Gadgetory

several years ago we did an episode explaining refresh rates for monitors and TVs but things have changed quite a bit these days with displays featuring super high refresh rates adaptive sync technology and ultra-high resolutions so it's time for round two of what you should know before committing to just one display for a hopefully fulfilling long term relationship and this video is sponsored by Intel now the first thing it would probably help to know is why a high refresh rate monitor is good so a higher refresh rate measured in hertz will not only make many kinds of motion on your screen look smoother it can also be quite important for gaming you see contrary to popular belief the human eye is actually really really good at detecting changes in motion that is to say that no it is not limited to 24 frames per second so a higher refresh rate display coupled with a powerful graphics card and processor will make animations appear more realistic by reducing choppiness and blur and increasing immersion another benefit is that not only is the action smoother but you're actually seeing more frames in other words you're catching visual elements that you might be missing with a more run-of-the-mill display in a fast-paced game this is actually more than just an aesthetic advantage and can even give you a competitive edge in fact many competitive gamers and eSports teams value high refresh rate monitors because they allow the player to see things just a little more clearly or quickly than their opponent now as I alluded to before however to reap these benefits you need powerful hardware to spit out frames quickly enough to keep your monitor fed if you drop extra money on a 144 Hertz monitor for example but your graphics card can only muster 30 or 60 frames per second in the games you play most often many of those screen refreshes that you see won't actually contain new frames of information so your experience isn't going to be any better another thing to consider is exactly how high of a refresh rate you need these days it's quite common to see one tier of high-end monitors that offer a 120 or 144 Hertz refresh rate and then another tier of displays that can push out 165 200 or even 240 refreshes per second unsurprisingly the monitors tend to get more expensive as the refresh rates get higher while offering diminishing returns for many people now the vast majority of us can easily tell the difference between a 30 and 60 frame per second video or game but it's a bit harder for some folks to tell the difference between 60 and 120 and harder still once you get up above 200 so if it's at all possible to try before you buy then by all means do that so you're not plunking down money for something that you won't even get maximum enjoyment from this is especially true if you're not gaming as applications for frame rates beyond 60 are very limited I mean even ultra smooth online video typically maxes out at around 60 frames per second so don't pick up an expensive monitor thinking that it's going to make your entire competing experience that much better furthermore it's important to remember that there are often trade-offs if you go for the very top end of the monitor stack very high refresh rate models often use TN panels as it's more difficult to incorporate high refresh rate Tec into IPS displays TN panels which you can learn more about up here offer fast response but typically they have noticeably worse color and viewing angles compared to other display types and that's not to mention even that most of the 240 Hertz monitors out there are currently limited to 1080p resolution now it should be noted that more advanced solutions such as one millisecond IPS panels ultra wide 200 Hertz and even 4k at 144 Hertz have just made their way to the market and they promise incredibly awesome experiences with even HDR at those Solutions and refresh rates but that assumes you've got very very deep pockets so whatever you go with just make sure that you're leaving some room in your budget for the games themselves or you're not really gonna enjoy it that is unless we could just start shooting tech quickie at 240 FPS so I'll look just as smooth as I do on the dance floor yeah we all know that's not what I look like on the day well we all know that is what I look like on the dance floor so let's move it speaking of smooth this segue to our sponsor if you're interested in what Intel thinks you should be looking for in a gaming monitor head over to WWE Champion of educational resources for PC gaming and hardware not only can you shop for the latest gaming laptops and desktops but you can also get tips mods and information on eSports so be sure to check out their article on how to buy a gaming monitor which we've linked in the video description so thanks for watching guys like dislike check out our other videos and don't forget to subscribe to tech quickie so you won't miss any future fast as possible if you don't subscribe clams will bite your fingers next time you go swimming