Depending on what you plan to use the 4K monitor for will determine its value. Find out Is 4K Monitor Worth It? and right for you by reading this article.
Since they have just become quite affordable, 4K monitors are worthwhile for both professional and everyday use.
As 4K UHD resolution is quite demanding and the visual quality improvement over a good 1440p display is rarely worth the performance penalty, we don’t advocate PC gaming with it.
Since most games are designed to operate at locked 30FPS or 60FPS at 4K, depending on the title, 4K monitors are more practical for console gaming.
Getting a 4K monitor feels inevitable as 4K entertainment becomes more and more readily available each day.
For your favorite TV episodes, movies, and video games as well as more screen space for spreadsheets and online browsing, higher resolution translates into more details and greater image quality.
Do you really need a 4K monitor?
Depending on what you’ll be using your computer for most of the time, a 4K monitor for PC may or may not be worthwhile. Do you create content, play video games, or do you just want everything to be crisp and clear? We’ll offer you guidance on whatever it is.
4K Monitors For Gaming
Getting a 4K display is a no-brainer for you if you own an Xbox One X or a PS4 Pro because you are already restricted to 30 or 60 frames per second at 4K UHD.
You can choose between 4K 120Hz, 4K 60Hz, and 1080p 120Hz on the PS5.
A 4K 120Hz display is great because it allows you to game at both 1080p 120Hz and 4K 60Hz, but these monitors are more expensive.
Additionally, save from a few low-demanding games like Monster Boy And The Cursed Kingdom, most games wouldn’t support 4K 120Hz.
On the PS5, the 120 FPS mode is typically only supported at 1080p.
Consider a 1080p 144Hz monitor, such the AOC 24G2, if the majority of the games you play support 120 frames per second. If not, invest on a 4K 60Hz monitor or a 4K 60Hz game TV that also supports 1080p 120Hz for enhanced image quality.
The 1440p 120Hz option is now available for the Xbox Series X/S in addition to the 1080p 120Hz and 4K 60Hz/120Hz options.
In this scenario, we advise against purchasing a 4K 60Hz monitor in favor of a nice 1440p 120Hz display like the Dell S2721DGF because, similar to the PS5, most games only support 120FPS at lower resolutions.
It depends on your PC’s setup and the games you play when it comes to PC gaming. For instance, a top-tier GPU like the RTX 3080 or higher would offer you 60 frames per second at 4K or 100 frames per second at 1440p in a game like Anthem.
On a 27-inch display, for instance, the difference in image quality between 4K and 1440p is substantially smaller than the performance difference between 60FPS and 100FPS.
A 4K monitor will work nicely for you if you value better graphics above responsiveness.
4K Monitor For Professional Use
Purchasing a 4K display would surely sound alluring if you are a video creator because you would be able to offer your viewers stunning visuals.
In reality, the greater image quality with more vivid details and larger screen space will make video and photo editing more fun.
Your hardware is one item you should consider. Depending on how complicated your videos are and what format you’re using, rendering 4K footage demands a lot of RAM, a powerful GPU/CPU, and extra storage.
Therefore, even though 4K monitors are now reasonably priced, the hardware needed to properly power them for some uses is still pricy.
You might want to consider whether it is all really worth it when you take into account that the majority of your viewers will still be viewing your content in 1080p since it is still the norm and most widely used resolution.
In conclusion, obtaining a 4K display is worthwhile if you can afford to edit in that resolution, but you shouldn’t feel pressured to do so because 1080p is still the most common resolution. As a compromise, you might want to think about getting an ultrawide panel.
4K Monitor for Creating Content
Consequently, even though a 4K monitor doesn’t really make sense for gaming, that doesn’t imply they are completely useless. As we’ve already established, 4K content is widely available. And although viewing 4K movies on a TV in our living room is something we’ll always enjoy, really producing that material is a completely different matter.
When editing 4K video, being able to view your work in progress in real time is quite helpful for picking out minute elements. In fact, the greatest 4K monitors might not even be sufficient for video editors who frequently work with 4K content. You can view every aspect of your production while still having the tools in Premiere, Vegas, or any other video editing program visible with a 5K or even 8K monitor.
But it goes beyond video. We edit images extensively for our reviews, so having a high-end 4K display is appreciated since it allows us to see exactly how the changes we’re making appear. This is especially useful when editing photos taken with our DSLR, which has higher resolution than 4K.
