After years of stagnation, the PC monitor scene is enjoying a bit of renaissance. There are 4K displays with ultra-high pixel densities and G-Sync units with variable refresh rates. And then there's Acer's 28" XB280HK, which has both. Acer hasn't posted a picture of the display yet, but here are a couple shots of its little brother, the 27" XB270H:

Source: Acer

The smaller monitor has a relatively pedestrian 1080p resolution, but its refresh rate scales up to 144Hz, a fair bit higher than the 4K unit's 60Hz peak. Limited DisplayPort bandwidth is likely responsible for the lower maximum refresh rate. G-Sync doesn't require higher refresh rates to smooth in-game animation, though. Besides, even high-end graphics hardware struggles to maintain 60 FPS when rendering the latest games at 4K resolutions.

Although the panel types aren't detailed, both monitors have 160° vertical viewing angles, suggesting they're based on TN technology. Acer claims the 28-incher can produce 1.07 billion colors, while its sibling is rated for 16.7 million hues. Some form of dithering is probably involved with both. Other specs include 300 cd/m² brightness ratings, 1000:1 contrast ratios, 1-ms response times, and 72% NTSC gamut coverage.

The displays have anti-glare coatings, fully adjustable stands, and integrated USB 3.0 hubs with fast charging support. The XB270H is already available online for $599.99—the lowest price we've seen for a G-Sync display—while the XB280HK is set to start selling next month for $799.99.