we tested the Agon Pro AG274QG

The gaming sector has already become the most important for many manufacturers, to the point that they have created brands that operate more or less independently to take on specialized brands like Razer.

[Razer presenta la primera consola Android con 5G, un monstruo gaming con Xbox]

AOC, a maker best known for its productivity-focused desktop monitors, has followed that path with the Agon brand, which aims to entice gamers by giving them exactly what they want: attractive design, fast panels and additional features.

Features Agon Pro AG274QG

Speed ​​is your asset

If I had to highlight one feature of this monitor, it would be the refresh rate, without a doubt. is able to reach not less than 240 Hz, something striking when many monitors classed as “gaming” stick to 144Hz. Of course, this isn’t by far the fastest monitor on the market, with the best already hitting 360Hz; however, I think the strength of this model is that it offers a very attractive and accessible middle ground.

If all this confuses you, first know that the refresh rate is the number of times the image is refreshed each second; therefore, in this case, the image on the monitor can change 240 times in one second. For the vast majority of people, this is useless, but as many Android mobile users are discovering, a higher refresh rate has many benefits, especially for gamers.

The higher the refresh rate, the more information you will see every second; and that’s important when every tenth of a second can mean losing the game. In online shooting games, such as Apex Legends

To this we must add that we will see a more fluid image, which moves in a more natural and realistic way; so even if we don’t play competitively, we should notice it in many games. Personally, I can no longer enjoy racing games without this fluidity.

AOC also has a very low response time, 1 ms from gray to gray; This number represents the time it takes for a pixel to change color, and if it’s too high, you’ll notice a “ghosting” or blurring effect. I could not scientifically measure this number during my tests, but I can assure you that I did not notice any of these problems during my games, even when I had to move the camera very quickly.

Where perhaps this Agon Pro monitor stands out is that it doesn’t stop there. We have many alternatives on the market with similar numbers, but this one also offers access to technologies that will help us take advantage of it, such as G-Sync Ultimate; This Nvidia development is able to synchronize the image rendered by the computer and the image displayed by the monitor, although you will need an Nvidia compatible graphics card to really enjoy it. And the truth is that it can be worth it, since this monitor is also compatible with Nvidia’s latency analyzer, which eliminates the delay between our actions with the mouse and what is displayed on the screen.

In my testing, the experience with the Agon Pro AG274QG has been very good. At 240Hz, the experience is very smooth and, to put it mildly, ‘realistic’; it’s easy to see why this can be a big help, even if we’re not playing competitively. In fact, the biggest issue is hitting 240fps with our computer to really take advantage of this monitor, which can be tricky if the hardware isn’t up to snuff.

Image quality that takes work

Perhaps because of the difficulty of taking advantage of 240Hz, the fact that this monitor doesn’t have 4K resolution is a blessing. By reaching “only” 2K resolution, it is easier for our computer to achieve this performance at native resolution and without the need for “tricks” like lowering the resolution or using image enlargement techniques.

This does not mean that the image quality is bad. We are facing a 27-inch monitor, and in this size 2K resolution is ideal; If it was taller I would probably consider it a flaw, but it strikes a really good balance that way. I also liked the perfect viewing angles thanks to IPS technology, as well as the edges, which are much thinner than what I’m used to on gaming monitors.

Where I have the most criticism in terms of image quality is in color processing. Out of the box, the Agon Pro AG274QG shows too dull colors, in which many details of the images and videos I tested were lost. And that surprised me, since, on paper, this panel should be very good, based on IPS technology; I suspect it’s from LG, although AOC hasn’t specified it, and I know that’s almost always a sign of quality.

I quickly understood what was happening: the panel is not calibrated correctly (or not calibrated at all). By fiddling with the monitor menu I was able to fix some of the more visible imperfections, but to get the best result you’ll need professional calibration, which isn’t available to everyone. I’m not saying this monitor needs to be factory calibrated like the professional models, but at least it should be better configured at the factory.

Another important thing to remember: when you activate the refresh rate at 240Hz, you will lose colors. Color depth will be reduced to just 8 bits, compared to the 10 bits possible at slower frequencies. It should also be noted that AOC only included two HDMI 2.0 ports, while HDMI 2.1 is already available in the market; the problem is that HDMI 2.0 is not sufficient to reach 240 Hz in native resolution, and for that you will have to use the DisplayPort connection. At least I appreciate the inclusion of USB-C which allows a laptop to be connected and charged while the image is showing.

Once configured to your liking, the Agon Pro AG274QG is a good monitor for enjoying content, but not the best in its price range. Moved back DisplayHDR 600 certified so at least HDR content looks as good as it gets with an IPS panel; If you want more, you’ll have no choice but to make the jump to an OLED or MiniLED TV, with the cost that entails, so I’m not complaining.

A striking yet unobtrusive design

I’m not complaining about the design decisions of the Agon brand either. Too many gaming brands make the mistake of betting on shrill designs, and while it’s true that you’ll find quite a bit of “nonsense”, it’s no less true that the result is an attractive monitor that “don’t go too far”.

In fact, I would say that when the monitor is off, it looks really sleek, crafted in black with the brand logo and some red detailing. When we turn it on, the light show begins. To begin with, at the rear we have lights that we can configure to our liking; They’re not exactly distracting and at max level they’re just bright enough to be noticed but not bright enough to light up the whole room. Funnier I found the projector which is integrated into the base (whose design, by the way, I really liked).

This projector displays the Agon brand on our table, in the color we want; It’s curious, even if I understand that it’s not to everyone’s taste. Fortunately, all these lights can be turned off and configured to our liking.

Where this monitor stands out from the rest is in the number of accessories included for free in the box. The first is a monitor cover, made from a material that prevents external reflections that can affect the image coming from the panel; It mounts easily and stays secure once installed.

The second is a controller, which plugs into the back, allowing us to access monitor functions without having to use the built-in controls. Thanks to the long cable we can have it next to the keyboard, for example, and modify the parameters in real time and quickly. I find it very useful for online games in which we do not want to be too distracted.

A very competitive monitor

I was surprised that AOC made such a competitive product in the gaming industry like this; maybe it shouldn’t be, given this manufacturer’s experience. Far from just taking one of your conventional monitors and calling it “gaming”, you can say that this model was designed from the ground up with gamers in mind, catering to their unique needs.

The refresh rate and response time hit the levels we need to enjoy our games, and the number of add-ons, features, and built-in tech is so high that I’ve probably overlooked something. For example, it has speakers, and they’re better than usual in the industry. I haven’t talked about the build quality either, which is better than I’m used to with a heavy, secure base and a monitor that feels solid.

There are also some hiccups, especially in terms of image quality, but these are not insurmountable obstacles. As long as you remember to calibrate everything to your liking, I have no problem recommending this monitor to anyone looking for something to balance out their PC or gaming console.

The AOC Agon Pro AG274QG is available for 1,200 dollars on Amazon.

• Buy AOC Agon Pro AG274QG on Amazon

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