My son has a budget of £560 for a gaming set-up.
He is planning to get an X-Box, controller and a screen.
Does it matter whether he gets a 4k screen (for immediate and longer term use)?
I think the X-Box Series S does not have native 4K, but it can upscale to 4k.
Can anyone recommend a sensible way to buy this?
Found on tech radar dot com
The Xbox Series X is one of the most powerful consoles on the market today, capable of maintaining a smooth 60fps when playing at 4K. Though 4K gaming panels aren’t anything new, just keep in mind that they’re still fairly expensive. However, 1440p monitors with all the bells and whistles are often considerably more affordable.
If you’re after a monitor equipped with an HDMI 2.1 port for that 120Hz 4K gaming, it’ll be pricey. And not really worth it, considering the Xbox Series X can just about manage 60fps at 4K. Upgrading to a 1440p monitor, then, is a far sounder investment.
A quick scan through the monitors then listed would suggest the Acer Nitro XV282K 28 Inch £399 at Argos.
I looked at a second review site that said:
BenQ Mobiuz EX2710: Best budget monitor for Xbox Series X/S
£179
It’s top recommended monitors were a lot more expensive £800 or thereabouts.
Thanks Robert
This is very useful, but as I don’t really understand how frame rates relate to standards such as 4K it’s not entirely clear what I should do.
I have a chance to buy an X-Box Series X tomorrow.
The 2 workers running my local GAME store, who seemed helpful and expert, recommended that it’s sensible to buy a small 4K tv instead of a ‘PC monitor’ as the market for tvs is much bigger and so the prices are lower for the same quality.
And the tv has extra services built in too.
What do you think of that?
Obviously it would have to take the HDMI input from the console - but is there anything else to look out for?
What size of TV or monitor would be good for a standard size desk?
@Stokie @Ardbeg10y do you know anything about screens for gaming?
Hi @0.0
@suzywong @popeye
Can you help me decide whether to get a small 4K TV or a 1440p (or 4K) PC monitor to use with an X-Box Series X console for my son’s bedroom desktop set up?
Thanks
James
found on t’interweb:
From Cnet(dot)com
Is 1440p better than 4K?
1440p offers a screen resolution of 2560×1440 pixels, while 4K offers a much higher 3840 x 2160. In terms of performance, 1440p offers good clarity and nice detail, which is perfect for gamers who want to take their gaming experience up a notch without breaking the bank.
From Hifireport(dot)com
How noticeable is 1440p vs 4K?
There is not a huge amount of difference between 4k and 1440p anyway even with a larger screen, but above all, 1440p is a much better gaming experience all around. I’m almost sure all users will prefer over a hundred FPS and 1440p, an already high resolution, more than 60 FPS at 4k.
Wow - that’s great to know.
Do you use a 1440p screen for gaming?
What size is good for siting on a desktop?
Google says: “1440p is ideal for 27-inch”
Why are there so many curved 1440p monitors out there?
Does anyone use a curved one?
Are curved 1440p 27 inch gaming monitors a fad or a better experience?
Also they have 60/75/144 Hz Refresh Rates - is that important and is more always better?
Thanks
James
@Kryptos do you know anything about curved 1440p screens and refresh rates?
Hi JimDog, we have an XBox One S and a Loewe 40" television. The XBox is mostly used for Minecraft (say 2 hrs per day).
Our choice for the Loewe was that it has a metal frame and is really heavy therefore the risk of damage was much lower. It still looks like new.
If you go the television route, its important to check whether there is a ‘Gaming mode’ on the television. This to ensure that the lagging / latency is not too high.
I’m not sure if this is still relevant, but back in 2017 / 2018 it definitely was. I had a Mac mini connected to the television and when I moved the mouse there was always a delay until the gaming mode was switched on on the television.
Regarding size, 40" feels to big for a normal desk since you’ll be moving your head constantly. I have a 24" monitor which is perfect. Maybe next time 27" or so.
Energy consumption is important as well these days. I’ve measured most devices in our house and the telly takes 60 to 100 watts when on, and the xbox was 30 watts (but that might be much higher when playing action games).
Just a few thoughts …
Nothing so nice, I’m afraid. The PC has three old 24” (1920*1200 native) monitors, and the PS5 runs into a twenty year old Pioneer 50” plasma!
Daughter #2 has a very nice 27” Asus ROG screen (six hundred quids worth, IIRC) on her PC, and her partner runs his PS5 into their 42” TV.
If you were buying a 27 inch 1440p would you get a curved or flat one?
Hi Jim,
My lad has a gaming PC and a 24 " screen. He thinks xbox is likely to be calibrated for a TV, but many gamers would still prefer a monitor. The curved ones are fashionable, but unnecessary and a big screen can be difficult to use as you need to keep moving your head. (We don’t have an xbox) I’d get the xbox and research monitors - a 1440p monitor should be fine. BenQ is a good brand. Overclockers UK has a forum with many knowledgeable gamers - a post in the xbox forum could be useful before you buy the monitor. Does your son know what games he wants to play? He may well have an idea of what might work together or what his mates have?
Thanks Stokie - great advice.
Jim
Hey - thanks for the help everyone.
After intensive research I found a post by a Dell Community Manager who said this:
“The online Dell S2721DGFA User’s Guide page 14 shows us that the required 120Hz (vertical frequency Hz) is listed for both 2560x1440 and 1920x1080.”
https://www.dell.com/community/Monitors/S2721DGFA-Xbox-Series-X-1440p-120Hz/td-p/7739200
That sealed it for me as I wanted the full 120Hz refresh rate that the Series X is capable of at 1440p, so I bought a Dell S2721DGFA last night from Dell for £268 with discounts.
This screen was discussed on Overclockers in 2021 as a great screen for Series X and it cost nearly 500 Euros then.
I bought the Series X for £365 from a nice man in Fleetwood, and took my son to Skate City on the way home too - so we only overshoot his budget by about £65.
Happy gaming! You don’t always need the latest screens for an excellent result and Dell is a good brand. There is often discounted kit available when the newer screens come to the market.
I will try not to use it!
Can’t waste time on games!!
(Zelda Breath of the Wild chewed through about 800 hours of my life!)
It is better not to count the hours. Myst, Riven and Tomb Raider when the kids were growing. Daughter winds down with Sims and son plays everything with his mates.
Are these playable today (on an X-Box)?
Would they still be worth trying, or very dated now?
I think the latest versions of Lara Croft would be. They should be in the X-Box store.
Myst has been ported to X-Box, Riven has not. Both are puzzle solving games rather than shoot-em-ups. Sometimes older games don’t work well on a different platform. Perhaps buy some gamer magazines for X-Box or look at X-Box gamer forums and reviews?
Fortnight and Minecraft are very playable.
https://www.eurogamer.net/best-xbox-series-x-s-games-20261
There are some excellent games like The Witcher series, but with themes for late teens. Some 16+ or 18+. I think with X Box X everything is digital, so games on disks are not for you? You can also buy a game pass monthly. Expensive though.
Another website to look for games is the GAME site (just goggle for it). they also do secondhand.
Thanks both - will do.
Tomb Raider style motion graphics have “moved on” since then.
However Myst & Riven are much simpler graphics being more cerebral puzzle based. So much less reliance on motion graphics and more on thinking out the solution.
I still have the complete Myst series installed on my Windows 10 PC (updated for Win10 on Steam)