Conflicted between future proofing or buying what makes sense

[Jai_X]

Everywhere I search, it goes something like this...

"Hi, I'm looking for a 4k monitor g sync etc."
"That's cool here's a good 1440p 144hz suggestion"

Obviously, all of us want to buy get the best bang for our bucks. So this brings me to this oversaturated question that may differ from the typical 'which to pick' question.

I'm looking to spend good money on something that I can hang on to or get significant use out of it. This entails quality, service, gsync and so on.

I have a single 1080ti and wanted to get a 4k monitor over the 1440p for future proofing when 4k does come. I'm fine with subpar 60fps but wouldn't mind higher. This brings me to the question...

Asus and Acer have their versions of the ROG/Predator at 4k/60hz and 4k/144hz.

Ultimately, I feel these are the 2 best choices as they're gsync. The problem I have is the price jump on 60z to 144z. How future proof is this? Is investing in a $2k monitor worth it even at this point? If it isn't, does the 60z make sense to buy even if it's not exactly future proofing?

In the past, I've bought stuff only to quickly replace it and I'm trying to avoid that. $2k is worth it if I'm not going to have to replace it with the next 3-5 years. What opinions, advice, insights do other future proof doers have?

 

[animemangamer]

Yes the price for the 4k 144hz monitor is crazy expensive and this mainly due to less competitions with only Asus and Acer having released their offerings. Also, there is not much of market for them yet since most people run single GPUs and the best one available right now can't really do 4k and stable 60fps in a majority of games. So now that the new RTX series is coming out that might be possible to reach that new heights. I would suggest waiting until MSI, AOC, BENQ, LG, etc start release their 4k 144hz monitors to compete in pricing. I wouldn't spend more than $500-600 on a 4k monitor with 144hz. If the size of the screen is 27" or over it might reasonable to charge more but 2k is just crazy.

 

[Peter Martin]

you can't future-proof anyway. all you do is end up spending way more than you should. get what makes sense to you. if you want to go nuts, go nuts.

 

[Eximo]

I would not invest in that first generation 4K 120Hz panel (144hz overclock, and it can't do full HDR while it does it)

You are on the eve of a new GPU release. A GTX2080Ti might actually make a decent dent in 4K 60Hz+, of course that means another $1200. When 4K 120hz panels are more reasonably priced, which won't happen for a good while, the GPUs to run it will be likely half the cost. (For example the PG279Q is still sitting at $650-700, launch price of $800)

The reason you see so many suggestions for QHD (144hz/165hz) and WQHD (75hz/100hz) is that you get that high frame rate and a reasonable resolution, and there are GPUs available at a 'reasonable' price to run them.

It is the question I asked myself 2 years ago and I ended up with the PG279Q knowing that I can't run it at max. Had I gone with a 4K panel, I would be much worse off, and I likely would have ended up with a GTX1080Ti/TitanXp) when it launched.

1) Wait for ASUS to have some competition in the high refresh 4K market
2) Wait for RTX performance figures (And not ray-tracing, just raw oomph for handling 4K)
3) You say 3-5 years, not sure that is long enough to justify $2000. 5-7 years seems more reasonable (In five years I suspect 4K 120hz panels will still not be very common, QHD is likely to become the standard then getting down to similar prices as 1080p panels)

 

[Eximo]

Yes the price for the 4k 144hz monitor is crazy expensive and this mainly due to less competitions with only Asus and Acer having released their offerings. Also, there is not much of market for them yet since most people run single GPUs and the best one available right now can't really do 4k and stable 60fps in a majority of games. So now that the new RTX series is coming out that might be possible to reach that new heights. I would suggest waiting until MSI, AOC, BENQ, LG, etc start release their 4k 144hz monitors to compete in pricing. I wouldn't spend more than $500-600 on a 4k monitor with 144hz. If the size of the screen is 27" or over it might reasonable to charge more but 2k is just crazy.

I don't think you are going to see 4K 144hz panels at those prices for a long while. 3440x1440 is still sitting at $1k and QHD 144hz panels with G-sync are still $500. If Nvidia ever decides standard adaptive sync is worth getting into, then that will only drop around $150 off these high end panels.

 

[SgtScream]

Forget future proofing the monitor. If you decide to go 4k you're going to be too busy upgrading your graphics card on a regular basis. The best bang for your buck for high refresh rate is 1440p and will give you significantly more life out of your graphics card, resulting in a less frequent upgrade path.

 

[velocityg4]

G Sync and Freesync are already outdated. Freesync 2 HDR and G Sync HDR are now out. I won't say which is best because each locks you into a GPU brand. Although Freesync being open source has given the panels market dominance since there is often little difference in price between Freesync and non-Freesync monitors. My guess is G Sync will eventually fizzle out and nVidia will be forced to support Freesync.

4K 144hz monitors will surely come down in price. It's great to be first to market. Just wait for the cheapo no name chinese brands to start pumping them out. Prices will plummet fast once that happens. It's not a good buy right now if you are a penny pincher. It's for people with the money for the latest and could care less about a diminishing return on value. Just like someone buying a Titan V for gaming over a 1080. It's better but not that much better, IMHO.

The Acer and ASUS 144hz panels are GSync HDR by the way. If you are willing to pay the price. It's not like they will be useless in five or ten years. I doubt GPU are going to push past 144hz at 4K on AAA titles anytime soon. I certainly can't see needing to replace it in 3-5 years unless it dies. No one is really even talking about 5K, 6K or 8K gaming yet. Greater than 144hz on 4K isn't feasible anytime soon on highly detailed games.

Anyways at 144hz Displayport 1.4 and HDMI 2.1 are pushed to their limits at 4K. It takes several years for a new standard to be finalized and brought to market. 240hz would requires considerable compression and lost of quality. I haven't looked into these monitors. As they only have HDMI 2.0 and Displayport 1.4. They must only be able to use Displayport 1.4 for 144hz. Even then there is some minor quality loss in color detail. As it requires a 4:2:2 chroma setting and compression rather than 4:4:4. DP 1.4 is limited to 25.92 Gbps while 4K 144hz requires 31.35 Gbps.

I suppose the only real risk in buying now. Is in one to two years we might see HDMI 2.1 monitors and GPU. Allowing for full 4:4:4 4K at 144hz without compression. Giving a small improvement in visual quality. It’s not like that monitor will suddenly be garbage.

My preference would be for a good quality IPS 4K 60hz panel. Sharper detail than 1440, usually wider color gamut, 4K video support, &c. If you want G Sync get it. I couldn't see dropping $2K on a monitor that wasn't necessary for professional work. 60FPS is good enough for me when gaming, visual detail is more important to me. That's all personal preference.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DisplayPort#1.4
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HDMI#Version_2.1
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chroma_subsampling#4:4:4

 

[animemangamer]

My preference would be for a good quality IPS 4K 60hz panel. Sharper detail than 1440, usually wider color gamut, 4K video support, &c. If you want G Sync get it. I couldn't see dropping $2K on a monitor that wasn't necessary for professional work. 60FPS is good enough for me when gaming, visual detail is more important to me. That's all personal preference.

Samsung and LG are offering 4k monitors around $250 and those feel like a steal compared to most 4k panels.

https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-U28E590D-28-Inch-LED-Lit-Monitor/dp/B00YD3DBOC/ref=sr_du_4_map?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1537298960&sr=1-4