Pixio PX248 Wave review: A monitor for fashion, flair, and clarity on a budget

Price When Reviewed

$149.99

Best Prices Today: Pixio PX248 Wave

Let’s be actual: Most gaming displays are quite boring, and those who aren’t are inclined to lean in direction of an edgy, masculine, or cyberpunk look. The few that bucks the development, like Alienware’s retro sci-fi aesthetic, are normally costly. Pixio’s PX248 Wave provides an reasonably priced various to the established order, and backs up its appears to be like with good movement readability.

Pixio PX248 Wave specs and options

The Pixio PX248 Wave’s fundamental specs are typical for any finances monitor. It has a 24-inch IPS show panel with a decision of 1920×1080. The monitor provides HDMI and DisplayPort enter and helps Adaptive Sync.

• Display measurement: 24-inch widescreen
• Native decision: 1920×1080
• Panel sort: Fast IPS
• Refresh charge: Up to 200Hz
• Adaptive sync: Adaptive Sync
• HDR: Yes, HDR10
• Ports: 1x HDMI 2.0, 1x DisplayPort 1.4, 1x USB-A (for firmware updates solely), 1x 3.5mm audio jack
• VESA mount: None
• Speakers: 2x 3-watt audio system
• Price: $149.99 retail

Two specs stand out, nonetheless. The monitor has a 200Hz refresh charge, which, although not the very best out there for $150, is definitely in direction of the higher restrict of what players should purchase on a finances. It additionally has a pair of 3-watt audio system which might be stronger than most of its friends.

What actually stands out, nonetheless, is one thing that doesn’t translate simply to a spec sheet: the appears to be like.

Further studying: See our roundup of the best gaming monitors to study competing merchandise.

Pixio PX248 Wave design

The expertise delivered by the Pixio PX248 Wave is dependent upon the colorway that you just buy. Four colours can be found: Black, White, Pink, and Blue. I acquired the Pink colorway, which is a uncommon choice for any gaming peripheral and particularly for a monitor.

And what? It appears to be like nice. Pixio opts for a comfortable, pastel shade of pink that could be a good match for anybody seeking to create a lighter, extra inviting environment for his or her gaming den.

Of course, going for a extra fundamental colorway like Black will reduce the influence of the design, however Pixio’s construct high quality is nice for the worth. Plastic is the fabric of selection, however I seen nearly zero flex whereas dealing with the monitor, and the design doesn’t scream “budget” to all who look. You might spend twice as a lot and never purchase any noticeable acquire in construct high quality.

Ergonomics is the place Pixio makes some cuts. The monitor has a easy tripod-style stand that clips to the again of the monitor and solely adjusts for tilt. A VESA mount is included to be used with third-party monitor arms and stands however makes use of the much less well-liked 75x75mm bolt sample as an alternative of the extra customary 100x100mm sample. The 100mm sample can be supported with an adapter, which will be finicky.

Those seeking to full the look of the PX248 Wave’s pink, blue, and white colorways ought to contemplate the Pixio PS1S Wave monitor arm. I didn’t get an opportunity to check it, so I can’t vouch for its high quality, however it’s constructed to color-match the PX248 Wave monitor.

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Pixio PX248 Wave connectivity and menus

The Pixio PX248 Wave’s connectivity is proscribed even for a finances monitor. It has simply two video inputs: one HDMI 2.0 and one DisplayPort 1.4. Both inputs help the monitor’s most refresh charge of 200Hz, which is sweet to see on a finances monitor. However, most rivals provide three video inputs.

Pixio additionally features a 3.5mm audio jack for audio pass-through to a headset and a single USB-A port. However, the USB-A port is barely meant to be used with firmware updates, and certainly, I might discover no different function for the port.

The monitor’s choices are chosen by navigating by means of the on-screen menu with buttons positioned on the lower-right lip. These are extra cumbersome to make use of than the joystick-style controls which might be widespread on many displays. Pixio’s menu is simple to navigate, no less than, and provides a good vary of choices, together with changes for gamma, colour temperature, hue, and saturation.

A pair of 3-watt audio system are included, and so they’re a nice shock. There’s sufficient quantity to be usable and largely keep away from sounding muddy, which is vital when listening to music and enjoying video games. There’s even some dynamism within the sound stage that gives a way of depth that’s unusual for built-in audio system. Dedicated exterior audio system shall be an improve, however I might get by with the bundled audio system in a pinch.

Pixio PX248 Wave SDR picture high quality

Image high quality will be dicey with a finances gaming monitor, however has improved in recent times. The Pixio PX248 Wave reinforces that development with stable colour efficiency and a good distinction ratio, although it additionally has just a few flaws.

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

The monitor’s brightness tops out at about 292 nits, which, although not unhealthy, is in direction of the low finish of what I might count on from a contemporary monitor with an IPS show panel. This stage of brightness is sufficient to be usable in most conditions, however brightly lit rooms could start to overwhelm the show and make it seem dim.

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

I measured a most distinction ratio of 1050:1. That’s hardly a record-setting outcome; the truth is, it’s in direction of the low finish of what’s out there from trendy gaming displays. Still, the distinction ratio is suitable for the worth and excessive sufficient to carry up in some conditions.

