What just happened? Monitor refresh rates have been increasing over the years, to the point where some displays are able to hit 360Hz. But those products pale in comparison to what BOE has just built: the world's first 500Hz gaming monitor.
BOE has announced a 27-inch 1080p gaming monitor. That wouldn't usually attract much attention, but its 500Hz refresh rate makes it a world's first. The panel achieves that blistering speed through a high-mobility oxide backplane.
The monitor's other specs include a 1ms response time, support for an 8-lane eDP connection, and a true 8-bit color gamut. It appears to still be in the prototype stage, so we could be waiting a while before it hits the market.
A 500Hz monitor will likely be aimed at eSports players and pros who can gain advantages using fast refresh rates. But even with the less-demanding games within the eSports category, it's going to need a PC with a beefy graphics card to hit those massive framerates---something that isn't easy to find these days without paying a fortune, usually on eBay.
The 500Hz monitor wasn't the only product BOE announced. It also revealed a 110-inch 120Hz panel with an 8K resolution that combines a speedy refresh rate and incredibly high resolution.
We heard back in July last year that AU Optronics and LG Display are both working on their 480Hz LCD panels---the former also has plans for 1440p@360Hz and 4K@240Hz panels. LG's 480Hz/1080p monitor is expected to be available in a 24.5-inch size only, at least initially, and go into production later this year.