I’ve been testing Lenovo Legion’s 200Hz QHD monitor for a week — and it 'puts most other budget screens to shame'

As someone who has a sedentary job, I spend up to eight hours a day, five days a week, in front of a screen, and I do a lot of photo editing and enjoy gaming in my spare time. This is why I need one of the best monitors. It must be bright, colors must be accurate and it should be able to keep up with demanding games — the Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 does just that.

Succeeding the first-gen model, the R27qe Gen 2 is an excellent monitor for a number of reasons. It’s got a 200Hz refresh rate and 0.5ms response time, making it a great choice for FPS, RPGs and everything in between. Color accuracy and coverage, as well as brightness, don’t give you much to complain about. Plus, the monitor’s height and viewing angles are highly adjustable. But it’s far from perfect, as the lack of built-in speakers and USB ports might prove significant for some.

Should you still buy it? Find out in my full Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 review.

Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 review: Cheat sheet

• What is it? A 27-inch QHD gaming monitor with a 200Hz refresh rate and 0.5ms response time
• Who is it for? Gamers who also need a competent monitor for photo editing and work
• How much does it cost? The Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 is available for £199
• What do we like? The bright panel, excellent color accuracy and coverage, 200Hz refresh rate and 0.5ms response time deliver solid gaming performance and height adjustability
• What don’t we like? There aren’t any built-in speakers or USB ports, and the assembly can prove frustrating

Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 review: Specs

Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 review: The ups

From its outstanding color coverage and accuracy to its 200Hz refresh rate and 0.5ms response time that delivers a lag-free gaming experience, the Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 is an all-rounder.

Highly adjustable

If you want a monitor that provides various viewing angles, there are few better than the Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2. First of all, the monitor sports a minimalist, low-key all-black design with no loud RGB lighting, so if you want to use it for work or in an office, it’ll fit right in. It measures 24.14 x 10.19 x 20.4 inches with the stand and base attached, and it weighs 13lbs, so there’s no need to worry about accidentally knocking it over.

Secondly, it’s highly adjustable. The R27qe Gen 2’s head has a -5° to +22° tilt, 30° left and right swivel, and a -90° to +90° pivot. This means that you don’t need to worry about placing it in a certain position on your desk to get the best viewing angle. For instance, at my office desk, I have another monitor and loads of tech and trinkets lying around. I didn’t have to clear up my desk much to accommodate the R27qe Gen 2, as I was able to simply adjust the head’s angle to my liking.

It’s worth spending on the R27qe Gen 2, especially over its stablemate, the Lenovo L27i-4B ($109), whose height can’t be adjusted at all. With that monitor, you’re limited to a -5~22° angle tilt, and that’s about it.

Vivid colors both on paper and in practice

I love the Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2’s TFT LCD panel, which is bright and displays lovely, vibrant colors. This is a QHD (2560 x 1440) display, and if you’re peeved that it isn’t an OLED panel, know that OLED monitors cost a lot more. For instance, the Alienware AW2725D is almost double the price at $499, and some are even as expensive as the $1,099 MSI MPG 272URX.

As QHD monitors go, though, the R27qe Gen 2 is outstanding when it comes to color accuracy and coverage. In my objective lab testing, the R27qe Gen 2 demonstrated a Delta-E score of 0.16. Delta-E basically shows how accurate or close the color on the screen (monitor) is to the color output from the source (laptop). The closer the score to 0, the better and more color-accurate the images, and 0.16 is a strong score. It’s the exact same score as the BenQ PD3226G’s ($1,099), a dedicated photo and video editing monitor.

As you can see in the table above, the R27qe Gen 2 covers 132.2% of the sRGB color gamut, too, which means it covers the entire color spectrum and then some. This lines up with what I saw on screen during testing: colors appeared bright and true to life, and the different hues and shades looked vibrant. The sRGB coverage is similar to the similarly priced Gigabyte G27FC ($229) and better than the Dell 24 S2421HGF ($250).

The last thing I always test is DCI-P3, which is another common color space with a wider overall gamut than sRGB. It paints us a picture of lifelike color, and the R27qe Gen 2 covers 93.7% of it. Even though it’s a little under 100%, it’s still better than both the aforementioned Gigabyte and the Dell. If you want more DCI-P3 coverage, the Alienware AW2525HM ($249) is a great alternative with 105.2% DCI-P3 coverage as well as 148.5% sRGB coverage.

