A Monitor for the PS5 in the UK: HDMI 2.1, 120Hz and VRR Explained

What the PS5 sends down the cable

The PS5 has one way of getting a picture out, and it's an HDMI port. So what a monitor can do for it depends on what comes down that one cable. HDMI comes in numbered versions. The console "supports the HDMI 2.1 specification", according to PlayStation's support page, and it can send 4K at 120Hz over it. That's a 4K picture, refreshed 120 times a second.

The settings live in the Video Output menu, under Settings, then Screen and Video. It holds the three resolutions that matter for a monitor: 1080p, 1440p and 2160p, which is 4K. In each, the number is the picture's height in pixels. The PS5 Pro adds 8K. Left on Automatic, the console picks the highest resolution the connected screen reports.

Three switches in that menu matter when you're choosing a monitor.

• 120 Hz Output. Turn it on and the console sends 120Hz "for your TV and games that support 120 Hz frame rate". At 4K, that's an HDMI 2.1 feature. The 2.1 specification raised the link's bandwidth, meaning how much data it can carry, to 48Gbps. That's what carries 4K at 120Hz and 8K at 60Hz. If you get a blank screen at 4K 120Hz, PlayStation's checklist asks three questions. Does the display claim 4K 120Hz? Is the port HDMI 2.1? And is the cable an Ultra High Speed HDMI cable rated for 4K 120Hz?
• VRR. Variable refresh rate lets the screen "adjust in real time" to the frame rate the game is producing. So a game that can't hold 60 or 120 frames per second stops stuttering and tearing. Tearing is when the screen shows half of one frame and half of the next. It "reduces or eliminates lag, stutter and frame tearing", in HDMI.org's words. PlayStation requires a "VRR-compatible HDMI 2.1 display". VRR works at 1080p and 4K, and at 1440p since a 2023 system update.
• HDR. HDR (high dynamic range) is a picture with a wider range from dark to bright than the standard kind, which is called SDR. The On When Supported setting gives HDR games HDR output and leaves the rest in SDR. Always On converts the lot. The console will send HDR to any screen that accepts it. But only a panel with local dimming, where the backlight dims behind the dark parts of the picture, does anything worthwhile with it. That's the point our monitors page makes about HDR400 stickers.

A fourth, ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode), drops the display into its low-lag game mode automatically. Not every HDMI 2.1 display has it, as PlayStation notes.

Why a 1440p 144Hz PC monitor isn't automatically a PS5 monitor

Most people are weighing up a 27-inch 1440p gaming panel at 144, 165 or 180Hz. That can be a very good PS5 screen. But three things on the box don't mean what a console owner assumes.

DisplayPort is irrelevant. It's a second kind of video input, common on PC monitors. The console's only output is HDMI, so a DisplayPort input does nothing for it. And many PC panels quote their top refresh rate over DisplayPort, while accepting less over HDMI. The Alienware AW2725DM is a clean example. Dell's specification gives it 180Hz over DisplayPort 1.4, and "up to QHD 2560 x 1440, 144 Hz" over its two HDMI 2.1 inputs. That's still more than a PS5 can use. But it shows why you should read the HDMI line, not the headline.

The PS5 has no 144Hz mode. PlayStation talks about 60Hz and 120Hz displays, and nothing in between. So a 144Hz, 165Hz or 180Hz panel runs a PS5 at 120Hz, as long as its HDMI input accepts 1440p at 120Hz. For 1440p, PlayStation's stated requirement is a display that supports "1440p/60Hz, or 1440p/60Hz and 120Hz". The console's Test 1440p Output tells you whether the connected screen takes 60Hz, 120Hz, HDR and VRR at that resolution.

A FreeSync logo isn't the VRR the console asks for. FreeSync is a different variable refresh technology, from the PC world. PlayStation specifies HDMI 2.1 VRR. The three 1440p panels below are from Philips, AOC and Samsung. All three list HDMI 2.0 inputs, the version before 2.1, and none says anything about VRR over HDMI. The logo doesn't tell you whether a screen does HDMI 2.1 VRR. The console's own test does.

The trade-offs that matter

Desk or sofa. A 27-inch panel is a desk screen. From a sofa, it's small. The 32-inch Samsung is the only pick that starts to work across a room. Our monitors page adds a caveat, though: 1440p spread over 32 inches is noticeably less sharp than 1440p at 27.

4K or 1440p. 4K gives the sharpest version of the games that render at 4K, and desktop text to match. 1440p gives up some of that to get 120Hz at a lower price tier. On our list, the 4K 120Hz option is in the premium tier, and the 1440p gaming panels are in the value tier.

IPS, VA or OLED. These are types of panel. None of the seven picks is OLED, so the choice here is the one from our buying guide. IPS is for colour and viewing angles, and VA for deeper blacks. And if you want HDR that means something, look for a Mini LED backlight with local dimming.

Speakers or a headset. A TV has speakers. Many monitors don't. Dell lists two 5W speakers on the S2725QC. AOC lists only an audio output on the Q27G3XMN. Samsung's page doesn't state speakers for the Odyssey G5. If you won't be wearing a headset, find that line in the specification.

