- Table of Contents
- Intro
- Design
- Picture Quality
- Motion
- Inputs
- Features
- Sizes and Variants
- Compared
- Conclusion
- Discussions
ASUS ROG Swift PG279QZ
MONITOR REVIEW
- 30% Office
- 30% Multimedia
- 25% Gaming
- 10% Media Creation
- 5% HDR Gaming
- 16% Resolution and Size
- 15% Vertical Viewing Angle
- 12% Horizontal Viewing Angle
- 7% Ergonomics
- 7% Reflections
- 7% Gray Uniformity
- 6% Input Lag
- 5% SDR Color Gamut
- 5% SDR Color Volume
- 4% Black Uniformity
- 4% SDR Peak Brightness
- 4% Gradient
- 2% Motion Blur
- 2% Refresh Rate
- 2% Pre Calibration
- 1% Image Flicker
- 1% Curve radius
- 23% Input Lag
- 14% Resolution and Size
- 13% Motion Blur
- 12% Refresh Rate
- 9% Ergonomics
- 8% Image Flicker
- 6% Reflections
- 3% SDR Peak Brightness
- 2% Contrast
- 2% Gray Uniformity
- 2% Black Uniformity
- 2% Vertical Viewing Angle
- 1% Horizontal Viewing Angle
- 1% Local Dimming
- 1% SDR Color Gamut
- 1% SDR Color Volume
- 17% Resolution and Size
- 10% Input Lag
- 8% Reflections
- 8% Vertical Viewing Angle
- 7% Horizontal Viewing Angle
- 6% Gray Uniformity
- 5% Ergonomics
- 5% Black Uniformity
- 4% Motion Blur
- 4% Refresh Rate
- 4% SDR Color Gamut
- 4% SDR Color Volume
- 3% Gradient
- 3% SDR Peak Brightness
- 2% Contrast
- 2% Image Flicker
- 2% HDR Peak Brightness
- 2% HDR Color Gamut
- 2% HDR Color Volume
- 1% Local Dimming
- 1% Pre Calibration
- 21% Resolution and Size
- 8% Ergonomics
- 7% Vertical Viewing Angle
- 7% Input Lag
- 6% Horizontal Viewing Angle
- 6% Motion Blur
- 6% Refresh Rate
- 5% Reflections
- 5% Gray Uniformity
- 5% Black Uniformity
- 3% Image Flicker
- 3% Gradient
- 3% SDR Color Gamut
- 3% SDR Color Volume
- 2% Contrast
- 2% SDR Peak Brightness
- 2% HDR Peak Brightness
- 2% HDR Color Gamut
- 2% HDR Color Volume
- 1% Pre Calibration
- 1% Local Dimming
- 14% Contrast
- 12% Input Lag
- 9% HDR Peak Brightness
- 9% Resolution and Size
- 8% Black Uniformity
- 7% Local Dimming
- 5% Ergonomics
- 5% Motion Blur
- 5% Refresh Rate
- 5% Gradient
- 5% HDR Color Gamut
- 5% HDR Color Volume
- 3% Horizontal Viewing Angle
- 3% Image Flicker
- 3% Vertical Viewing Angle
- 2% Gray Uniformity
The ASUS PG279QZ is a very good 144Hz gaming monitor with a 1440p IPS panel and decent picture quality. It can't reach very high levels of brightness so it is more suitable for an average bright room. It has a low contrast ratio that does not allow it to display deep blacks in a dark room, but the viewing angles are good so the sides of the screen remain accurate when looking from up-close. It has excellent motion handling with a very fast pixel response time, an extremely low input lag and supports G-Sync. All these features constitute an excellent gaming monitor.
This is a newer version of the ASUS ROG PG279Q.
- Excellent gaming features
- Excellent motion handling
- Image remains accurate when viewed at an angle
- Blacks look gray in a dark room
- No HDR support
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Design
The design of the ASUS PG279QZ is very good. It is identical to the design of the ASUS ROG PG279Q. The stand is plain and supports the monitor well and the ergonomics are great allowing you to position the monitor comfortably with ease. The build quality is very good and even though it is mostly made out of plastic, you should have no issues with it. It has thin borders and a clean back with good cable management. Just like the ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q, the base of the monitor can light up with LEDs, as seen here.
Note: The minor differences in the physical measurements of this monitor vs. the ASUS ROG PG279Q can be attributed to small variation in the design measurements.
