Love gaming? Get a high refresh monitor. You won't ever want to go back to 60Hz. The only problem, of course, with 144Hz-plus gaming panels is price. They tend to be painful. At least they used to be. This Acer ED242QR 144Hz 24-inch curved monitor is yours for just $141.99 thanks to this Amazon deal that's very nearly a Black Friday-style steal. Even better, it has a VA rather than TN panel. More on that in a moment.
With a recommended retail price of $199 and historical pricing as high as $230, the Acer ED242QR is within a couple of bucks of the cheapest price ever on Amazon. For $141.99, you don't just get a 24-inch 1080p gaming monitor capable of a slick 144Hz refresh rate. it sports VA rather than TN panel tech. That means punchier colors, much better contrast and superior viewing angles.
Other notable features include support for AMD's FreeSync adaptive refresh technology, which recently became compatible with Nvidia's graphics cards, not just AMD's. Interface wise, we're talking DVI, HDMI and DisplayPort, with the FreeSync functionality limited to the latter. For the record, the screen's curvature clocks in at 1800R.
Of course, at this price something has to give. The native resolution is only 1080p. But then if you're hunting for an affordable gaming panel, that will likely be a good fit with your graphics card. High resolution monitors demand beefier GPUs in order to maintain fast frame rates. The ED242QR's stand is also a basic affair with tilt-only adjustment.
If the Acer ED242QR isn't entirely your bag, check out our PC monitor buying guide and our monitor deals, too.
