Gaming Monitor vs. Regular Monitor

When deciding what monitor is best, your decision can be easily found in the use of the product.

Do you need a faster, more responsive monitor? Well then, you need a gaming monitor! If you only use your laptop for work/school or casual use, you can still use a monitor intended for gaming, but a regular one will suffice.

For those interested in the inner workings of both of these types of monitors, we suggest you read on. Above all else, it might give you more to say when you're blaming your monitor for your performance!

Differences between gaming and regular monitors

Both gaming monitors and regular monitors have their own strengths and characteristics.

However, to distinguish these, we must first ask what is a gaming monitor?

A gaming monitor, put simply, is designed to boost the experience of gameplay by increasing the output of your pc/console.

It’s a good way to improve your setup if you’re on a budget, not everyone has thousands of spare cash to buy components for their PC. Although it is more likely that you have the money to buy a cheap, reliable monitor, such as our Samsung Odyssey G55T 68.6 cm (27") .

This is a great example since it has 144Hz and a 27-inch display, making it a great monitor for the average gamer if you’re on a budget.

This particular monitor will be much more suited to fast-paced first-person shooter games, such as the new modern warfare 2 (which a normal monitor would most likely struggle with.)

This means that if you want a smooth more immersive experience, a gaming monitor is a must when playing any games.

That’s only the short answer, in truth there is much more to these products than meets the eye.

Important factors such as refresh rate and resolution play a huge role in the performance gap between monitors.

Explaining the refresh rate (Hz)

Once you cut out the jargon, all refresh means is how many times the monitor refreshes the page per second, this is measured in Hz.

For example, our Acer Predator 27 inch FHD Gaming Monitor has 240Hz.

This means the page is refreshing 240 times per second, making it perfect for gaming due to its high refresh rate.

This is one of the main reasons to buy a gaming monitor, since it allows your PC to have more capabilities without the use of more RAM, etc.

Screen Resolution

Resolution is where a regular monitor shines.

Regular monitors have more resolution meaning they display static images in a more full and detailed look.

Resolution just means how many pixels there are on the screen.

For example our Samsung Odyssey 81.3 cm (32") has quad HD meaning that the size of the display is 2560 x 1440 pixels.

These terms such as HD, 4k and a few other, are great indicators on the general resolution or definition you will get out of your monitor.

Resolution isn’t as important for gaming since most the time the screen is refreshing to show swift smooth gameplay.

Due to the screen being in constant motion, amazing resolution isn’t needed.

Therefore, gaming monitor do not need outstanding resolution this would be unnecessary and make the monitor more expensive for something that isn’t useful in gaming.

This is why the high resolution in a standard monitor is great for creative minds or just everyday use due to it looking more defined.

Making that painting look just a bit more perfect, or maybe that spreadsheet a bit easier on the eye.

Even though most gaming monitors don’t have a higher resolution if you are in the market for one they are available.

Speakers

Another difference that may be a deal breaker to most is the speakers.

Nearly all computer monitors have a robust set of speakers since they are needed in order to listen to audio, whether that be your favourite movie or song or anything for that matter, you expect satisfactory sound.

On the other hand, some gaming monitors do not even have speakers.

This is again because they are not needed and will just make the product overly expensive, this is because when playing games most people have a pair of quality headphones making speakers irrelevant.

For most gamers, if they feel they require speakers then in most cases a pair of external speakers will be bought which are obviously far superior to the internal speakers of a computer monitor.

A good example of a good pair of external speakers if you’re getting a gaming monitor that lacks internal speakers is our Razer Nommo’s.

These are high-quality immersive speakers that are a great addition to your gaming setup.

Curved or Ultrawide?

Despite these differences, both gaming and normal monitors do have many similarities.

Most monitors are similar in price they just differ in size and refresh rate. However, they are similar both having curved/ultrawide versions.

Curved monitors are relatively new in the industry and most saw them as a passing fad that would eventually dissipate.

To their surprise, we think curved monitors are here to stay due to their interesting attributes and even health benefits.

A curved monitor whether it be gaming or a regular monitor are great for immersing yourself.

This can help you focus at work or even immerse you into a great campaign such as one of the many remakes of the Last Of us.

The beauty of a curved/ultrawide monitor is that it is easier on the eyes.

The curvature of the monitor allows your eyes to take in the whole screen without straining them, which is great for anyone who works long hours behind a screen or even for casual use.

A good example of an affordable good quality curved monitor would be our Samsung G Series C34G55TWWU86.4 cm 34".

This particular monitor is great because it has a fast response time of 1ms meaning less lag, as well as it being quad HD with the wide viewing angle due to it being curved.

Final additions

The fact of the matter is that they are both very similar apart from one or two aspects that become very important depending on your use for the product.

This means a lot of the thought process when buying a new monitor comes down to personal preference.

It is quite clear form the title alone that a gaming monitor is mainly based around the activity of gaming while other monitors are for working or general use.

For most professions a larger screen or even two monitors is needed in order to work as it increases productivity.

This is because it allows you to have two windows open at once rather than having to flick through both constantly, this depends on the size of the monitor of course.

To sum up, there are a million things you can look for in a monitor however, unless you’re a very dedicated gamer and you want the fastest most efficient gaming setup possible, You don’t need to worry about every detail under the sun.

Most monitors will be perfect for your needs. However, maybe a gaming monitor isn’t a bad idea if you’re always complaining about input lag.