The stand of the ASUS PG279QZ supports the monitor well, but it will wobble a little if you knock it gently. It is identical to the stand of the PG279Q and its base can also light up with red LEDs, as shown here. However, the metal contact that allows the light to turn on only works when the monitor is in a fully landscape or a fully portrait mode.
- 46% Height Adjustment
- 18% Switch portrait/landscape
- 18% Swivel Range
- 18% Tilt Range
The back of the monitor is plain and made out of plastic. The two large groves, found on each side, serve as vents to dissipate the heat, and the opening found on the stand helps with cable management as seen here.
The borders of the monitor are relatively thin with a textured finish and a very thin bezel. Just like in the PQ279Q, there is a small gap between the monitor's edge and where the screen starts.
The monitor without the stand is of average thickness and will not protrude much if VESA mounted. However, when attached to its stand the entire setup looks relatively thick.
Picture Quality
- 10% Contrast
- 3% Local Dimming
- 9% SDR Peak Brightness
- 3% HDR Peak Brightness
- 10% Horizontal Viewing Angle
- 10% Vertical Viewing Angle
- 9% Gray Uniformity
- 7% Black Uniformity
- 7% Pre Calibration
- 2% Post Calibration
- 5% SDR Color Gamut
- 5% SDR Color Volume
- 2% HDR Color Gamut
- 2% HDR Color Volume
- 2% Image Retention
- 3% Gradient
- 2% Color Bleed
- 9% Reflections
Decent picture quality for the ASUS ROG Swift PG279QZ. Just like most IPS monitors, the contrast ratio is low and the monitor cannot display deep blacks in a dark room. It has a decent SDR peak brightness and is more suitable for a room that is not too bright. It has the typical good wide viewing angles of IPS panels, excellent gray uniformity, and a good out of the box color accuracy. Unfortunately, the monitor does not support HDR.
The contrast ratio of the ASUS PG279QZ is mediocre, as expected for an IPS monitor. In a dark room, blacks will look more like gray.
The ASUS ROG Swift PG279QZ does not have a local dimming feature. The video is for reference only.
The overall SDR peak brightness is decent. The real scene measurement is slightly lower than the measurements on our preset size windows but this is normal due to the screens uniformity. Unfortunately, the monitor cannot get as bright as the PG279Q and its brightness is closer to the levels of the Dell U3818D. The tests were done using the 'FPS' (calibrated) Picture Mode.
HDR is not supported.
Decent horizontal viewing angles. Black level remains fairly consistent throughout the entire angle testing range, whereas brightness remains decent up to almost 50°, but colors lose accuracy at smaller angles off center.
Great vertical viewing angles. The black level stays relatively constant, but colors shift and brightness drops at angles close to 30° and 35° respectively. This is very similar to the LG 27UD68P-B.
- 40% 50% Std. Dev.
- 40% 50% DSE
- 10% 5% Std. Dev.
- 10% 5% DSE
Excellent gray uniformity for the ASUS PG279QZ. In the 50% gray test picture, the two sides are slightly darker, but no other major issue or much Dirty Screen Effect (DSE) can be noticed. The uniformity is even better in the 5% gray test picture, and almost no DSE was depicted by our test. Again this result is very similar to LG 27UD68P-B.
- 75% Native Std. Dev.
- 25% Std. Dev. w/ L.D.
The PG279QZ has disappointing black uniformity. There is clouding all around the screen and some backlight bleed is very noticeable especially at the corners. This resembles the black uniformity of the Dell U3219Q. This does vary between units due to manufacturing tolerances.
- 50% White Balance dE
- 50% Color dE
Out of the box, the color accuracy of the ASUS PG279QZ is good. The most accurate Picture Mode is the 'FPS'.
The color temperature is a little warmer than our desired 6500K. The white balance dE is below 3 so most people will not notice the gray inaccuracies, but the color dE is above 3 and thus most enthusiasts will notice some color errors. As for the gamma, the average value is below the target of 2.2 and it does not follow the target curve closely. Most of the scenes will look slightly brighter than they should be.
- 50% White Balance dE
- 50% Color dE
The Asus PG279QZ has an excellent accuracy after calibration, which was also done on the 'FPS' Picture Mode. The while balance dE was brought down to levels where it is almost impossible to spot any inaccuracies whereas the color dE was lowered below the threshold of 3 so only a few people might notice any color inaccuracies. The color temperature was brought closer to the 6500K target and gamma follows the target curve more closely with an average value of 2.18.
