In the world of PC gaming, mind-blowing graphics in games are a huge deal as gamers are always looking to stay ahead in the loop when it comes to new technology and new powerful graphics cards that are able to deliver the raw performance to allow games to be run at the highest graphical setting, providing an immersive-enriched gaming experience. Picking the right monitor is fundamentally very important as it can prove to be a game changer. With the introduction of powerful graphics cards by Nvidia such as the RTX 3080 which delivers unmatched performance and highly immersive graphics in games, it is important to pair an equally mighty gaming monitor that is able to utilize a powerhouse like the RTX 3080 to the best of its ability by pushing the most amount of pixels but that is not all. There is more to picking a monitor than pixels, the ideal monitor will have the perfect mix of a high amount of pixels, a high refresh rate as well as other factors such as color accuracy out of the box, its peak SDR brightness, and how well a monitor handles reflections in a bright environment.
A higher refresh rate is able to provide a fluid experience with no blur in fast-moving scenes such as competitive first-person shooter titles whereas a high resolution is able to provide more details and clarity in an image, enhancing the immersion of games and multimedia consumption as movies. We have prepared a list of monitors that have an amazing mix of features that can be paired with a powerhouse like Nvidia’s RTX 3080.
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Gigabyte M28U 28 inch 4K 144Hz Read More | See On Amazon |
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ViewSonic XG2431 24-inch 1080p 240Hz Read More | See On Amazon |
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LG 27GP850-B 27-inch 1440p 165Hz Read More | See On Amazon |
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MSI Optix MAG274QRF-QD DOT Gaming 1440p 165Hz Read More | See On Amazon |
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Acer Nitro XV252Q Fbmiiprx 1080p 390 Hz Read More | See On Amazon |
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Best Monitors for RTX 3080 Reviews
With the gaming industry progressing rapidly and evolving, the standards in the industry have continuously evolved. With new tech being released that is far more powerful than its predecessors, new gaming monitors have been designed and manufactured to utilize the powerful new graphic cards that have entered the PC industry. 1080P monitors used to be the standard in the PC industry previously, with the introduction of 4K monitors, the standard has slowly and steadily adopted 4K as its new standard in the monitor industry. Previously, venturing into 4K gaming monitors was an expensive hobby due to a lot of pixels which required a mighty graphic card that was capable of allowing the monitor to push and display all the pixels at an acceptable framerate. The release of Nvidia’s RTX 3080, has allowed PC users to leverage the superb raw performance of the Nvidia’s RTX 3080 to power 4K gaming monitors.
The Gigabyte M28U is a 4K@144Hz affordable gaming monitor that has a beautiful IPS panel that provides wide viewing angles and vivid colors, making for an immersively vivid experience when watching movies, gaming or just doing some productive tasks. IPS panels are known to deliver color depth and clarity whilst providing a uniform display. The Gigabyte M28U is rated for 1000:1 which means that it has excellent contrast in terms of providing deep rich blacks, for an IPS panel.
The Gigabyte M28U is rated for DisplayHDR 400 although its brightness is a bit lacking for true HDR as it is only able to peak around 300cd/m2 in terms of brightness as per the specs. True HDR requires a display that can reach a level of brightness such as 600cd/m2 or above. Not only does the monitor boast an impressive resolution of 3840 x 2160 (4K) but it also has a refresh rate of 144Hz which provides a competitive edge in fast-faced shooter games. It also has a response time of 2ms MPRT as well as 1ms GTG which makes it ideal for high-refresh-rate gaming due to its quick response time and high refresh rate of 144Hz.
One of the downsides of 4K gaming was that it was limited to standard refresh rates of 60Hz which has changed as the technology has evolved, with the introduction of powerful gaming monitors such as the Gigabyte’s M28U, gamers can finally enjoy a beautiful vivid 4K display whilst being provided with a 144Hz refresh rate, making it for an immersive and fluid experience. In terms of connectivity, you’re provided with DisplayPort 1.4, HDMI 2.1 x2, and a USB Type-C.
In conclusion, the Gigabyte’s M28U is an impressive 4K monitor with a high refresh of 144Hz with an IPS panel, making it a great pick for a powerful graphic card such as the RTX 3080 which can utilize its complete potential in gaming and productivity tasks.
The ViewSonic XG2431 is a 1080p gaming monitor with a 24-inch screen. The main impressive feature that differentiates this monitor from other 1080p monitors is the fact that it boasts an incredible refresh rate of 240Hz whilst also having FreeSync variable refresh (VRR) support in order to reduce the screen tearing that is often in games, additionally, it has support for Nvidia’s G-SYNC which is an exclusive feature reserved only for Nvidia graphic cards such as the RTX 3080 from Nvidia’s RTX 3000 series lineup.
