Why Refresh Rate Matters

2019-07-28

Refresh rate is arguably one of the most important features needed to compete at the highest level for gaming. So what does it do? Refresh rate is the amount of times the pixels (measured in hertz/hz) on your monitor display get updated. In conjunction with other hardware, everything works in tandem to provide competitive gamers an edge.

Can you really see the difference from 60Hz to 144Hz to 240Hz? This is one of the most common questions when we have the opportunity to interact with our online community and at events. Simply put: yes.

In 2012, BenQ pioneered the growth of 144Hz in the eSports market with the XL2411T. During the early stages, professional players and hardcore gamers were some of the few that jumped straight into 144Hz when it was first released. For most gamers, jumping from the console ceiling of 60Hz to 144Hz was a monumental transition in the gaming world. It gave an advantage to those that had smoother gameplay opposed to those that had slower reaction times with 60Hz. Over the years, going from ‘choppy’ 60Hz gameplay to smooth 144Hz became the new standard in competitive eSports.

As more and more gamers transition to the standardized 144Hz monitors to stay with the pack of competitive eSports, the performance of technology skyrocketed. Professional players have started to evolve from the standard 144Hz into the more powerful, lightning-fast refresh rate of 240Hz.

So what are the differences between 144Hz to 240Hz? On the technical side, fast-paced games that demand high frame rates will cause blurry visual images as a side effect called ‘ghosting’. When paired with a solid gaming setup, a 240Hz monitor immensely reduces ghosting and screen tears while greatly improving the smoothness of the gameplay.

To see the difference, BlurBusters, a website dedicated to knowledge of high refresh rate displays, utilizes their technologies to showcase the differences from low to high refresh rate monitors and the blurring effects that accompany the lower end displays.

So why is this important? With buttery smooth gameplay through high refresh rates and virtually zero input lag, gamers utilize 240Hz to give themselves an edge in their games. Having a quicker reaction time to targets and having more updated frames allows for players to track enemy players with ease. This allows players to see enemies within their crosshair accurately while improving overall gameplay fluidity.

In a recent study from NVIDIA, players that switch to 240Hz see a 53% increase in their kill and death ratios in their competitive games. With more practice and time investment in these games, paired with BenQ ZOWIE 240Hz monitors, players will have an advantage over their enemies.

Out of 1300 professional players, over 98% use a monitor that is higher than 144Hz. The majority of that percentage has transitioned to the new 240Hz monitors. Players such as Shroud, Ninja, Tfue, and s1mple currently use 240Hz in their setups. In CS:GO, over 79% of players use the BenQ ZOWIE XL-Series as their monitor of choice while the majority are currently playing on 240Hz.

We always encourage gamers to try out the monitor experience for themselves at supported LAN centers, events, and retail stores.

Sources:

NVIDIA, Blurbusters - https://www.blurbusters.com/nvidia-study-reveals-240hz-gives-you-edge-in-battle-royale/
Prosettings - https://prosettings.net/best-cs-go-monitor/

To learn more about our monitors, follow this link: https://zowie.benq.com/en-ca/product/monitor.html

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