Gamers are increasingly demanding more from their equipment – from monitors to keyboards – to ensure they can perform to their optimum. But these products are also becoming popular in businesses to increase productivity, and this provides opportunities for resellers.
Gaming is a serious business. The world of esports is burgeoning and there are rafts of competitive tournaments available to gamers where winners can take home serious prize money.
But with competition fierce, gamers are looking to their equipment – including monitors, keyboards and headsets – to help give them that extra edge that could make the difference between winning and not. Gamers want things like monitors with high refresh rates, headsets with the clearest sound and keyboards and mice with fast responses as they know that could give them what they need to win.
It isn’t just gamers looking for an edge from their equipment – businesses are too and are increasingly turning to equipment designed with gamers in mind to find that, especially for hybrid workers to ensure they can be as productive as possible.
Jason Tassie, business growth expert and founder Know Your Business, says there is a real demand for high-spec, gamer-style equipment from businesses. “Demand is growing and it’s no longer niche,” he says.
“This trend started a long time ago in tech roles and now its spread into mainstream work. Businesses have woken up to the fact that poor equipment impacts productivity, especially for remote and hybrid staff. High-spec monitors and headsets are now being viewed as critical workplace infrastructure rather than ‘nice to have’ upgrades.
“There is a cultural shift happening as employees now expect the same quality of setup at home as they get in the office, and employers are under pressure to provide it in order to retain the remote team.”
Paul Butler, AOC and MMD (Philips Monitors) regional sales director for the UK and Ireland, agrees that demand for gaming-derived monitor technology in professional settings has grown considerably. “Features originally developed for gaming, such as high refresh rates, rapid response times or Adaptive-Sync also offer workplace benefits,” he says.
“Smooth scrolling without ghosting reduces eye strain during spreadsheet work; fast response times eliminate motion blur when navigating video timelines. Curved ultrawide or superwide panels primarily conceptualised for immersion, now help content creators view expansive timelines or datasets without bezels interrupting the field of view.”
Gaining an advantage
As mentioned, there are various advantages to businesses of using this type of high-spec equipment. “The biggest gains are typically seen in an employee’s ability to focus and to not get fatigued,” says Jason. “High-refresh monitors reduce eye strain and quality headsets improve concentration in noisy environments – they also allow for better contributions within meetings.”
Paul says that premium monitors deliver tangible benefits that justify the investment. “Higher refresh rates create fluid motion when scrolling through feeds, documents and spreadsheets, reducing visual fatigue,” he says.
“Accurate colour reproduction ensures consistency across design work, data visualisation and video conferencing. Adaptive-Sync technology eliminates screen tearing, ergonomic features such as height adjustment, tilt, swivel and portrait orientation support employee wellbeing and help organisations meet workplace health obligations.”
Paul notes that monitors with comprehensive connectivity dominate requirements. “USB-C or Thunderbolt 4 with power delivery enables single-cable docking, eliminating desktop clutter whilst charging laptops,” he adds. “Built-in KVM switches allow employees to control multiple devices, such as a work laptop and personal desktop, from one display, streamlining hybrid setups.
“Philips business monitors add integrated USB hubs, built-in 5MP webcams featuring Windows™ Hello authentication, plus PowerSensor and LightSensor for automatic energy management. TCO Certified, generation 10 credentials and five-year warranties provide procurement confidence.”
Reseller conversations
When talking about high-spec gaming type equipment to customers, there are various things resellers should highlight.
Jason says the key thing to focus on is to worry less about specs and start talking about outcomes. “Most buyers don’t care about refresh rates or switch types, but they care about productivity and comfort for their home workers,” he says.
Paul adds that total cost of ownership resonates strongly with customers. “A Philips monitor combining docking, KVM switch, webcam and energy-saving sensors eliminates multiple peripheral purchases,” he says. “The five-year warranty extends replacement cycles and reduces support overhead.”
He adds that sustainability should also be part of the conversation with customers. “Sustainability certifications help customers meet corporate environmental targets,” he notes.
Big future
It is anticipated that demand for these devices will continue to increase from businesses in the next 12-24 months. “Demand will continue to grow in this sector as businesses will start to standardise these types of high-performance work from home kits,” says Jason.
“I would expect more emphasis on ergonomics, audio quality and visual comfort – rather than the pure ‘gaming’ branding we see for these products.”
Paul agrees that demand will continue to grow as hybrid working policies mature. “OLED technology, currently prominent in gaming, will enter professional segments,” he adds. “Ultrawide curved displays will slowly replace dual-monitor configurations. Integrated collaboration features and sustainability credentials will become mandatory rather than desirable in procurement decisions.”
With anticipated growth such as this, this will present plenty of opportunities for resellers who get into this part of the market.
