Nvidia and Asus are announcing the world’s first 500Hz G-Sync display at Computex 2022 today. While we saw a prototype 500Hz gaming monitor earlier this year, Asus is promising a shipping 24-inch 500Hz TN panel that’s designed for esports titles running at 1080p. Asus has not yet announced pricing or a release date for its new ROG Swift 500Hz monitor, though.
The announcement comes just over two years since Nvidia and Asus teamed up to introduce 360Hz gaming monitors for esports at CES 2020. PC gamers have typically purchased 144Hz gaming monitors, and even 240Hz panels still aren’t particularly common. So 500Hz might sound like overkill, but Nvidia claims it will make a difference for competitive gamers who want the best of the best.
Nvidia has used the impressive Phantom VEO 640S motion camera to prove its point. This camera comes equipped with 72GB of RAM to allow it to record Valorant gameplay at up to 1,000fps. Nvidia claims this new 500Hz monitor will make target tracking easier thanks to smoother animations, and less ghosting should minimize distractions during games. The real key with any high refresh rate monitor is reduced latency, and Nvidia claims you’ll be able to see players peeking out of cover quicker than someone using a 240Hz or 144Hz monitor.
Naturally, to power a 500Hz monitor you’ll also need a powerful gaming PC and GPU. Rumors suggest Nvidia will launch its next-gen RTX 4090 card this summer, which would be an ideal companion for a 500Hz panel. Asus’ ROG Swift 500Hz monitor is 1080p, which means games like CS:GO, Valorant, and Overwatch should be able to hit the frame rates required to really make use of a 500Hz panel with a high-end GPU.
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The ROG Swift 500Hz also includes Nvidia’s Reflex Analyzer to measure system latency, and a G-Sync esports mode with an adjustable vibrance mode that “allows more light to travel through the LCD crystals,” according to Asus. This panel also uses a new esports TN (E-TN) technology, which Asus claims offers “60 percent better response times than standard TN panels.”
If 500Hz still sounds like overkill, Nvidia also announced new G-Sync monitors earlier this year that let you pick between 1440p and 1080p modes. The 27-inch esports displays include up to 360Hz refresh rates and a special 25-inch 1080p mode.