When I first received the RL2755, I was pretty excited, at the same time, I was not sure what to expect. This would be my first-time gaming on an a monitor specifically designed for the PS4. I use monitors daily as an IT professional and I don’t necessarily pay attention to how things look on screen. I also tend to do most of my gaming on my TV because of the size so things are different in how my games look and respond. Now that I’m switching from my TV to a gaming monitor, I knew I would be in for a different experience. The picture quality was something I expected and never really thought too much about. It was when I hooked up the RL2755 that I truly could see the difference between a regular monitor and a gaming monitor. This made me curious to just what was sent to me, I mean I knew it was a gaming monitor designed for console gaming. What I did not know, was all the specs and other details about the device. Which honestly was vital to better understanding the product and what it brought to the table. What I found out only made things more intriguing.
Zowie BenQ did not just make a regular old console gaming monitor. They made a competitive console gaming monitor. That was the focus when designing the RL2755 and I have to say they were successful. They thought of the simplest things that would be important to a competitive gamer. They thought of weight, assembly, controller location before and after gaming, eye irritation, menu design, headset location before and after gaming, screen size, multiple console connectivity, and most of all resolution. This one monitor meets all the needs of a regular gamer and the needs of a competitive gamer. This article focuses on a little of both needs as I am not a traveling competitive gamer. I do get into competitions every once in a while. I am however your average everyday gamer and some of the features are just as important to me.
Design:
When I received the box, it was large but weighed less than what I expected. Things became more interesting as I opened the box and took the monitor out. I noticed the screen was big, always a plus, I noticed the two pieces that would create the stand. One had an odd shape and I wondered why later finding out it was a feature. When I began to put things together I noticed how easy it was. The two base pieces snapped together with a simple hand twistable screw. The connection to the monitor was similar in that it was a slide in and snap mechanism with a single screw to keep it all together. That can be tightened with a screwdriver. Easy assembly when traveling for a competition is vital when you just need to hurry up and get set up to begin practicing for your battle.
Weight is everything when it comes to competitive gaming, no one wants to lug around a heavy monitor when traveling from competition to competition. BenQ thought of that and kept the weight of the monitor at a decent weight of 21.1 pounds. That may sound like a lot but I was able to carry the screen to my office in one hand without struggling. Along with carrying other items in my hand that needed to also go into my office.
Let’s get down to the meat and potatoes of this thing. The screen is 27″, which I really liked as I normally play on 27″ or higher. The height was fair as it was eye level, which is standard for a monitor that does not allow height adjustment. The bezel that has just the right amount of thickness to house the menu buttons on the right and a grey BenQ logo in the middle to bring the screen and its size together. The inner bezel plays a huge role when gaming it does not reflect the game you are playing preventing on-screen distraction and side glare.
Working your way down you see, what I call triangle shaped front stand with a red square that has the RL series written in it. I thought the red added a little color and gave the monitor the right amount of flair it needed. At first, I could not figure out why they made the front stand that shape. I also could not understand why the top of the triangle was rubber. To later figuring out that this was a feature purposely added to the monitor. It was shaped that way to hold your controller in place. The rubber was designed to prevent your controller from sliding down. The trigger buttons on either your Xbox or PlayStation controller sit on top of the rubber.
The back has the same matte finish with a large BenQ logo at the top. The center, however, has a glossy finish with holes that can be used for mounting. As you move around the back you notice some red writing indicating the different connections. Which starting from right to left, D-SUB (VGA), DVI-D, HDMI 2, HDMI1, Headphone Jack, Line-In Jack, and Power. The most interesting thing on the back is on the right. There is a red tip on the back that slightly sticks out. When you pull it down you notice it’s a hook, but for what? Get this, the hook is to hold your headset, how cool is that. You have a headset holder on the back of your gaming monitor.
