It has been almost two years since Asus first announced the ROG Strix XG43UQ, a 43-inch display with 4K resolution, fast 144Hz refresh rate, and HDMI 2.1 connectivity. Many desirable items have been checked off on the spec sheet, and when it begins shipping next month, we will finally be able to see its actual performance.

According to Asus, the XG43UQ will finally be available in May (via TechPowerUp). Barring any last-minute delays, the XG43UQ will be the first HDMI 2.1 display to actually ship to customers, beating out Eve (Spectrum) and Gigabyte (Aorus FV43U). [One of the upgrades from HDMI 2.0 is the increase in bandwidth from 18 Gbps to 48 Gbps and up to 128 Gbps when compressed. The added bandwidth can support 10K resolution at 120Hz. [Support for 4K HDR content in full color at 4:4:4 and up to 120Hz is even more attractive. In other words, there is no need to implement chroma subsampling, which degrades image quality.

In addition, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X console gamers can enjoy their gaming monitors without having to rely on their TVs; with HDMI 2.1 support, the latest gaming consoles can deliver 120Hz 4K with supported games, which is not possible with standard HDMI 2.0 panels. [HDMI 2.1 does more than just deliver higher resolutions and refresh rates; HDMI 2.1 supports a handful of nifty features, such as dynamic HDR, which adjusts the image on a scene-by-scene or frame-by-frame basis

. [For gaming, HDMI 2.1 includes an automatic low-latency mode that allows you to turn the display's game mode on and off yourself, support for variable refresh rates, and a feature called Quick Frame Transport, which aims to reduce latency on the display, Several outstanding features have been implemented.

The latest graphics cards from AMD (Radeon RX 6000 series) and Nvidia (GeForce RTX 30 series), Xbox Series X/S, and PlayStation 5 all support HDMI 2.1. An HDMI 2.1 cable is also required to take advantage of this specification.

Outside of HDMI 2.1, the XG43UQ is a DisplayHDR 1000 certified FreeSync Premium Pro monitor with an eye-popping peak brightness of 1,000 nits to properly display HDR content. It also boasts a 1ms response time (MPRT) and high color gamut (90% and 125% coverage of DCI-P3 and sRGB color spaces, respectively).

Asus' 43-inch HDMI 2.1 monitor is likely to be the first HDMI 2.1 monitor to actually ship, but the manufacturer's hopes of launching it around the time of the 2020 gaming console launch have reportedly been delayed. The Eve Spectrum, a cloud-spec gaming monitor, had hoped to be the first, but its arrival is likely to be in late May or early June. Although a video was recently released showing the Spectrum in action via HDMI 2.1.

The nice-looking Asus monitor will ship next month, but the company has not revealed its price; it has been available for pre-order at OverclockersUK since March for £1,349. Pricing will vary by region, but will not be cheap.

However, it will be the first HDMI 2.1 to actually ship.