High Quality 1080p Monitor or Lower Quality 1440p Monitor?

[SourCherry]

So I've been gaming on my 21" Asus 1080p monitor for close to 2 years now, and coming up this christmas I'll be upgrading my whole system and I decided to maybe try out 1440p. A curved monitor sounds awesome, but curved 1440p monitors are out of my budget a ways($300-400). So my question is whether i should buy a rather large and curved 1080p monitor, or buy a smaller 1440p monitor that's not curved. I've never used a curved monitor before so I don't know how much of a difference in quality/immersiveness it brings, so if anyone can tell me which would give me the better quality that would be awesome. I'd also appreciate it if you can give me a suggestion towards a specific monitor.
- Also, would a single gtx 970 be able to handle gaming on a 1440p monitor while also having a browser or some other light task open on a second 1080p monitor? I'd like to keep my current monitor although I suppose I could sell it to buy a better single monitor...

 

[demoth]

When you say curved, you are meaning the ultra-wide screens that are now usually 29-34". These screens have whole fan sites dedicated to them as users feel they add more gaming and movie immersion than higher resolution or high dynamic range. Having all is even better. There is some adjustments needed for the 21:9 aspect ratio and not all games support it so you'd need to research and decide.

For a 970, a 1440P is a perfect choice and you can get a 27" IPS 144Hz screen today for under $400, unfortunately, not Gsync unless you sacrifice colors and black levels for a TN panel. Without Gsync you may have issues with two monitors. I was unclear if you currently have a 970 or are planning that on your upgrade but, if so, consider a RX 480 if you see a freesync screen you like around Xmas, or even a RX 390. By Christmas, the GTX 1060 might be a better buy than a sub $250 GTX 970.

Since you are upgrading in 5 months, do not really look to buy anything out now. The 2016 releases for LG, Samsung, AoC, Dell and the rest hit market soon and may have dp 1.3+ but at least 1.2a for more cheap IPS 144Hz 1440p panels hitting market. AMD and Nvidia are also in a real fight now for upper mid range and price wars can lead to very unexpected cheap releases.

 

[madmatt30]

I'd argue nothing less than a 1070 is good enough for 1440p on newer titles really if you value fps
The 970 ,RX 480 ,& 99.999% likely the 1060 are all great 1080p cards at the max.

The ultrawide 29inch 2560x1080 lg screens are a good compromise though, the 970 can definitely handle one above a constant 50fps.