The ASUS Designo MX279HS is a decent budget 1080p monitor. It has a decent overall picture quality with excellent gray uniformity, good reflection handling, and wide viewing angles. It's more suitable for a dim room as it can't get too bright and blacks look like gray in a pitch dark room. It has a completely flicker-free backlight, while the fast response time displays fast-moving content with little motion blur. It has a low input lag, but no support for any advanced gaming features, like FreeSync.
Our Verdict
The ASUS MX279HS is an alright monitor for most uses. It has a large size but the 1080p resolution can be limiting. It can't get very bright so it's more suitable for a dim room. The low input lag offers a responsive gaming experience but there are no advanced gaming features. Motion is smooth and fast-moving content has only a little blur trail.
- Excellent gray uniformity.
- Good reflection handling.
- Can't get very bright.
- Bad ergonomics.
The ASUS MX279HS is a decent monitor for office use. It has a large size but the resolution is only 1080p and this will limit the amount of work you can display on your screen. The image remains accurate when viewed from the side, which is good for sharing your work with a colleague. Unfortunately, it can't get too bright, so it's more suitable for a dim office and the terrible ergonomics will trouble you when you set up your desk.
The ASUS MX279HS is an okay monitor for gaming. It feels very responsive thanks to its low input lag, and fast-moving content has little blur trail. The monitor is a large size, but the 1080p resolution limits the gaming arena displayed on your screen. There's no support for any advanced gaming features like AMD's FreeSync or G-SYNC.
The ASUS MX279HS is an okay monitor for consuming multimedia. The monitor has a large size but the 1080p resolution is limiting if you often consume higher resolution content. On the upside, the monitor has excellent gray uniformity, feels very responsive thanks to its low input lag, and the image remains accurate when viewed from the side.
The ASUS MX279HS is adequate for media creation. It has a large size, but only a 1080p resolution which can be limiting. The ergonomics don't make it easy to place comfortably, but it has wide viewing angles which favor sharing your work with a colleague. It has a low input lag and only little blur behind fast-moving content.
The ASUS MX279HS does support HDR.
Changelog
- Updated Jul 02, 2021: Changed height adjustment result from 'N/A' to '0' to match our methodology.
- Updated Jun 01, 2021: We've corrected the stand and thickness measurements.
- Updated Aug 24, 2020: Converted to Test Bench 1.1.
- Updated Oct 24, 2019: Review published.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the 27" (Designo MX279HS) and we expect the review to also be valid for the 25" (Designo MX259HS) variant. There are other variants within the ASUS Designo series, but they have different characteristics and likely perform differently.
If someone comes across a different type of panel or if their Designo MX279HS doesn't correspond to our review, let us know and we'll update the review. Note that some tests, such as gray uniformity, may vary between individual units.
| Model | Size | Native Resolution | Refresh rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| MX279HS | 27" | 1080p | 60Hz |
| MX259HS | 25" | 1080p | 60Hz |
Note: The ASUS Designo MX279HS we purchased was manufactured in July 2019.
Popular Monitor Comparisons
The ASUS Designo MX279HS is a decent 1080p budget monitor. It has a low input lag and wide viewing angles. It delivers a good performance in most uses for the price.
See also our recommendations for the best budget monitors, the best budget gaming monitors, and the best 1080p monitors.
The Dell P2417H is better than the ASUS MX279HS, mainly due to its better ergonomics. The Dell has a stand that allows you to place it comfortably on your desk. The MX279HS, on the other hand, is larger, but the Dell can get brighter and has a faster response time that leaves a slightly smaller blur trail behind fast-moving content.
The ASUS VG279Q is much better than the ASUS MX279HS. The VG279G has a much faster refresh rate and faster response time, so motion looks a lot crisper and smoother. The VG279G is much better for gaming, as it supports FreeSync and it can get much brighter, so it's also suitable for brighter rooms.
The two monitors have different panels, each with advantages and disadvantages. The Samsung CF398 has a VA panel and displays deep uniform blacks when in a dark room, whereas the ASUS MX279HS maintains an accurate image when viewed from the side thanks to its IPS panel. The Samsung has a curved profile and supports FreeSync for nearly tear-free gaming.
The HP 27F is better than the ASUS MX279HS. The HP has a higher refresh rate for smoother motion and supports FreeSync for nearly tear-free gaming. Also, blacks appear more uniform on the HP 27F when in a dark room.
We buy and test more than 30 monitors each year, all of which we purchase ourselves, without cherry-picked units or samples. We put a lot into each unbiased, straight-to-the-point review, and there's a whole process from purchasing to publishing, involving multiple teams and people. We do more than just use the monitor for a week; we use specialized, custom tools to measure various aspects and deliver objective, data-driven results. We also consider multiple factors before making any recommendations, including the monitor's cost, its performance compared to the competition, and whether it's easy to find.
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