Samsung Announces CRG9: A 49-Inch Curved 5K 120 Hz FreeSync 2 Monitor
by Anton Shilov on January 3, 2019 7:30 PM EST
Samsung has announced its second-generation 49-inch curved display supporting AMD’s FreeSync 2 technology. The new CRG9 monitor features a considerably higher resolution and brightness than the first-gen C49HG90 LCD introduced in mid-2017.
Samsung was the first display maker to launch a family of AMD FreeSync 2-supporting monitors in mid-2017 with a 49-inch curved C49HG90 LCD being its flagship offering. Without any doubts, the monitor was an impressive piece of hardware, yet at $1,499 it was not exactly perfect with its 3840×1080 resolution and a 600 nits brightness. Since then, a number of display suppliers have introduced their FreeSync 2-supporting offerings yet neither of them was actually as impressive as Samsung’s FS2 products. In the meantime, Samsung has been working on its second-gen FreeSync 2-enabled flagship monitor.
The new Samsung CRG9 ultra-wide display is based on the company’s new curved VA panel featuring a so-called 'dual QHD' resolution (5120×1440), a 1000 nits peak brightness, 178º/178º vertical/horizontal viewing angles, a 4 ms response time, and a 120 Hz refresh rate. In a bid to increase resolution of its flagship gaming display from 3840×1080 and brightness from 600 nits, Samsung had to lower refresh rate from 144 Hz to 120 Hz, which seems like a fair tradeoff.
Just like in case of the previous-gen 49-incher, the new CRG9 display has a LED backlighting enhanced with quantum dots that enable support for the DCI-P3 color space (as well as larger-than-sRGB gamut) and the HDR-focused AMD’s FreeSync 2. Speaking of HDR, the monitor fully supports HDR10 (but Samsung says nothing about Dolby Vision) and bearing in mind that we are dealing with a panel featuring a peak brightness of 1000 nits, it will likely carry VESA’s DisplayHDR 1000 badge.
Connectivity wise, the new monitor supports two DisplayPorts, one HDMI input, a USB 3.0 hub, and a headphone connector.
| General Specs of Samsung's 2nd Gen 49-Inch LCD with AMD FreeSync 2 | ||
| CRG9 | C49HG90 |
|
| Panel | 49" VA | 49" VA |
| Native Resolution | 5120 × 1440 | 3840 × 1080 |
| Maximum Refresh Rate | 120 Hz | 144 Hz |
| Response Time | 4 ms | 1 ms MPRT |
| Brightness | 1000 cd/m² | 600 cd/m² |
| Contrast | ? | 3000:1 (typical) 2400:1 (minimal) |
| Backlighting | LED w/Quantum Dots with local dimming | LED w/Quantum Dots |
| Viewing Angles | 178°/178° horizontal/vertical (?) | 178°/178° horizontal/vertical |
| Curvature | 1800R | |
| Aspect Ratio | 32:9 (3.56:1) | |
| Color Gamut | DCI-P3 | 95% DCI-P3 |
| Dynamic Refresh Rate Tech | AMD FreeSync 2 | |
| Pixel Pitch | 0.234 mm² | 0.312 mm² |
| Pixel Density | 108.54 PPI | 81.41 PPI |
| Inputs | 2 × DisplayPort 1 × HDMI |
1 × DisplayPort 1 × mDP 2 × HDMI |
| Audio | 3.5 mm input and output | |
| USB Hub | USB 3.0 connectors | 2 × USB 3.0 Type-A connectors 1 × USB 3.0 Type-B input |
| MSRP | ? | $1499 |
Samsung did not disclose when it intends to start sales of the CRG9 monitor and how high its price is going to be. Based on unofficial information, the panel for the CRG9 display was expected to enter mass production in November 2018. If this is the case, then the commercial launch of the LCD is rather close. Samsung yet has to announce all the specs of its CRG9 monitor, so expect them to be disclosed around the time when it comes to market.
