LG Unveils Nano IPS HDR, 5K Ultrawide Monitors

LG is taking a pair of gorgeous monitors to CES, and they’re both loaded with goodies. The first is a 4K 32-inch display (32UK950) with LG’s new Nano IPS technology. LG defines Nano IPS as “the application of nanometer-sized particles to the screen’s LED to absorb excess light wavelengths. This greatly enhances the intensity and purity of on-screen colors for a more accurate and life-like viewing experience.”

Other features include support for 98 percent of the DCI-P3 color space and the VESA DisplayHDR 600 standard (meaning the monitor’s brightness is as high as 600 nits and can display HDR content even in bright indoor lighting). It looks like a gorgeous monitor, with Thunderbolt 3 support and 4K daisy chaining as an option as well. LG notes that the 32UK950 can provide up to 60W for laptop charging, which should handle most laptops.

But while the 32UK950 is nice, it’s not the heavy hitter. That honor goes to the 34WK95U (pictured top), a 34-inch monitor with a 21:9 aspect ratio and what LG is calling a 5K panel (5120×2160). That’s stretching the definition of 5K, which is normally defined as 5120×2880, and the ultrawide panel doesn’t have the same pixel density (11MP as opposed to 14.7MP).

What the 34WK95U does have, however, is a high enough resolution to encompass 4K (3840×2160). This is a nice feature on an ultrawide panel, which have previously used a native resolution of 3440×1440. Of course, since movies aren’t typically shot or released on a 21:9 aspect, you’ll still have to deal with black bars — but you can enjoy native 4K presentation on this display that wouldn’t be supported on earlier ultrawide models. (There’s no word on whether LG plans to challenge Samsung’s double-super-ultrawide 49-inch display.)

The 34WK95U doesn’t appear to support the same color gamut as the 32UK950 (LG simply says it has “fantastic color reproduction,” which is not a standard). It has one Thunderbolt 3 cable for laptop charging or as an external display (LG states the panel can handle 5K@60Hz over one Thunderbolt 3 cable). The higher resolution still makes this panel an intriguing follow-up to today’s ultrawide displays; we’ll be interested to see reviews and pricing information later in 2018.