Acer Takes on Alienware With Its Own 55-Inch 4K OLED Gaming Monitor

(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

Acer’s Predator CG552K will be about as fancy as a PC monitor can get when it arrives in Q3 this year. With OLED, the most premium type of display panel available, the 55-inch 4K monitor will be among an incredibly exclusive group of gaming monitors and cost an equally incredible $2,999. 

When it comes to strong image quality, it doesn’t get better than OLED’s out-of-this world contrast. With OLED screens’ fantastically rich blacks, it’ll pop against any typical LCD monitor, and even motion processing gets a boost, which is a big plus for competitive gamers. 

In addition to being a massive 4K gaming monitor, the Predator CG552K supports HDR content at up to 400 nits brightness (as per VESA DIsplayHDR 400 certification) and promises a Delta E of less than 1 with 98.5% coverage of the DCI-P3 color gamut, which is just what you want when it comes to HDR titles. 

(Image credit: Acer)

Gamers will appreciate the monitor’s Nvidia G-Sync Compatibility and 120Hz refresh rate coupled with an as-good-as-it-gets 0.5ms (GTG) response time, albeit via overdrive. 

The monitor has other tricks up its sleeve, including a proximity sensor that makes the monitor wake up when someone’s near and go into power saver mode when no one’s looking. There’s also a light sensor that adjusts the screen’s brightness based on how much light is in the room. Port selection is generous with three HDMI 2.0 ports, two DisplayPort 1.4 ports, a USB Type-C port and two each of USB 2.0 and USB 3.0. Plus, there are two 10W speakers and “customizable light strips,” according to Acer’s announcement. 

Acer Predator CG552K vs. Alienware AW5520QF  

The Predator CG552K will join the extremely short list of OLED gaming monitors. The sole other member readily available is the Alienware AW5520QF, which only debuted in September (there was also the limited edition Eizo Foris Nova temporarily available in October). The Alienware boasts nearly identical specs to the Acer, except it has two 14W speakers and a scanter port selection. Of course,  there's lot more to learn about the Predator CG552K, such as how its lights strips are implemented and if it'll come with a nifty remote like the Alienware does. But at the time of writing, the Alienware is slightly more affordable at $2,800.

Unfortunately, the monitors also seem similar when it comes to some things we didn’t like about the Alienware OLED when we tested it. Both displays are only certified for a mere minimum of 400 nits brightness with HDR and lack FreeSync 2 HDR, which has tone mapping and better optimizes HDR games than FreeSync. Additionally, they both have prices that aren’t low enough to sway people from similar-sized OLED TVs. 

Still, along with the mini-LED Acer Predator X32 also announced today, Acer is poised to drop two of the most premium gaming monitors money can buy in 2020. 

Specs

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Row 0 - Cell 0 Acer Predator CG552K Alienware AW5520QF
Panel Type & Backlight55-inch OLED55-inch OLED
Max Resolution & Refresh Rate3840 x 2160 @ 120Hz; FreeSync: Range not specified3840 x 2160 @ 120Hz; FreeSync: 40-120Hz
Response Time (GTG)0.5ms0.5ms
HDR Brightness400 nits400 nits
ContrastNot specified130,000:1
Speakers2x 10W2x 14W
Ports2x DisplayPort 1.4; 3x HDMI 2.0; 2x USB 3.0; 2x USB 2.0; 1x USB-C1x DisplayPort 1.4; 3x HDMI 2.0; 5x USB 3.0; 3.5mm; S/PDIF
Price (as of writing)$2,999.99$2,799.99
Scharon Harding

Scharon Harding has a special affinity for gaming peripherals (especially monitors), laptops and virtual reality. Previously, she covered business technology, including hardware, software, cyber security, cloud and other IT happenings, at Channelnomics, with bylines at CRN UK.