At first glance, the Alienware 27 240Hz QD-OLED (AW2726DM) doesn't stand out. It's a 1440p, 240Hz OLED gaming monitor, with specs that have become fairly standard in the premium gaming monitor space. So what sets Alienware's latest apart from the pack? The arrestingly low price of just $349.99. While OLED gaming monitors have become less expensive in recent years, we’ve yet to see an under-$500 OLED, never mind one well below the half-grand mark. Though it lacks premium features, the AW2726DM offers the excellent color range and contrast we've come to expect from OLED panels. It is an excellent option if you're a console gamer or have a budget PC and are looking to upgrade your viewing experience, and it earns our Editors' Choice award for mainstream gaming monitors.

Design: Just the Basics

The monitor features a simple design with ultra-thin bezels—similar to the Gigabyte MO27Q28G—giving it a sleek, borderless look. The AW2726DM measures 20.6 by 23.9 by 9.1 inches (HWD) with the stand, and weighs approximately 18.6 pounds. As for aesthetic flourishes, you won't find many. There's no RGB lighting, and the backside of the monitor is plain except for Alienware’s signature alien head logo.

(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)

Faced with an OLED monitor under $500, my first question is what was cut from the build to achieve that wallet-friendly price. In this case, the savings are likely attributable to the monitor’s OLED panel technology. Based on this handy cheat sheet from TFT Central, the AW2726DM matches the profile of Samsung QD-OLED panels released in early 2024.

Alienware declined to provide additional details about the panel technology beyond the published specs, but if the technology is a few years old, that explains why the specs are so similar to Alienware’s 2024 OLED lineup. For instance, the AW2726DM's specs are very similar to the Alienware AW2725DF 360Hz QD-OLED, which launched early in 2024. They have identical pixel densities of 111 pixels per inch.

(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)

However, the longer you look at the specs, the more differences you’re sure to spot. For one, 2024-era Samsung OLED panels are typically rated at 250 nits of maximum brightness, whereas the AW2726DM is rated at 200 nits. Also, the AW2726DM supports HDR but is not DisplayHDR True Black 400 certified (something we’ll look into in the testing section of our review). Overall, though, the monitor is still a good deal at $350.

Additional cost-cutting strategies range from major to inconsequential. For example, the monitor screws into the stand rather than using clips like other modern gaming monitors (a minor gripe), and it lacks both USB-C and USB-A ports (a major gripe if you want to use it with peripherals and a laptop). There are also far fewer features built into the OSD than you'll find on more expensive OLEDs, and there are no internal speakers.

(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)

But what does make it into the monitor is probably enough for you if you're a casual gamer. The AW2726DM offers ample tilt, pivot, and height adjustment, and features two HDMI inputs, a DisplayPort input, and a headphone jack. The monitor’s panel offers a 240Hz refresh rate, but you’ll only be able to access it via DisplayPort. If you’re using HDMI, you’ll be capped at 120Hz.

A joystick on the back gives you access to the monitor’s sparse OSD settings. There’s not much in the way of OLED maintenance, aside from a pixel refresh option. Pixel refresh is an essential part of extending your OLED monitor’s lifespan, as it prevents image retention and burn-in. The monitor is short on game-enhancing features, too. Options to display frame rate, adjust display alignment, and set a timer round out the features. Don’t expect crosshairs, AI enhancements, or multiple refresh rate/resolution combinations (though you can choose a 4:3 aspect ratio instead of the 16:9 default).

(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)

While the monitor’s features are pretty basic by most standards, I’m happy to take basic if it means paying only $350. For many years, OLED technology has been limited to premium gaming monitors and other high-end tech, so it’s encouraging to see it finally reach mainstream pricing. The AW2726DM is cheaper than older Alienware monitors like the Alienware AW2725DF 360Hz QD-OLED ($650), as well as the previous bottom of the OLED gaming monitor market, inhabited by the likes of the Gigabyte MO27Q28G ($599) and the AOC Q27G4ZD ($499).

