Gaming Monitors
The ultimate displays for maximum game immersion
Although components such as GPUs and CPUs are the most important aspects of a gaming PC, it is the monitor that displays the resultant gameplay and should not be overlooked when building your system. It isn’t wise to spec the latest and greatest components at the expense of monitor quality, as the additional performance the hardware provides may not translate to the screen.
A great gaming monitor will make all the difference in making your gaming experience more engaging and immersive. The primary factors to consider are screen size, aspect ratio and resolution, as these dictate the overall size - height and width - of the image and its sharpness and clarity.
Monitor Size
The larger the monitor size the bigger the image will be - it may sound obvious but the immersive effect will be amplified with each increase in size.
Aspect Ratio
Particularly important for first person shooter games and simulators, a wider aspect ratio will offer better peripheral vision and a more realistic field of view.
Resolution
Higher resolution monitors will offer more detail in every aspect of gameplay, making landscapes more realistic and complex graphics easier on the eye. However, the higher the resolution the more powerful GPU will be required to maintain a smooth framerate.
The next key factor to consider is the monitors ability to cope with fast moving action - very common in all types of games. This is governed by a couple of parameters, namely refresh rate and response time. The refresh rate is the frequency at which the monitor redraws the image per second, and response time is the time it takes a pixel to shift from one colour to another. A faster rate of refresh (higher value in Hz) and lower response time (lower value in ms) will make for a much smoother and sharper gaming experience. The ultimate gaming monitors synchronise the refresh rate with the framerate of your GPU, making games buttery smooth. Look out for monitors that are NVIDIA G-Sync or AMD FreeSync depending on the brand of your GPU.
Still not sure which product is right for you?