You can download our ICC profile calibration here. This is provided for reference only and should not be used, as the calibration values vary per individual unit even for the same model due to manufacturing tolerances.
- 50% sRGB xy
- 50% Adobe RGB xy
s.RGB Picture Mode: FPS (calibrated) Adobe RGB Picture Mode: FPS
Excellent SDR color gamut. The ASUS PG279QZ covers most of the s.RGB (rec. 709) color space. Unfortunately, the coverage of the wider Adobe RGB color space is not enough for professionals in the print and media industries.
- 50% sRGB in ICtCp
- 50% Adobe RGB in ICtCp
s.RGB Picture Mode: FPS
Adobe RGB Picture Mode: FPS
Excellent SDR color volume. The monitor is capable of producing bright and saturated colors in most color shades. Unfortunately, the low contrast ratio is not allowing it to produce deep dark shades of colors.
- 50% DCI P3 xy
- 50% Rec. 2020 xy
HDR is not supported.
- 50% DCI-P3 in ICtCp
- 50% Rec. 2020 in ICtCp
HDR is not supported.
Perfect score on our image retention as no retention could be noticed at all while running our test.
Great performance for the ASUS PG279QZ on our gradient test. Besides the 8-bit banding, there is a little banding at the dark gray shades, but most of the other gradients look good.
- 50% Pixel row error
- 50% Pixel column error
The ASUS PG279QZ produces a very small amount of color bleed when it displays large vertical bands of uniform colors. It is unlikely that you will notice this during normal usage. This very similar to sister monitor ASUS ROG PG279Q.
Motion
- 22% Motion Blur
- 11% Image Flicker
- 67% Refresh Rate
The motion on this ASUS PG279QZ is excellent. The pixel response time is very fast and leaves only a very small motion blur behind fast moving objects. There is no flicker as the monitor does not use PWM dimming and this great for those that are bothered by flicker. It has an optional BFI feature, which NVIDIA calls ULMB, that can help make the image even crisper. Finally, it supports the G-Sync variable refresh rate for a very wide range of refresh rates.
- 50% 80% Response Time
- 50% 100% Response Time
Just like the sister monitor PG279Q, the response time of the PG279QZ is excellent. Only a very small blur trails the fast moving objects, and this is great for fast-paced video games. The overdrive setting that produces the fastest response time with minimal overshooting is the Normal. The Extreme option is faster, but it introduces a lot of overshoot.
The ASUS PG279QZ does not use flicker to dim the backlight. It does have an option to introduce flicker to make the image crisper. As this monitor supports G-Sync this Black Frame Insertion feature is called ULMB. Note here that the ULMB option only works with NVIDIA powered video cards. Also sometimes it is hard to notice the option on the OSD as it is grayed out on a black background which makes it hard to spot.
- 50% Native
- 13% Factory Overclock
- 6% Variable Refresh Rate
- 13% VRR Maximum
- 6% VRR Minimum
- 12% VRR Maximum With OC
The monitor has a high native refresh rate of 144Hz, which can be overclocked up to 165Hz. It supports NVIDIA's G-Sync implementation of the variable refresh rate technology and can adjust the screen's refresh rate to match the frame rate of a compatible graphics card. This is great for playing graphically-intensive games with significant framerate drops without tearing or stuttering. The PG279QZ, just like its sister monitor the PG279Q, is among the best 144 Hz monitors and best 1440p 144hz monitors we've tested so far.
Inputs
- 60% Input Lag
- 40% Resolution and Size
The ASUS PQ279QZ has a large 27inch 1440p panel that allows you to display many details on your screen and this is great for almost every usage. The input lag is very low and this makes it an excellent choice even for the most competitive gamers.
Lowest input lag possible at the center of the screen, when the monitor is displaying an alternative resolution at its native refresh rate. The non-native resolution tested depends on the native resolution of the monitor, following this pattern unless otherwise specified in the Input Lag text:
| Native Resolution | Non-Native Resolution Tested |
| 4k UHD | QHD |
| QHD | FHD |
| FHD | 1600x900 |
| 3440x1440 | 2560x1080 |
| 2560x1080 | 1920x1080 |
BFI frequency tested: 120 Hz
Excellent low input lag for the ASUS PG279QZ at the native resolution. The input lag remains low even when G-Sync is enabled and this is great news for gamers. When ULMB (BFI) is enabled the input lag is slightly higher but it remains at acceptable levels for most. Note that the input lag @60Hz is slightly higher than average, but it should not be noticeable to most. This monitor cannot properly display the non-native resolutions but this should not be a problem as most of the times the graphics card does the upscaling. Note that HDMI only supports a maximum resolution of 2560x1440p@60Hz.