I can see this being beneficial in a competition setting. I know I can sure use it to hold my headset. Making your way down to the back of the stand you see a red half triangle shape with an opening in the middle, at the right height to house some cables. Cable management is always a plus, have to keep things looking neat and nice. That red color giving a little flair and bringing to the forefront.
Specs:
I know, I know, this is what you have been waiting for, the stuff that matters the most. What does this bad boy have inside? Let me say this if the design has not taken you to the site just to look at pricing this sure will. The RL2755 is 27 inches of pure video quality power and picture quality. It has a TN panel type, 1920×1080 max resolution at 75hz, 60Hz, optimized for consoles, an aspect ratio of 16:9, black equalizer, color vibrance, flicker-free, and low blue light. These are some pretty important features when gaming competitively and gaming altogether. They are all important if you know and understand what they do. This is where in my opinion BenQ really stepped things up. I will break each one down and explain why this was a good move on BenQ part for this type of monitor.
Let’s start with TN (Twisted Nematic), this LCD panel type is found mostly in gaming monitors. The reason is that images can refresh faster and has a better response time. Consoles have a refresh rate of 60 frames per second, having a TN type display will assist when playing fast paced games. Not too much ghosting with this panel type, although the downside with this panel type and where it falls short is with color reproduction and viewing angles. Which honestly is not a huge deal, most of the time you are looking straight at the screen and not from an angle.
Headset Hook
Resolution is vital when watching a screen, we all want the best picture possible when watching tv or playing games. That digital signal to give us 1080I/P making everything look pretty. This is where having an HDMI port on a gaming screen is important. You get that detail and color quality that only makes things appear real. The RL2755 does that with its resolution of 1920×1080, you get the experience of being in your game. The clarity in the picture you need when playing a game. The ability to see details in characters that normal monitors are unable to pick up and focus on. Especially with an aspect ratio of 16:9, giving that full HD quality in the image.
A feature that I wish I had on my current TV in my living room. That feature would be Black Equalizer, Black equalizer is something that is highly needed in gaming. You look down the barrel of your gun aiming into a dark area knowing someone is in that area. Cause you think you spotted someone move, but you’re not sure. What Black Equalizer does is detects the dark area and adds some light to it. It increases your visibility just in the dark area, without affecting the surrounding light. It leaves the surrounding light as is and focuses on just that one dark spot. How many times have you gotten shot by someone snipping from the back of a room looking through a window? You know they are there but can’t get a clear shot to take them out before they get you. The RL2755 prevents that scenario from happening with its black equalizer feature.
Another amazing feature that plays off black equalizer is color vibrance. This feature allows you to control how much saturation you need in your game. Which allows you to better track enemies at a distance. Improving that long distance shot and making your headshot aim more precise. Beneficial if you enjoy playing primarily as a snipper or long range at a whole. Apex Legends has a setting that allows you to get more window real-estate just for this purpose. I had to change mine back to default when I played Apex Legends using the RL2755 gaming monitor.
ZOWIE BENQ RL2755 
ZOWIE BENQ RL2755
Flicker Free was an interesting feature to me. I have tested several gaming glasses that assist with what this feature does. Along with another feature that the RL2755 comes with, which is low blue light. These two features help lessen eye strain, which allows for longer game-play. This was one of my favorite features out of all the rest. I spend countless hours sitting in front of a screen either doing school work, writing articles, working, or simply gaming. Before I started using gaming glasses I struggled. To have this type of feature built into my screen means the world to me. I am sure it does to competitive gamers, who spend just as much time as I do in front of a screen.
Last but not least the connections, the RL2755 has them all and even extra’s. You get not one but two HDMI ports. Hey, you might have an XBOX and a PlayStation that you might want to play on the same screen without switching cables out. With the RL2755 you can have them both connected and simply switch inputs. You said you play on a PC, well the RL2755 has connections for you as well. Two of them to be exact, one DVI and one D-SUB (VGA). This is handy for those of us that play console and pc games. One screen to rule them all, what movie is that from again. Anyway, you also have audio ports a line -in and a line-out. If you want your PC or Phone audio to come through the monitor’s built-in speakers you can do so.
