Asus VG248QE review | TechRadar
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A cheaper entry into the silky smooth world of 144Hz gaming?
By Dave James
published
Is the Asus VG248QE right for you?
TechRadar Verdict
Cons
- —
Too expensive
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The Asus VG248QE is proving that while 4K panels are beginning to take over the market, the days of 3D monitors aren’t completely behind us. And, with Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals starting to pop up, they’re certainly worth considering if you’re looking to save some money.
While we’re undoubtedly glad that monitor and TV manufacturers have turned their efforts towards making 4K displays – and they’re certainly making converts out of many of us, 3D monitors have been some of the most useful display tech we’ve ever had. That’s been exemplified by the Asus VG range of 144Hz monitors.
The elevated refresh rate necessary to achieve stereoscopic 3D has led to some amazing advances in modern gaming monitors. We’re now getting more accurate color reproduction than yesteryear’s TN panels, with faster response times, which will just be awesome for users that play fast paced games.
However, it’s still the 144Hz refresh rate that gets us hyped about the surviving models of the latest 3D movement. This means the TN panels with their fast refresh rates can get a bit expensive. In fact, you can pick up a decent 27-inch 10-bit IPS display for about the same price as this Asus TN panel. So, it can be hard to figure out what’s right for you.
More specifically, is the Asus VG248QE right for you?
- Asus VG248QE (Black LED) at Amazon for $259.
99
Stereo VGs
Asus’s VG range of 3D screens have all been solid performers, offering the full Nvidia 3D Vision 2 experience, with Lightboost tech to make the best of the stereoscopic 3D’s numerous failings.
Outside of the 3D modes they’re great monitors, offering a smooth desktop experience with a top-of-the-range 144Hz refresh rate and that excellent new spin on TN technology.
The Taiwanese company has also been smart in removing the built-in IR receiver and bundled 3D Vision goggles from the most recent screens, such as the VG278HE. Now you won’t find yourself accidentally firing up Skyrim with a hunk of plastic strapped to your face, filling you head with blistering headaches.
Luckily, it’s more affordable this time. It’s just a shame that this 24-inch version isn’t all that cheaper than the 27-inch model. We were hoping the smaller size would represent a more budget-oriented entry into the glorious new 144Hz world, but you’re only saving about £60.
That said you are still getting the same native resolution, full tilt/rotation, a VESA-compatible stand and great image quality, but a sub-£300 price-tag would have been nice. That’s especially true given what BenQ has managed to do with its XL2411T. It’s almost £100 cheaper than this 24-inch Asus screen, and the only real difference we can make out is that this panel is rated at 144Hz, as opposed to the 120Hz of the BenQ.
Most users would agree that a decent 120-144Hz monitor is great for gaming, minus forking out for an Nvidia 3D Vision bundle. Sure, Asus has some impressive screen tech in its monitor lineup, but it needs to get a lot more competitive in terms of pricing, given the value on offer from both BenQ and Iiyama at the time of this writing.
Asus VG248QE: Price Comparison
3 Amazon customer reviews
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$279
$259.
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One of the Best Gaming Monitor – MBReviews
Categories Monitors
by Mark B
So you’re on the market to build a gaming rig capable to play the latest games and after your tower is complete comes an enigma. Which monitor should you buy so you can fully experience all that power?
Gaming monitors come in various shapes and sizes, most with 144Hz or above and the ideal response time should be 1ms. One monitor that caught our eye and fits the description without being irrationally expensive is the Asus VG248QE.
Note: This type of monitors were originally created for enjoying 3D content more smoothly and fluid.
This Asus monitor promises to be one of the best gaming monitors that you can find considering its price tag so let’s see if it delivers.
Design
The Asus VG248QE features a simple but elegant design, with a black glossy look that reminds us of the 27in Asus VG278HE. The bezels around the screen are reasonably thick, the screen surface has a matte texture. The matte finish has zero glare, perfect for bright rooms.
The base of the monitor has a high gloss finish that can retain fingerprints, it allows for between 45 and 90 degrees swivels and thanks to the telescoping mounting arm, you can adjust height, tilt and pivot.
Beneath the lower bezels, the buttons can be found as follows: Splendid Mode (Scenery, Standard, Theatre, Game, sRGB, Night View), GamePlus/Down, Menu, Brightness/Up, Source and Power button with a status light (doesn’t distract as it’s not visible from normal viewing angle).
On the back side of the monitor you can find the video inputs, HDMI, dual-link DVI-D connector and DisplayPort. One downside is the lack of USB ports or an analogue video input. Still, you can find a stereo 3.
