ASUS BE249CGN 23.8" Black 2025

The ASUS BE249CGN is a 23.8-inch 1080p office monitor with a 120Hz refresh rate and full USB-C docking, including power delivery and Ethernet. It's priced between USD 192 and USD 213 in the US, with Newegg offering the best deal. The ergonomic stand and connectivity are best-in-class for the category, but the display quality itself is only average. If you want a clean one-cable desk setup for work, this is a great pick. If you're a serious gamer or need high resolution, look elsewhere.

The 120Hz refresh rate is the headline spec here, and it's a legitimate step up from the 60Hz panels most office monitors ship with. Scrolling feels smoother, window dragging looks cleaner, and even basic cursor movement has a fluidity that's hard to go back from once you've experienced it. The 5ms response time is fine for an IPS panel, though it's not going to impress anyone looking for esports-grade speed. Adaptive-Sync support is a nice touch, especially if you're running a laptop with integrated graphics that might struggle to hold a steady frame rate.

The 350 nits of brightness is solid for an office environment. You won't be squinting at the screen in a well-lit room, and HDR10 support is technically there, though on a 1080p IPS panel without local dimming, it's more of a checkbox than a meaningful feature. The 99% sRGB coverage puts it in the 77th percentile for color, which means it's above average but not a professional-grade display. For documents, web browsing, and video calls, it's plenty. For photo editing or color-critical work, you'd want something with better accuracy and a higher resolution.

The competitors in our database are mostly gaming-focused displays, which makes for an interesting contrast. The MSI MAG 271QPX QD-OLED E2 and Gigabyte M Series OLED MO27Q28G are both OLED panels with higher resolutions and faster refresh rates, but they're also significantly more expensive and aimed at gamers who care about contrast and response times. The LG UltraGear 27G810A-B is another gaming monitor that would crush the ASUS in raw performance, but it lacks the docking features and ergonomic focus that make the BE249CGN practical for office work.

The BenQ MA Series MA270U is probably the closest philosophical competitor, as it's also aimed at productivity users. It offers a higher resolution and better color accuracy, but you'll pay more for it. The Alienware AW2725D is another gaming-focused option with a higher refresh rate and better panel technology, but again, it's not trying to be a docking station. The ASUS BE249CGN's real competition isn't these gaming monitors. It's the sea of generic 24-inch 1080p office displays out there, and against those, the 120Hz refresh rate, USB-C docking, and excellent ergonomics make it stand out.

Pricing is a bit of a mixed bag depending on where you shop. In the US, you're looking at a spread of USD 192 to USD 213 across three listings, with Newegg offering the best deal at the lower end of that range. That's a reasonable price for what you're getting, especially when you factor in the docking capabilities. A standalone USB-C dock with power delivery and Ethernet can easily run you USD 50 to USD 100 on its own, so the monitor is effectively subsidizing that cost.

In other markets, the pricing gets less attractive. The CAD 279 listing in Canada is roughly in line with the US price after conversion, but the GBP 330 price in the UK feels steep for a 1080p office monitor. The JPY 40,535 listing in Japan is also on the higher side. If you're in the US and can grab this at the USD 192 end, it's a solid value. If you're paying closer to USD 213 or dealing with the international pricing, you might want to shop around a bit more.

The ASUS BE249CGN is one of those monitors that sounds boring on paper but makes a lot of sense once you think about how most of us actually work. It's a 23.8-inch 1080p IPS panel with a 120Hz refresh rate, which is already a bit unusual for a business-focused display. Most office monitors are stuck at 60Hz, so the extra smoothness here is a nice bonus even if you're just scrolling through spreadsheets. Add in a USB-C docking setup with power delivery, an RJ45 Ethernet port, and a full ergonomic stand, and you've got a monitor that's trying to be the centerpiece of a tidy desk setup.

Who's this for? Office workers, hybrid employees, and anyone who wants to plug a laptop in with one cable and get video, data, and charging all at once. The docking features are the real story here. You get HDMI, two DisplayPorts (one for daisy-chaining), USB-C, a headphone jack, and even built-in speakers. That's a lot of connectivity for a monitor in this price range. The 120Hz refresh rate and Adaptive-Sync support also mean it won't feel terrible if you sneak in a little gaming after hours.

What makes it interesting is the balance. It's not the sharpest display, not the fastest, and not the most color-accurate. But it's a genuinely practical monitor that covers the bases most office users actually care about. The ergonomic stand alone puts it in the 91st percentile for adjustability, and the connectivity is in the 90th percentile. For a monitor that's meant to live on a desk for eight hours a day, that's the stuff that matters more than raw pixel density.

If you're a gamer looking for a primary display, skip this one. The 1080p resolution, 5ms response time, and lack of meaningful HDR performance put it well behind dedicated gaming monitors in the same price range. You'd be better off with something like the LG UltraGear 27G810A-B or the Alienware AW2725D if gaming is your priority. The 120Hz refresh rate here is a nice bonus for office use, but it's not enough to make this a gaming monitor.

Photo editors and color-critical professionals should also look elsewhere. The 99% sRGB coverage is fine for general use, but it's not the kind of accuracy you need for professional color work. The 1080p resolution also means less screen real estate for editing tools and timelines. If you're doing serious creative work, consider the BenQ MA Series MA270U or a higher-resolution IPS panel with better color accuracy. And if you're just looking for the cheapest possible monitor to check email on, you can find basic 1080p displays for less, though you'll be giving up the docking features and ergonomic stand that make this one worth the extra money.

For office workers who want a clean desk setup with a single cable running to their laptop, the ASUS BE249CGN is an easy recommendation. The USB-C docking with power delivery and Ethernet is genuinely useful, the ergonomic stand is excellent, and the 120Hz refresh rate makes everyday use feel more pleasant than a typical 60Hz office panel. At the USD 192 end of the US pricing, it's a great deal. At the higher end or in international markets, it's still good but less compelling.

If you're a gamer looking for a primary display, this isn't it. The 1080p resolution, 5ms response time, and modest HDR implementation won't satisfy anyone who cares about visual fidelity or competitive performance. But as a secondary monitor for work, or as a primary display for someone who occasionally games on the side, it's a solid choice. The 120Hz refresh rate and Adaptive-Sync support mean it won't embarrass itself in casual gaming sessions, even if it's not built for that purpose.