HDMI ports, if you're sharing the screen. A PC can take the DisplayPort or USB-C input and leave HDMI to the console. Two consoles need two HDMI inputs. The Dell S2725QC and the Philips have them. The AOC and the Samsung don't.

What changes with a PS5 Pro

For the monitor, not much. PlayStation's page for the Pro describes "support for 60Hz and 120Hz displays" and play at "60fps, or up to 120fps, with 4K output". That's the same output as the standard console. The Pro has a faster GPU (graphics chip) and PSSR upscaling, which builds a sharper picture from a lower-resolution one. They change what games look like inside those numbers, not the numbers themselves.

Three video-menu items are Pro-only. 8K output needs a screen that supports 8K at 60Hz with Display Stream Compression, a way of compressing the signal. VRR is disabled during 8K. So 8K is irrelevant to every monitor here. Enhance Image Quality for PS4 Games requires a 4K or 1440p screen. Enhance PSSR Image Quality is on by default, and improves certain PSSR games.

The monitor advice doesn't change. If you want 4K at 120Hz or VRR, you need HDMI 2.1.

Which of our picks suit a PS5

Our monitors list has seven picks. They were chosen for desks, not consoles, so they don't all suit a PS5 equally well. The port details below come from the makers' specification pages. Everything else comes from the list.

The Dell 27 Plus S2725QC meets every requirement. It's 4K at 120Hz. Dell lists two HDMI 2.1 inputs with a 48Hz to 120Hz range, FreeSync Premium and two built-in speakers. The USB-C input takes a laptop, which leaves both HDMI ports free for consoles. Its HDR is entry-level, so it's the all-rounder here rather than the HDR pick. Dell's page doesn't say whether its variable refresh reaches the console as HDMI 2.1 VRR. The console's Video Output menu will tell you.

The Philips Evnia 27M2N3501PA is the cheapest 1440p screen here with two HDMI inputs, so a console and a second device can both stay plugged in. Both are HDMI 2.0, and the listing doesn't say what they accept at 1440p or whether VRR works over them, so run the console's Test 1440p Output. The panel is Fast IPS, with G-Sync Compatible certification for PCs. The stand adjusts for height, it has speakers, and there's no 4K.

The AOC Gaming Q27G3XMN is the HDR pick. It has DisplayHDR 1000, the highest HDR grade here, and a 336-zone Mini LED backlight. It runs 1440p at 180Hz. AOC lists one HDMI 2.0 and one DisplayPort 1.4, but says nothing about what that HDMI input accepts at 1440p, or about VRR over it. The console's Test 1440p Output is the way to find out.

The Samsung Odyssey G5 32-inch raises the same HDMI question, on a bigger, curved VA panel. It's 1440p at 165Hz, with one HDMI 2.0 and one DisplayPort 1.2, FreeSync and HDR10. The stand is listed with tilt only. It's the sofa pick, but remember that 1440p looks less sharp at this size.

The other three aren't console screens. The BenQ PD2705U and BenQ MA270U are 4K panels with no high refresh rate, built for colour work and for MacBooks. The Dell P2722H is a Full HD (1080p) office monitor at 60Hz. None of them can show a game's 120Hz mode.

Do I need a 4K monitor for the PS5?

No. The console selects the best resolution the screen reports, and runs at 1440p or 1080p without complaint. A game that renders above 1440p is supersampled down, which improves anti-aliasing, as PlayStation noted when it added 1440p. In plain terms, the picture is drawn bigger and shrunk to fit, which smooths jagged edges. What 4K buys is the sharpest version of games that render at 4K. On our list, it also narrows the choice. The Dell S2725QC is the only 4K panel here that also does 120Hz.

Is 120Hz or 144Hz better for PS5?

For a PS5, neither. They're the same thing to the console, because it never sends 144Hz. PlayStation's figures are 60Hz and 120Hz, so a 144Hz monitor runs a PS5 at 120Hz. The higher figure only matters for a PC on the same desk. What matters more is which input the figure applies to. Read the maker's HDMI line, not the DisplayPort headline. And at 4K, make sure the port is HDMI 2.1.

Does the PS5 support 1440p?

Yes. It arrived in a system software update in 2022, and VRR at 1440p followed in 2023. You need a TV or monitor that supports 1440p at 60Hz, or at 60Hz and 120Hz. The console's Test 1440p Output checks SDR and HDR at both refresh rates, plus VRR. In PlayStation's words: "To use 1440p output, set your Resolution to 1440p."

Sources

• PlayStation Support: How to change PS5 console resolution (HDMI 2.1, 120 Hz, 1440p, VRR, 8K)
• PlayStation Blog: PS5 system software update with VRR support for 1440p
• HDMI Forum: HDMI 2.1 specification release (48Gbps, 4K120, VRR, ALLM)
• Dell UK: Dell 27 Plus 4K USB-C Monitor S2725QC specifications
• Dell: Alienware 27 Gaming Monitor AW2725DM specifications
• AOC: Q27G3XMN specifications