5mm mini jack, headphone output and two 2-watt speakers for a reasonably good audio experience.
Overall the Asus VG248QE measures 22.4×19.7×9.1 in and it can be wall mounted (VESA compatible).
Design-wise, the Asus VG248QE isn’t flashy or overloaded with features, it is just a simple, clean design that will manage to please most of its users.
Note: Inside the package box, you can find a DisplayPort cable, a IEC power cord, a dual-link DVI, a stereo audio, the user manual and the ASUS VG248QE driver.
Display and Image Quality
The Asus VG248QE features a 24″ TN panel LED-backlit display and a resolution of 1920×1080 with 80,000,000:1 ASUS smart contrast ratio that manages to deliver dark blacks and bright whites. Still, the Asus VG248QE has quite narrow viewing angles as we experienced some colour shifting especially when the monitor was tilted.
This monitor is one of the brightest we had the chance to test, scoring well above Asus PB278Q or HP E271i, the colour accuracy is reasonable (not near perfect) with oversaturated greens (the blue and red were accurate enough) and the light shades of grey not being dark enough (although almost every other shade of grey was displayed correctly).
Still image quality is pretty solid, with very good black levels, bright white levels and reasonable contrast (1000:1).
Sure, the Asus VG248QE has TN panels (this is the source of all its sins) and comparing it to other IPS monitors can show a lower picture quality, but IPS monitors are a lot slower and not quite suited for gaming (more for photo editing). Sure, there are IPS monitors with high refresh rate and reasonable response time but the price is a lot higher.
As said in the introduction, the Asus VG248QE was built for 3D (compatible with NVidia 3D Vision 2 kit) and by activating the LightBoost option (only if you have a compatible graphics card) you are able to effectively double the frame rate.
Note: This monitor is G-Sync compatible that works only with NVidia.
The 144Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time truly make a difference when playing games, the scenes rendered fluidly, without any streaks and the response time (especially on shooter games) is nothing short from amazing.
Power Consumption
At 60Hz, the Asus monitor has a power consumption of 25 W. At 120Hz and 144Hz it averages at about 30W.
Conclusion
The Asus VG248QE does have its flaws but considering that it has a stellar gaming performance (HDMI, 144hz, 1ms), a good image quality, multiple adjustments, it’s 3D ready and has an attractive price, makes the VG248QE a smart choice for anybody looking for a decent inexpensive gaming monitor (also, one of the best 144hz monitor on the market).
Check the product here:
Asus VG248QE
Design
9.4/10
Display
8.9/10
Ease of Use
9.0/10
Resolution
8.5/10
Affordability
9.
6/10
Pros
- LightBoost
- Compatible with G-Sync
- 1ms response time
- 144Hz refresh rate
- Inexpensive
Cons
- Viewing angles
- No USB ports
- Contrast drops when changing setting to improve image quality
Mark B
Mark is a graduate in Computer Science, having gathered valuable experience over the years working in IT as a programmer. Mark is also the main tech writer for MBReviews.com, covering not only his passion, the networking devices, but also other cool electronic gadgets that you may find useful for your every day life.
Test and Review: ASUS VG248QE — 144Hz Gaming Monitor
The gaming monitor market today is migrating towards 3D support. In 2012, manufacturers released a lot of new 3D displays on the market, some of which remained on store shelves after the New Year sales. Even Taiwanese manufacturer ASUS has introduced several 3D monitors, including the new VG248QE.
It, like the already released 27-inch model VG278HE, features a high refresh rate of 144Hz, which guarantees smooth game playback even in 3D mode.
» Photostrecke
Of course, the target audience of ASUS VG248QE are gamers. That’s what the next-generation TN panel is designed for, with 1920 x 1080 pixels and a 144Hz refresh rate for an immersive 3D gaming experience. Note that the last two features are closely related to each other. The high refresh rate guarantees smooth motion in games even when using 3D mode. While other 3D displays only provide a refresh rate of 120Hz, which in 3D mode becomes 60Hz per eye, the ASUS VG248QE monitor delivers 72Hz per eye. On paper, such an increase seems insignificant, but according to ASUS, in practice it provides a significant advantage in quality. Of course, in addition to the excellent quality of 3D playback, the monitor must also provide good ergonomics. We will check all this in our practical tests of ASUS VG248QE.
The ASUS VG248QE monitor comes in a cardboard box that lists key features such as screen refresh rate, resolution, and diagonal.
