Buying a monitor was once a reasonably easy affair. You’d decide one black rectangle from the handfuls of different black rectangles, and if you happen to actually pushed the boat out you would possibly get one with an adjustable stand, or, heaven forbid, a rotating display screen.
These days, there’s much more happening. You can nonetheless go for the trustworthy black rectangle, however if you happen to’re the kind of one who likes rainbow-coloured keyboards, mice and motherboards, now you can get a monitor to match. Take Asus’ ROG Swift PG248Q. This 24in show has a glowing crimson ring spherical the bottom of the stand, as if the ensuing monitor has arrived from one other dimension inside its slate-like base. Thankfully, it may be turned off by way of the surprisingly easy-to-use menu buttons on the rear of the display screen, however at the least the choice’s there if you happen to occur to love that kind of factor.
Of course, there’s much more to the PG248Q than some fancy LEDs, the principle one being that this Full HD (1920×1080) display screen has a a lot increased refresh fee than regular. Whereas most displays max out at 60Hz, or 60fps in video games, the PG248Q can go all the best way as much as 144Hz (144fps), permitting for buttery clean gameplay offered you’ve obtained a graphics card that may profit from it. It additionally has Nvidia G-Sync help. This received’t be any use to AMD homeowners, however these with suitable Nvidia playing cards can use it to assist eradicate screen-tearing and pull up the body fee when numbers begin to take a little bit of a tumble.
If all that wasn’t sufficient, it’s additionally extremely versatile, with a beneficiant quantity of tilt, swivel, rotation and top adjustment all in-built. Plus, you get a pair of USB3 ports to your mouse and keyboard and a headphone jack. Asus hopes its comparatively skinny bezels (the black body across the outdoors of the display screen) will make it candidate for multi-screen gaming as effectively, however for now we’ll deal with the way it stacks up as a daily single display screen.
When the entire display screen can rotate 90 levels, connecting your cables has by no means been simpler.
Getting again to that refresh fee, this primarily allows you to break that all-important 60fps barrier and greater than double the variety of frames showing onscreen – helpful if you happen to discover your present graphics card is totally maxed out on all of your favorite video games. The catch is that it’s a must to use the monitor’s DisplayPort connection to make use of it, because the HDMI port is proscribed to common previous 60Hz. As a end result, you’ll have to examine your graphics card has the appropriate port earlier than deciding to purchase.
Provided you’ve obtained the appropriate card, although, the PG248Q allows you to take pleasure in body charges as much as 144fps. You can truly increase that quantity all the best way as much as 180fps if you happen to allow the so-called ‘overclocking’ characteristic within the onboard menu, however that is actually a little bit of a cheat, as Asus is solely utilizing further software program to obtain this type of smoothness reasonably than the display screen truly displaying that variety of frames. In apply, although, it’s extremely convincing, and I’d be none the wiser if I didn’t realize it wasn’t a correct 180Hz show.
Indeed, if wielding Doom’s tremendous shotgun wasn’t already certainly one of gaming’s biggest pleasures, watching demons simply soften right into a sticky pile of limbs underneath its barrel definitely is. Likewise, leaping round Middle-earth in Shadow of War made Talion really feel as if he must be in a Team Ninja recreation, and looking down prey in Rise of the Tomb Raider virtually felt like I’d entered a state of zen tranquility as I tracked my goal throughout the display screen.
Monitor buttons are notoriously fiddly to make use of, however Asus’ five-way navigation stick is a uncommon exception.
Of course, all that is fairly meaningless if the colors are wonkier than a revenant’s flight path. Fortunately, the PG248Q acquits itself effectively on this division, providing loads of brightness and distinction to assist pick that fantastic element. It’s not probably the most color correct display screen on the market, however in comparison with different displays I’ve seen with this kind of panel, it’s definitely extra balanced than most.
Annoyingly, it doesn’t bear in mind any changes you make when alternating between its six pre-set color profiles, leading to a number of pointless fiddling if you change modes. Cinema was by far the most correct one of the lot, so I’d keep on with that if you wish to preserve issues easy. If you undergo from eye pressure, you’ll additionally respect Asus’ numerous ultra-low blue mild choices. This could have a pure knock-on impact on the monitor’s color accuracy, however your eyes will thanks for it after a late-night Destiny 2 raid.
One of the hazards of being carted round a number of journalists is you sometimes discover a column of useless pixels in your overview pattern. This wouldn’t be the case if you happen to purchased one new off the shelf, in fact…
Admittedly, I may do with out the Nvidia 3D Vision help and reasonably hideous crosshair and timer overlays that come as a part of the PG248Q’s ‘GamePlus’ bundle, however put that apart and also you’re nonetheless left with a extremely succesful gaming monitor. The solely hurdle is the very fact it prices £399 / $399. I’d choose a barely extra color correct monitor for that form of cash, particularly if you happen to’re going to be utilizing it for any form of video work or photograph enhancing. Indeed, the successor to my trusty AOC Q2770PQU, the Q2775PQU, currently goes for £359, and that buys you a 27in display screen with close to picture-perfect picture high quality and a 2560×1440 decision. It doesn’t have a excessive refresh fee or G-Sync help, however I’d say it’s a greater total purchase.
There are additionally cheaper 24in 144Hz displays on the market, too, resembling Acer’s Predator XB240H, which costs £215. I can’t vouch for its picture high quality, nevertheless it goes to point out how a lot of a premium you’re paying for that further G-Sync help. Sadly, you’re paying at least £350 for a G-Sync-enabled monitor, so in that sense the PG248Q’s value isn’t too out of the extraordinary (and naturally it may be cheaper come Black Friday later this month). Personally, the additional 36Hz and extra HDMI port you get with Asus’ PG248Q over that £350 AOC G2460PG might be price the additional cash, however I’ll be testing the AMD FreeSync model of AOC’s G-Sync monitor, the G2460PF, very quickly, so I’ll have the ability to provide you with a greater concept about its total picture high quality over the subsequent couple of weeks.
