MSI’s $380 QD-OLED gaming monitor is one of 2025’s best deals so far

At $380, MSI’s 27-inch 1440p QD-OLED gaming show is 1 of the champion purchases Verge readers who privation an awesome gaming upgrade tin marque now. That’s however overmuch it costs successful an online-only woody astatine Costco for membership holders done December 1st. In lawsuit you’re funny arsenic to what benignant of OLED show you tin get for conscionable $380, truthful was I. So I got MSI to nonstop implicit a reappraisal unit, which I’ve been utilizing for implicit a week. 

This show (model MAG271QPX E2) doesn’t truly disagree from respective different similarly-sized models. It offers a accelerated 240Hz refresh rate, fantastic viewing angles compared to cheaper sheet types, and colors that truly pop. It’s not typically 1 I’d suggest astir radical bargain astatine its accustomed $599 merchantability price, but it becomes an highly compelling worth for $200 less.

MSI MAG271QPX E2 1440p QD-OLED gaming monitor

Where to Buy:

• $479.99 $379.99 astatine Costco

MSI’s QD-OLED replaced an aging Acer 1440p IPS 144Hz show astatine my desk, and the quality was profound erstwhile I jumped into a game. I’ve been playing a batch of Battlefield 6 lately, and the landscapes look much lived-in than they bash with the limited, airy colour gamut that my IPS tin muster. The chaotic enactment looks a small much real, acknowledgment to much vivid-looking explosions. Every small facet of the interface is easier to parse, too, acknowledgment to OLEDs unbeatable opposition ratio. 

Ambrosia Sky is different rubric I precocious picked up that looks peculiarly stunning connected this display. I privation I had started investigating this astir Halloween, erstwhile I was playing much scary games, due to the fact that its heavy achromatic levels look fantastic successful my location bureau — it’s got large contrast. If this is your archetypal OLED gaming show and you haven’t yet experienced the quality betwixt that and an inferior sheet type, you’re successful for a dainty that keeps connected giving. 

I play a batch of games, but I benignant articles successful Google Docs much often due to the fact that of my job. OLEDs person a atrocious estimation for rendering text; assorted subpixel layout types present color-tinged aliasing that’s not contiguous connected IPS and different types of non-OLED panels. The grounds of this is irrefutable nether adjacent inspection, arsenic this Monitors Unboxed hands-on video proves. However, arsenic the video mentions, you whitethorn not announcement it. From the region I beryllium from the monitor, it looks good to me.

This monitor’s specs marque it a peculiarly bully woody compared to different non-OLED monitors astatine this terms point. This exemplary supports adaptable refresh complaint betwixt the scope of 48Hz and 240Hz. While it lone lists enactment for AMD FreeSync Premium Pro adaptive sync, not Nvidia G-Sync, I’ve been blessed with its show successful a scope of games portion connected to my Nvidia RTX 5070 Ti-powered PC. The sheet itself is covered successful an “anti-reflection” coating that appears semi-glossy, truthful it mightiness drawback reflections successful a well-lit room. This show comes with a bully height-adjustable basal that allows for tilting, swiveling, and pivoting, but I conscionable tossed it connected my show limb acknowledgment to its VESA mount.

MSI covers the show with a three-year warranty that includes sheet burn-in, which is great. I’m besides smitten with this model’s ports. It sports 1 DisplayPort 1.4a port, 2 HDMI 2.1 ports supporting up to 240Hz connected PC (or up to 120Hz connected consoles), positive 1 USB-C with DisplayPort video, which works large with my Steam Deck, and a headphone jack. That larboard allows 15W PD charging, but is turned disconnected by default.

If there’s 1 ailment that I have, it’s that the integrative chassis connected the backmost is simply a spot chunky compared to different models that I’ve tested. However, MSI says that this is wherever the monitor’s heatsink is located, which allows it to person a fanless design. And astatine $380, this ailment doesn’t clasp overmuch water.

If you aren’t a Costco member, it whitethorn beryllium worthy it to go 1 if lone conscionable for this deal. But if you don’t program to go one, it’s imaginable that we’ll spot deals astatine different retailers for this model. It sold for $449.99 astatine Amazon during the Prime Big Deal Days, truthful hopefully that terms (or ideally, thing better) volition popular up during Black Friday. 

While Best Buy lone sells the MSI show done a third-party seller, the retailer presently has Alienware’s AW2725D, the company’s 27-inch 280Hz 1440p QD-OLED, for $499.99 — a $50 terms drop. LG’s 27-inch 1440p OLED with 240Hz refresh complaint (which seems precise akin to MSI’s) is $499.99 astatine Amazon. In different words, determination are deals to beryllium had conscionable astir anywhere. But close now, Costco’s is the 1 to bushed connected a QD-OLED gaming monitor.

Photography by Cameron Faulkner / The Verge