When a package arrived on my porch that looked as if it could contain a small army, I was a bit surprised, but intrigued. When I opened it, I was pleased to discover a GAEMS M-240 Professional Gaming Monitor, sent to me for a thorough review. After digging in and setting up, I found that the monitor is not only larger than life, but packs performance that is more than exceptional to back up its size.
GAEMS advertises their gaming equipment as “Professional” for a reason. At 24” and 60Hz, the monitor was sure to be impressive, and it didn’t disappoint. Opening and sorting the various components proved easy to navigate and simple to set up. The included “wall mounting option” was especially handy, usable as both a kickstand and a carry handle, strong enough to prop up the (surprisingly lightweight) monitor. Upon plugging in the display, there was an immediate and notable change from my old, pre-war Dell monitor. Even my desktop background (a screenshot from The Last of Us), was far more vibrant than I remembered.
Included with the package are a protective carry case, power supply, kickstand, HDMI cable, startup guide, and instruction booklet. The monitor itself has multiple inputs, with three available HDMI ports – two for input, and one for output. It also sports a headphone port, so headphones can be used directly with the monitor. Somewhat surprising was the remote control that was included, but it earned its keep while experimenting with the settings of the monitor. There are touch-sensitive buttons available for navigating the monitor’s volume, brightness, and other settings, but I found that they weren’t as sensitive as expected, often requiring multiple touches to register. The remote came in handy to compensate for this, with all settings available from remote navigation.
The generous 24” display allows for near dual-monitor quality and accessibility when used for normal activity, and goes full HD for gaming. My first gaming experiment was playing Fallout: New Vegas on my PC, and after a little adjusting to accommodate the 1080p screen, I was thoroughly impressed by how crisp the HD appeared. Battling a Deathclaw on maxed settings, there was virtually no monitor lag or jog in quality. Xbox 360 and PS4 proved no different, with exceptional quality obvious right from startup. Many full-screen, max quality battles ensued on each console, in which the M-240 turned out to be the real victor.
The one issue I had with display came directly from my graphics card. When first set up, there was a black box around my desktop, as if my computer couldn’t fill the entire screen. This was an easy fix (with help from Google), but I was not prepared for anything other than plug and play, and the instruction booklet included wasn’t much help. A more in-depth explanation of the monitor’s specs and possible issues may be a nice touch for gamers such as me, who want to know every possible issue and solution.
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The included speakers surround the display, adding to the functionality and aesthetics of the monitor. My initial out-of-the-box test of the speakers was a hard rock music track with the speakers at 50% volume. The result was a tinny and somewhat empty representation of the song. In lowering the volume, the quality improved, but only marginally. This is when I discovered that the speakers must be highly customized for any kind of quality sound. With a little exploring, I discovered the entirely customizable sound settings, from the bass and balance to the EQ. These include settings such as “theater,” “music,” and “personal,” all which greatly improve the quality of the sound. Once changed, it performs entirely up to the standard expected from an all-in-one rig.
The M-240 is a beautiful, multi-functional masterpiece of gaming equipment. My initial perception was correct, and I remain thoroughly impressed with GAEMS’ creations. The M-240 gaming monitor is truly an extraordinary piece of equipment, and a must-have for any gamer in need of portability, quality, or just an excellent monitor.