Related Reading:
- Samsung Announces First Freesync 2 Monitors: CHG70 & CHG90 - Quantum Dots, Up to 49”, 144 Hz, DCI-P3
- Dell U4919DW Curved Display Unveiled: 49 Inches, 5120x1440
- MSI Optix MAG491C Hands-On: A 49-Inch 32:9 LCD with FreeSync
- ASUS Launches VG49V: An Ultrawide Curved 32:9 49-Inch FreeSync LCD
- LG to Demo UltraWide 38-Inch 144Hz Gaming & 49-Inch Workstation Displays at CES
- Philips Preps 499P9H Curved 49-Inch 5K Display with USB-C Docking & Webcam
Source: Samsung
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philehidiot - Saturday, January 5, 2019 - link
I've done that. I upgraded my monitor and my GPU was fairly marginal on the old one. I decided to try the new monitor on the old GPU and see what happened. The frame rate was low enough to push me into upgrading the GPU to better support the much higher resolution of the new monitor.YOU may never have been in that position but it certainly doesn't mean you have the right to deride those who are or assume it doesn't happen. If you upgrade from 1080P to 1440P or 4K then you're possibly gonna need a new card unless you want to drop texture quality, etc. And as above, GPU upgrade cycles tend to be quicker than monitor cycles.
Mr.Vegas - Wednesday, January 9, 2019 - link
Now that nvidia supports freesync, you can get this monitor.In any case, there are no AMD video cards that can push this resolution even at 40-50fps
Confesor - Saturday, January 12, 2019 - link
https://www.anandtech.com/show/13797/nvidia-to-sup...GreenReaper - Friday, January 4, 2019 - link
This is just what I need for viewing the 10,000px × 3,520px furry porn on my art site.We already have the art filling the width of the screen; we just need wider screens!
Admittedly, another doubling of the resolution would be even better, but I can wait…
yannigr2 - Friday, January 4, 2019 - link
It's really pity to see this kind of monitors and then remember how far behind AMD is in GPUs. If only AMD was producing GPUs that where as fast as NVidia's these monitors would have been great.Of course hell will have to freeze first before Nvidia supports Adaptive sync, so forget about that possibility. Especially now that it's share price bottomed and their GPU revenues hit the ceiling, they would never even consider abandoning their GSync revenues for something free.
Pyrostemplar - Friday, January 4, 2019 - link
Finally - I've been waiting for this monitor to replace my two monitors ever since Samsung launched the CHG90 - the low vertical resolution of the latter was a no-no. Interestingly a few sites appointed Q4 2018 as the launch date, also because Phillips launched a similar 5k monitor based on a Samsung panel during 2018, but this seems based on a different panel.Now I just need to get a new graphics card.. and Vive 2 / Rift 2...
Btw, about AMD GPU ability (or lack of it) to drive this monitor, it is quite true that currently no AMD card can use the full res of this monitor in next gen games at high frames (90+...). But one may not use the whole area to play (I actually intend to use just half of it for most games, as I currently play on my 27") and the lifetime of a monitor should cover three generations of graphic cards, so while 2019 GPUs may not be able to fully use this monitor and FS2, 2020+ GPUs may do so. Either from AMD or Intel.
And *maybe* nVidia will stop being asinine and support Freesync... ;) (oen may dream)
Pyrostemplar - Friday, January 4, 2019 - link
A small thing - the Samsung press release states that the monitor model is CRG9 but Samsung's CES website refers CRG90, the latter more aligned with previous name (CHG90 => CRG90)Hxx - Friday, January 4, 2019 - link
this is gonna be cool for folks looking for a cinematic display with that high peak brightness and local dimming. no HDR? I hope they bring that as well. it may not be ideal for twich shooters due to its massive size.BubbaJoe TBoneMalone - Friday, January 4, 2019 - link
Only three DisplayHDR 1000 certified monitors - https://displayhdr.org/certified-products/Hope the CRG9 is added to the list.
rsandru - Friday, January 4, 2019 - link
I don't see anywhere a mention of a FALD so it most likely won't offer the best HDR experience...