The Asus VG289Q1A is a 4K gaming monitor that you can get for the price of a premium 1080p or budget 1440p variant. It’s been around for a while and heavily discounted, so it piqued our interest in an affordable 4K solution for casual gaming and daily use. Let’s see if it is still a worthy purchase in 2024.
Asus VG289Q1A Specifications
- Screen Size: 28 Inches
- Resolution: 3840 x 2160 4K
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Panel Technology: In-Plane Switching (IPS)
- Refresh Rate: 60Hz
- Response Time:5ms
- Contrast Ratio: 1000:1
- Brightness: 350 cd/m²
- Built-in Speakers: Yes (2 x 2 Watts)
- Stand: Height – No
- Stand: Tilt – Yes
- Stand: Swivel – Yes
- Stand: Pivot – No
- VESA Compatibility: Yes (100 x 100)
- Connectivity: DisplayPort 1.2 x 1, HDMI 2.0 x 2, 3.5mm Audio Jack
- Dimensions With Stand(WxHxD): 25.18″ x 18.13″ x 8.42″
- Weight: 12.57 lbs
Design and Features
The Asus VG289Q1A looks a lot like the VG289Q, except for the different stand and the price point. The monitor has a matte black finish, so it is easy to mistake it for an office monitor if it weren’t for the branding. The display has thin bezels, but it still has inner borders like most modern displays.
It’s a 28-inch model, but it is not too big or intrusive like the other overdesigned offerings. Its base is quite wide, but it only needs 8.42 inches of depth from your desk, so there will be plenty of room for other peripherals. It’s light at 12.57 pounds, so it’s very easy to move around.
The Asus VG289Q1A is a lower-tiered model in the TUF Gaming lineup, but it doesn’t feel flimsy and cheap. The plastics used are tough and sturdy, and there were no cosmetic or manufacturing defects on all the parts. The included stand is capable of holding the screen up, but it can still wobble at times because of the low center of gravity.
The monitor retained the joystick and hotkey combo found on almost every Asus monitor out there. The layout is at the back near the right side of the screen, so it’s very easy to access even if you can’t reach it. The buttons correspond to some quick tweaks, such as adding gaming overlays.
The Asus VG289Q1A’s stand only includes tilt and swivel adjustments, so it’s quite limited for some. It’s uncommon for a stand to have a mechanism like this since most are typically limited to tilt or include height adjustments instead. You can use VESA mounts, but that’s an added expense that only becomes worth it in select instances.
The monitor’s I/O layout includes DisplayPort 1.2, two HDMI 2.0 slots, and a 3.5mm jack for headphones. The video ports are capable of 4K 60Hz, so newer versions like HDMI 2.1 are not necessary. Other Asus gaming models have USB slots, but those are not necessary for typical use, especially if adding them will raise the price.
The Asus VG289Q1A also has a pair of speakers, but they are limited to 2 watts of power each. It’s great to have extras, but they are incapable of providing gaming-grade audio. Headphones will be considerably better, especially if you want to focus on the game.
Display and Performance
The Asus VG289Q1A sports a 28-inch IPS panel with a 3840 x 2160 resolution, a 60Hz refresh rate, and a 5ms response time. The backlight has a 350 cd/m2 output, while the contrast is listed at 1000:1, like most IPS monitors. The monitor doesn’t have HDR certification, but it is HDR10-compatible, like most modern displays.
28-inch 4K monitors aren’t common, but they are well-received by the gaming and prosumer communities. They are extra sharp and crisp, but users can find it difficult to read on the screen if they don’t use scaling. It is fantastic for games and movies, but we think that 4K is more suited to the 32-inch form factor.
The Asus VG289Q1A covered more than 100% sRGB and 81% DCI-P3 for decent colors in games and movies. Its default accuracy isn’t the best, with a deltaE average of 2.58, but it’s decent for most types of use. Users won’t need to calibrate it right away, so it’s good to go once it’s out of the box.
Calibrating it reduced the dE average to 1.77, which isn’t a massive or even noticeable improvement for most people. You also need a colorimeter to achieve comparable results, and those can be a bit expensive. We recommend prioritizing a better monitor if you need one for editing or content creation.
The Asus VG289Q1A’s backlight reached 357 cd/m2 at 100% brightness, enabling it to fight glare in windowed areas. Its contrast peaked at 1033:1 at 40% brightness, indicating that it is incapable of deep blacks like VA or OLEDs. There are better options if this is a priority, but it’s an excellent pick; otherwise, if this limitation doesn’t bother you.
Its panel uniformity had some minor backlight leaks on the top edge of the screen. It showed up as clouding in dark scenes but is otherwise invisible. Note that this can vary with every monitor made due to tolerances, so it is possible to get a better unit.
The Asus VG289Q1A isn’t the most responsive monitor out there, but that’s understandable since it is limited to 60Hz. Blurring and persistence are kept at a minimum, but contrasting transitions will reveal some of them. However, that’s not a common occurrence, although we still can’t recommend this for E-Sports titles.
The Asus VG289Q1A is compatible with FreeSync and G-Sync, even if it’s not officially listed. It’s only 60Hz, but 4K can be jarring for most GPUS since the resolution demands a lot of horsepower. Its input lag sits at 9ms at 60Hz, so it is still very responsive for a 60Hz display.
Thoughts on the Asus VG289Q1A
The Asus VG289Q1A is a decent choice despite the flood of newer models that came after it. It’s an older model, but that means it’s heavily discounted. It offers decent performance out of the box, making it very suitable for casual gaming and daily general use.
On the other hand, the limitations here make it less attractive, especially since there are more sophisticated options now with better pricing. It falls behind in imaging aspects as well with its lower DCI-P3 coverage and contrast. However, it is still a fantastic buy at its current low price if you want a cheap daily driver that performs better than the other budget options.
Pros:
- Very Low Price
- FreeSync and G-Sync Compatible
- Great Build Quality
Cons:
- Limited Features
- Low Contrast
About the Author: 
Paolo has been a gaming veteran since the golden days of Doom and Warcraft and has been building gaming systems for family, friends, and colleagues since junior high. High-performance monitors are one of his fixations; he believes that every citizen has the right to enjoy one. He has gone through several pieces of hardware in pursuit of every bit of performance gain, much to the dismay of his wallet. He now works with Monitornerds to scrutinize the latest gear and create reviews that accentuate the seldom-explained aspects of a PC monitor.
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