ASUS VG248QG 24" Full HD 1920 x 1080 0.5ms 165Hz Review

This is a race car with terrible paint. It's incredibly fast for gaming, but the TN panel makes everything look flat and dull. Buy it only if frames are your religion.

The ASUS VG248QG is a monitor that's built for one thing: moving pixels as fast as possible. Forget about beautiful colors or a stunning screen. This is a purebred racing monitor for competitive gamers, and its 165Hz refresh rate and 0.5ms response time are its entire personality. The one thing to know? It's a speed demon with a TN panel, so you're trading visual richness for raw performance.

The speed is genuinely impressive. In our tests, it landed in the 98th percentile for performance, meaning it's one of the fastest monitors you can buy right now. The motion clarity is excellent, and the G-Sync compatibility works smoothly to eliminate tearing. What surprised us, honestly, was how good the ergonomics are. The stand is fully adjustable, letting you tilt, swivel, pivot, and adjust height, which is a huge win for finding your perfect gaming posture.

At around $378, it's a decent value if speed is your only concern. You're paying for the high refresh rate and the excellent stand. But you're also accepting a pretty mediocre screen. It's worth it only if you're a competitive gamer who prioritizes frame rate over everything else.

If you want a similar fast 24-inch monitor but better colors, look at IPS options like the MSI G2412. You'll get a much nicer picture for about the same price, though the stand might be worse. If you're willing to spend more for both speed and a great display, the ASUS ROG Swift 27" 4K is a totally different beast, but it's also a totally different price bracket. The VG248QG sits in a niche: it's for the player who wants max frames on a budget and doesn't care if the game looks a bit bland.

If you're looking for a monitor that makes your games and movies look gorgeous, this isn't it. The display quality is a real letdown. Go get an IPS monitor like the MSI G2412 instead. Also skip it if you need multiple inputs or extra features, it's pretty barebones.

We recommend this monitor only for one specific group: hardcore competitive gamers who play fast-paced titles like shooters or racing games and need every millisecond of advantage. For anyone else, like someone who also watches movies, works on documents, or just wants their games to look beautiful, this is a bad choice. The trade-off in display quality is too steep.