With new GPUs, gaming monitors always take an evolutionary step forward — that much was obvious with the launch of Nvidia’s RTX 50-series cards and the adoption of 4K 240Hz panels. But what if I told you that gaming panels are evolving even further beyond this?
I spoke to George Toh, Vice President and GM of the Visuals Business at Lenovo, and while some of these future trends are clear to see (OLED gaming monitors, for example), some surprised me. A simple one being that gamers are done tweaking settings, and that displays should adapt to them with AI.
Now, as a D1 settings tweaker myself, I felt a little personally attacked (sarcasm), but in all seriousness, this makes a world of sense — having a monitor that learns to adapt to you, and not just be the screen you have to work around to get just right.
And then there’s the question of catering to more ways that people play. Gaming handhelds like the Lenovo Legion Go S have exploded in popularity, and as gaming laptops go from strength to strength, the need for versatile portable gaming panels is going to grow stronger looking ahead.
So, what does the future of gaming monitors look like? Well, this is what Lenovo thinks.
OLED, Mini LED, or something else — what display technologies do you see leading the next generation of gaming monitors, and why?
Gamers today demand more than just speed or colors or brightness—they want immersion, precision and a visual experience that keeps pace with the speed of today’s titles.
As we look at the next generation of gaming monitors, both OLED and Mini LED will play critical roles in the evolution of gaming monitors. OLED continues to impress with its incredible contrast ratios, depth of color and fast response times, making it ideal for immersive single-player experiences and content consumption.
Mini LED, on the other hand, offers high peak brightness and excellent HDR performance while mitigating some of the burn-in concerns associated with OLED, which is valuable for long hours of competitive play.
One could make a case for either OLED or Mini LED, but based on industry shipments, we are currently seeing a preference for OLED gaming monitors. I believe we’ll also see hybrid innovations — displays that integrate the strengths of multiple technologies — along with advances in panel control and pixel-level tuning. Whatever the technology is, the end goal is very simple: giving gamers more choice and more control over how they experience their games.
With gaming laptops and handhelds becoming more powerful (like the Legion Go 2 lineup), do you see a future where portable or hybrid gaming monitors become mainstream?
Absolutely. As devices like the Legion Go 2 redefine what’s possible in portable gaming, there’s a growing demand for monitors that can match that flexibility without compromising performance.
We’re already seeing increased interest in lightweight, USB-C-powered displays that deliver high refresh rates and vibrant visuals — and this is just the beginning. I see hybrid and portable gaming monitors becoming a much more mainstream category, especially for gamers who want a secondary screen for on-the-go setups, LAN parties, or even creative work.
We are constantly exploring ways to bring new experiences to life, and portable or hybrid gaming monitors will perfectly complement our broader Legion ecosystem.
How is Lenovo approaching the balance between high refresh rates and high resolution, especially as 4K 240Hz displays enter the market?
Balancing refresh rate and resolution is one of the biggest technical challenges and opportunities in the gaming display space right now. Gamers want the best of both worlds: incredibly sharp visuals and smooth gameplay, but factors such as economics often play a role.
We’re investing heavily in panels that can deliver both, as well as in technologies like VRR (variable refresh rate) and advanced overdrive tuning to ensure the experience lives up to the spec.
We’ve also taken a holistic approach — pairing high-performance displays with GPU and thermal innovations across our Legion devices to make sure the full system can support high frame rates at high resolutions. 4K at 240Hz was novel before, but is no longer a future concept; it’s something we’re actively testing and optimizing for real-world gaming use cases.
How do you see AI and software optimization playing a role in the future of gaming displays — whether it’s latency reduction, adaptive tuning or visual enhancement?
AI and software optimization are rapidly becoming foundational to the future of gaming displays. From dynamic backlight control to real-time upscaling and latency reduction, we’re seeing smarter systems that adapt to the user, the content and even ambient lighting conditions.
I’m particularly excited about how AI can personalize the visual experience — whether it’s through auto-calibration, scene-based color tuning or adaptive refresh management.
These aren’t just enhancements — they’re tools that let gamers focus more on their performance and immersion, and less on manual settings. We’re already integrating AI capabilities into our Legion products, and you can expect to see even more intelligent display features in our upcoming lineup.
More from Tom’s Guide
Follow Tom’s Guide on Google News to get our up-to-date news, how-tos, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button.