The PX248 Wave suffers when displaying darkish video games in a darkish room, because it lacks the deep blacks and shadow element wanted to offer a convincing illustration. It’s at its finest when displaying vibrant, colourful content material in a well-lit room, as this helps obscure the monitor’s issues with darker content material.

As the graph exhibits, there’s a serious hole between displays which have an IPS panel, just like the PX248 Wave, and those who have a VA panel, just like the AOC 27G15. That would possibly lead you to suppose a VA panel is best, however finances VA panels are inclined to have issues with sharpness, so there’s no good selection. Gamers must determine if extra lifelike distinction or a sharper picture is preferable.

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

The PX248 Wave’s colour gamut is available in at 99 p.c of the sRGB gamut, 82 p.c of DCI-P3, and 77 p.c of AdobeRGB. This once more is a great distance from one of the best efficiency out there however is okay for the worth. It lacks the wealthy and saturated look that’s out there from displays with a wider colour gamut, however it nonetheless has sufficient vary to carry some attract.

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Color accuracy, however, requires no excuses or caveats. The monitor’s out-of-box colour accuracy is nice, and although I wouldn’t advocate it for skilled photographers, it’s positive for enhancing household pictures or importing an occasional video to YouTube. It’s troublesome to seek out higher colour accuracy for the worth.

However, the monitor does have points with one side of colour, and that’s colour temperature. The measured out-of-box colour temperature is 8500Okay, which is approach off the meant goal of 6500Okay. Simply put, the monitor’s colour appears to be like far too cool and sterile. The colour temperature changes supplied by the monitor can enhance this, however the colour temperature remained above 6500Okay even when set to the “Warm” preset. Gamma was barely off, producing a gamma results of 2.1 when it ought to be at a results of 2.2, however this was far much less noticeable.

Sharpness is suitable. A decision of 1920×1080 isn’t going to impress most consumers in 2024, however on a 24-inch monitor, it supplies an appropriate pixel density of 92 pixels per inch. As you would possibly count on, the PX248 Wave appears to be like sharper than a 27-inch 1080p or 32-inch 1080p show. Small fonts can look jagged when searching the net, however sharpness points are much less noticeable in video games, particularly these with a high quality anti-aliasing implementation.

On the entire, the Pixio PX248 Wave’s picture high quality efficiency is what I might count on from a finances gaming monitor. It has some strengths, corresponding to its sharpness and colour accuracy, but in addition weaknesses, such because the unusually cool colour temperature.

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Matthew Smith / Foundry

Pixio PX248 Wave HDR picture high quality

The Pixio PX248 Wave supplies help for HDR however, like several finances monitor, it’s not an incredible selection for HDR content material. It lacks the brightness, distinction, and colour gamut required to do HDR justice, so it does little to enhance picture high quality over SDR. The similar is true of the monitor’s competitors, nonetheless, so the PX248 Wave is at no drawback right here.

Pixio PX248 Wave movement efficiency

Refresh charge is among the many Pixio PX248 Wave’s most alluring options. It provides a most refresh charge of as much as 200Hz, which is phenomenal for a monitor that retails at $150. It additionally supplies Adaptive Sync that ought to operate with each Nvidia and AMD video playing cards. FreeSync labored with out concern when the monitor was related to my Radeon RX 7800 video card.

Motion readability at 200Hz is stable, however not wonderful. Scrolling assessments from League of Legends and DOTA 2 confirmed that character silhouettes and spell results have been simple to make out, however hitpoint bars and character names have been nonetheless troublesome to learn. Motion readability holds up higher when panning the digital camera in 3D video games, as important element is retained in distant objects and positive textures.

The monitor’s respectable out-of-box movement readability will be improved with MPRT, a characteristic that reduces movement blur by strobing the backlight at an especially excessive frequency. It additionally has a number of improved response time modes that improve the pace at which pixels reply to modifications.

These modes introduce noticeable visible artifacts. MRPT provides a slight “double image” impact behind shifting objects and disables Adaptive Sync, whereas bumping up the response time leads to an over-sharpened look.

However, the options are undeniably efficient at lowering movement blur. I believe the MRPT mode, together with the Medium response time mode, shall be interesting to aggressive players on a good finances. It delivers movement readability near what I’ve witnessed on a 360Hz show. If you’re not considering aggressive video games, nonetheless, I’d advocate leaving each options off.

Should you purchase the Pixio PX248 Wave?

The Pixio PX248 Wave is a good selection for players who need enticing design and stable movement readability in an especially cheap monitor. Priced at simply $150, the PX248 Wave is reasonably priced for a monitor with a refresh charge above 144Hz, but it additionally supplies a number of uncommon colorways that may match a wide range of gaming setups. Strong audio efficiency from the built-in audio system add icing to the cake.

Image high quality is a combined bag, nonetheless, resulting from points with colour temperature and mediocre distinction. And the PX248 Wave, like most gaming displays under $200, faces strain from low-to-mid-range alternate options just like the Dell 2724D, which usually prices $50 extra however defeats the PX248 Wave by each metric. Even so, players that should persist with a finances of $150 ought to give the Pixio PX248 Wave a glance.