indicate, the fundamental query of brightness is a little bit of a minefield with OLED tech. As we defined not too long ago, OLED panels don’t have any issues cranking up the brightness in small home windows or over a restricted proportion of the general panel. However bigger objects or full-screen brightness is an actual problem when it comes to energy consumption, warmth, and the danger of burn in. Which is why the full-screen brightness scores of OLED screens are usually a small fraction of their peak capabilities.

Anyway, where the Corsair Xeneon Flex 45WQHD240 positively delivers is pace. The panel is rated at 0.03ms for GtG pixel response and 0.01 for full on-off response, which is miles higher than any LCD monitor, and the refresh charge peaks at 240Hz. The latter, certainly, is loads for all however semi-pro esports addicts.

Like all OLED panels, which profit from per-pixel lighting and primarily good black ranges, the Xeneon Flex guarantees distinctive distinction and HDR efficiency. Certainly, OLED know-how is basically completely different to LCD with regards to HDR rendering, to the extent that Corsair says it’s working with Blur Busters and LG to create a brand-new OLED Gaming Monitor certification commonplace to charge HDR efficiency.

In fact, with any OLED panel burn-in is at all times a fear and right here Corsair may be very reassuring. The panel has a number of mitigation applied sciences, together with a full-panel decision of three,456 by 1,456 pixels, permitting the panel to shift the picture barely. Corsair backs all of it with a three-year Zero Burn in and Zero Lifeless Pixel Guarantee.

Lastly when it comes to the principle speeds and feeds, the Xeneon Flex sports activities glorious connectivity. Together with twin HDMI 2.1 ports, you additionally get DisplayPort and USB Kind-C with 90W energy supply, plus 4 USB Kind-A sockets, two on the rear and two on the entrance of the stand.

However is it truly any good? More and more, the large query mark over any OLED panel carried out in a desktop gaming monitor entails brightness. Right here, the Xeneon Flex is a really combined performer. All of it relies on the type of content material being displayed.

In easy phrases, the brighter the content material, the more severe the Xeneon Flex does. Subjectively, the full-screen brightness is poor. Brightly-lit out of doors gaming scenes look fairly uninteresting, whether or not working in HDR or SDR mode. Given the ultra-enthusiast worth level of this panel, that is disappointing.

With content material that includes darkish backgrounds punctuated by small, brilliant objects, the OLED panel is rather more in a position to obtain one thing nearer to the total 1,000 nit peak declare. Mix that with the proper black ranges—and likewise an absence of any blooming—the outcomes may be fairly beautiful.

An amazing instance is the moody bar scene in Cyberpunk 2077, where the neon indicators behind the bar do pop in opposition to the darkish inside. The one catch is that, even on this context, the centre of the panel is noticeably, though not dramatically, brighter than on the sides.

Then there’s the query of pixel density. 3,440 by 1,440 is an awfully low decision for a 45-inch panel. That is very true when the panel has WRGB fairly than RGB pixels, the latter being required for sub-pixel font smoothing to work correctly. Admittedly, textual content does not look as unhealthy as I might need anticipated. And for shooters, racing sims and what you would possibly name console-style gaming, the pixel density is OK.

However when you spent $2,000 to play technique video games on this factor, you would be making an enormous mistake. As a multi-purpose software for each gaming and different PC work, the pixel density simply does not minimize it.

As I mentioned, where the Corsair Xeneon Flex 45WQHD240 positively delivers is pace. That OLED pixel response mixed with 240Hz refresh is a particular step up on any LCD monitor. This factor is critically zippy.

Again on the Home windows desktop, nonetheless, the brightness limitations are laborious to miss. The panel merely lacks punch and zing. Most giant format OLED screens run ABL or computerized brightness limiter algorithms that alter brightness in line with how a lot of the panel is being pushed laborious. The Corsair’s ABL is definitely fairly aggressive, maybe as a result of the panel lacks a heatsink.

That is an essential omission given heatsinks are more and more getting used to permit the most recent OLED TVs to realize higher large-object and full-screen brightness. Trying on the means the versatile panel characteristic is engineered, it is laborious to see how that could possibly be mixed with a heatsink. If it is right that the versatile panel prevents the usage of a panel heatsink, we would far fairly have a flat panel or a hard and fast curve and a heatsink enabling extra general panel brightness.

That is notably true given the flex characteristic feels clunky and fragile. As you alter the curve, it is tough to know the way far to bend the panel. In concept, the supporting adjustment arm is supposed to click on at full bend. In observe, it tends to click on at random moments. Anybody with mechanical sympathy may also discover all of the creaking, cracking and clicking unnerving.

All instructed, the Corsair Xeneon Flex 45WQHD240 is a really combined performer. At this worth level, the comparatively lowly decision and pixel density alone are fairly tough to abdomen. So, the remainder of the expertise must be distinctive. Sadly, it is not.

The complete display brightness is poor in absolute phrases and likewise inconsistent throughout the panel. In the meantime, the adjustable panel curve does not add an awesome deal to the expertise, whereas presumably limiting the brightness obtainable to at the least some extent by precluding the usage of a heatsink.

Greater than something, the Corsair Xeneon Flex 45WQHD240 is a reminder of simply how problematic HDR stays on the PC. Whereas OLED panels provide unimaginable black ranges, full display brightness on bigger panels like this stays a serious limitation. Mini-LED displays, in fact, have their very own set of points and to this point very, only a few displays can do each the peaks and the lows when it comes to brightness, whereas controlling the whole lot with precision. The Xeneon Flex, sadly, does not buck that development.