Acer today announced its next pile of gaming displays aimed at a myriad of uses. With various HDR certifications, sizes, resolutions and refresh rates present, there’s one thing binding the screens together: They all use IPS panels.
When it comes to image quality, we love a VA panel. They tend to provide higher contrast ratios than what you’ll find with IPS or TN screens. However, IPS panels have earned a great reputation among gamers for beautiful color reproduction that makes games pop, as well as strong viewing angles. Lately, this panel tech has picked up the speed, making for displays that can keep up with TN screens and the best gaming monitors overall when it comes to speedy specs.
Further, four of Acer’s new monitors (the Predator XB273U NV, Predator X34 GS, Nitro XV272 LV and Nitro XV272U KV) claim Acer’s bespoke “Agile-Splendor” IPS technology, which purportedly helps Acer achieve response times as low as 0.1ms with 90% or greater DCI-P3 color coverage. None of these monitors have a response time that’s that low, but a 0.5ms GTG response time is nothing to sneeze at.
During its Next@Acer press event today, Acer unveiled a large selection of upcoming products, including consumer laptops, Chromebooks and desktops. Among the unveiling are the six new gaming monitors, starting at $280 for a 27-inch 1080p option and going up to $1,100 for a 34-inch curved ultrawide. Acer will be releasing the monitors over the holiday season.
Specs
| Acer Nitro XV272 LV | Acer Nitro XV272U KV | Acer Predator XB253Q GW | Acer Predator XB273U NV | Acer Predator XB323U GX | Acer Predator X34 GS | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Size | 27 inches | 27 inches | 24.5 inches | 27 inches | 32 inches | 34 inches |
| Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 2560 x 1440 | 1920 x 1080 | 2550 x 1440 | 2560 x 1440 | 3440 x 1440 |
| Refresh Rate | 144Hz, 165Hz with overclock | 144Hz, 170Hz with overclock | 240Hz, 290Hz with overclock | 144Hz, 170Hz with overclock | 240Hz, 270Hz with overclock | 144Hz, 180Hz with overclock |
| Response Time (GTG) | 2ms (0.5ms with overdrive) | 1ms with overdrive | 1ms (0.5ms with overdrive) | 1ms with overdrive | 1ms with overdrive | 1ms (0.5ms with overdrive) |
| Color | 90% DCI-P3 | 95% DCI-P3 | 99% sRGB | 95% DCI-P3 | 99% Adobe RGB | 98% DC-P3I |
| Speakers | 2x 2w | 2x 2w | 2x 2w optional | 2x 2w | 2x 2w optional | 2x 7w |
| HDR | VESA DisplayHDR 400 | VESA DisplayHDR 400 | VESA DisplayHDR 400 | VESA DisplayHDR 400 | VESA DisplayHDR 600 | HDR400 |
| Availability | December | December | December | December | January | December |
| Price | $280 | $400 | $430 | $550 | $900 | $1,100 |
Acer paid extra attention to the Predator XB273U NV, which at $550 is a little cheaper than the midway point of this lineup’s price range. Standout features for the 1440p 27-incher include Eyesafe certifications, which, according to Acer, “manages high energy wavelengths in order to selectively filter out blue light while maintaining crisp and vivid color quality.” The new Nitro monitors also have Eyesafe.
To further ensure your eyes’ happiness, the Predator XB273U NV has a range of technologies that allow the screen to adjust brightness and color temperature to fight eye strain based on the lighting in your room. The pricier KV Nitro model can also adjust lighting based on ambient lighting. However, the Predator XB273U NV also includes the ability to adjust brightness based on on-screen action, a feature that’s supposed to make the dark parts look even darker.
Finally, the feature-filled Predator XB273U NV comes with an RGB rectangle on the back that can sync with audio and on-screen content. It also has a TX transmitter built in, so you can wirelessly sync this lavish feature to work across multiple monitors. The Predator XB253Q, which targets FPS and racing tiles, also has this Acer RGB feature, dubbed Light Sense.
Finally, for HDR fanatics, Acer seems to have a solid option coming up in the Acer Predator XB323U GX. While it won’t be the absolute best HDR monitor on the market, it does have the VESA DisplayHDR 600 certification that we consider the minimum required for gamers to see a noticeable impact over SDR monitors.
With all the Hz, HDR and even speakers, Acer’s flying into the new year heavily equipped.