AOC Agon AG272FCX 27-inch curved monitor review
AOC Agon AG272FCX curved HD FreeSync monitor
£339
Pros
- Slick design
- Gentle curvature
- Great colour reproduction
- Response/refresh times even without FreeSync
- FreeSync
Cons
- Need AMD GPU for FreeSync benefits
We had the 35-inch AG352UCG AOC gaming monitor in recently. Since then, AOC released the Agon AG322QCX and AG272FCX. We have been gaming with the smaller of the two.
Both of the new monitors landed on the shelves in May. The only difference between the two lies in the screen size and the resolution.
The AOC AG272FCX features Full HD resolution, a 27-inch screen, 144Hz refresh rate, AdaptiveSync (FreeSync), and extensive ergonomic options as well as numerous exclusive gaming features.
Agon AG272FCX design
The design of the AOC Agon AG272FCX is shared across the current Agon line. This is a good thing.
You get the handy flip-out headset holder. The weighty arched tripod stand terminates in a carrying handle at the top.
The stand also offers a range of ergonomic options including 30 degrees of swivel to the left and right, -5.5, 28 degrees for tilting, and up to 110mm for height adjust.
There’s the option for mounting using its VESA 100 x 100mm pattern.
As with the 35-incher we had, the bottom bezel and the stripes at back have RGB LED lights that you can choose to match your rig. They also have three different levels of brightness.
Connectivity comes by way of two HDMI, one DisplayPort, and one VGA port. There are also two USB 3.0 ports, one of which has fast charging capacity.
Additionally, there is an audio line-out, and a microphone line out/in port. Rounding things off is the audio line-in port for the 2x3W built-in speakers.
The monitor comes bundled with one of AOC’s QuickSwitch keypads. This controller allows you to effortlessly run through the OSD settings and its features. It also enables you to swiftly switch between the viewing presets.
Making it look more streamlined is the AOC “three-side frame-less” design.
Agon AG272FCX performance
The AG272FCX’s MVA panel offers impressive 178-degree viewing angles. Furthermore, gamers will appreciate the 4ms response time and 144Hz refresh rate.
This 27-inch AOC display is also loaded with FreeSync tech which is great news for those rocking compatible AMD graphics cards.
Being an Nvidia gamer, I was not able to enjoy the dynamic refresh rate on this occasion. I should really look in to building an AMD rig for times like this.
The AOC Agon AG272FCX FreeSync monitor is flicker-free and offers the AOC Low Blue Light Filter which eliminates the harmful blue lights and allows you to play for hours to an end without straining your eyes.
Image quality
AOC haven’t let us down yet and they continue to bring the goods with the AG272FCX.
Contrast delivers incredibly deep inky black tones. Colours are vibrant and cover 100% of the sRGB gamut.
Moreover, add in the 4ms response time and 144Hz refresh rate and you’ve got all the important boxes ticked.
The AOC Agon AG272FCX, of course, packs AOC Shadow Control, Low Input Lag Mode, and customisable gaming modes.
The shadow control feature offers increased visibility in the dark scenes of the video games by brightening up the screen when it’s needed. Low input lag mode further decreases the input lag for the most responsive gameplay.
Depending on the genre of the game that you’re playing, you can use the already calibrated picture settings for difference scenarios such as Racing, FTS, and RTS, or you can make your own.
The curvature of the display isn’t that aggressive either. At only 1800mm it doesn’t distort your view pleasure but is still enough for an improved immersive gameplay experience.
Gaming
As mentioned earlier, I was not able to enjoy the benefits of AdaptiveSync. However, the AOC AGON AG272FCX proved to be a smooth performer without it. I can only imagine how much better FreeSync would make the experience.
Some classic Black Ops II action with everything ramped up proved slickly presented.
Backgrounds whizzed by and rendered quickly.
Moving on to Rocket League and the colours really do pop in this cartoon-y carball game.
This is a fast moving title and I didn’t notice any nasty tearing, stuttering or blurring even without the aid of FreeSync.
Responsiveness was impressive across the board.
Agon AG272FCX review conclusion
The AOC Agon AG272FCX offers everything that most players will need for an immersive gaming experience.
While the high-contrast and colour-accurate VA panel ensures great image quality, the high refresh rate and FreeSync tech provides a fluid performance.
The subtle curvature allows the AG272FCX to be used as a regular monitor without the need for compromises. Saying that, this is a gaming monitor and, as such, does a really good job at it.
Granted, most pro gamers will still prefer a TN panel monitor due to the faster response times but most of us will still get a lot out of this display. Even more-so if you have an AMD GPU.
If you want some G-Sync action with added 4K in a 27-inch monitor, check out our review of the AG271UG.
Agon AG272FCX price and availability
You can buy the AG272FCX now for £339 from Amazon.
For more details head on over to the AOC site.
