In the world of technology, especially with screens, bigger and better go seemingly nearly always together. And back at CES 2022, Samsung showed off a 55-inch curved monitor that could rotate from horizontal to vertical. So yes, you could crush your spreadsheets and fire up a flight in Microsoft Flight Simulator with ease.
And Samsung (SSNLF) is now giving us all a bit more info — including price and preorder — for the Odyssey Ark Screen and I got to spend close to an hour with one. So let’s break down how to preorder and what you need to know about this massive screen, that’s part monitor and part TV.
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How to Preorder The Samsung Odyssey Ark ScreenLike the Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Fold 4, Samsung’s got an enticing preorder deal for the 55-inch Odyssey Ark Screen. First, let’s get the price out of the way — it’s $3,499.99, which is certainly a premium, but it’s also a high-end display with plenty of bells and whistles.
If you preorder today, you’ll score $300 off the display which brings it down to $3,199.99. You can also opt to just reserve it and just score $100 off. Either way, both of these promotions expire on Sept. 11, and the Odyssey Ark Screen should ship soon after that.
Samsung 55-inch Odyssey Ark Screen ($3,499.99; samsung.com)If you’re also just after a big-screen and don’t mind it being only horizontal, Samsung’s 49-inch Odyssey G9 and 49-inch CRG9 Curved QLED Monitor are a bit cheaper. And the tech giant makes some monitors that live in the more affordable range as well.
Samsung 49-inch Odyssey G9 Gaming Monitor ($1,199.99, originally $1,599.99; samsung.com)Samsung 49-inch CRG9 Dual QHD Curved QLED Gaming Monitor ($899.99, originally $1,199.99; samsung.com)Samsung 27-inch JG56 WQHD Gaming Monitor ($299.99; samsung.com)Samsung 27-inch Odyssey G52A QHD Gaming Monitor ($429.99; samsung.com)What You Need To About Samsung’s Odyssey Ark ScreenUpon walking into the briefing room, it’s evident that the Odyssey Ark is massive. It’s a 55-inch 1000R Curved display, meaning that even if it’s vertical or horizontal, it will curve over or around you and take up most of your desk. You’ll likely want a wide surface to use this combination screen, monitor, and display on.
It comes with a pretty hefty stand, and as you can see in the TikTok below, even someone on the shorter side like myself can switch it from vertical to horizontal. You’ll push up and then turn it — it is done in a matter of seconds. And if you want to, you can also choose to wall mount the Odyssey Ark Screen as it’s VESA capable. It’s also smart enough, thanks to sensors, to automatically adjust the orientation of your content. It takes a few seconds to switch visuals over as well.
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But regardless of vertical or horizontal, the picture will honestly look fantastic. Even in a room filled with natural sunlight and fluorescent lights, the 55-inch screen was sharp, vibrant, and offered deep contrast points. And much of the tech powering the display is similar to Samsung’s 2022 QLED lineup. The 55-inch screen uses Quantum Matrix Mini LED technology, meaning there are a ton of miniature LEDs behind the screen that light up to create the image as it’s passed through filters.
It’s also a matte display and boasts some other impressive specs like a 165Hz refresh rate with a 1-millisecond response time. It even packs in support for AMD FreeSync, so the content will look sharp and smooth whether it’s an Xbox Series X, PS5, a laptop, or a gaming PC. It’s a 3,840 X 21,60 resolution set in a 16:9 aspect ratio, and the Neural Quantum Processor Ultra powers all the visuals. This chip will also handle all the upscaling of content.
Content here looked quite snazzy and up to snuff — Forza playing off an Xbox Series X was especially fluid, with the Odyssey Ark Screen delivering a latency-free experience with excellent HDR visuals. Similarly, Doom allowed this display to hit contrast points, and Microsoft’s Flight Simulator felt and looked realistic. Playing the latter with the screen set vertically is pretty unique. You can have a flight simulator in the middle with the sound wrapping around you. I’m eager to put this through the paces in the future.
The matching audio was quite immersive, with the Odyssey Ark Screen producing excellent sound from a four-speaker setup. It has four speakers and two woofers for a total of 60-watts. Dolby Atmos is also supported here, which aims to aid in immersion.
And as to why it’s a “Screen” and not a monitor or a TV, it’s a new entry in the Odyssey line from Samsung — larger than the other gaming monitors and smaller than some QLED TVs. But like the Smart M8 Monitor, this fully functioning TV comes with a classic Samsung remote. Keenly, Samsung’s Gaming Hub is built-in, which allows you to stream games from NVIDIA GeForce and even Xbox GamePass. With an account for either of those services, you don’t even need to plug in an additional device.
In terms of ports, Samsung didn’t mess around here. Like a Frame TV, you have a “one connect box,” meaning only one cable goes into the monitor itself. For folks who love to organize, you’ll be in heaven. It features an ethernet port as well as four HDMI 2.1 slots. And Samsung includes a standard control, as well as the Ark Dial. Essentially a rectangular control with a dial for selecting items, directional controls inside for picking, and buttons above for entering and switching between inputs.
One neat thing about the dial is that you can easily resize the primary input to as small as a 27-inch display or fill the entire screen. Within these controls, you can also have three different items on the Odyssey Ark — the input from a PC, a web browser, and then a streaming app. You can also set up these multiple screens within the Screen in a horizontal or vertical orientation.
Let’s Recap Samsung’s Odyssey Ark ScreenThe Odyssey Ark Screen blends Samsung’s previous gaming monitors with its higher-end QLED TVs. It is meant to be ultra-immersive with a 55-inch 4K Mini LED display with a 165Hz refresh rate and one that can be used in either a horizontal or vertical mode. They’re also pairing it with several unique software features like the Gaming Hub and the ability to get a multi-monitor experience with this single massive screen.
It’s also a very premium product at $3,499.99 — or $3,199.99 with the current promotions — that you’ll need to ensure you have space for. After close to an hour with it, it’s impressive and delivers excellent visuals. And remember, Samsung also makes many other monitors with sharp, vibrant pictures at more affordable prices.
Prices are accurate and items in stock at time of publishing.