With A 55-inch, Curved Monitor, Samsung’s Odyssey Ark Is A Monster That Eats Your Face As You Watch It
It is difficult to imagine what it would be like if you were engulfed by a monitor. There you are, playing “Doom Eternal,” glory-killing demons with a chainsaw, subwoofers on full blast, a monitor over four feet high, enveloping your face in a sea of rumble.
The Odyssey Ark monitor was Samsung’s pitch to tech enthusiasts when it introduced it at CES 2022 in Las Vegas earlier this year, trying to convince them to buy it. There is no doubt that it lives up to the expectations.
Even if you rotate it to a vertical position, the Samsung Odyssey Ark feels every bit as big as its 55-inch size implies, even though it has a 55-inch diagonal display.
With A 55-inch, Curved Monitor, Samsung’s Odyssey Ark Is A Monster That Eats Your Face As You Watch It
When using a display as large as this, especially if it is connected to a console like the Xbox Series X as well as a PC that is equipped with a high-end graphics card such as the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti, it can be a bit overwhelming, to say the least.
A tidal wave of monitors would result if a whole room full of Samsung monitors were daisy-chained together to make a tidal wave of screens.
One other comical visual that Samsung’s representatives suggested was that of Wall Street traders using the humongous monitors, perhaps at the New York Stock Exchange, just a few blocks from the demonstrations that took place in August.
This is not the type of monitor for the ‘casual dad who plays games every once in a while.’ This is a high-end monitor for gamers,” said Harry Patz Jr., Samsung Display’s senior vice president and general manager.
We think this is a new category, this premium, immersive cinematic experience, we believe it’s a new category.
As you can see, this is someone who is a pretty dedicated gamer. There has been a lot of money spent on it.”
It boasts a 4K resolution as well as a refresh rate of 165Hz, a combination that can only be found on high-end monitors like Ark.
There are some displays that target competitive gamers that offer considerably higher refresh rates, sometimes reaching 240Hz and 360Hz, but they usually come at the cost of a lower resolution quality, which is typically relegated to 1080P.
This is not the case in the Ark, which is equipped with four speakers and two built-in woofers.
A retail price of $3,499.99 is charged for the Ark monitor and it has features like cockpit mode (the aforementioned vertical view), as well as an anti-glare matte display.
It’s possible to stack a Wikipedia entry for Rio de Janeiro, a YouTube video of “Microsoft Flight Simulator,” and the game itself across the monitor while you fly over the statue of Christ the Redeemer as you soar above it.
By using the remote control that comes with the display, users are able to toggle the size of each of the windows. Gamers who are passionate about their hobby are often able to build their own computers by purchasing separate displays and PC parts.
On the higher end of the spectrum, those setups can become elaborate and cost thousands of dollars, making console gaming seem like a relatively low-end experience compared to them.
It is expected that Samsung will release the Ark in early September, with preorders starting on August 15.
At the same time, the launch of the monitor comes at a time when the U.S. economy has a number of setbacks, including an increase in inflation to its highest level in 40 years, a decline in consumer spending, and a slowdown in the labor market.
Video game producers – often referred to as the “recession-proof” industry due to consumers’ tendency to turn to video games in times of economic stress – have not been immune to the general downward shift in the economy.
In regards to the gamers, Patz said, “I wouldn’t say that they are recession-proof, but they are an audience,” he said.
Despite inflation and wage stagnation, Patz believes that the Odyssey Ark will find its audience among gamers who care more about size than inflation and wage stagnation.
There is no doubt that inflation is on the rise. The way people are looking at their spending is that they are asking themselves, ‘Where am I going to spend my money? ‘, according to Patz.
As it turns out, many of [these PC and console hybrid] gamers have already invested a substantial amount of money into their setup.
It’s going to take them hours a day to do this. As a result, getting a monitor, which is their primary form of entertainment, rather than going out and spending money, is a great value proposition for us, and I believe it is a great opportunity for us.
We believe that even in an inflationary environment, an iconic product for something that is a way of life for some gamers will be a very good value for us and will enable us to continue building on our success.”
Regarding the company’s supply chain issues, such as logistical delays and shortages of semiconductor parts, Patz said the company has been planning ahead to ensure supply can keep up with demand as soon as possible.
I would also like to mention that this is also a hero product for Samsung,” he said. We have been hard at work prepping and that’s part of our strategy with the preorders and the reserve to manage the experience because there is no point ordering something and then it takes forever for it to get to you.
It is a fact that I attend four supply chain meetings a week, I can assure you that. A year ago, we were in a much tougher place as an industry as a whole.”