The AOC AGON AG273QZ is one of the best gaming monitors you can buy.
It’s a 27-inch flat gaming monitor with QHD resolution and to please the most avid gamers, has a 0.5ms response time, paired with a 240Hz refresh rate, made possible at this price because of the TN panel.
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Though it may not be 4K, the Quad High Definition 2560 x 1440p display on the AOC AGON AG273QZ is crisp and the higher-than-usual refresh rate means you can game to your rig’s fullest potential.
AOC AGON AG273QZ review: price
Now is the perfect time to invest in the AOC AGON AG273QZ because the price has dropped to £571.95 in the UK on Amazon, £599.99 on Novatech or £624.99 on eBuyer.
AOC AGON AG273QZ review: design and setup
With a matte-black plastic casing, slim bezels and a LightFX RGB lighting system in the shape of a ring on the back, the AOC AGON AG273QZ looks smart. You get a decent 27 inches of screen to play on, and the simple design is only interrupted by the red logo in the centre of the bottom bezel. The AOC AGON AG273QZ even has built-in speakers and a microphone.
The thick metal stand is sturdy and quite heavy but there is a handle on it to help move it. You will need to be sure you have the right-sized desk as the base on the AOC AGON AG273QZ is quite substantial at 28.95cm deep, though it can be wall-mounted too. The weighty, wide stand makes for easy and stable adjustments, you can adjust the height, tilt, and even rotate the display 90 degrees without any problem.
When it came to attaching the stand and putting it in place, it was very straightforward with two people. The stand clicks into the back of the display and then you just need to tighten the screw on the base. It could easily be done by yourself as well.
Then, connect it to the mains and your gaming kit using the ports on the back. There are two HDMI ports, two DisplayPort 1.4s, four USB 3s, a mic input and headphone out. You may need to update some graphics drivers when you first connect to it, but it's mostly just a case of plugging it in.
To control the monitor options and modes, the AOC AGON AG273QZ has a joystick located underneath the front logo on the front which is a little fiddly to use. You can also navigate through the menus using the included controller which makes things a lot easier. The small circular device plugs into the back of the monitor and glows red around the edges.
AOC AGON AG273QZ review: features and picture
Thanks to the AOC AGON AG273QZ’s QHD display (2560x1440p) with 240Hz refresh rate and a 0.5ms response time, it’s safe to say the games we tried looked fantastic and ran smoothly with no lag at all. It is worth considering that to make use of the full refresh rate capabilities, your PC will need the hardware to be able to cope with it.
There are tons of OSD settings on the AOC AGON AG273QZ, from colours, contrast and brightness, to game modes with genre-specific configurations including FPS, RTS and racing. You can set up your own gamer profiles for your own manual preferences too.
The TN panel does mean that you’ll need to be sat head on to the display to get the right viewing angle, and the colour accuracy could sometimes be a little off. FreeSync Premium Pro is supported but there’s no Nvidia G-Sync and the Vesa Display HDR400 isn’t the best you can get either.
But all in all, the display was sharp and very bright so it looks crystal-clear. Motion on this gaming monitor is blur-free and super smooth, and the contrast between light and dark has a 1000:1 ratio which is good enough. The AOC AGON AG273QZ is a great monitor for fast games like racing or FPS but perhaps less so for other activities like watching films.
AOC AGON AG273QZ review: verdict
Be it the mass of ports, FreeSync Pro adaptive sync support or something as simple as the two headset hooks, every detail in the AOC AGON AG273QZ has gaming in mind. It looks modern and premium, with seriously sharp, stand-out image quality and has comprehensive on-screen menus. But while the specs are impressive, they aren’t quite top-tier, ultimately allowing for a mid-range price and just a few high-end features.
If you are more of a casual gamer and plan to switch between using the monitor for work, gaming and TV streaming, there are more affordable options out there that may be better suited. But the AOC AGON AG273QZ offers a lot to serious gamers who want to enjoy super-smooth gaming at 1440p.
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