Dell S-Series S Series 24" Black 2024

The Dell S-Series 24-inch monitor is a 1080p IPS display with a 100Hz refresh rate, FreeSync, and a full ergonomic stand. It's one of the best all-around budget monitors for home office and light gaming, with excellent user reviews and solid build quality. Just don't expect HDR or 1440p sharpness at this price.

The 100Hz refresh rate is the headline number here, and it's a meaningful step up from the 60Hz panels most people are used to. Scrolling through documents feels smoother, and in games you get noticeably less motion blur. The 1ms response time is marketing-speak, it's likely an MPRT figure rather than true gray-to-gray, but in practice ghosting is minimal and we didn't see any smearing in fast-paced content.

In our database, this monitor lands around the 70th percentile for performance. That's solid, not spectacular. The 1080p resolution at 24 inches gives you a pixel density of about 92 PPI, which is fine for text and everyday use but not as sharp as a 1440p panel. The 1500:1 contrast ratio is actually better than a lot of IPS monitors in this class, which helps blacks look deeper than you'd expect. FreeSync works over HDMI, so both AMD and some newer Nvidia cards can take advantage of variable refresh rate.

Compared to the MSI MAG 271QPX QD-OLED E2 or the LG UltraGear 27GX790A-B, the Dell S-Series is in a completely different league, and that's fine. Those are 1440p or 4K OLED gaming monitors that cost three to five times as much. The Dell isn't trying to compete with them. It's competing with other 24-inch 1080p office monitors, and in that space it's one of the better options thanks to the 100Hz refresh rate and ergonomic stand.

Against something like the Samsung Odyssey G7 G75F, the Dell loses on raw gaming specs, the G7 has a much higher refresh rate and better response times. But the Dell wins on price and practicality. It's lighter, more compact, and the IPS panel gives you better viewing angles than the VA panel in many Samsung gaming monitors. For a mixed-use setup where you work during the day and game at night, the Dell is the more sensible pick.

At $189 USD, the Dell S-Series is priced a bit above entry-level 24-inch monitors, which often go for $120-150. But you're paying for the 100Hz refresh rate, the full ergonomic stand, and Dell's build quality. The user sentiment score of 92/100 and a 4.7-star average across 136 reviews suggest most buyers feel they got their money's worth. If you just need a basic second screen for spreadsheets, a cheaper 60Hz panel will do. But if you want one monitor that handles work and light gaming without compromise, this is a reasonable premium to pay.

The Dell S-Series 24" monitor sits in that sweet spot between basic office display and budget gaming panel. At around $189 USD, you're getting a 1080p IPS screen with a 100Hz refresh rate, 1ms response time, and AMD FreeSync. That's a combo that used to cost a lot more just a few years ago.

For home office work, this thing is genuinely great. The IPS panel gives you solid color accuracy and wide 178-degree viewing angles, so you can actually see the screen clearly from the side. The anti-glare coating helps a lot if you're parked next to a window. And the ergonomic stand is a real standout, height adjust, tilt, swivel, and pivot are all here, which is rare at this price. Most budget monitors make you live with a fixed stand and a stack of books.

Is the Dell S-Series good for gaming? For casual and light gaming, yes. The 100Hz refresh rate and FreeSync support mean smooth gameplay without screen tearing, as long as your GPU can push decent frame rates at 1080p. It's not going to compete with 240Hz esports panels, but for someone who plays a few rounds of Fortnite or does some sim racing on the side, it's more than enough.

Skip this monitor if you're a competitive gamer who needs 144Hz or higher refresh rates, or if you do color-critical work that requires HDR or wide color gamut coverage. The 1080p resolution at 24 inches is also a bit limiting for video editing or heavy multitasking, you'd be better off with a 27-inch 1440p panel like the LG UltraGear 27GX790A-B. And if you just need a basic second screen for email and documents, a cheaper 60Hz monitor will save you money without much downside.

Should you buy the Dell S-Series 24-inch monitor? If you're looking for a single display that handles office work, web browsing, and casual gaming without breaking the bank, yes. The 100Hz refresh rate makes everyday use feel smoother, the ergonomic stand is a genuine quality-of-life upgrade, and the build quality is what you'd expect from Dell. Owners consistently praise the image quality and eye comfort, and our data backs that up with a 95th percentile user sentiment score.

But if you're a serious competitive gamer or you want the sharpest possible text for long coding sessions, this isn't the monitor for you. The 1080p resolution and lack of HDR are real limitations. For everyone else, this is one of the best all-around 24-inch monitors you can buy right now.