Gigabyte AORUS FO48U 48″ 120Hz OLED
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OLED technology has shown a very slow infiltration of the monitor market. With little crossover with most of the LCD models people would be consider either in terms of size or price. The Gigabyte AORUS FO48U is a behemoth of a screen, using a panel of a size usually reserved for TVs but adding many of the usual AORUS luxuries. The styling is also very TV-like, with metal feet either side for support and a slender bezel running right around the screen. Plus an extra central ‘lip’ at the bottom which includes the ‘Space Audio’ speaker system. The OSD (On Screen Display) is controlled by a joystick which faces downwards in the centre of the bottom bezel. An IR remote is also included for convenience, or you can use the company’s infamous OSD Sidekick software if preferred.
A 47.53″ 3840 x 2160 (‘4K’ UHD) OLED panel is employed, with glossy screen surface that includes anti-reflection treatment. Other aspects of note include a 135,000:1 static contrast ratio, 178°/178° viewing angles and 10-bit colour support. A 120Hz refresh rate is supported alongside Adaptive-Sync, including AMD FreeSync Premium with a 40 – 120Hz VRR range plus LFC. The monitor is flicker-free with 98% DCI-P3 gamut coverage (130% sRGB) and a 135 cd/m² typical luminance plus 800 – 900 cd/m² peak luminance. The monitor responds to the HDR10 and HLG HDR formats, allowing it to put its generous colour gamut, 10-bit colour support, peak luminance and per-pixel illumination to good use. A 1ms grey to grey response time is specified, which unlike with LCD technology might even be on the conservative side. And won’t require the overly aggressive and overshoot-laden pixel overdrive to achieve. The monitor also includes ‘Aim Stabilizer’, a strobe mode that can be used instead of Adaptive-Sync.
Gaming-oriented features include ‘Black Equalizer’, a gamma enhancement which brightens up darker shades to increase visibility. Plus an onscreen crosshair and FPS counter (refresh rate display, reflects FPS with VRR active). The ports are located at the bottom of the screen and include; AC power input (internal power converter), a 3.5mm audio input, 3.5mm headphone jack, 2 HDMI 2.1 ports, DP 1.4 (with HBR3), USB-C (<20W PD assumed, DP Alt Mode, upstream data) and 2 USB 3.0 ports plus upstream. The monitor supports '4K UHD' @120Hz and Full HD @120Hz for the Xbox Series X and PS5. Plus WQHD @120Hz for the Xbox Series X. 2 x 15W 'Space Audio' speakers are included, with integrated 20W subwoofer. KVM functionality is included, allowing connected USB peripherals to be shared between multiple systems. PiP/PbP is also supported.
Further information can be found on the manufacturer’s website. The monitor is listed for ~$1500 USD.
