Acer and AOpen market the Fire Legend 27HC5R Z curved gaming monitor as an affordable option capable of providing the best graphical performance possible. While PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X games get better and better, it's important to have a monitor that can match the sheer power of some machines, sometimes without breaking the bank. In this regard, the monitor delivers on its promise as a $299.99 monitor with AMD Radeon FreeSync, 1ms response times, 1920x1080@240 Hz resolution, maximized and ultra-thin bezels, and far more.
The 240 Hz refresh rate may be overkill for many console games, making this monitor a more solid and ideal add-on to many PC set-ups, but it's also a good future-proof add-on. With a simple black design, even rigs with a ton of LED lights can add this in without being any worse for wear. This is further coupled with a program to allow players to control their blue light exposure, maximizing both the capabilities and comfort of this 27-inch monitor. The curvature in this Acer monitor seemingly further helps with this, making the graphic fine-tuning and comfortability of the monitor its greatest strengths.
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In terms of specs, the AOpen Fire Legend 27HC5R Z runs the gamut. There's a lot of little odds and ends, including the following:
- 27-inch display size
- VA panel type
- 178 degrees horizontal and vertical viewing angles
- HDMI/DP: 1920x1080 @ 240 Hz
- 1ms TVR response time
- 75 x 75mm VESA Wall Mounting
- FreeSync eliminates screen tearing and minimizes lag
- Flickerless tech eliminates screen flicker and reduces eye fatigue
- 2 HDMI v1.4 ports
Unfortunately, the term "affordable" when it comes to hardware typically has some drawbacks. That too can be said of the Fire Legend 27HC5R Z as well. For example, while it can be mounted to a wall, the stand it comes with is far from ideal. Despite being secured and put together correctly, the monitor can be lowered or raised with a touch of a single finger, resulting in the monitor slamming upward or downward violently. It doesn't seem to hurt the monitor, as it is clearly secure, but it's far too easy to unintentionally move it. Moreover, the best way to describe its stand is as if it's spring-loaded, quickly shooting one way or the other, but having to be careful with the monitor as there's no resistance is easy to forget.
The odd complexities don't really end there, either. The buttons are placed on the bottom of the monitor, so unless it is mounted to a wall, it is impossible to see them. There are no markings on the front of the AOpen Fire Legend 27HC4 R Z monitor to indicate their position or any markings as to which button does exactly what, meaning there's a lot of unnecessary fumbling around when it comes to navigating the various monitor settings. For many, these aforementioned drawbacks could be small nuisances, but to just as many, the audio could be the worst part of the overall experience.
In short, the built-in audio is completely subpar. It's basically impossible to hear the monitor when it's turned all the way up, no matter how close we sat. Multiple gaming headsets never seemingly rectified the output either, with every sound and tone coming out at such a low audio quality that the experience is off-putting. Instead of high quality or even standard audio experience, everything comes out as a complete whisper. There's no variance whatsoever either; while some audio makes certain programs or platforms louder than another, nothing seems to raise this audio above a few decibels. It stands to reason that an external speaker may rectify the audio issues, but that removes a ton of value from this monitor.
Ultimately, it's an affordable option entirely focused on one aspect of the Acer monitor: strong, crisp, and future-proofed graphic display. The rest of its features seemingly suffer as a result. For gameplay and overall graphic quality, the AOpen Fire Legend 27HC5R Z curved gaming monitor may find itself among the best at its price point.
Game Rant was provided an AOpen Fire Legend 27HC5R Z curved gaming monitor for the purposes of this review.