Sony InZone M10S review: Prioritize speed over value

Update: Sony has clarified that the one-year warranty covers burn-in.

Just as 27-inch 1440p OLED gaming monitors are finding favor with more and more PC gamers thanks to steady price cuts, Sony is making a splash with its first OLED monitor, the $1,099.99 InZone M10S. The M10S retains the unparalleled contrast and outstanding image quality that OLED is known for, but doesn’t join in with the commonly used 240Hz refresh rate, instead raising the bar at 480Hz.

The increased refresh rate is the M10S’ standout hardware feature and a big selling point if you’re a competitive PC gamer who wants cutting-edge technology to boost performance. (The response time of 0.03 milliseconds, on the other hand, is more in line with current industry standards for OLED monitors.) Paired with a sufficiently fast GPU, the M10S can run a range of online multiplayer games, including Counter Strike 2, Fortnite, Overwatch 2, Appreciationand more at 1440p resolution and up to 480 frames per second. That may sound excessive, or perhaps incredibly fast, but for people who play these games at a competitive level, it’s a worthwhile upgrade. The M10S is one of two monitors that support 480Hz at 1440p, the other being one $999 Asus monitor

I spent some time testing 480Hz mode while gaming on my Windows PC Counter Strike 2. The game immediately set the refresh rate to 480Hz, although my Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti-powered device struggled to maintain a consistent 290 frames per second at 1440p resolution despite all the settings. Still, it was an enjoyable experience, although I personally didn’t notice much of a difference at 480Hz compared to 240Hz.

The value of the M10S’s fast refresh rate and response time is obvious for professionals, but it’s questionable for casual gamers who don’t have a powerful gaming PC or aren’t passionate about competing. Also for those who Are Well equipped, large amounts of games do not support such a fast refresh rate. More specifically, unless you spend most of your time pushing the refresh rate to the maximum, you won’t notice much of a difference between the M10S and a cheaper OLED gaming monitor.

I loved playing horror games on the M10S, even if they weren’t fast, high refresh rate titles that took full advantage of its features. I planned on getting through this Separate paths DLC for the Resident Evil 4 Remake as well as that Dead space Remake, and these are exactly the types of games the M10S and other OLEDs do best. When HDR is enabled, the games’ dark scenes appear bold and appropriately immersive. And with Halloween getting closer and closer, I played that too Silent Hill 2

Sony co-developed the M10S with gaming pro Fnatic to make it the preferred choice among hair-raising esports enthusiasts. The hope is that more of them will appreciate OLED’s unique combination of speed, great viewing angles and pixel-perfect color accuracy compared to TN LCD panels. TN panels are the fastest panels on the market. They achieve a maximum refresh rate of 540 Hz, but have poorer overall image quality. To that end, Sony has developed some clever ways to appeal to its target audience of competitive gamers, including the ability to shrink the M10S’s display to 24.5 inches, a popular size among professionals, with black bars on the sides. And for those switching to OLED, Sony’s monitor features the FPS Pro visual preset, which ironically changes the appearance of the OLED to mimic the TN panel you might be used to, but without the extra response time that comes with it comes with playing on one. These features don’t mean much to me, but I can imagine they’re a big deal for some gamers.

Outside of the product itself, I had concerns about the M10S’s one-year warranty offered by YouTube channel BadSeed Tech review pointed out that burn protection was not mentioned. However, Sony confirmed to Polygon that panel burn-in is and was covered under the one-year warranty. The company now mentions it in the Monitor FAQ see the “Troubleshooting” section.

If you’re a casual gamer, I’ve already pointed out that I think you should go for a cheaper OLED gaming monitor, many of which are close enough to the M10S’s specs. Heck, you can find OLED monitors up to 39 inches in size for less than $1,000. After checking Sony’s first gaming monitor in 2022I said it was good, but not nearly good enough for the price. Unfortunately, unless you’re a pro who makes the most of the M10S’s 480Hz refresh rate, I feel the same way about the M10S. At a lower price it’s easier to recommend, but I feel more comfortable referring competitive players to it Asus’ competing 480Hz 1440p monitor with a 3-year warranty that protects against burn-in (compared to Sony’s one-year warranty), or save even more with a 240Hz monitor.