Several weeks ago I got the chance to rent and test a Sony OLED PVM-1741. I had been working at a large live event and found one of these sitting in the technicians backstage. My eyes were instantly drawn to it. From the front it clearly has the shape and lines of a CRT PVM / BVM but it’s flat!

In this video I take a quick look at the screen to see if it’s good for retro gaming purposes. However, beware! This is a 17 inch, VERY high quality OLED screen and while it was produced in 2011 (thats 11 years ago as I write this), it is still a very relevant and usable screen in professional environments. That means it’s price isn’t going down anytime soon. If you want an OLED in 2022, you should probably go find a consumer LG model (I don’t know much about modern screens however). I had to rent this screen from a local production company, cost me about 25€ for the day.

So whats the use of this screen? I think it’s transposed nostalgia. This is the successor to the screens we love dearly, it even looks like one. To me it’s like seeing a modern day Ford Mustang. It’s beautiful and new and reminds you of it’s family line even though you know it’s full of modern technology inside.