Looking for a new monitor

Hello all,

I am in the market for a new monitor. I use my PC basically just for POE. Was thinking 32" but I fear it may be too big, so maybe a 27". What are you guys using and what do you think of it? I'm not super knowledgeable about all the monitor specs, so I get a little lost when I start looking. I just want something that looks really nice and runs smoothly. $200-$500 is what I'm willing to dump into this. My computer should handle most of anything, and if it can't, it will soon. Thanks!

What kind of hardware are you running?

There's a lot to choose from. There are cheap 1080p panels that will support 144 Hz or 4k monitors up to 60 Hz.

Combining both is probably out of your budget.

Also you have to make up your mind on the panel technology. TN will yield the fastest refresh rates while having terrible viewing angles. VA will give you the best contrast ratio for a really dark black and IPS generally has the most vibrant colors.

I use a 31.5" AOC Q3279VWF (WQHD, 75 Hz), which was under 200 bucks when I bought it.

Thanks for the reply,

These are the current specs. Probably going to upgrade graphics and SSD soon.

SSD: SAMSUNG 840 Pro 128GB SATA III (SSD)
HHD: WD Blue 1TB SATA 6 Gb/s
Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD3R
Memory: G.SKILL Sniper 2133 16GB
CPU: Intel Core i7-950
Cooler: Noctua NH-D14
GPU: Geforce GTX 970
PSU: CORSAIR 750TX

.

Personally shoot for 24" with 1ms response and 144hz at a min of 1080p.

I mean you can go nuts beyond that, but the investment dollars get a bit out of whack for the performance imo.

Elesham4ever is on point about asking what matters most to you, and I would rank it however it fits best to your wants in a most to least order. That will help a lot with your shopping experience going forward.

For me, I'm still happy with 1080p and care more about perceivable input lag alongside a very high refresh rate, so I can see those juicy frames per second popping off in my games.

I use an Alienware AW2720HF as my main monitor now which I got on sale for $350 during black Friday on Amazon.

That is one of the few 1080p IPS 240hz monitors available at the time, and it has been nothing but a phenomenal experience. Thankfully, it is also a Freesync monitor that is compatible with Nvidia's variable refresh rate which is good enough for me. That which I find to be a way better experience than running games with in engine Vsync.

Since you mostly play PoE, if you can comfortably run 240+fps, I'd recommend you buy a monitor that has at least a 144hz refresh rate with an IPS panel. You'll get the best of both worlds in short. To take it a step further if you find the right one for you then see if it has Gsync or Freesync based on your GPU upgrade.

Gsync - Nvidia
Freesync - AMD

Best of luck on your shopping experience!