ASUS ROG Swift PG278Q G-SYNC Monitor Review
by Chris Heinonen & Jarred Walton on February 13, 2015 10:00 AM ESTThe ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) line includes everything you want for building a high-end gaming PC: GPUs, Motherboards, Keyboards and Mice, Sound Cards, Headsets, and now Monitors. The ROG Swift PG278Q is a 27” WQHD display that has both a 144Hz maximum refresh rate and NVIDIA G-SYNC. Combining both of these technologies provides the potential of a silky-smooth image that doesn’t get choppy if the frame rate happens to drop in demanding sequences.
My prior demonstrations of G-SYNC involved displays that fell below a 60Hz refresh rate. Even when falling down to 40-45fps, the G-SYNC displays manage to remain smooth when compared to a standard 60Hz display. With a 144Hz display, G-SYNC enables you to run at these very fast refresh rates without noticeable stuttering or tearing if your refresh rate falls below that. You might have the GPU power to run at 144Hz most of the time, but if you suffer slowdown during certain sequences the ASUS ROG will still appear as smooth as it did before.
Ergonomically the ASUS ROG offers a very well designed experience. The display has good height adjustment, tilt, swivel, and pivot. Since it is a TN panel and prone to color shifts when you move off-axis, being able to set it up to be perfectly even with your eyesight is a very good thing. There are a pair of USB 3.0 ports on the bottom of the rear panel, good for a keyboard or mouse, but none on the side to provide easy access for flash drives and other accessories.
The worst ergonomic feature of the ASUS ROG is that it utilizes an external power supply brick. The external brick is compact compared to others that have passed through, but it still means yet another cable and device to have to deal with on a desktop.
The On-Screen Display for the ASUS ROG is good though not excellent. It offers quick access to a few items, like refresh rate, but to do so it uses icons on the screen. Since the keys are on the back of the monitor, unless your face is level with the lower bezel (an unlikely occurrence) it is hard to determine which button is the correct one. If the buttons were on the front this would work well, but I just found myself always hitting the wrong option. Simply going to the main menu and selecting the item there is faster.
The main menu is controlled with a 4-way joystick on the back of the display. This is nice and easy to use, and lets you move around the menus quickly. The layout is a nice three-column variety that lets you see which submenu you are in without having to navigate all the way back out, which is nice. Menu systems have come a long way since I started reviewing monitors and the ASUS would beat anything I had to look at four years ago.
ASUS ROG SWIFT PG278Q | |
Video Inputs | 1x DisplayPort 1.2 |
Panel Type | TN |
Pixel Pitch | 0.233mm |
Colors | 16.7 Million |
Brightness | 350 cd/m2 |
Contrast Ratio | 1000:1 |
Response Time | 1ms GtG |
Viewable Size | 27" |
Resolution | 2560x1440 |
Viewing Angle (H/V) | 170 / 160 |
Backlight | LED |
Power Consumption (operation) | <90W |
Power Consumption (standby) | <0.5W |
Screen Treatment | Anti-Glare |
Height-Adjustable | Yes |
Tilt | Yes, -5 to 20 degrees |
Pivot | Yes |
Swivel | Yes |
VESA Wall Mounting | Yes, 100mm |
Dimensions w/ Base (WxHxD) | 24.4" x 14.3" x 9.4" |
Weight | 15.4 lbs. |
Additional Features | 2x USB 3.0, G-SYNC |
Limited Warranty | 3 Years |
Accessories | DisplayPort Cable, USB 3.0 Cable |
Price | $790 |
101 Comments
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RandomUser13 - Friday, February 13, 2015 - link
Friday the 13th and this is the first comment, great!Great review by the way.
TerdFerguson - Sunday, February 15, 2015 - link
C'mon, the review started with "The ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) line includes everything you want for building a high-end gaming." How can anyone trust a review that contains drivel worse than a press release?Jaaap - Sunday, February 15, 2015 - link
Yes. For building *a* high-end gaming PC.Not for building the best or the cheapest or whatever.
It's a statement about the completeness of the line-up.
Antronman - Sunday, February 15, 2015 - link
Because it's true since it's ASUS' top-end product line?Anon Zero - Friday, November 27, 2015 - link
And the winner for "Most Asinine Comment IS...(drumroll)QuantumPion - Friday, February 13, 2015 - link
I tried buying an ROG Swift and really liked the panel's speed, color, and g-sync. However I went through 4 monitors, all defective, before finally giving up. One monitor was utterly damaged (cracked LCD panel). The other 3 had extremely bad color calibration with gamma as low as 1.6, making everything extremely washed out and looking worse than a low end budget LCD from 2005. The gamma was so far off that attempting to calibrate it caused terrible color banding and white/black crushing.Inglix - Friday, February 13, 2015 - link
It took me four months and 5 monitors to get a non-defective one.I've since had a nightmare where it fails with red lines down the middle. Asus RMA support reportedly ships them back in a back in a normal cardboard box with one piece of crushed paper to protect it.
cknobman - Friday, February 13, 2015 - link
Pay the Nvidia tax, lolNo thanks G-SYNC is not worth an extra $400 for a crappy TN panel.
PlugPulled - Friday, February 13, 2015 - link
i got to agree with you. But its the best TN panel out there for 144hz with 3d vision and Gsync. Can't get lower response time on IPS.yefi - Friday, February 13, 2015 - link
No longer the case. Acer XB270HU - 144Hz IPS.