HWM+HardwareZone.com Tech Awards 2016: Editor's Choice - Part 2

Best Gaming Monitor

Best Gaming Monitor

A few years ago, picking a gaming monitor was much easier. The higher response rate and refresh times on IPS displays easily made TN screens the choice for most gamers. However, IPS screens have steadily gotten better in recent years, with quicker response rates and faster refresh times. While this is definitely great news for gamers, it makes picking a definitive gaming display that much harder.

This year, the finalists come from both sides, we have a TN display and two IPS ones. To make the grade for this category, the monitors had to be 27 inches in size, be released in 2015 and have refresh rate control capabilities to stay in sync with the rendered output from the graphics card such as AMD FreeSync or NVIDIA G-Sync, since we're looking for gaming monitors. The monitors were then judged on performance, features, and value to determine the winner.

Nominees: 

• Acer XB270HU
• ASUS ROG Swift PG27AQ
• Dell S2716DG

And the winner is...

The Acer XB270HU comes out tops in the best gaming monitor category for a couple of reasons. The IPS display used in the monitor displayed bright and crisp colors, which puts it ahead of the TN screen on the Dell S2716DG. Couple that with its QHD (2,560 x 1,440 pixels) screen resolution, a 4ms response time and its 60Hz refresh rate. While it only accepts a DisplayPort input, that's no issue actually as G-Sync (the primary reason one might want to get the monitor), can only be used through DisplayPort connections. On top of that, the monitor also two easily accessible USB 3.0 ports on its side, great if you need to plug something in a hurry.

It all adds up to the Acer XB270HU monitor to being a great monitor with great value, which is why it's our pick for the best gaming monitor of the year.

*Note: Prices and ratings listed are accurate at the time of individual product evaluation.

For more details on how we selected our winners, check out the full reviews and articles listed at the References section at the end.