Just when we thought we’d seen everything gaming monitors had to offer, MSI and TCL announced a new way to make them. Now, if only they could come up with better product names…
The MSI Pro Max OLED 271UPJW12 (see what we mean?) was announced earlier this week at the ChinaJoy 2026 event in Taipei, Taiwan.
*– It is technically the world’s first 27in 4K 120Hz Inkjet-printed (IJP) OLED high‑end professional desktop monitor, although the tech isn’t entirely new.
This is, however, TCL CSOT’s (or TCL China Star Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd. if you’re feeling verbose) first foray into mid-sized OLED displays using the technology and could make it the third serious contender in the OLED manufacturing game.
How do you inkjet print a display?
As you might’ve guessed, the inkjet-printed panel is created much the same way as your inkjet printer at home works. Only in this case, instead of ink on a page, it’s liquid-based organic light-emitting materials on a substrate. The main benefit of this alternative method is the estimated reduction in production costs. We don’t think anyone would scoff at cheaper OLED monitors, right?
As for this particular OLED monitor, as we’ve said, it measures 27in, boasts a 3,840 x 2,160px resolution, and a 120Hz refresh rate. With traditional OLED monitors reaching 540Hz, this one won’t be breaking any records there. But if it manages to be significantly cheaper, we’re sure some people won’t mind the trade-off — especially if you’re not looking to do much gaming.
It might not be fast, but it can do other things. The vertical subpixel layout, for example, resembles that of traditional LCD screens, so there shouldn’t be any issues with colour fringing as we’ve seen on traditional OLED panels.
MSI claims 99% coverage of the DCI-P3 colour space, a Delta E ≤ 2 for its accuracy, and 1,000 nits of peak HDR brightness. The monitor also bears a VESA DisplayHDR True Black 500 certification.
This monitor will also introduce MSI’s ‘OLED Auto Care’ full-time protection technology, a supposedly “pioneering invisible background maintenance system and the world’s first uninterrupted OLED protection on a monitor”, according to a press release. Essentially, you won’t be bugged to run the OLED pixel refresh every four hours; it’ll happen automatically in the background.
Unfortunately, we can’t get too excited since we don’t know what this new type of OLED monitor will cost, when it will be available, and if it will ever be sold in South Africa. With TCL’s ever-increasing presence in the country, if this one doesn’t turn up here, there’s a chance we’ll see a TCL monitor using the same tech. Well, that’s the hopium we’re huffing, anyway.
