IPS vs VA vs TN vs OLED: Which Panel Should You Get?

Panel technology decides most of what you'll notice day to day. Here's the honest comparison.

TN

• Pros: cheapest, historically fastest, high refresh.
• Cons: poor viewing angles, weak color.
• Best for: budget competitive gaming. Increasingly replaced by fast IPS.

IPS

• Pros: excellent color and wide viewing angles; modern "fast IPS" rivals TN speed.
• Cons: "IPS glow" in dark corners; contrast lower than VA.
• Best for: all-rounders, creative work, most gaming.

VA

• Pros: high native contrast and deep blacks (great for movies).
• Cons: slowest pixel transitions → dark "black smear" ghosting; color/gamma shift off-axis.
• Best for: dark-room movie watching, single-player gaming.

OLED

• Pros: per-pixel light = perfect blacks, infinite contrast, near-instant response.
• Cons: burn-in risk with static content; lower full-screen brightness; price.
• Best for: movies, HDR, and gaming if you manage static elements.

Test whatever you buy

Contrast and black depth: Black Screen. Glow and bleed: Backlight Bleed Test. Motion: Ghosting Test.