Gaming Monitor of the year: BenQ XL2420T
Be warned – once you’ve played at
120Hz, it’s very hard to go back to the 60Hz refresh rate of most gaming
displays. BenQ’s XL2420T is one of the best 120Hz displays we’ve seen,
especially when used as a 3D display. It’s brighter than a laser pointer to the
face in Battlefield 4, helping to solve the issue of dark 3D seen in other
displays. Colour accuracy and contrast ratio performance are both above
average, while the ability to download image profiles from other Tweakers means
you’ll be able to experiment to find the best settings for your chosen game.
Since our review, BenQ has also added its flicker-free technology to the display,
making it one of the most comfortable ways to spend several hours gazing at a
screen. Surprisingly the price hasn’t dropped since our review, which is
testament to the high quality offered by the XL2420T.
BenQ’s
XL2420T is one of the best 120Hz displays we’ve seen, especially when used as a
3D display. It’s brighter than a laser pointer to the face in Battlefield 4,
helping to solve the issue of dark 3D seen in other displays
Gaming Headphone of the year: Audio Technica ATH-ADG1
Audio Technica takes out this award
for the second year running, but 2013’s offering was very different to the year
prior. Audio Technica finally realised how many gamers were buying its music
headphones, and delivered the first range of custom-made gaming-cans. Retaining
the same incredible audio quality of their music range, both of the new
headsets added a boom microphone to the frame. Unsurprisingly it captured audio
perfectly thanks to the studio-quality mic, matching the incredible quality of
the 50mm drivers used in the headphones. Of the new range the ATH-ADG1
headphones were our favourite, as the open back design delivered a wider sound
stage, making positional audio cues easier to decipher.
Audio
Technica finally realised how many gamers were buying its music headphones, and
delivered the first range of custom-made gaming-cans
Sound Card of the year: Creative ZX
Most gamers continue to use the
onboard audio included with their motherboard, so they’ll never realise what
they’re missing. A dedicated sound card is still the best way to guarantee
crisp and clear audio, and Creative finally released a new range of cards in
2013 after several years of silence. While we did have a few issues with the
optical output on these products, they’ve since been resolved. The new ZX card
sits right in the middle of the price pack, and we think it’s a ripper when
combined with a quality set of headphones or speakers. Offering most of the
audio quality of the high-end ZXR but at a fraction of the cost, it’s the one
we recommend for gamers on a normal budget.
A
dedicated sound card is still the best way to guarantee crisp and clear audio,
and Creative finally released a new range of cards in 2013 after several years
of silence.
Networking of the year: Linksys EA6500 Router
Nothing beats dedicated Ethernet cable
for rock-solid pings and ultra-fast downloads, but the EA6500 is one of the
very few Wi-Fi routers that comes close. This 802.11ac router finally delivers
on the promise of wireless HD video streaming, a common claim that most Wi-Fi
routers fail to live up to. We tested the speeds of this router and found it to
be around twice the speed of similarly specced routers, though since then there
have been equally impressive products released, albeit at much higher price points.
If there was one complaint, it’s that this router doesn’t include an ADSL2+
modem, which would have made it the perfect all-in-one unit for broadband
gamers.
Nothing
beats dedicated Ethernet cable for rock-solid pings and ultra-fast downloads,
but the EA6500 is one of the very few Wi-Fi routers that comes close.