After opening the box, you can take out the display itself, which is packed in foam, to which the first half of the stand is already attached. You will also receive the second half of the stand, DVI cables, power and audio (3.5mm). Documentation includes a quick installation guide and a warranty card. The supplied CD contains the driver and additional documentation.
Package Contents
| Manufacturer and model: |
ASUS VG248QE |
|---|---|
| Retail price: | Find out the price in Russia |
| MSRP: | 350 euro |
| Manufacturer website: | www.asus.com |
| Diagonal: | 24″ |
| Body colour: | Black (matt; glossy) |
| Format: | 16:9 |
| Panel: | TN |
| Glossy panel: | No |
| Approval: | 1920 x 1080 pixels |
| Brightness: | 250 cd/m² |
| Pixel response time: | 1 ms (grey to grey) |
| Viewing angles: | 170 degrees (horizontal) 160 degrees (vertical) |
| Interfaces: | 1x HDMI 1x DVI-D 1x DisplayPort 1x 3.  5mm audio |
| HDCP: | Yes |
| Weight (with stand): | 5.5 kg |
| Ergonomics: | — Panel tilt — Height adjustment — Panel rotation on vertical axis — Panel rotation in portrait mode |
| Optional: | — VESA Mount (100 x 100mm) — Stereo Speakers (2x 3W) — NVIDIA 3D Vision Ready — 144Hz Refresh Rate |
<> Test & Review: ASUS VG248QE — 144Hz Gaming Monitor
ASUS VG248QE | Design and ergonomics
Overview of the gaming monitor ASUS VG248QE
Avid gamers who prefer fast dynamic games are quite skeptical about monitors on IPS matrices — their advantages are high-quality images and high viewing angles, while for, for example, online shooters, small response time and a high refresh rate of the screen than IPS-monitors, unfortunately, still cannot boast.
That is why models on TN panels with refresh rates of 120 Hz and higher still remain truly «gaming».
ZMIST
- 1 Design
- 2 Menus
- 3 In the work
- 4 Results
Design
Monitor is made in strict design — straight lines, black glossy plastic (with the surface of the Oblast, at the surface of the Matute, at the surface of the storage with red inserts), without any frills in terms of a frameless screen, figured stands, aluminum elements, etc. The only eye-catching tribute to the design is the large 3D logo on the stand.
The leg of the monitor is massive, it allows you to adjust the height, tilt angle, rotate the screen from side to side and switch it to portrait mode (to be honest, not the most demanded feature for a gaming model, but its presence is still a definite plus). The monitor is quite massive, more than 5 kg, it is frankly hard to move it. The design as a whole is of medium rigidity, you can shake the screen if you wish, but not much; when you press the menu buttons, the screen practically does not move.
The monitor has the ability to mount on the wall (VESA standard 100×100 mm), all wires are connected from below and do not interfere with its location. Of the video inputs, there are Dual Link DVI, HDMI and DisplayPort; in addition, an analog audio input and headphone output are located right there, and 2 speakers with a power of 2 W each are also built into the monitor.
Buttons for ASUS VG248QE hardware, located on the bottom edge in the right corner; The monitor power button simultaneously acts as an activity indicator and glows with a soft blue light when turned on.
Menu
The menu structure is already familiar from previous ASUS monitors. The main point is still Splendid, in which the user can choose one of the preset picture modes (Scenery, Theater, Gaming, etc.). Next comes the Color section, where you can adjust the brightness, contrast, saturation, color temperature, and activate Smart View technology. It is designed to compensate for the deterioration in picture quality when looking at the screen from a lower point — apparently, in this case, the brightness of the image just slightly increases, which will really be useful, because TN monitors from this point of view the screen becomes noticeably darker.
Nvidia LightBoost is also turned on here (a functionality supported in Nvidia 3D Vision 2 and increases the brightness of the image in 3D mode to compensate for the decrease in brightness due to the use of polarized glasses). Some of these options may not be available depending on the selected mode in the Splendid menu (for example, switching to sRGB turns off all settings except for Smart View). In the Image menu, you can adjust sharpness, screen format, as well as a number of other settings available with various types of connection. There is also the ability to configure the proprietary TraceFree technology, which allows you to reduce the response time — however, here, apparently, it has remained from IPS models, where there really was a need for it. In the case of a TN monitor, all that can be observed when adjusting this parameter is the appearance of artifacts behind moving objects at the maximum value; We couldn’t distinguish the picture by eye at the minimum settings and at the default value of 60.