4K Monitor for Everyday Use
Simply said, a 4K monitor is a good option if all you need it for is watching 4K movies and TV shows, browsing the web, and other basic multimedia activities.
Certain 4K displays are actually more affordable than some 1440p monitors! You won’t need a strong machine either unless you are gaming.
You may watch 4K movies without any problems because the HD 630 integrated GPU of Intel’s 7th Generation Core CPUs (or newer) supports 4K resolution.
Additionally, bear in mind that a strong internet connection with a minimum speed of 25 Mbps is required to stream 4K material online.
4K Monitor for Only Emailing?
Using a 4K display is one of the finest things because of how clear and crisp everything is, especially text. Additionally, if you’re working on a variety of projects, you may effortlessly divide your display into several windows while maintaining perfect legibility. We are aware that on sometimes, especially when there is a lot going on at once, we will divide our monitor in quarters, with a few online browser windows and Slack open.
Purchasing a display that supports multitasking makes sense, especially if you only have room for one monitor. Investing in one of the best Ultrawide monitors is even better for this and can save your life if your work space is limited.
On the other hand, there’s no need to get a 4K display for your PC if you’re just going to be using it for routine computing tasks if you don’t continuously need to accomplish 10 different things at once.
A 1080p monitor is still more than sufficient for most users who will primarily use their computer for daily online browsing, email checking, and YouTube viewing. Even while details won’t be as sharp, if you get a 24-inch or 27-inch monitor, you probably won’t notice the difference until you’re side-by-side comparing the two.
FAQs
4K or Full HD?
With a greater resolution, you can see finer details even from a distance of a few meters. Better visuals with more clearly defined lines and colors are present. High-quality photographs are beautiful, and everybody can appreciate them. If that describes you, then 4K should be your pick.
Is 4K worth it over 1080p monitor?
The latter delivers far better graphics and a much higher resolution, but it also places a much greater strain on the graphics card and the computer’s processor. Compared to their 4K equivalents, 1080p displays often offer substantially faster response times and refresh rates.
Is 4K monitor worth it for gaming?
In the end, 4K arguably isn’t the finest gaming resolution right now, but for some players, it can definitely result in a better in-game experience.
Is 4K better for a monitor?
Look at all those pixels. Even among PC monitors, 4K resolution is becoming more and more common. Four times as many pixels as a 1080p display are delivered with a 4K panel, which significantly improves image quality. Not just in video games and movies, but also when editing documents and reading websites, it is helpful.
Is 4K overkill for a monitor?
Since they have just become quite affordable, 4K monitors are worthwhile for both professional and everyday use. As 4K UHD resolution is quite demanding and the visual quality improvement over a good 1440p display is rarely worth the performance penalty, we don’t advocate PC gaming with it.
Does a 4K monitor affect FPS?
The FPS should therefore reduce to about 24 FPS if you take a game that is now running at 60 FPS on a 1920 x 1080 monitor and just increase the resolution to 3840 x 2160 with all other settings being the same. This number may even go lower if your system does not have enough video memory.
Is 27-inch OK for 4K?
A 27-inch monitor is just big enough to benefit from some of the greater screen resolution offered by 4K while yet fitting comfortably on a desk. Larger 4K displays beyond 32 inches require too much work space, so we didn’t look at any of them.
So, Is 4K Monitor Worth It?
Nowadays, there is a ton of suitable content accessible, so purchasing a 4K display can be worthwhile. However, before you go out and buy the display, check sure your gear will be able to handle it if you want to play video games.
And Get The 4K Monitor With The Great Value
Every day, the greatest 4K monitors become more affordable. Finding a 4K gaming monitor for around $240 is not difficult; one example is the Asus VP28UQG. With something like this, you still get what you paid for. Despite being a 4K monitor, the panel is not very attractive. It is a TN panel with only 300 nits of brightness and 94% sRGB coverage.
For the same money, you can purchase a far superior 1080p or 1440p display with better viewing angles, which will prevent you from having to squint at your screen if you’re slightly off to the side and won’t muffle all the colors in your images.
Additionally, lower-resolution displays with fast refresh rates aren’t just for gamers. Hundreds of tiny motions power everything you do on your computer, from moving a window around the desktop to merely moving the mouse cursor. Everything just has a smoothness to it on a high-refresh display that is difficult to convey until you see it for yourself.