- 71% Megapixels
- 29% Screen Area
The ASUS PG279QZ has a high QHD resolution and a large 27" diagonal. This allows for more detail on the screen and is very helpful if you wish to multitask. For those that like the extra screen space, this is an improvement over similar 1080p monitors like the ASUS VG279Q.
Features
The monitor has two internal speakers and a variety of options on its Gameplus menu. The controls are intuitive and very easy to use.
The Asus PG279QZ has the same features found on the ASUS PG279Q monitor. It has two internal speakers and the GamePlus menu, that offers the following features:
- Crosshair
- Timer
- FPS counter
- Low Blue Light
- Overclock
- ULMB(Black Frame Insertion)
Just like the PG279Q if you wish to disable the OSD features, just press the X button on the monitor to access the menu, and then press it a second time to disable these OSD features.
Differences between Sizes and Variants
We tested the 27" (PG279QZ) which is the only size of this monitor available. There are other variants within the ASUS gaming range which differ in design, size, and refresh rate. The ASUS PG279QZ is the newer version of the ASUS PG279Q.
If someone comes across a different type of panel or if their PG279QZ doesn't correspond to our review, let us know and we will update the review. Note that some tests such as the gray uniformity may vary between individual units.
| Model | Size | Native Resolution | Refresh rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PG279QZ | 27" | 1440p | 144Hz | G-Sync support |
| PG279Q | 27" | 1440p | 144Hz | G-Sync support |
| VG248QE | 24" | 1080p | 144Hz | Lightboost support |
| VG245H | 24" | 1080p | 75Hz | FreeSync support |
| VG278Q | 27" | 1080p | 144Hz | FreeSync support |
| VG275Q | 25" | 1080p | 75Hz | FreeSync support |
Note: The ASUS ROG PG279QZ we purchased was manufactured in September 2018.
Compared to other Monitors
The ASUS PG279QZ is great for gaming due to the G-Sync variable refresh rate support. It is one of the best gaming monitors, the best G-Sync monitors, and best PC gaming monitors we've tested so far.
The ASUS ROG PG279Q is very similar to the ASUS PG279QZ. The two monitors are nearly identical in design and have a very similar overall performance, with the exception of brightness. The older PG279Q is brighter than the newer PG279QZ.
Unless you want to get the most out of your NVIDIA graphics card, the Aorus AD27QD is slightly better than the ASUS PG279QZ. The Aorus supports HDR, and has a few extra gaming features designed to give you a slight edge in competitive games, and it supports FreeSync. Although the Aorus also works with NVIDIA's new FreeSync drivers, if you want a true G-SYNC experience, the ASUS is very similar overall.
The ASUS PG279QZ is somewhat better than the Acer Predator XB271HU. The ASUS PG279QZ has marginally better reflection handling, and it ships with a slightly better pre-calibration which is important for office users that usually do not calibrate their monitors.
The ASUS PG279QZ and ASUS VG279Q are very similar overall, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. The PG279QZ supports G-SYNC and has a higher native resolution. The VG279Q supports FreeSync, which is more universally supported, and the stand has better ergonomics.
The ASUS PG279QZ is better than the AOC AGON AG271QX for most people. The ASUS is an IPS monitor with much better viewing angles whereas the AOC has a TN panel with almost instantaneous response time and better black uniformity. The ASUS PG279QZ has better ergonomics and a BFI option to make the image crisper.
The ASUS PG279QZ is better than the Dell S2417DG. The two monitors have different panel types, but very similar motion handling and equally low input lag. The ASUS, apart from being larger, has an IPS panel with better picture quality and wider viewing angles that make it easier to share your work with a colleague.
The ASUS PG279QZ is better than the LG 27UD68P-B. The ASUS PG279QZ has better ergonomics, lower input lag, higher refresh rate, and a faster response time that will please gamers. On the other hand, the LG 27UD68P-B has higher resolution that can fit more detail on the screen.
Conclusion
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HDR is not supported. For a monitor of this size that supports HDR, see the Samsung CHG70.
