Philips 242G5 144Hz LCD Gaming Monitor Review

Chris Hadley / 10 years ago

Final Thoughts

Pricing

The Philips 242G5 has only recently come to market and as a result, there are only a few e-tailors that are stocking the screen at this moment in time. For those that are stocking it, prices of around £280 inc VAT (~$453 USD / ~€328 EUR) are to be expected, which to be quite honest for a panel with such a wide range of connectivity options and with this many features on is a fantastic price point when all things are taken into account, even though this is towards the upper end of the 24″ price bracket.

Overview

When you’re in the market for a 144Hz gaming orientated screen, there are a couple of factors you need to take into account before you decide to go ahead and hit the buy button and then feel disappointed that you cannot run the screen at its full 144Hz. The first of these is really to make sure that you have a system that can drive a 144Hz panel to its full capacity. Most, if not all recent graphics cards are capable of pushing 144Hz resolutions out through a DL-DVI port or DisplayPort if not 120Hz through a SL-DVI port so there should be no problem in finding a card that will fit the bill. The second matter is also checking that the games you are running have to option to change the refresh rate to 144Hz. If both of these boxes are ticked, then you are good to go and drive the monitor to its full capability.

Looking over the features and the list of connectivity options that the 242G5 has to offer, when compared to other 24″ gaming panels, there is a stack of display features to play with, both through the OSD and bundled control software as well as the remote OSD controller – something that we’ve only seen bundled on a BenQ monitor. The array of display connectivity options is also very good with all the major display types covered and then topped off with a MHL-HDMI port for good measure for connecting up compatible smart-phones and tablets added on top for good measure.

The picture quality is one that I’d say has to rival that of an IPS panel. Whilst this is a pure LCD display, the SmartControl software and the SmartImage presets work their magic on the display output to adjust the image for various game types (or as per user preference with the two customisable presets) and even when watching films or day-to-day work, more so with the SmartContrast.

Once you take the screens power saving features and the physical aspects such as the quick release stand into account, both the package and product have been well thought about giving you a panel that sips on the power, whilst producing an image that suits the task in hand. Then when it comes to heading to your favourite LAN event, it is quick and simple to break apart for ease of transportation and then quick to get back together ready for a major Frag session.

As you can imagine, I’m very impressed with this panel especially as it’s a pure-bred LCD. With the number of LCD panels with LED backlights or pure LED panels available on the market growing, it’s great to see that there is still some life left in the good ol’ pure LCD still to go. If Philips were to produce a 27″ version of this screen with a 2560×1440 or higher resolution, then words will leave me standing as I’m sure it would be a panel that would rival the expensive IPS panels that are floating around today.

Pros:

Wide array of connectivity options
Gaming orientated design
SmartControl technology for image enhancement on the fly
Remote OSD control
Quick-release stand
Well known brand
USB3.0 hub with fast charge
144Hz refresh rate

Cons:

One of the more expensive 24″ panels on the market

“The Philips 242G5 ‘Smart’ 144Hz gaming monitor has a feature set that easily rivals most screens in the same range. With the huge list of options to tweak and tune though both the OSD and through the included software along with a top level LCD panel, the 242G5 gaming monitor has everything it takes to be a class leading product.”