Samsung’s 34-inch Odyssey OLED G8 monitor can stream games from the cloud

SAMSUNG you announced the first OLED gaming monitor, the 34-inch Odyssey OLED G8. It’s also one of the company’s first gaming monitors that we’ve seen Samsung get involved with. Game Centerallows people to stream games from services like Nvidia’s GeForce Now, Google Stadia, or Xbox Game Pass without needing a console or PC. (The feature that lets you stream movies from services like Amazon Prime, Netflix, and recently upgraded Samsung TV Plus is now available at Samsungs Smart Monitor linebut these aren’t really designed for gaming.) But while it might seem like a perfectly reasonable display on its own, there are some confusing things and some key unknowns about it.

Let’s put those aside for a second and look at the specs of the OLED G8 – its 3,440 x 1,440 panel can run at a 175Hz refresh rate and has an 1800R curve (which relatively flat Compared to monitors like 1000R curved Adventure G9 and LG’s OLED gaming monitor, UltraGear 45GR95QE). It also supports AMD FreeSync Premium, which helps reduce stuttering or tearing while gaming by dynamically adjusting the monitor’s refresh rate to keep up with what your GPU is outputting. The monitor also comes with a height and tilt adjustable stand and has a built-in 5W stereo speaker.

Image: Samsung

In addition to the game and video streaming center, the OLED G8 can talk to and control IoT devices using Samsung’s SmartThings app. The company also says that the monitor features an upgraded version of its Core Lighting Plus system, which uses lights on the back of the monitor to paint your wall with colors that match those on your screen. In terms of ports, the monitor has Micro HDMI 2.1, Mini DisplayPort 1.4 and USB-C.

It’s kind of weird to use the micro and mini variants of display connectors on a monitor this big, but there are lots of weird things about the Odyssey OLED G8. First is the name – I assumed this monitor would be just an OLED version of Samsung’s current Odyssey Neo G8, but the two monitors aren’t really all that similar. They have different sizes, refresh rates, resolutions, and curvatures.

Image: Samsung

The stranger is still the display technology itself. Samsung was Leader in quantum dot OLEDQD-OLED, which gives very impressive results when placed on gaming monitors such as Alienware AW3423DW. However, Samsung is unclear as to whether it uses one of these. QD-OLED panels On the G8 OLED—the press release says the OLED panel is “partnered with Quantum Dot Technology.” The company did not immediately respond to this. BoundaryA request for clarification on which panel the monitor is using. Given that Samsung showed the screen IFA tech showwe personally hope to take a look and maybe get some more info to boot.

Depending on its price, it could be more than just a good monitor. Samsung hasn’t released details on that yet, but we should find out relatively soon – the company says it “will be available globally from Q4 2022.” A few of its features, like the upgraded lighting system and Gaming Hub, seem likely to make their way into the company’s lineup of 2023 gaming monitors, so if the G8 OLED isn’t exactly what you’re looking for, it might be worth the wait to see what else Samsung has in the works.