Refresh rates are truly getting insane. We were already scratching our heads at 300Hz laptop displays from Acer and Asus, but now Asus is taking things to another level. Alongside Nvidia, it today announced the Asus ROG Swift 360 monitor that, for some crazy reason, has an unprecedented 360Hz refresh rate.
Alright, perhaps the reasons aren’t that crazy. The monitor will target professional eSports gamers when it arrives later this year. An Nvidia spokesperson told us competitive players can expect a 4% improvement in flick shot aiming tests, according to Nvidia research. Casual gamers may still think worrying about 4% is crazy, but for pro gamers with as much as millions of dollars on the line, that 4% could potentially make a life-changing difference.
I watched a demo made with BlurBusters that showed a Dota map scrolling at super-speed across a 240Hz monitor and the Swift 360 simultaneously. It was very tough to see, but names written above each character were a touch sharper on the Swift 360, thanks to the screen being able to change colors more rapidly and display more frames in the same time period. The Swift 360 is said to display a frame once every 2.8ms.
Not surprisingly, to maintain that speed the ROG Swift 360 is limited to FHD resolution and a 24.5 inch display. And since this is an Nvidia collaboration, the monitor supports G-Sync. This should mean there will be no screen tearing as your the Swift 360 refreshes faster than the best gaming monitors out now.
Pricing wasn’t shared, but we expect the display to be quite pricey considering it’s for competitive eSports players and is one-of-a-kind.
Don't Need 360Hz?
Don’t need 360Hz? Asus also told us that the Asus TUF Gaming VG279QM will hit the U.S. this February for $449. That 27-inch IPS monitor’s refresh rate has a modest 280Hz overclocked refresh rate. Okay, maybe calling 280Hz "modest" is crazy, but you trying staring intensely at a Dota map speeding by at 360 and 240 frames per second simultaneously and see if you don’t feel a little wacky too.
