Review: Asus ROG Swift PG248Q

VERDICT

If you own an Nvidia graphics card and you spend more time gaming on your PC than anything else, a 180Hz display with G-Sync is absolutely worth the money. But otherwise, you could choose a larger display, IPS panel technology or a higher resolution for similar money.

PROS:

Cheapest G-Sync display on the market
Amazing 180Hz refresh rate
Extremely well-designed

CONS:

Worse viewing angles with TN panel
Just two display inputs
Only 24 inches

Hot on the heels of one Asus gaming display that we've recently tested, the superbly priced Asus MG248Q , comes another closely related gaming monitor, the ROG Swift PG248Q.

It bears a number of similarities: it's a 24-inch screen with a native 1080p resolution and a twisted nematic (TN) panel capable of 1ms response times. It looks almost identical, the feature set is closely linked, and the overall dimensions are just about the same.

TN screens are generally cheaper than IPS, and the picture quality is slightly worse, due to narrower viewing angles. This is true of any TN panel, and is the same for both the MG248Q and the ROG Swift PG248Q.

But a crucial difference is that, while the MG248Q offers Adaptive Sync technology, which eliminates the 'tearing' effect in 3D games to make animation look a whole lot smoother, the PG248Q features Nvidia's equivalent G-Sync technology. G-Sync only works with GeForce graphics cards, while Adaptive Sync works with both AMD and Intel graphics cards.

Asus ROG Swift PG248Q rear

That affects a few more aspects of the Asus ROG Swift PG248Q. The G-Sync 'module' costs a lot more to integrate into a display than an Adaptive Sync module, and therefore the ROG Swift PG248Q has a much higher price tag of £400 (around $520), compared with £269 (around $350) for the MG248Q.

You might think Asus is looking to fleece Nvidia users, but if anyone is to blame for this higher pricing, it's Nvidia, as all G-Sync displays on the market cost over £100 (around $130) more than FreeSync or Adaptive Sync products. Nvidia might make an argument for higher production costs or greater complexity, but whatever the reason, it seems that if you want G-Sync then you have to pay more for it.

There are a few more things to differentiate the ROG Swift PG248Q though. One is a higher refresh rate, achieved via an 'overclocking' section in the on-screen menus. It can go up to a whopping 180Hz, or 160Hz if this setting is left disabled. That's very fast indeed, and is three times the refresh rate of most standard displays.

Although to hit those refresh rates, you'll need a PC that can churn out 180fps. In the most recent games, that's a tall ask for even some high-end gaming rigs .

Asus ROG Swift PG248Q front

Focusing on the remaining aspects of the ROG Swift PG248Q, you might get a sense of deja-vu if you've already checked out the MG248Q. It has the same dark grey design and slim bezel, the stand is the same shape (a tad larger this time though, and it comes pre-attached to the panel) and once again there's a five-way joystick at the back for quick and easy navigation of the on-screen menus and shortcuts.

The design is slightly more plain though. The amount of red in the stand and at the rear has been seriously toned down, and the funky random lines and patterns on the back have been removed, with just a smooth textured dark grey plastic, which is something of a shame as it loses some of the individuality that was present on the MG248Q.

The PG248Q similarly rotates, pivots and tilts. And once again, the menus have useful options for GameVisual presets, with on-screen crosshairs, an FPS counter and a timer. These features are good fun. It's worth noting some might consider using an on-screen crosshair to be cheating, since it's undetectable by game servers as it's running within the screen rather than in software.

Asus ROG Swift PG248Q back buttons

Most good players won't need this feature anyway, and in a lot of games, bullets drop so they never hit perfectly in the centre of the screen. The crosshair can be moved to compensate for this, but from our use, we found this involved a lot of faffing about, so after playing around with the setting, we just left it switched off.

As with all G-Sync displays, the connectors on the Asus ROG Swift are limited compared with many other monitors. You get an HDMI 1.4 port and DisplayPort 1.2, and that's it. It's an upgrade from the early G-Sync screens, which only offered a measly single DisplayPort connector.

One minor addition to compensate for the lack of more than two video inputs is an integrated USB 3.0 hub, which isn't present on the MG248Q. It instead has two ports at the back, something many people like to have on their display.

Inside the menus are a set of GameVisual presets for different color settings, a blue light filter, gamma and color temperature controls. A setting called Light In Motion makes the base of the display glow bright red when it's in use, which does indeed look quite cool.

Asus ROG Swift PG248Q stand

Adobe RGB gamut of 74% is notably lower than many IPS screens, although brightness levels of almost 400 cd/m2 are outstanding. That said, the uniformity is all over the place and the colour accuracy is considerably lower than on many IPS displays.

But this product is not intended for graphic design work that demands superb colour accuracy. It's a gaming display first and foremost, and it does fantastically well at this task. Any fast-motion FPS game will run beautifully on the ROG Swift PG248Q, and if you have an Nvdia graphics card, having G-Sync as well makes the experience even better.

The Asus ROG Swift PG248Q is pretty much the G-Sync version of the MG248Q, and it's undeniably a great gaming monitor. In terms of responsiveness, refresh rate and gaming-related features, it's one of the best in this price range. But a comparison is inevitable, and weighing all the options we're more cautious about recommending the PG248Q than we were the MG248Q.

We liked

The ROG Swift PG248Q is a monitor designed to be used at 1080p, by people who want the very best PC gaming performance, but without the high prices of the larger G-Sync IPS screens. In fact it's one of the most affordable G-Sync screens around and in terms of responsiveness and fluidity, it's pretty much unrivalled. But other options are available in this price bracket, and if gaming is not your primary focus on a PC, you're might consider a higher resolution, larger screen size or IPS technology.

We disliked

Purely by adding a G-Sync module, the price shoots right up, putting this TN screen into a market segment where it's competing with completely different, more high-end displays than the MG248Q is. For a small additional outlay, you could pick up a 4K display with a standard 60Hz refresh rate, or a 27-inch 1440p IPS model might be even slightly cheaper than the PG248Q.

Final verdict

This is a TN panel, and while it generally looks very good indeed, a TN screen still will never look quite as good as an IPS screen due to more narrow viewing angles, even though it's one of the best looking TN panels we've seen. For the lower price of the MG248Q, we can live with TN. It's a bit harder to swallow when a 24-inch screen costs £400 ($520) though.

And the MG248Q still works at a 144Hz refresh rate with Nvidia cards. If you can live without G-Sync or the USB hub, it's almost the same screen for £140 ($180) less. But if you want G-Sync and super-fast refresh rates, this is a brilliant gaming monitor.