Is 1080P or 4K Best For Gaming?

With the recent price drop of 4k gaming monitors, you may be thinking it’s time for an upgrade. However, aside from the price difference between a 4k monitor and a traditional monitor, there are other considerations to think about before taking the leap.

Which Gives the Best Gaming Experience?

Since the launch of the 4k gaming monitor almost 10 years ago, big companies such as Microsoft and Sony decided to make their consoles 4K ready, predicting this to be the new trend in the gaming world. The problem at the time was the cost, so 4K gaming was a little slower to get off the ground than anticipated.

Since then, however, more and more manufacturers have utilized the technology in their monitors, and with more competition comes the battle for the best pricing. This has seen 4k gaming monitors significantly drop in price in recent years, so while 4k is still generally more expensive than a 1080P monitor, it isn’t going to break the bank like it once did.

The 4k monitor is essentially 4 times the number of on screen pixels as the 1080P, but do remember that 1080P is still widely used and still considered high definition (just not as high definition as the 4k monitor). With this in mind, the 4k monitor is going to give a sharper, more life like image, but the amount you will actually notice this is really going to depend on other aspects such as your screen size.

Most 1080P monitors perform best up to around 27inches, anything larger than that and the pixel density can start to become poor. 4K monitors on the other hand will outshine the 1080P at a screen size larger than 27 inches, and this is when they really come into their own and you will notice the undeniable quality of the graphics allowing you to truly immerse yourself in the game.

Bad Points of 4K Monitors

There are some drawbacks of 4k monitors, the main one being that they take some power to run seamlessly, so if your gaming PC isn’t high enough spec, you could well end up with a poor gaming experience including games performing slowly or black lines appearing. With this in mind, you should only consider 4k if you have a pretty high end gaming PC. Speak to an advisor about whether or not your current system will handle a 4k monitor prior to purchase.

Another consideration is that not all games are even compatible with 4k, so if you play a lot of older games, you may well be best off sticking with 1080P.

Summary

1080P is going to give you a good gaming experience with very few issues, but it is missing that magical spark that 4k gaming gives you. If you have the processing power to back it up, and room for a larger monitor (as well as a few extra dollars to spend) then 4k could be a great option for you, but if not, 1080P is still a very viable purchase for 2022.