They say that once you go past 60Hz, you’ll never want to go back. The phrase has commonly referred to 144Hz displays, which are truly buttery smooth, but the ASUS ROG Swift PG258Q takes this way further with its native refresh rate of 240Hz!
Add in a very low 1ms response time and support for NVIDIA G-SYNC, and the PG258Q looks like it might just be the perfect monitor for eSports and fast-paced action games.
Table of Contents
Design and Construction
Like its older, bigger brother, the PG278Q, the main display part of the monitor employs a no-frills approach with no visible buttons up front and slim bezels.
At the back however, ROG branding starts to show itself a little more but still looks clean overall. The rear ports include DisplayPort, HDMI, USB 3.0 passthrough, headphone jack, and of course power. There is an included I/O cover to make the overall appearance cleaner and to help with cable management.
As for controls, the PG258Q hides the buttons at the back. This type of setup can be frustrating, but I’d say that ASUS implemented it well on their monitors. The buttons aren’t that hard to reach, the menu system is intuitive, and they also use a joystick for easier navigation.
Moving to the base, the ROG branding gets kicked up a notch by way of the built-in down-firing ROG LED logo that projects onto your desk. The base itself, along with the arm, are both very sturdy and easy to assemble and disassemble as needed.
The PG258Q’s position can be adjusted in a few ways including height, tilt, and pivot.
Height can be adjusted from 0 to 120mm
Tilt range is +20° ~ -5°.
The monitor can pivot all the way to 90° (clockwise) for a full-on portrait mode.
Overall construction is very solid, so much that if you’re willing to stick to a 24.5″ 1080p TN panel, the PG258Q will probably last a couple of decades if well-taken care of.
Performance
The PG258Q uses a 24.5-inch TN panel with a resolution of 1920 x 1080. We have no complaints regards to the size to resolution ratio, as 24-25 inches is about as far as you can take 1080p before it starts to lose sharpness. I digress though, as the resolution isn’t the all-important factor when it comes to gaming monitors.
The low 1ms response time, the crazy 240Hz refresh rate, and support for NVIDIA G-SYNC are the things that may give you a slight edge, as well as a more immersive experience when gaming.
If you have a gaming rig that is capable of spitting out upwards of 200fps, in-game visuals are buttery smooth, and you may find that competitive first-person shooters like CS:GO and Overwatch are a little bit more comfortable to play since you have way more frames to work with. Those things being said, this is one of the fastest gaming monitors in the world, and it’s awesome.
Moving past gaming is where you start to see some drawbacks. Color and contrast are just fine for gaming and even watching movies, but when you start to attempt to do some creative work is where it starts to suffer. Viewing angles aren’t so great either, and the screen starts to shift to an orange hue when you aren’t looking at it straight-on.
The display surface is thankfully non-glare and is actually quite bright for a TN panel. ASUS lists its brightness at 400 cd/m2.
Conclusion
The ASUS ROG Swift PG258Q is one of the world’s fastest gaming monitors with a refresh rate of 240Hz and definitely gives a more immersive gaming experience with ultra-fast response times. It has the remarkable attention to detail that ASUS is known for, as well as a solid construction. Design-wise, the base with the LED projected logo is not for everyone, but it’s not that hard to turn off.
Now is 240Hz for you? Probably not. For general purpose high refresh gaming, 120-144Hz should be just fine for you. If you’re the likes of a professional CS:GO player though? Then the PG258Q is for you. The ASUS ROG Swift PG258Q is priced at Php38,260.
ASUS ROG Swift PG258Q specs:
24.5-inch Full HD (1920 x 1080) TN panel
1ms response time
240Hz refresh rate
NVIDIA G-SYNC
400cs/m2 max brightness
1000:1 contrast ratio
+20°~-5° tilt
+50°~-50° swivel
0°~+90° pivot
0~120 mm height adjust
VESA Wall Mounting
DisplayPort
HDMI
USB 3.0 Passthrough
564.1x(383.7 ~ 503.7)x 253.7 mm (with stand)
5.6kg (with stand)
What we liked about it:
- Very fast 240Hz refresh rate
- Low 1ms response time
- G-SYNC
- Very bright
- Solid construction
- Slim bezels
- Navigation buttons
What we didn’t:
- Only 1080p
- Viewing angles
- Color
- Base is not for everyone
