Gaming, Home & Office, PC, Reviews, Tech Essentials

Acer Nitro XZ2 Curved Gaming Monitor – Curved is Awesome [Review]

February 2021 | Teri Zhang

I recently had the opportunity to test out Acer’s Nitro XZ2 Curved Gaming Monitor, and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. When I first saw the curved monitor I didn’t think I’d enjoy using it all that much and I can honestly say I’ve been converted.

What’s in the Box:

Inside the box you’ll find very standard things for a gaming monitor:

32-inch Acer Nitro XZ2 Monitor
Power Cable
DPI Cable
HDMI Cable
The base/stand
The neck/extension that connects the base to the monitor

The Setup

Setting up this monitor was super easy, but I do recommend asking another person for help since everything was so tightly packed. I’m 5’2 and the box was half my height so having someone help me out made taking it out super easy. Assembling the monitor was easy and took me around ten minutes to put everything together and put it on my desk. The base and neck connected easily, with pins that connected and then a screw to hold it in place. Depending on your desk setup, the base might be too large. The neck just clipped onto the monitor. Overall super easy and comprehensive to put together.

After setting up the monitor all I had to do was plug in the cables at the bottom back of the monitor and presto it was ready to use after some light adjustments. Moving the monitor screen up and down was so easy, each of the movements were buttery smooth and intuitive. Pivoting the monitor up and down was easy as well.

Overall the set up was easy and took no time at all to get it ready for use.

The Usage

At 32 inches, this monitor is actually a pretty decent size. It was a lot bigger than I anticipated, but that actually worked out well in my favor. The larger display actually turned out to be a pretty positive thing once I started to use the monitor. As simple as it may sound, it’s so much more fun to game on a larger display! The display was vibrant even though its only 400 nits.

When using the Nitro XZ2, I noticed an instant change in how the graphics of my games changed. While I am what people would call a casual gamer, I found vast improvements in the graphics using the monitor, everything was really smooth motion without glitching. I didn’t experience any lag that I typically would get on my old monitor.

The Nitro XZ2 has cool features like BlueLightShield to help with eye strain during long periods of work and gaming. There are also various gaming modes to enhance the gaming experience.

The curved design on the monitor turned out to be really nice and it was not hard to get used to. When I first got the opportunity to review this monitor I was a bit hesitant at the idea of a curved monitor, I didn’t think the setup would be appealing, but now I can honestly say that I loved it. It was nothing like I had expected, I’m not sure why I assumed that would hurt the visuals on my screens, but I can confirm that it does not. In fact, I didn’t really notice the curve at all, it honestly made the gaming experience more immersive. The viewing angles were great

This monitor also comes with built-in speakers, which I loved. When quarantine hit, I had acquired an older gaming monitor with built-in speakers and I felt like it changed my life. It’s actually a feature I’ve started to seek out when looking at monitors. The overall sound quality was just average, though definitely better than my current monitor’s sound. Ultimately they got the job done and did what they were supposed to.

In conclusion…

Overall I definitely loved this monitor, I’m not sure that I can ever go back to my old one I love it so much. The graphics were phenomenal and the set up was so easy. Despite the size seeming a bit daunting at first, it actually paired well with the design and usage. When I was playing games the curved monitor with built-in speakers made the experience so much more immersive.

While I did use this to play MMOs, I could only imagine what it would be like with an FPS. You can get the 27-inch Nitro XZ2 for under $250. If you decide to go for the 32-inch, it goes for about $300 If you’re on the fence about this monitor, I honestly say definitely get it. It’s a great monitor for its size and price point!