Image Quality: Reasonable Brightness, Excellent Color Coverage

I put the AW2726DM through our standard benchmark tests using Portrait Displays' Calman calibration software and a Klein K-10A colorimeter. I also ran it through a gauntlet of games to measure input lag and judge its real-world performance. I took these readings with out-of-the-box settings, unless otherwise noted.

(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)

In the first test, I benchmarked brightness using the AW2726DM's default SDR profile. Under these conditions, I measured a maximum brightness of 197 nits at a 10% window size, in line with its SDR rating of 200 nits. Just for good measure, I checked brightness at a smaller window size of 2% and got the same result. While the monitor does not have an HDR certification, it does support HDR. I recorded 396 nits at a 10% window size, and 397 at 2%. My guess is that the certification was skipped to keep the monitor’s price down. 

It's true that 200 nits of SDR brightness is low in an absolute sense, but remember that OLED screens can maintain contrast at lower brightness levels, so the picture will always look vibrant in low ambient light. I do feel that the default HDR settings result in occasionally washed-out image quality, though. It was especially noticeable while playing Cyberpunk 2077. Switching between HDR modes didn’t seem to help much, so if I owned this monitor, I’d take some time to tweak the settings to optimize the monitor’s HDR performance.

The AW2726DM is rated for a dynamic contrast ratio of 1,500,000:1. This sky-high figure indicates the display's ability to produce deep blacks alongside bright whites, resulting in improved image quality in both light and dark scenes. Contrast ratio ratings in the millions have little practical impact, though, since OLED contrast ratios are essentially infinite. This is true of both premium and entry-level OLED gaming monitors.

(Credit: Portrait Displays)

Finally, color gamut testing: The AW2726DM spans 98.6% of the Adobe RGB color space, 158.5% of the sRGB gamut, and 98.9% of the DCI-P3 gamut. The charts above and below show the Adobe RGB and DCI-P3 results in the 1976 uv color space, respectively. The squares represent target color reference points, and the circles represent the actual measured color. That’s excellent color coverage. It's on par with the Gigabyte MO27Q28G, and outperforms the AOC Q27G4ZD.

(Credit: Portrait Displays)

Gaming Performance: Low Input Lag, Scarce Screen Tearing

I used the Leo Bodnar 4K Input Lag Tester to measure the AW2726DM's lag times across various refresh rate and resolution combinations. Low input lag is critical for hard-core gaming and esports, but you can benefit from it even if you're a casual gamer.

I started my input-lag tests at full HD (1080p). At 1080p/60Hz, I recorded 14.9ms of input lag, and 6.6ms at 1080p/120Hz. At 1080p/240Hz, the measurement was a stellar 2.5ms. Moving to QHD (1440p) resolution, the monitor recorded 7.9ms of input lag at 60Hz, and 10.1ms at 120Hz. The Bodnar device can't measure above 120Hz at 1440p or above 240Hz at 1080p.

These lag times are on par with those of the Gigabyte MO27Q28G. At PCMag, we consider 16ms and lower perfectly playable. The 1080p result is also far lower than the LG 27 UltraGear OLED (27GX790A)’s 26.7ms input lag at 1080p/60Hz.

Real-world experiential game testing consisted of playing Counter-Strike 2, Cyberpunk 2077, and Doom: The Dark Ages. While I did notice some slight screen tearing in rare instances while playing Cyberpunk 2077 over an HDMI connection with HDR on, I didn’t find any other major issues. The monitor is both AMD FreeSync Premium Pro and VESA Adaptive Sync certified.

I would actually recommend this monitor if you're a console gamer looking to upgrade your monitor and see what the OLED hype is all about. I, for one, often choose performance modes when playing console games. These modes target 1080p/1440p resolutions at 60fps or higher. This monitor in particular shines when paired with modern consoles and low-end or midrange gaming PCs.