In brief: recollect the days when a 120Hz monitor was about as fast as you could get? Things have changed a lot since then. BenQ’s latest gaming monitor, for example, offers an incredibly fast refresh rate of 540Hz. It also features the third generation of the company’s DyAc blur reduction technology, making it sound appreciate a competitive gamer’s dream.
BenQ isn’t breaking with tradition when it comes to catchy monitor names. The Taiwanese giant has announced two 24.1-inch monitors, the Zowie XL2546X and the Zowie XL2586X, which come with 240Hz and 540Hz refresh rates, respectively.
The monitors use the latest “fine-tuned” Fast-TN panel (TN Film) technology, offering faster response times than IPS panels to keep up with those blistering refresh rates.
BenQ writes that its newly developed panel effectively reduces overshoot caused by aggressive liquid crystal overdrive (under certain circumstances) on conventional panels. As these monitors are aimed squarely at the e-sports crowd, the company notes that the greatest benefit of Fast-TN technology is recovery speed from flashbangs, to see enemy outlines earlier.
Both monitors feature a 1920 x 1080 resolution, 320 nits of brightness, and a 1000:1 contrast ratio. In the 240Hz XL2546X, connectivity is provided by two HDMI 2.0 ports, a DisplayPort 1.4 input, and a headphone jack. The 540Hz XL2586X consists of three HDMI 2.1 ports, DP 1.4, and a headphone jack.
Another difference between the two monitors is the XL2586X’s inclusion of Vivid Color Film, which BenQ claims enhances color performance by 35%, helping users distinguish enemy targets and boost the color wash-out found on conventional TN panels.
Something else BenQ highlights is how both monitors come with its latest generation (3rd) of DyAc technology, called DyAc 2. It’s designed to reduce motion blur, minimize ghosting, and reduce in-game screen shaking. The company says this generation utilizes dual backlights with greater precision control to advocate boost the experience. BenQ itself admits that “Perhaps the difference is minimal and varies from person to person but the difference in the arena is often that 1%.”
The Zowie XL2546X is available now priced at $499 while the faster Zowie XL2586X is released in the first quarter of next year. There’s no price for the latter, though it had previously been advertised at $599. If accurate, that’s a substantial reduction compared to the similar Asus ROG Swift Pro PG248QP, an excellent 540Hz monitor with a $900 price tag.
