Gaming monitor - to upgrade or not to upgrade

[Fingolfin269]

I recently built my first new desktop in several years and have continued rocking the somewhat ancient LG L227WTG. There is really nothing wrong with it, looks good and has no noticeable lag. The true limitation is the resolution of 1680x1050.

So here's the question. I've been looking at the Dell U2414H and am considering ordering one today. Do you think I will notice much of a difference going from 22" 1680x1050 to 24" 1920x1080? A ~$250 difference? I'm also not tied to this specific monitor and would consider alternatives but would like to stay under $300.

FYI, I don't really play FPS. Right now I'm playing Diablo 3 and plan to get Witcher 3 eventually. Desktop is i3-4160, 8GB ram, R9 280x, SSD.

 

[DigDog]

IPS panels are really coming down in price, you should be able to grab a 27" for relatively little money.

 

[Fingolfin269]

This shouldn't be so hard but seems I'm having trouble just picking a monitor.

27" is a good plan so think I'll go that route. IPS looks like a win as well. Do you have any personal preferences in the <$350-400 price range?

One thing I noticed is that a lot of monitors I find have been around for 2 or 3 years. Do these not get refreshed as often as other computer components? Or televisions for that matter?

 

[MattL]

I'd recommend a VA panel also in the right price range. Often they have 2-4x the contrast ratio of an IPS panel and sometimes better response times. I'll second 27", really worth the extra size and immersion, especially in RPGs etc. Especially if you have enough horsepower and can find the right priced monitor for 1440p at 27".