In the Input Select section, you can manually switch between video inputs, in System Setup you can adjust the volume of the built-in speakers, turn on the eco mode, select the menu language, reset to factory settings, etc.
In progress
The monitor uses a 24″ TN-matrix with a native resolution of 1920×1080 pixels (the pixel size is 0.2768 mm). Claimed response time is 1ms (GtG), maximum refresh rate is 144Hz. It should be noted that the increased frequency is felt not only in games, but even when working in Windows — any movement on the screen, for example, simply dragging an application window, looks much smoother than on a regular monitor with a frequency of 60 Hz. Of course, in games it felt even stronger — even with Vsync turned on, you can easily get frame rates above 100 fps and enjoy smooth motion that is not available on conventional monitors with a refresh rate of 60 Hz.
We checked the quality of the 3D image by connecting the Nvidia 3D Vision kit to the PC and were generally satisfied — the picture turned out to be three-dimensional, there were no problems with 3D crosstalk.
The effect, of course, for the most part depends on the nuances of the implementation of 3D in a particular game or movie, but in general the result was worthy. The only caveat is that the operating refresh rate for Nvidia 3D Vision is 120Hz, which results in 60Hz per eye and results in a slight but noticeable flicker in the image. It’s a pity, but the frequency of 144 Hz supported by this model turns out to be unclaimed in case of using 3D.
In the sRGB mode, as mentioned above, almost all image settings are turned off — while the brightness is set to 90, the contrast is 80, and in general the image looks too bright (the average brightness value in this mode is about 210 cd / m²) . The gamma is frankly underestimated — its average value is at the level of 1.9, which leads to a faded picture, but the color temperature almost exactly corresponds to the standard 6500K.
Color gamut, color temperature and gamma curve in sRGB mode:
According to the results of measurements in the Standard mode, it turned out that with contrast values of 70 and higher, the gamma value turns out to be too low, so we would recommend setting the brightness to 10-20, the contrast to 60-65; in this case, the gamma value is about 2.
1 (the picture looks much more saturated), and the brightness level is in the comfortable range of 100-120 cd/m².
The average value of the maximum brightness when measured by 35 points was 390 cd/m², which is noticeably higher than that of IPS-matrix monitors. Backlight uniformity was at 90%, which is average — the difference between the brightest and darkest areas exceeded 60 cd / m², which is quite a lot; the brightest area is the center of the screen, while the corners were at their lowest. When this parameter was set in the menu to the minimum value, the average brightness level was 65 cd / m² — this is a fairly good indicator, however, there is still no “reserve” for a further decrease in brightness, so we do not exclude the option in which some users who are used to working for computer in total darkness will be forced to set this parameter to zero.
It’s hard to expect excellent color reproduction from a TN-matrix gaming monitor, at least out of the box — and the test results came as no surprise to us.
However, after calibration the situation changes dramatically, so users who want to get not only a fast matrix, but also accurate colors are advised not to be too lazy and calibrate the monitor after purchase.
If we talk about the «sore spot» of all monitors based on TN + Film matrices — viewing angles, then it should be noted that compared to other models ASUS VG248QE looks quite good. Of course, in this parameter it is far from IPS-models, but it «forgives» much larger deviations from the right angle than one would expect from TN + Film, especially in the horizontal plane — here, even with large deviations, the image remains as a whole » watchable”, only the picture fades noticeably and a noticeable yellowish tint appears. Vertically, of course, the situation is not so rosy — when viewed from above, the image burns out very strongly, from below — it also darkens, however, a common problem for TN-matrices, when in normal operation behind the monitor, the upper part of the image turns out to be darker than the lower one (due to differences in viewing angles) here, again, it does not affect as much as you would expect.
Image quality with horizontal deviation:
Image quality with vertical deviation:
Summary
ASUS VG248QE is a very interesting option for a gamer, because it can achieve impressively smooth motion in games thanks to its support for a refresh rate of 144 Hz, plus do not forget about a very fast response time of only 1 ms . Support for 3D on a computer is still exotic (and apparently, the heyday of this technology on a PC can no longer be expected), but for those who want to join personal 3D, this monitor is also of interest. The disadvantages include, firstly, traditionally for a TN-matrix, mediocre viewing angles, the absence of 3D glasses in the kit and the unexpectedly high cost of the monitor — the recommended retail price for this model is $430.
Liked
+ High Refresh Rate
+ 3D Support
+ Good TN Image Quality
Disliked
— No 3D glasses included
— High cost
Product provided by ASUS.