The ViewSonic XG2431 is an excellent 1080p 240Hz gaming monitor due to its high refresh rate combined with its low response time and low input lag as well, providing an extremely competitive edge in fast-paced games and the first-person shooter genre. Coming towards the design side, the ViewSonic XG2431 has a very basic and simple design as it has an all-black body along with a heavy traditional stand. However, it does have cable bungees which can be used to help with wire management when dealing with mice and keyboards, additionally, it also has a headphone rack so that you can hang your headphones.
Observing the build quality of the ViewSonic XG2431, we already noticed that it has a traditional design with an all-black body that is made of plastic, however, despite being made of plastic, the back side of the monitor does not flex much once pressure is applied to it. As discussed earlier, it has a very traditional bulky stand which may not be aesthetically appealing but it makes the monitor stay very stable thanks to the wide base of the stand. The body being made of plastic does not overall ruin the build quality of the monitor despite not being made of premium materials such as metal, it is still a very solid monitor in terms of build quality. Additionally, it has great ergonomics although you can only rotate the monitor into portrait mode within one direction, making the inputs face always towards the left side, which might be slightly inconvenient if your PC is placed on the right side. However, as discussed earlier, despite having a stiff and bulky stand, the screen stays quite firm in its position and comes with a detachable hook that can be used for cable management as well.
The stand being bulky and uneven means that the monitor stand takes up a lot of space on the table and prevents things from being placed on the base of the stand as it is not uniformly even at the base. You’re provided with 5 buttons that are placed underneath the display screen which can be used to power on the monitor or browse through its settings menu. It has a contrast ratio of 900: with its brightness being measured and determined at 332cd/m2 in terms of SDR content and with a brightness of 501cd/m2 for HDR content, which is very decent for HDR content.
The LG 27GP850-B is a 1440p monitor with a 27-inch display which boasts a high refresh rate of 165Hz. The LG 27GP850-B delivers a very immersive gaming experience with its large 27-inch display which has beautiful vivid colors and display thanks to its IPS panel which is known for maintaining accurate images at wide viewing angles whilst providing rich-vivid colors for multimedia and gaming consumption. It features a very low input lag combined with a high refresh rate of 165Hz making it a competitive 1440p gaming monitor that can provide a competitive edge in fast-paced shooter games and multiplayer environments. Additionally, it features AMD’s FreeSync as well as Nvidia’s G-SYNC which are variable refresh rate (VRR) technologies that help reduce or completely eliminate screen tearing that occurs in games. In terms of clarity and motion, the motion is quite clear and fluid and there is very little blur behind fast-moving objects on the display thanks to its quick response time and refresh rate.
Not only does it have an impressive resolution of 1440p along with a 165Hz refresh rate, but it also has excellent peak SDR brightness which was measured at around 349cd/m2 in our tests. Thanks to the high SDR peak brightness and great reflection handling capabilities, the LG 27GP850-B does not have a difficult time handling glare which is motley non-existent. Coming towards the style of the monitor, it is mostly a simple design with a V-shaped base which has red colored accents that provide for a little bit of gaming-oriented design. It has thin bezels on three of its sides with a few thick bezels at the bottom due to the logo and accessibility buttons.
Speaking of the build quality, it is mostly quite standard and decent for the most part as the materials that have been utilized for the manufacturing of this monitor fairly decent, the build quality is decent despite the fact that the body is made out of plastic. However, there is a bit of flex involved due to the presence of plastic. Pretty decent in terms of ergonomics, the monitor has a fairly average height and tilt range and be converted into portrait orientation which is limited to only one direction, forcing the inputs of the monitors to always be at the top side when it is in portrait mode. The base being V-shaped does not prevent the monitor from wobbling but it is fairly standard. The contrast is a bit on the disappointing side due to the 807:1 contrast ratio which is lower than the typical 1000:1 contrast ratio. Additionally, it has no local dimming and the backlight is edge-lit. Black uniformity is disappointing as well and the screen appears muddy when it’s completely black and it has backlight bleed around the edges of the monitor. It features 99.9% sRGB coverage coupled with 87.7% Adobe RGB coverage, making it excellent for even professional use.
The MSI Optic MAG274QRF-QD is a superb 1440p gaming monitor with a 27-inch display that boasts a high refresh rate of 165Hz. It also has variable refresh rate (VRR) technologies such as AMD’s FreeSync and Nvidia’s G-SYNC which helps eliminate screen tearing that can occur due to having a lower or higher framerate than the refresh rate of the monitor. Thanks to the high refresh rate of 165Hz combined with a low response time and low input lag, the motion looks very clear and fluid in a fast-moving scene with the objects leaving behind minimal to no blur at all. The build quality is quite with decent ergonomics and with a display that is able to display vivid colors thanks to the quantum dot technology which is able to provide a very wide color gamut for content that can be viewed in HDR.
Taking a look over the style of MSI MAG274QRF-QD, it differentiates itself from other MSI monitors, mostly due to the fact it has a very large square base which takes up a decent amount of space on the desk while making it mostly impossible for objects to be placed on it as it is not as wide. The monitor has thin bezels on its sides with a larger bezel at the bottom where the logo of MSI is placed. The back of the monitor is quite sleek and also comes with RGB lighting which is a bonus in terms of gaming monitor aesthetics.
