The Samsung Odyssey Neo G9, Samsung's curved gaming monitor, is almost here. It will be available for preorder beginning Thursday, July 29th at a staggering $2499.99. This is nearly $1,000 more than the original. But, this isn't just an increase. The Neo G9's new Mini LED backlit panel can reach 2,000 nits brightness. It also has full-array local dimming to achieve the deep blacks and convincing HDR that were missing from the original.intense brightness, deep color, enveloping curveThe Odyssey Neo G9 with Doom Eternal, Cyberpunk 2077 and Doom Eternal was my chance to try it out. However, the bright display is what stood out to me most. I was either looking at Night City's hazy skyline or gazing at the darkened colors as I battled demons. I was struck by how clear the contrast was even though I moved the mouse around. I also loved how rich the deeper colors were. Although the monitor's 240Hz refresh rate was not optimal for my desktop, it provided an immersive and enjoyable experience.The Odyssey Neo G9 is a 49 inch curved monitor that is similar to last year's Odyssey G9 and has a resolution of 5120x1440 (it's like two QHD displays smashed together). However, several key specs have been upgraded. Samsung will be integrating this gaming monitor with its Neo series high-end TVs.The mini LED is the highlight of the Odyssey Neo G9: It helps to show scenes better and gives deeper blacks with less bloom than traditional LED backlighting. Samsung claims that it has increased the number of local dimming areas to 2,048 from 10 last year's model. This is in addition to the 2000 nits peak luminance, or 2000 Cd/m. The device also supports HDR 10 Plus.CoreSync, a new feature that syncs the monitors rear-facing lights with the game's events, is another subtle but welcome addition. Samsung claims that it can do this without the need to install an application, but you won't notice the difference unless the room is dark and the monitor is directly against the wall. The blue light seen behind the monitor in the images are not coming from the Odyssey Neo G9's rear light. This is a Samsung light that was installed at the press conference.Nvidia G-Sync compatible, the Odyssey Neo G9 supports AMD FreeSync Premium Pro as well as variable refresh rate (VRR). The same 240Hz refresh rate is maintained and the same 1ms response speed as last year's model. Samsung upgraded the Odyssey Neo G9's HDMI ports to the 2.1 standard, which provides enough bandwidth to enable your computer to fully benefit from the faster refresh rate and higher resolution than HDMI. This is a good thing considering last year's monitor required Display Stream Compression tricks in order to make 240Hz work with DisplayPort. These techniques didn't work well with the newest AMD or Nvidia graphics cards.This monitor has HDMI 2.1 with VRR, which means it will be able to support faster refresh rates for consoles in the future. The Xbox Series X currently supports 1440p at 120Hz, up to 4K and the PS5 currently supports 1080p with a 120Hz refresh rate. One DisplayPort 1.4 port is available on the Odyssey Neo G9 with adaptive sync. There are also two USB 3.0 ports and a headphone socket.As Sean Hollister, my colleague, noted in his review last year's model, games can still appear distorted around the edges on this aspect ratio screen with 32:9. This was evident in both of the titles I tested, but I hope more games will have super-wide monitor support such as the Halo Infinite. It would be great to see the Neo G9 running that game.The $2,499.99 price is a surprise. This monitor is made for gamers who prefer the curved design to other features offered by OLED TVs. It is easy to forget that you can find a larger OLED screen with the same specs and 4K resolution for a comparable price, or even lower. Samsung may not have been able to ignore the sticker shock, offering a free JBL Quantum One headset for preorders.The Odyssey Neo G9 will be available worldwide on August 9th. We'll then take a closer look at the monitor. Here are some photos I took at the Samsungs event.Grid View Viewing angles may seem appealing, but curved monitors weren't designed for multiple viewers. Cameron Faulkner/The VergeYou will find the buttons and navigation joystick on the right side of the monitor. Cameron Faulkner/The VergeThe monitors rear didn't emit the blue light that was visible in the back. It was installed by Samsung at the press briefing site. Cameron Faulkner/The VergeCameron Faulkner Photography / The Verge