Gaming Experience:
Now that we have all the Technical stuff out the way, let’s talk about the gaming experience. I played games I would normally play. I am a huge fan of shooting games, like Call of Duty, Apex Legends, and Division 2. I am going to go in the order of the games I played and recorded. I started out with Apex Legends, I think I play this more than other games right now. Battle royal games are exciting and fun to play, but Apex takes battle royal games to another level. I normally have to adjust the viewing feature in this game. When Playing on RL2755 I had to turn that feature it is the lowest setting, basically turning it off. Color Vibrance took care of that automatically for me, it gave the right amount of saturation needed.
Everything was fluent and crystal clear. Black Equalizer did its job, in those situations where someone was playing hide and seek. I was able to turn the lights on in the room or space they tried to hide in. The character movement flowed no lag and no delay in movement. When I moved the character or my gun it was seamless. I was able to see other players clearer and easier especially from distances I normally would not see them. What I really enjoyed the most is the color quality and how bright everything was. I could see parts of the map I normally struggle to see. I could see details in my character and what they had on my normal monitor would not pick up.
Division 2 is one of those games that you are constantly in and out of dark areas. You travel into underground parking garages, subway tunnels, and manholes. Having the ability to see what you are aiming at is vital to your survival and progression. The RL2755 made it easier, as you moved the screen would auto adjust to the changing of light. You didn’t really notice the change, I mean, you would notice only because you can see, you went from being in a tunnel, subway, or parking garage to outside in natural sunlight.
To play on a monitor that can differentiate between light and dark automatically is an experience in itself. The experience with my character and battles was similar to Apex, the movement was fluent and flowed with what my character was doing.
As you all know I am a huge fan of Call of Duty especially Call of Duty BO4. I have not played it as much lately but it’s still one of my favorite games. When I play Call of Duty, my focus is to unlock diamond on all my guns. In doing that I have to hit headshots and longshots, easy I know. At times it’s not as easy, it’s hard to see that guy hiding out on the cliff taking shots at you.
Especially on maps that require long range shooting, you would really need to focus your gunfire to get hit markers. I played a few maps using the RL2755, what a difference playing on this device made. I thought for a second, I no longer needed glasses. That is not the case, but you get the point. I could see other players much clearer and it helped my precision headset ability. Clarity is everything when gaming and if you struggle with dark and light in games, it makes some shots harder to hit.
Conclusion:
What does a competitive monitor have that other monitors don’t have? This is what I asked myself when I first heard BenQ was sending me the BenQ Zowie Rl2755 gaming monitor to review, it was a valid question. After using the monitor that question was answered, the picture quality was extremely different from the 27inch monitor I normally game on. I played several different types of games on this device, just to see how much of a difference it would provide. Every game I played, I noticed something I normally didn’t notice and clarity I did not experience before. Proper brightness when competing is important to a gamer and their shot. In competition gaming every shot counts actually it has to count or your out. BenQ thought of that with its BenQ Zowie RL2755 competitive console gaming monitor.
A feature I did not go into too much detail was the built-in speakers. The sound quality was not that great, I highly recommend you using the line out to connect external speakers or headset for better audio quality. The menu on a monitor is important as it can be annoying when they are overly complicated. BenQ made it easy to move around and what buttons helped you move around. I understood where to go to find what I was looking for along with the buttons that took me there. I was extremely happy with my overall experience with the BenQ Zowie RL2755 competitive console gaming monitor. Satisfied enough that I have started looking into possibly picking one up for my streaming setup. Going back to my old screen is going to be a struggle. It’s like going from driving a 2019 BMW X5M to driving a 1980’s Toyota Corolla. You get to where you’re going but your sad most of the time. That may be an exaggeration, but it will feel like it.
