Introduction
Desktops that you see nowadays are much different from what was available ten years ago. They evolved brilliantly with time, and they are much more efficient and value for money. Compared to the earlier version of desktops, they are more sleek and aesthetic in design such as Acer GN246HL. We are sure that you remember the desktops from the early 21st century when they were bulky and occupied a lot of space — especially the monitors which were significant.
But that is not the case anymore. Nowadays, monitors are slim, sophisticated in design and have the potential to perform much better than before. A monitor is one of the most vital components of the entire desktop setup. If you have gaming as your favorite hobby, then you will probably understand how important it is to couple your PC with a good monitor.
So today we are going to talk about one of the best gaming monitor under 200 crafted by the renowned brand, Acer. The Acer GN246HL is the product we are going to review, and it has the capability to take your gaming resolution to a whole new level. But, before we move into the detailed review, let us have a look at the pros and cons of the Acer GN246HL in this section.
Pros
- 1080p Full HD+ resolution for gaming
- Four spooked stands for better stability
- The 144Hz refresh rate for smooth gaming
- Quick and seamless response time
Cons
- The viewing angles could have been better
- The LCD has less vibrant colors
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Bottom line
The Acer GN246HL is an excellent choice for those who want a gaming monitor under $200. It comes with good and sturdy build quality and has four spooked stands to allow the monitor to stand firmly. The biggest highlight of the monitor is its 144Hz refresh rate which is brilliant for a gaming monitor. The picture quality is bright and crisp but not very vibrant. It will surely help you get a myriad of options to customize your display, but the viewing angles could have been better. Let us have a look at the detailed Acer GN246HL review.
Contents
Acer GN246HL Review – Detailed Overview
The Acer GN246HL is an exciting 24 inch 3D gaming display monitor that promise to deliver a comfortable and value for money performance to the users under $200. But is it worth the money you pay? Let us have a look.
Price:
The Acer GN246HL is available under a cost of $200 and more specifically around $175-$185. At this price, we cannot complain much about a gaming monitor that has the potential to deliver a 144Hz refresh rate. It is undoubtedly one of the cheapest monitor available in the market that offers this feature. It has a fully ergonomic design, but if you are not going to put the 3D vision or LightBoost function into use, then the AOC G2460PF is also an excellent competitor to the Acer GN246HL that is made available in the same price tag. As per the performance that we have recorded, we can surely mention that there are very few monitors available in the market that can offer such service at this price. Â
Design
The Acer GN246HL has an ergonomic design that is much thinner than the other competitors available at the same price. Acer GN246HL has 24.0″ 1920 x1080 144Hz monitor LED-Backlit LCD screen with Full HD+ resolutions at 16:9 aspect ratio. The monitor has a reliable and excellent firmness in its build quality that reflects the quality with which it has been made.
A complete matte black finish with a bit of shine makes it look premium. There are four spooked stands with copper color highlights that help the monitor to gain more stability and better viewing angles. The buttons of the monitor are placed nicely under the display panel so that users can easily access them. This Acer GN246HL also comes with a wall mount option if you are not able to make much space on the desk. The power switch of the monitor glows in a bright blue color under the panel. If you are looking for its alternative, then AOC G2460PF can turn out to be the best option.
Connectivity
The Acer GN246HL comes with a wide array of connectivity ports which makes it even more valuable at the price it is available in the market. It has HDMI, VGA, and DVI-D ports. But, unfortunately, DisplayPort is not possible with this monitor. To use the 144Hz refresh rate gamers will have to make use of the dual-link DVI connection. The company, however, includes the DVI cable with an extra VGA cable in the packaging. Apart from these ports, there is not much available that needs to be mention here.
Technology
The monitor supports Nvidia 3D Vision 2 which seems to be a bit outdated to a few, but it is still very much useful in enhancing your gaming experience. It even supports a lot of game with 24 inch 3D gaming display potential screen. Acer GN246HL comes with the LightBoost technology that helps to increase the on-screen brightness to a whole new level to generate excellent viewing angles and display.
It also allows you to tinker with some driver settings to slightly enhance the overall display quality. The monitor has the BFI method which refers to as Back-light Strobing, and it helps to decrease motion blur but can only work at 100HZ or 120HZ. The user, Standard, ECO, Graphics, and Movie are the five different modes in which you can personalize the display quality of the monitor according to your preference.
Performance
Now we are in the most critical segment of the entire Acer GN246HL review is the Performance. At the price that is less than $200, the monitor offered us a pretty decent performance in almost all the aspects. If you have been using a 60Hz monitor all this time, then you will be able to feel the transition to a 144Hz quite seriously making a good response time. The on-screen movement and actions were much more fluid and seamless without any stutter or frame drops. We expected a performance like this but no of this excellence.
We tested the Counter-Strike Global Offensive, Call of Duty Ghosts and the Assassin’s Creed Black Flag to check the refresh rate and the display quality. The monitor had a stellar brightness that enhanced the entire picture quality with clear and crisp details. The dynamic weather in the games we tested were reflected their best potential with the perfect sharpness, shadow formation and many. You won’t compromise on any elements like drivers and other hardware if you are using this monitor.
The company, however, could have worked a bit more on the blacks and greys of the display to bring a balance into the overall display quality. The LightBoost technology works wonders in modifying the quality of the picture. In every game we tested, we saw that there is a subtle motion blur which looks nice and adds a bit of depth to the overall display quality. The monitor feels fast and responsive all the time during the entire time we tested it. However, the viewing angles of the monitors could have been better because whenever you tilt or slide the monitor a bit, you can see that the view angle turns fade.
We also noticed a bit of imbalance between the blacks and whites of the display that is however unnoticeable to many. However, if you keep your monitor straight, this is an issue that can be avoided. We have previously mentioned that it supports the NVIDIA 3D Vision 2 still manages to keep the monitor in the competition of 3D experience.
Conclusion
From the above Acer GN246HL review, we conclude that how well this gaming monitor has performed in real-world tests. The transition of the 144Hz refresh rate is brilliant, and it improves the gaming visual and dynamics to a brand new level.
However, if you are expecting phenomenal results, then you can be a bit disappointed to a certain level because you cannot expect much from the $200 monitor. But it is undoubtedly going to be a value for money invested in this segment.
