Valve are due to release their upcoming Steam Machine in Q1 2026, I plan to buy one for my son who will be turning 10, this will be his first PC and likely service him throughout his entire teenage years, a monitor is a big part of that experience and so I turn to this forum to help me find the best!
He currently has an Xbox Series S with a MX279H (for which we use Trace Free 60, feel free to suggest the best setting!) which ticks most of my boxes except for the refresh rate and VRR/LFC support.
The Steam Machine is no powerhouse and with the limited 8GB of VRAM, I think the sensible choice is to pair it up with a 1080p monitor.
I am looking for the best motion clarity (in all that entails) whilst ensuring maximum comfort and reduced eye fatigue. This means assuming sensitivity to any and all negatives of technologies that look to improve motion clarity through techniques such as strobing.
Preferred:
- 27" (PPI is lower for 1080p but the size feels perfect)
- 120Hz (or can be 240Hz, as consoles/phones typically support up to 120hz, but I am open to faster, it's just that I don't think the system will be able to drive any higher in most cases given the translation layer and its CPU)
- Built-in Speakers (desk space is limited and using headphones all the time is tiresome, the monitor will also be used for casual productivity/entertainment)
- IPS (maybe not an absolute - but strongly preferred)
- 1080p (to limit and ensure good performance out of the Steam Machine in future games)
- FreeSync Premium (for LFC and VRR for future games)
60Hz to 120Hz is of course going to be a meaningful upgrade by itself, but ideally I want a very good 'overdrive' performing IPS monitor along with that. Maybe I'm completely off the mark by even thinking I need an IPS, I'm open to TN panels I suppose - OLED has issues with daily-use (non gaming) from what I understand and VA suffers in motion clarity more than any other. I'm open to be educated so feel free to suggest completely different to my above requirements, just take into consideration that some of it is picked specifically to ensure no accidental 4K output which reduces framerate significantly and such, I'm trying to strike a balance of plug and play with the hardware its going to be paired up with. Looking forward to your recommendations (I'm UK based btw).