Introduction

Last year, ViewSonic released a now popular 144 Hz FreeSync monitor, the XG2402. While quite affordable, it wasn't aiming for the title of the cheapest high refresh rate monitor on the market. ViewSonic purposely wanted to offer more than just the most basic feature set. With that being the case, the XG2402 came with a fully adjustable stand which allowed us to adjust the screen's height, tilt, and swivel, and even rotate it to portrait mode. This is something we simply wouldn't have gotten from an exceptionally cheap monitor for gaming or productivity, and it's what many users will gladly pay a bit more for. In this review, we'll dissect the ViewSonic ELITE XG240R, a 24-inch 144 Hz FreeSync monitor that is essentially a direct, albeit slight upgrade to last year's XG2402.



Many of the key features of the ViewSonic ELITE XG240R (I will just refer to it as the XG240R for the remainder of this review) remain the same as for the XG2402. The screen size is still 24", native resolution is Full HD (1,920x1,080), the built-in TN panel has a refresh rate of 144 Hz, and it supports AMD's FreeSync adaptive synchronization technology. As NVIDIA recently added FreeSync monitor support to the drivers for their GTX 1000 and RTX 2000-series graphics cards, nothing is stopping you from tapping into that sweet adaptive sync goodness even if your rig is equipped with a supported NVIDIA card. The main differences between the XG240R and XG2402 are aesthetic, with the XG240R being all-black and thus stealthier in appearance, the OSD, and the lighting system. Yep, you guessed it, the ViewSonic XG240R continues the trend of monitors coming with configurable RGB LED strips on their backs. Among other things, we'll examine whether the two V-shaped LED strips actually manage to light up the wall behind the monitor to figure out if the whole RGB feature is a mere gimmick or not.

Specifications