Answer:
Nowadays, high refresh rate displays are not that pricier than the standard 60-75Hz monitors. So, a 144Hz monitor is definitely worth it.
In addition to making video games a lot smoother, a higher refresh rate also makes moving your cursor around and scrolling through web pages more fluid and enjoyable.
Wondering whether a 144Hz monitor is worth it?
You’ve probably heard how a 144Hz gaming monitor is a must-have for competitive gaming, that once you go 144Hz, you can never go back, and similar praises — but just how true is all that?
In this article, we’ll clarify what a 144Hz refresh rate exactly means and whether or not it’s worth your money.
Does 144Hz Make A Difference?
To understand the benefits of a high refresh rate display, play the embedded video above.
Now, if you were to pause that video, you would end up with a picture like this one:
Imagine that instead of a car, there’s an enemy player in a first-person shooter, and you’re trying to take him down.
Now, if you attempted to shoot at your target on a 60Hz monitor, you could be firing upon a target that’s not even there as your display doesn’t refresh the frames quickly enough to keep up with the fast-moving object.
You can see how this could affect your kill/death ratio in FPS games!
However, in order to utilize a high refresh rate, your FPS (frames per second) must also be as high. So, make sure you have a strong enough CPU/GPU for the refresh rate you are aiming for.
Additionally, a higher frame rate/refresh rate also lowers input lag and makes screen tearing less noticeable, which also significantly contributes to the overall gaming responsiveness and immersion.
While you may not feel or notice any issues while gaming on your 60Hz monitor right now — if you were to get a 144Hz display and game on it for a while, and then switch back to 60Hz, you would definitely notice that something is missing.
Besides FPS games, other games with uncapped frame rates that your CPU/GPU can run at higher frame rates will feel smoother as well. In fact, just moving your cursor and scrolling will feel more satisfying at 144Hz.
Be that as it may – if you’re mainly into slow-paced and more graphically-oriented games, we recommend getting a higher resolution display instead of a high refresh rate one.
Ideally, it would be great if you got a gaming monitor that offers both a high refresh rate and a high resolution. The best part is that the price difference isn’t that big anymore.
A decent 1080p or 1440p 144Hz gaming monitor can be found at the basically same price as a 1080p/1440p 60Hz model, though this isn’t true for 4K models, at least not at the moment.
240Hz monitors provide even smoother performance, but the jump from 144Hz to 240Hz is not nearly as noticeable as it’s going from 60Hz to 144Hz. So, we recommend 240Hz and 360Hz+ monitors mainly for competitive players.
Other Things To Consider
Moving on, besides the monitor’s refresh rate, you should also look out for its response time speed if you want the best performance in fast-paced games.
So, while a higher refresh rate does offer smoother motion clarity – if pixels can’t change from one color to another (response time) in time with the refresh rate, you get visible trailing/ghosting and motion blur.
That’s why gamers opt for gaming monitors with a 1ms or faster GtG response time speed.
Some gaming monitors address the ghosting issue via backlight strobing technology, which provides CRT-like motion clarity. It reduces perceived motion blur at the cost of picture brightness.
Last but not least, you might want to purchase a gaming monitor with a variable refresh rate (VRR) technology such as FreeSync or G-SYNC.
Conclusion
All in all, a 144Hz or higher refresh rate monitor greatly improves your gaming experience in competitive games as long as your CPU/GPU and the display’s response time speed can keep up with the monitor’s refresh rate.
If you’re looking for an economical 144Hz monitor, we highly recommend visiting our best gaming monitors under $150 buyer’s guide.
