AMD in an announcement on Tuesday, announced changes to its AMD FreeSync display requirements. The updated requirements should vastly reduce the flood of 1080p and 1440p displays with lower refresh rates, such as 75 Hz, from boasting of FreeSync support. AMD has three tiers of FreeSync based on the refresh-rate and features such as HDR. The base tier FreeSync feature now calls for a desktop monitor or TV to come with a refresh rate of at least 144 Hz, if its horizontal resolution is under 3440 pixels. This would cover everything 2560 x 1600, to 2560 x 1440, to the popular 1920 x 1080, and certain ultrawide resolutions such as 2560 x 1080.

To qualify for the FreeSync Premium tier, which customers use to identify high refresh-rate displays; a desktop monitor or TV with a horizontal resolution under 3440 pixels now needs at least 200 Hz of refresh rate. Displays with over 3440 pixels (which should include 4K Ultra HD), now need at least 120 Hz to qualify for FreeSync Premium. AMD isn't clear on what refresh-rate it takes for a 4K UHD display to qualify for the base FreeSync tier. Moving on, the top FreeSync Premium Pro tier, which helps customers identify displays that not only have high refresh-rates but also HDR; nothing is changed—the display must feature HDR on top of meeting the new requirements for FreeSync Premium. The story is different for notebook displays. For the base FreeSync tier, a refresh-rate of 40-60 Hz will do; and for FreeSync Premium, you need at least 120 Hz. HDR on top of this gives you FreeSync Premium Pro. All displays will need FreeSync hardware support (which essentially builds on top of VESA Adaptive Sync).

LG Electronics USA announced today pricing and availability of two new models to its LG UltraGear gaming monitor lineup - the 45-inch LG UltraGear GR75DC and the 45-inch LG UltraGear GR65DC. The GR65DC is available to purchase for $799.99 now at LG.com and LG-authorized retailers. For a limited time, customers shopping on LG.com can preorder the LG UltraGear GR75DC for $899.99 and receive an UltraGear GP9 gaming speaker ($399 ARV) along with free expedited shipping.

The newest LG UltraGear models feature a 45-inch 32:9 Ultrawide Dual QHD screen - providing what is the equivalent of two 24-inch 16:9 QHD displays on one monitor at the same time. Engineered for multi-tasking, the built in PBP (picture by picture) and PIP (picture in picture) features allow users to play console games while simultaneously streaming content on an ultra-wide screen.

TrendForce's latest research revealed that shipments of gaming monitors have seen their first decline since 2016 due to high inflation, resulting in only 19.8 million units being shipped in 2022 for a 13% YoY decline. TrendForce predicts that demand should recover in 2023 however, jumping back up to 20.8 million units—an increase of 5% YoY. This recovery will mostly be driven by three factors: First, a number of brands are replacing their 75 Hz models with 100 Hz models. Second, the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games is scheduled to take place in the third quarter, where Esports is set to be one of the competing categories. This will help drive up demand for gaming products. Lastly, China has finally begun lifting COVID restrictions, which means demand for Internet cafes should gradually recover.

TrendForce reveals that vertical alignment (VA) LCD monitors took the lion's share of the market in 2022 at 51%. This was followed by in-plane switching (IPS) LCD monitors at 43.4%, and finally twisted nematic (TN) LCD monitors accounted for 5%. However, it's worth noting that OLED gaming monitors have grown in popularity, taking 0.6% of the market share in 2022. Thanks to the diversification of OLED products, that market share is expected to grow to 1.6% in 2023. Furthermore, TrendForce predicts that IPS monitors may begin competing with VA monitors given that not only are IPS products increasing their market share but many IPS gaming monitors are seeing a continuous price reduction.

ViewSonic had a delightful set of displays and projectors targeting the DIY PC crowd, particularly gamers, under its Elite brand of gaming monitors. The Elite XG272-2K isn't just another 27-inch planar WQHD (1440p) gaming monitor, it comes with a blistering-fast 400 Hz refresh rate, support for AMD FreeSync Premium Pro and NVIDIA G-SYNC (compatible); 1 ms response time, 400 nits brightness, DisplayHDR 400, and inputs that include HDMI 2.0, DisplayPort 1.4, and USB-C (90 W power input + DP passthrough).

The Elite XG341C-2K is an Ultrawide (21:9) gaming monitor with a 1500R curvature, and a native resolution of 3440 x 1440 pixels, with a maximum refresh-rate of 200 Hz and 1 ms response time. FreeSync Premium Pro, DisplayHDR 1400, and PureXP Motion Blur reduction. Inputs include HDMI 2.1, DP 1.4, USB-C. You also get an in-built KVM. It is priced at USD $1,500. The VX2722-4K-OLED is a 27-inch pure OLED monitor with 4K UHD (3840 x 2160 pixels) resolution, with 100% Adobe RGB and DCI-P3 coverage, 540 cd/m² brightness, and HDR True Black 400. This monitor will be available from Q4-2023.

ViewSonic Corp., a leading global provider of visual solutions announces several ViewSonic ELITE professional gaming monitors with leading-edge Mini-LED technology. Ranging from 27" to 34", the ELITE XG272G-2K, ELITE XG321UG, and ELITE XG341C-2K transform gaming with Mini-LED technology for optimized contrasts and greater details even in dimly lit environments.

"In gaming, image quality is king. As gamers demand more advanced in-game details and extreme clarity, our Mini-LED ELITE monitors surpass current gaming landscapes by delivering enhanced gaming features and innovative technology. We hope to push the boundaries of gaming displays to the next level." said Oscar Lin, General Manager of the Monitor Business at ViewSonic.

ASUS today rolled out the TUF Gaming VG30VQL1A, a curved ultrawide gaming monitor that's closely related to the VG28UQL1A the company released in August 2021. As its name suggests, this one is a 30-inch. It comes with some impressive specs, including a 1500R curvature, 2560 x 1080 pixels native resolution, 1 ms MPRT response time, 200 Hz refresh-rate, ELMB, AMD FreeSync Premium, and HDR10, covering 127% of the sRGB palette. It uses a VA panel, and its other specs include 300 cd/m² maximum brightness, 3000:1 static contrast-ratio, and flicker-free brightness adjustments. Display inputs include two HDMI 2.0 ports, and a DisplayPort 1.2a. A 2-port USB 3.0 hub makes for the rest of it. The company didn't reveal pricing.

AOC launches the 35" (88.98 cm) AGON AG353UCG with 200 Hz refresh rate, 2 ms GtG response time, 3440 x 1440 UWQHD (21:9) resolution, VESA DisplayHDR 1000 and Nvidia G-Sync Ultimate.

Its native 3440 x 1440 UWQHD (21:9) resolution combined with the 1800R curvature creates the next level of immersion. The AG353UCG's visuals pop thanks to Quantum Dot technology, 1000 nits peak brightness with VESA DisplayHDR 1000, 2500:1 contrast and 90% DCI-P3 coverage. Finally, the monitor supports Nvidia G-Sync Ultimate, offering HDR with 1000 nits brightness, at the same time eliminating stutter, tearing and reducing latency.