Eizo's Foris Nova Is a Limited Edition 4K OLED Monitor
OLED monitors are few and far between, especially when it comes to gaming monitors. However, on Wednesday Eizo revealed a 21.6-inch 4K monitor equipped with OLED backlighting, promising deep contrast and rich blacks. Just don't expect to buy the Foris Nova anytime soon: the company is only making 500 units, which it will start selling in the U.S., Europe, China and Japan on November 1.
Eizo is positioning the Foris Nova for all types of uses. Is it supposed to be for watching movies? Sure. Playing games? You bet! Professional use? Yep. At least that's what the company claims on the Foris Nova's product page. With a 60 Hz refresh rate and alleged 0.4ms response time, it should be suitable for casual gamers.
However, for serious competitve gaming there's something bigger -- and more gamer-friendly -- on the table. Indeed, hardcore gamers may be more interested in the Alienware AW5520QF, another 4K OLED gaming monitor that's much bigger at 55 inches and quicker at 120 Hz. Plus, it comes with FreeSync. There's much greater availability for the Alienware, considering this is a Dell product, but you'll have to shell out a whopping $4,000.
With that considered, the Foris Nova seems better suited for entertainment. It supports HDR10 as well as the royalty-free Hybrid Log-Gamma (HLG) standard for HDR content. Eizo said the monitor offers a 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio as well as 330 nits max brightness and 1.07 billion colors, plus a high pixel density of 204 pixels per inch (it is 4K packed into 21.6 inches, after all). Connectivity is provided via two HDMI ports that support Deep Color and the HDCP 2.2 and 1.4 copy protection protocols.
The Foris Nova features a built-in stand that almost makes the monitor look like an upside-down laptop. It has VESA-compliant mounts, too, for anyone who doesn't want their monitor to rest directly on their desk, (which can lead to horrible posture -- there's a reason monitor arms lift their attached displays into the air). Sound is provided via two 1W speakers, a headphone jack and a stereo mini jack for line out.
Eizo didn't share the Foris Nova's pricing information; the company's website merely asks people to contact it directly. Given its limited edition nature, however, we wouldn't be surprised if the Foris Nova ended up reselling for ridiculous prices after it ships.
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Nathaniel Mott is a freelance news and features writer for Tom's Hardware US, covering breaking news, security, and the silliest aspects of the tech industry.
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bit_user Wednesday Eizo revealed a 21.6-inch 4K monitor equipped with OLED backlighting
sigh
Not OLED backlighting... the panel is OLED. Period.