The ViewSonic XG2737 27″ 520Hz 1080p Gaming Monitor Review

ViewSonic, an American brand founded in California, offers the ViewSonic XG2737 as part of its ongoing pursuit of the next level of performance. This monitor is poised to be its “esports” centric monitor, offering a very high 520Hz refresh rate, albeit with a modest 1080p resolution, to help your computer reach the highest refresh rate it can handle. The ViewSonic XG2737 27″ 520Hz Gaming Monitor also supports AMD FreeSync and NVIDIA G-Sync Technologies. Let’s take a deeper look at what this 27-inch monitor really has to offer esports enthusiasts and casual gamers alike. 

ViewSonic XG2737 Tech Specs

ViewSonic XG2737 – A Closer Look

The monitor is well-packaged inside a sturdy box, sandwiched between fairly dense Styrofoam cushions. It comes with an HDMI 2.1 cable and a DisplayPort cable, a 3-pin power Plug, a Quick Start Guide, and a stand.

The assembly was quick and very easy. It comes with its own mini Philips screwdriver, so don’t worry if, while assembling, you don’t have one on hand. After securing the stand on the base, which is easy to insert and made stable by a thumb screw on the bottom, you just have to secure the monitor using only four screws at the back.

ViewSonic XG2737 – Ergonomics, I/O Options, and OSD Menu

For the ergonomics, it has a Height Adjustment of 130mm, 90-degree swivel, Tilt (Forward/Back): -5 / 20 degrees, Pivot (Right/Left): 90 / 90 degrees. It also has VESA 100 x 100 mm support for wall mounting and monitor arm support.

You can’t pivot the monitor to either side unless you raise the monitor first to its highest height. Pivoting the monitor at a lower height will cause the corner of the display to hit the stand.

ViewSonic has equipped the XG2737 with modern and versatile connectivity options essential for high-refresh-rate gaming. It includes dual HDMI 2.1 ports and one DisplayPort 1.4 input. Additional inputs include a 3.5mm audio jack, 2x USB 3.2 Type A, 1x USB 3.2 Type B, and a 3-pin Socket power input. The monitor also has 2x internal 2W speakers.

The OSD menu control is easy to navigate. The navigation buttons are located just behind the lower right corner of the monitor, making them easily accessible. These buttons are evenly spaced, so even with big fingers, you won’t have any problems pressing them individually.

After opening the menu, you will immediately see the input selector, audio volume adjustment, ViewMode, Color adjustment, Manual Image Adjustment, and the setup menu. You can also see the resolution and current refresh rate in the lower right corner of the menu.

ViewSonic XG2737 – 520Hz Refresh Rate and Other Display Features

The main highlight of the XG2737 is its 520Hz refresh rate. For the uninitiated, this figure means the screen refreshes its image 520 times per second, translating to minimal delay between the rendered frame output and what you see on screen. In layman’s terms, the difference between having a 60Hz monitor and a 120Hz or above refresh rate is the smoothness of how everything looks and moves on screen. This is especially important if you are playing professionally or in a very competitive environment, as you’re getting updated game information on screen compared to those using slower refresh rate displays.

Moreover, the XG2737 features a 27-inch IPS panel with a Full HD (FHD) resolution of 1920 x 1080p. The monitor also boasts a 1ms (MPRT) and 1ms (GtG) response time and is compatible with both AMD FreeSync Premium and NVIDIA G-Sync technologies. It comes with a brightness of 400 cd/m² and supports HDR10.

We measured 100% sRGB, 89% AdobeRGB, and 92% DCI-P3 color gamut, making it good not only for gaming but also for professional photo and video editing. We also measured a 400 nit brightness using our SpyderX Pro Display Analysis tool.

In an era where 1440p and 4K resolutions are increasingly common for 27-inch displays, the choice of FHD might seem like a compromise, and it also sacrifices pixel density. A smaller monitor, like a 24-inch 1080p one or a 27-inch 1440p one, will look way sharper. Running games at 520 frames per second requires an incredible amount of processing power, and the lower FHD resolution reduces the computational load on the GPU, thus helping your machine maximize the refresh rate of your monitor.

That said, running games at 520FPS, even at 1080p resolution, will still require higher-end components, more so on triple-A gaming titles. Moreover, the 520Hz refresh rate is only accessible via HDMI 2.1, so you would need to use an HDMI 2.1 cable and an HDMI 2.1 capable GPU, which is currently only supported by NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 Series and above GPUs or Radeon RX 7000 series and above for AMD.

Conclusion: A Monitor for the Speed Enthusiast

First off, playing on this monitor made me realize how significant a high refresh rate monitor is to my personal enjoyment in games. Playing Counter-Strike 2 and DOOM 2016, being very optimized games, as a casual gamer, showcased the monitor’s capability of providing smooth moment-to-moment gameplay. However, playing other games like DOTA 2, where detail is important, highlighted the monitor’s lack of sharpness because of having only a 1080 x 1920 resolution, but this would not be very noticeable unless you came from a monitor with a higher PPI or resolution. That said, viewing distance would play a much important role in how you would notice the monitor’s pixel quality.

As for the build quality, the Viewsonic XG2737 is quite heavy, but this is a result of being built with a combination of heavy-duty plastic and metal parts, also resulting in a very stable base, so you don’t have to worry about the monitor sliding or shaking every time your hands or arms move while gaming. Adjusting the height, swivel, and tilt imposed no problems, as it stayed stable during my testing, and it helped me quite a lot in getting the most comfortable position I wanted it to be in.

At an SRP of PHP 28,799, the ViewSonic XG2737 27-inch 520Hz 1080p Gaming Monitor is offered to a highly specialized, focused niche of users. It’s made for gamers with speed and clarity in mind. While competitors in this price range may push for high pixel density and/or 1440p or higher resolution, the XG2737’s focus is on its 520Hz refresh rate and low-latency 1ms GtG and MPRT response times.

However, having a high refresh rate monitor does not guarantee a drastic improvement in your gameplay performance, as the improvement is based on how well you see and feel the jump to 520Hz coming from lower refresh rate monitors, especially for those who are coming from 240Hz or 360Hz displays. The perceived smoothness is akin to those who could discern 192kbps audio to 384kbps or lossless quality.

That said, a casual gamer like me could still see the clarity provided by a 520Hz display and reduced latency thanks to the 1ms GtG and MPRT response time. That said, there’s also the trade-off of getting the right hardware to run not only the 520Hz refresh rate with HDMI 2.1, but also the supposed graphic quality setting compromise to reach 520FPS.

These trade-offs, alongside sacrificing pixel density or sharpness for pure, fluid speed, make it the choice for extreme e-sports players who want to grab every bit of competitive advantage available that hardware could offer. So, if your sole priority is competitive advantage, minimal input delay, and the fastest possible screen refresh rate to help you rank up or advance your esports career, then the ViewSonic XG2737 is a monitor you should consider.

Pricing and Availability

The ViewSonic XG2737 27-inch Gaming Monitor has an SRP of PHP 28,799. You can get yours at ViewSonic’s Lazada and Shopee online stores.

Miguel Palispis

News Writer at Gadget Pilipinas | Website

Started his freelancing adventure in 2018 and began doing freelance Audio Engineering work and then started freelance writing a few years later.

Currently he writes for Gadget Pilipinas and Grit.PH.

He is also a musician, foody, gamer, and PC enthusiast.