All of these results go to show that the R27qe Gen 2 is an excellent monitor for both gaming and light productivity — and I will discuss both aspects in detail below.

Excellent gaming performance

The Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 is, first and foremost, a gaming monitor, and what a great gaming monitor it is. Featuring a 0.5ms response time and 200Hz refresh rate, it delivers a smooth and lag-free experience. With plenty of picture modes to choose from, depending on the genre you’re playing, you can truly tailor your experience to your liking.

While it doesn’t reach 4K resolution, visuals still look stunning on its QHD panel, and the 27-inch screen is just the right size to immerse you without taking up too much space on your desk. Colors on paper, as discussed above, are one thing, and they might appear different in practice. Well, not on the R27qe Gen 2. Regardless of the game I played, I was thoroughly impressed — from dark shadows to bright street lights, each frame packed plenty of detail for me to enjoy.

I kicked things off by playing Cyberpunk 2077 and roaming around the dark streets of Dogtown at nighttime. The R27qe Gen 2 had no issues in ensuring I saw enemies lurking in the shadows, making them appear bright but not fake. Similarly, when the bright neon lights came into view once I exited Dogtown, the colors appeared vibrant but not overwhelming — they looked just right.

Thanks to the 200Hz refresh rate and 0.5ms response time, I didn’t experience any choppiness while riding my bike at high speeds or during fast-paced combat; there was no ghosting during the game either. Bear in mind that to make use of the 200Hz refresh rate, you’ll need to use the included DisplayPort cable.

I also hooked up my Nintendo Switch 2 just to gauge how the R27qe Gen 2 performed in an animated game like Sonic x Shadow Generations. Again, the game remained free of any motion blur, even while grinding down rails as the red-haired hedgehog, or using Shadow’s Chaos Control powers. The monitor brought all the dark and light shades to life, and honestly, the game has never looked better. The Switch 2’s refresh rate tops at 120Hz when docked, which meant that the R27qe Gen 2 had no problem handling it.

Great for productivity too

Not only is the Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 awesome for gaming, it’s great for productivity and work, too, making it a near-perfect monitor for most people. As I mentioned above, color coverage and accuracy are superb, so you shouldn’t have any problems with editing photos and videos, or simply watching movies or YouTube videos in your downtime.

I review the best cameras and the best drones here at Tom’s Guide, and to analyze the image and video quality, I spend a lot of time staring at the finer details on my monitor. The R27qe Gen 2 is more than up to the challenge. I edited a few photos to test it out, and it worked very well. Whether I was looking for minute chromatic aberration around a subject’s edges or color grading, the R27qe Gen 2 didn’t let me down.

Color coverage is bolstered by 10-bit depth, which means it is capable of showing 1.07 billion individual hues. This is crucial (for me, at least) as many cameras and drones capture footage in 10-bit depth, and the R27qe Gen 2 enables me to see the colors exactly as they were captured.

So, so bright

The Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 is the brightest monitor I’ve ever had the pleasure of testing or using. As always, I measured SDR and HDR brightness individually in our testing lab, and the results were impressive across the board.

In the table above, I’ve compared the R27qe Gen 2 to other similarly priced monitors (or monitors I have also lab-tested). In the default Standard Dynamic Range (SDR) mode, the R27qe Gen 2 has a brightness of 321.2 nits. That’s very bright — even brighter than the pricier Alienware AW2725D, which tops at 253.8. At brightness turned up to 100% via the monitor’s menu, I could see the screen properly in a well-lit room. No complaints here.

I then measured the High Dynamic Range (HDR) brightness and compared it to the aforementioned monitors. I’ve left the Dell 24 S2421HGF and the Gigabyte G27FC out of the comparison as neither supports HDR. As can be inferred from the table above, the R27qe Gen 2 offers better peak brightness than the Alienware AW2525HM at 10%, 40% and 100%. It pales in comparison to the AW2725D, but that is an OLED display, so it isn’t a fair fight.