The MSI MAG274QRF-QD is made out of plastic but the materials used are quite good which makes the overall build quality pretty decently standard as there aren’t any obvious flaws visible in terms of its build quality. The stand as discussed earlier is wide enough for the monitor to not wobble on the table from vibrations on the desk, resulting in minimal wobbling. Ergonomics as discussed earlier are great as the monitor can be swiveled easily due to having a wide range of swivel. It can also be rotated into portrait orientation, the biggest key point being that it can oriented in any direction as compared to other monitors that can only be oriented in portrait in a singular limited direction.
One interesting feature that should be noted is that the monitor has a joystick-like red button on the back right side of the monitor that can be used to control and navigate through the menu settings. It has a decent contrast ratio of 1,195:1 whereas the typical native contrast ratio is around 1000:1, allowing the MSI MAG274QRF-QD to provide exceptionally deep rich blacks as compared to other monitors. It is important to note that the monitor does not have local dimming and its backlight is edge-lit. It was able to reach a peak SDR brightness of 347cd/m2 which is bright enough to prevent any glare.
The Acer Nitro XV252Q Fbmiiprx is an excellent gaming monitor that can be paired with Nvidia’s RTX 3080 as Nvidia’s RTX 3080 will be able to provide the raw performance to help gamers utilize the high refresh rate of 390Hz of their monitor. The Acer Nitro XV252Q Fbmiiprx is one of the first 390Hz monitors that made its way into the market. It is a 1080p gaming monitor with a 25-inch display with variable refresh rate (VRR) technologies such as FreeSync that eliminates screen tearing. It has great vivid and deep rich colors thanks to the IPS panel which is also able to provide a wide range of viewing angles, keeping the image accuracy consistent at varying angles.
Thanks to the incredibly high refresh rate of 390Hz and extremely low response time and input lag, there is no motion blur at all in fast-moving scenes, objects have minimal to no motion blur trails behind them. All of this makes for a great gaming experience with such a fluid display with beautiful colors. Being a very high refresh rate monitor, it is limited to 1080p resolution which means that it has good text clarity but the multimedia consumption experience may not be as immersive as a 1440p or 4k monitor.
The Acer Nitro XV252Q has a relatively simple design with thin bezels on its sides with a thicker bezel at the bottom where the Acer logo is displayed prominently. The monitor is very similar to other monitors in the Acer’s Nitro lineup. It has a stand which has a round base, it doesn’t take up too much space on the desk. Coming over towards the build quality, unlike its simplistic and appealing design, we were not impressed with the build quality which is mediocre at best. The body is made out of plastic but the materials used appear to be cheap as the plastic body of the monitor is prone to being scratched quite easily. The round stand is also quite mediocre as it doesn’t provide adequate stability for the monitor, causing the monitor to wobble at slight vibrations.
In terms of the ergonomics department, it was fairly decent in comparison to its build quality. It is able to swivel in a wide range of positions freely. It is also capable of being VESA-mounted. The stand of the monitor also has a quick-release button as well as the presence of a small clip on the stand that allows for cable management. In terms of accessibility options, it has a five-way joystick with some buttons that can be used to navigate the settings menu, these are positioned behind the monitor. In terms of brightness, the monitor is able to achieve a peak SDR brightness of 379cd/m2 which is quite decent and eliminates screen glare as well. The monitor has great gray uniformity but suffers in terms of black uniformity. Overall, it is a great pick that can be paired with Nvidia’s RTX 3080 due to its high refresh rate of 390Hz.
Conclusion
With our top 5 picks for the ideal gaming monitors for RTX 3080 coming to a conclusion, we hope that you have understood the importance of pairing the correct monitor with your Nvidia RTX 3080 in order to leverage the complete potential of your graphic card for providing you with a better immersive gaming experience with beautiful and vivid graphics and that silky fluid gameplay thanks to the high-refresh-rate and low input lag. By now, you’ll be very familiar with the different pros and cons of each monitor on the list and understand the importance of different factors such as variable refresh rate technologies that help eliminate screen tearing that can be caused due to a lower or higher framerate than your monitor’s refresh rate, the importance of SDR peak brightness which dictates how bright a monitor can get in real life environment and scenarios.
For some of you, it must be of utmost importance that the gaming monitor has a gaming aesthetic and vibe whereas some of you will be able to look past the simplistic design of some monitors in favor of better features, a higher resolution, or perhaps a higher refresh rate depending on your requirements. It is important to consider your requirements and choose a monitor accordingly, a high-resolution monitor will be far more immersive in terms of gaming and watching movies whereas a high refresh rate monitor with a lower resolution might provide a better competitive edge in fast-paced shooter games than a higher resolution monitor that has a low refresh rate.
