BenQ EX2510 Review: 1080p 144Hz IPS FreeSync Gaming Monitor

The EX2510 from BenQ’s new MOBIUZ series is a 1080p 144Hz IPS gaming monitor that aims to deliver smooth performance paired with accurate and vibrant colors at an affordable price.

Additionally, it offers plenty of extra features such as FreeSync, MBR, an ergonomic design, integrated speakers, HDR, and a light sensor.

Image Quality

The BenQ EX2510 monitor is based on a 24.5″ IPS panel with a 400-nit peak brightness, a 1,000:1 contrast ratio, native 8-bit color depth support, and the standard ~99% sRGB color gamut.

As a result, you get accurate and consistent colors that will stay flawless regardless of the angle you’re looking at the screen thanks to the 178° wide viewing angles of the IPS technology.

Moreover, a 400-nit peak brightness is more than enough even for well-lit rooms, so you’ll definitely need to reduce the luminance of the display down from the maximum.

Next, a static contrast ratio of 1,000:1 is standard for IPS monitors. You won’t get as deep blacks as those of VA displays with a ~3,000:1 contrast ratio, but the VA technology has disadvantages of its own.

The Full HD resolution of 1920×1080 pixels results in a decent 90 PPI (pixel per inch) ratio on the 24.5″ viewable screen of the BenQ EX2510.

Basically, you get plenty of screen space while the details are crisp and not pixelated as they would be on a larger screen with the same resolution.

Another advantage of the 1080p resolution is that it’s not very demanding.

So, you’ll be able to enjoy the monitor’s high refresh rate with an appropriately high FPS (Frames Per Second) even with a decent budget gaming graphics card in most games.

HDR (High Dynamic Range) is supported as well, but due to the monitor’s only standard sRGB gamut as well as low contrast ratio and brightness, HDR content won’t look all that good.

Using the monitor’s HDRi feature, some HDR content might look somewhat better, but this is not the true HDR viewing experience which requires much better display capabilities that are only available in more expensive monitors.

Performance

144Hz provides you with significantly smoother motion clarity in video games for a more enjoyable as well as more responsive gaming experience.

BenQ’s Blur Reduction technology allows for 1ms MPRT (Moving Picture Response Time) via backlight strobing for improved motion clarity, whereas the GtG (gray to gray pixel transition) amounts to 2ms GtG.

The measured input lag of the BenQ EX2510 amounts to only four milliseconds of delay, which means that you won’t be able to feel any delays between your actions and the result on the screen.

Moving on, there are four response time overdrive modes labeled as ‘AMA’ (Advanced Motion Accelerator) ranging from 0 to 3.

For the best pixel transition performance at 144Hz, we recommend setting it to ‘2’, while at lower refresh rates, ‘1’ is the better option. Overall, the response time is fast and there’s no noticeable ghosting behind fast-moving objects.

As it’s the case with all IPS monitors, some IPS glow is present and its intensity varies across different units of the monitor.

Features

The BenQ MOBIUZ EX2510 also supports AMD FreeSync which provides you with a variable refresh rate up to 144FPS that effectively eliminates screen tearing and stuttering as long as you have a compatible graphics card.

Even though the monitor is not officially certified as G-SYNC Compatible by NVIDIA, FreeSync works without issues with compatible NVIDIA cards (GTX 10-series or newer, over DisplayPort).

Alternatively, you can use the Blur Reduction technology. This feature cannot be active at the same time as FreeSync, and you can only enable it if your refresh rate is set to 100Hz or higher.

Blur Reduction uses backlight strobing to reduce ghosting, but it sacrifices some picture brightness in the process.

Unless Blur Reduction is enabled, the backlight of the monitor is completely flicker-free, and there’s a low-blue light filter that can prevent eye strain.

At the back of the monitor, on the right side, there’s a power button, an input source hotkey, and a joystick for navigation through the OSD (On-Screen Display) menu.

The OSD menu is well-organized; Besides the standard image adjustment tools, there are five gamma modes, pre-calibrated picture presets, Light Tuner, and Black eQualizer which alters the gamma curvature for better visibility in dark scenes.

There’s also the Brightness Intelligence Plus (B.I.+) technology which uses the integrated light sensor of the monitor to adjust the screen brightness according to ambient lighting.

Using the HDRi hotkey at the front bezel of the monitor, you can combine HDR and B.I.+, but as we’ve already mentioned, HDR on this monitor is not ‘true’ HDR – meaning that most HDR content will just be over-saturated or washed out.

Design & Connectivity

The design of the monitor has a rather eye-catching orange strip which might not appeal to some users. Luckily, the stand is detachable while the screen has a 100x100mm VESA mount pattern.

Other than that, the stand is quite sturdy and offers a fair range of ergonomics including up to 130mm height adjustment, +/- 20° swivel, and -5°/20° tilt, but no pivot function.

The screen has a 3H matte anti-glare coating which eliminates reflections without adding a grainy effect to the picture, and there’s a cable management hole with an I/O cover.

Connectivity options include two HDMI 2.0 ports, DisplayPort 1.2, a headphones jack, and two 2.5W built-in speakers with DSP (Digital Signal Processor) and customized sound modes (Game, Cinema, and Pop/Live).

Both HDMI and DP support FreeSync up to 144Hz at 1920×1080.

Price & Similar Monitors

The BenQ EX2510 price amounts to ~$250. It’s also available as a 27″ model for $300, the BenQ MOBIUZ EX2710, but we don’t recommend it due to its lower pixel density and considerably higher price tag.

Both models are available as newer versions, the BenQ EX2510S and EX2710S with a 165Hz factory-overclocked refresh rate, but these are even more expensive and not as good.

Nowadays, you can find a 1080p 240Hz 1ms IPS gaming monitor for ~$250, the Dell S2522HG, which is a much better option for competitive gamers.

Alternatively, there are excellent 27″ 1440p 144Hz IPS displays that sometimes go on sale for $250, such as the Acer XV272UV and the HP X27q, which offer better immersion provided you have a good enough GPU.

As far as the 1080p 144Hz IPS models go, we recommend the AOC 24G2 and the LG 24GN650/600, which can be found for $200 and offer similar image quality and performance to the EX2510. The LG 24GN650 is just as fast as the EX2510, while the AOC 24G2 is a bit slower, but has a wider color gamut.

Another option worth considering is the Acer XB253QGP, which uses the same panel as the EX2510 and goes for $230 on sale.

In truth, the prices of these budget gaming monitors often fluctuate, so if you want to get the best value, it can depend on the sale. If you’re not sure which one to get, feel free to leave us a comment below and we’ll gladly help you pick the model that’s best suited for you.

Conclusion

The BenQ EX2510 is an excellent gaming monitor overall, however, there are better alternatives at this price range, as well as cheaper models that offer a similar gaming experience.

Specifications

Screen Size	24.5-inch
Resolution	1920×1080 (Full HD)
Panel Type	IPS
Aspect Ratio	16:9 (Widescreen)
Refresh Rate	144Hz
Response Time	2ms (GtG)
Response Time (Blur Reduction)	1ms (MPRT)
Adaptive-Sync	FreeSync (48-144Hz)
Speakers	2×2.5W
Ports	DisplayPort 1.2, 2x HDMI 2.0
Other Ports	Headphone Jack
Brightness	400 cd/m²
Contrast Ratio	1000:1 (static)
Colors	16.7 million (8-bit)
HDR	HDR10
VESA	Yes (100x100mm)