Overall, though, the R27qe Gen 2 is an outstanding and bright monitor, and you’ll be able to see everything on screen and read everything without any qualms using it, regardless of the lighting conditions.

Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 review: The downs

The Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 is great but not perfect, as it doesn’t feature built-in speakers or USB ports, and its assembly is frustrating.

Not exactly upgrade-worthy

The Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 isn't exactly a massive upgrade over its predecessor. As its name suggests, it’s the second-gen version of the R27qe. If you already own that monitor and are considering upgrading to the R27qe Gen 2, hold your horses.

The first-gen R27qe has the same 2560 x 1440 resolution, WLED backlighting, 0.5ms response time, 10-bit color depth and similar height adjustability. Is there anything different? The R27qe Gen 2 has a 200Hz refresh rate versus 180Hz on its predecessor, and that isn’t a huge difference. Design-wise, Lenovo has moved the buttons from the side to the bottom of the R27qe Gen 2, and has surprisingly chosen to remove the 3.5mm audio out jack. Oh, and the R27qe Gen 2 is available in Europe only — sorry, Americans.

As the rest of my review has shown, the R27qe Gen 2 is in no way a bad monitor. It’s excellent! But it doesn’t pack enough upgrades to justify replacing your existing R27qe — or feeling bad that it isn’t available in the U.S. On the other hand, if you’re a newbie looking for a QHD monitor or are based in Europe, I can’t recommend the R27qe Gen 2 enough, and you can pick one up for £199.

Annoying assembly

The Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 is a highly capable, competent monitor, but I’m not a big fan of the assembly process. With all other monitors I’ve tested, assembly is straightforward. The stand slots into the head, and that’s it. This isn’t the case with the Legion R27qe Gen 2. Included in the box are four bolts or screws. To attach the stand to the monitor head, you need to line it up with the holes in the back of the monitor and then screw in the four bolts.

Not only is it more time-consuming, but it’s a fairly finicky process. When I first set up the monitor for our studio photography, I locked in the base first before attaching the stand to the head. Because the base itself is angular and large, I couldn’t line up the head’s and stand’s holes, so I had to remove the base and then do it. A long and unnecessary process.

No built-in speakers

Although not a major drawback, it’s worth noting that the Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 doesn’t feature built-in speakers or a 3.5mm jack. This means that you can’t play audio directly through the monitor. The reason I say this isn’t a massive con is because you’ll be using the monitor with a PC, and you can always connect speakers or a headset to your PC for great sound quality.

You are, of course, out of luck if you don’t already own a gaming headset or external speakers. It’ll also be a pain if you want to hook up your console, like a PS5 or a Nintendo Switch 2, to the monitor. This isn’t the first time I’ve seen a monitor in this price range not have speakers, as the Alienware AW2525HM doesn’t either.

No USB ports

You should probably consider other monitors if you want an array of onboard I/O ports, as the Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 is pretty stripped-back in this area. It features a power port (naturally), two HDMI 2.1 TMDS and one DisplayPort 1.4 ports. There are no USB-A or USB-C downstream ports for your external peripherals, and it means you’ll need to invest in a separate USB hub if you want more connectivity.

I’d recommend the Alienware AW2525HM or the Gigabyte G27FC if you’d like more connectivity. The former of these has a whopping 320Hz refresh rate, making it the better choice for gaming — although the R27qe Gen 2 is still more than capable with its 200Hz refresh rate.

Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2 review: Verdict

Few budget monitors upstage the Lenovo Legion R27qe Gen 2. This is a terrific monitor for gaming, work, productivity, photo editing and everything in between. With a 0.5ms response time and 200Hz refresh rate, it delivers an immersive, lag-free gaming experience across genres — whether that’s an FPS title, an RPG or a racing game. It boasts excellent color coverage and accuracy, too, and the extensive height and viewing angle adjustment make it a winner.

But few things in life are perfect, and the R27qe Gen 2 isn’t one of them. The assembly is frustrating, while the lack of built-in speakers and USB ports may not be for everyone. It isn’t much different from its predecessor either.

However, if you want a QHD monitor that doesn’t compromise on color rendition and gaming performance, and you’re on a budget, you can’t go wrong with the R27qe Gen 2. It’s bright. It’s colorful. It’s speedy. It’s an all-rounder.