Summary

• Monitor technology in 2024 is impressive, but it has passed the point where it makes sense for many PC gamers.
• Chasing elevated refresh rates and resolutions can be fun, but you can better spend your money elsewhere.
• The focus should be on balancing PC and monitor capabilities and sticking to a budget when buying a gaming monitor.

If there was one thing that stood out to me about CES 2024, it was the impressive array of high-end monitors that seemingly every major brand had a hand in offering. My colleague Karthik Ayer wrote an excellent article highlighting all the best monitors at CES 2024, and he seemed particularly impressed by the advances in features that benefit PC gamers. Monitor tech is booming right now, and it seems like there's more of a rush than ever to offer over-the-top features to trump other brands.

Now that the announcement buzz has died down and a bunch of these monitors are hitting the market, many PC gamers — including myself — are wondering whether it's time to spend big and land something with a higher refresh rate and resolution, wider aspect ratio, and improved panel. But after combing through the hardware that's expected to land this year, I don't think a lot of the features and specs are really necessary for most PC gamers.

Do you really need a 480Hz refresh rate?

It's fast, but is it too fast?

Our eyes don't see in "frames," and our eyes don't have a measurable refresh rate. We receive a constant stream of information through our eyes that is processed by the brain. It's a system that was established long before our brains came up with the idea of a digital screen.

We are, however, very good at noticing changes in what we're seeing, which is why just about any gamer can immediately call out framerate drops as soon as they occur. Even just a few frames-per-second (FPS) less than usual is noticeable.

As performance hardware in your PC continues to get better, the elevated framerate potential needs to have somewhere to go. This is partly why monitor makers are constantly raising refresh rates. But diminishing returns become a lot more serious beyond 144Hz.

The time between frames, measured in milliseconds, is significantly reduced if you're going from 60Hz to 144Hz, but the move to 240Hz, 360Hz, or 480Hz really isn't as big as you might think. Unless you're a competitive gamer playing for a cash prize or an enthusiast who needs to have the latest tech on their desk, a 144Hz monitor is likely to be all you need for a great time.

And if you're worried about resolution, your main goal should be to have just enough pixels for your PC to be able to keep up with smooth framerates. Monitors that allow you to switch between resolutions and refresh rates are admittedly interesting, especially for professionals, but this isn't where I'd recommend most gamers spend their money.

Can you actually benefit from an ultrawide aspect ratio?

It can hold you back in competitive play

There are a lot of great ultrawide monitors with 21:9 aspect ratio on the market, and they're proving to be so popular that we're now seeing super ultrawide monitors with 32:9 aspect ratio. I reviewed the HP E45c G5 super ultrawide and absolutely loved it, but it's ultimately a niche product that's not meant for gaming. And now that ultrawide screens are getting a glow-up with higher refresh rates, larger panels, and more advanced display tech, they're even more appealing than before.

Even at a 21:9 aspect ratio, however, competitive gaming becomes more difficult. This is especially true if you're a fan of first-person shooters. It really comes down to there being a lot more screen space that you need to analyze. There's a reason why esports pros almost exclusively use a more standard 16:9 aspect ratio and a modestly-sized panel (usually either 24 or 27 inches).

There are definitely some good reasons to upgrade to an ultrawide. I made the switch years ago, but it was a decision owing much more to my professional lifestyle. I have one desk with room for one monitor, and the wider aspect ratio is a serious boon to productivity. I game a lot, but I'm not concerned with being competitive.

Our favorite ultrawide monitors range in price from about $400 to well beyond $1,000 (in some cases approaching $2,000), and you can be sure that the new ultrawide OLED and mini-LED options expected this year won't come cheap. If you'd like to make the jump to ultrawide for gaming but don't want to overspend, Gigabyte's 34-inch M34WQ with 144Hz refresh rate, 1ms response time, and WQHD resolution is a top pick.

How long until monitors with built-in AI upset competitive play?

This is going to be a hot topic

AI is everywhere right now, and most tech companies are scrambling to find any way possible to inject it into their products. It's even showing up in gaming monitors.

As first spotted by Tom's Hardware, MSI showed off a new monitor at CES 2024 with an AI "Skysight" feature that gives competitive players a serious advantage. The MEG 321URX's built-in AI can give players a warning when enemies are approaching and when health drops beyond a certain point.

It was only working with one game, League of Legends, at CES, but it's expected to branch out to work with practically any title when it launches later this year. That's not going to sit well with anyone who doesn't have AI on their side, though it will be difficult to know who's using it due to it being contained to the monitor itself. If your PC isn't running it, anti-cheat likely won't be able to pick it up. At least for now. If AI can do it, AI might be able to prove it.

Buying a gaming monitor that suits your needs

You might have noticed that I didn't mention OLED and mini-LED panels as being unnecessary. My go-to monitor has an IPS panel, but I've tested enough OLED and mini-LED hardware to seriously consider the technology as worth an upgrade. Sure, the worry about burn-in on even the best OLED monitors is there, but manufacturers are taking steps to negate the possibility while offering respectable warranties should such damage occur.

My ultimate goal here is to remind PC gamers that they should be more focused on balancing PC and monitor capabilities rather than chasing the latest monitor specs, which have really taken off in recent years. I love watching the evolution of tech, and it's not going to slow down any time soon.

But if you focus on sticking to your budget, pairing a screen perfectly with your PC's performance, and finding other features — like port selection, ergonomics, and style — that work for you, you'll be much happier the next time you sit down to play.