ZOWIE’s esports hardware doesn’t always look impressive on paper — and that’s intentional. At the Starladder Budapest Major, the brand explained why motion clarity, consistency, and experience matter more than specs in competitive Counter-Strike.
On the floor of the Starladder Budapest Major, ZOWIE’s presence was unmistakable: tournament-standard monitors, a bustling booth, and hardware trusted by the world’s best Counter-Strike players. What was less obvious was why the brand continues to approach esports hardware so differently — even fifteen years on.
During an exclusive interview at the event conducted as part of an organized Media Tour, ZOWIE and BenQ representatives shared insight into a design philosophy built around experience rather than numbers, and why performance - especially in competitive gaming - can’t always be explained by specs alone.
Why specs don’t explain performance
In competitive gaming, performance is often reduced to numbers. Hardware is compared through specs like DPI or refresh rate, with higher figures assumed to mean better results. In practice, that logic doesn’t always hold up.
Two monitors may both be rated at 360Hz, yet one can appear noticeably sharper in motion while the other looks blurrier during fast gameplay.
“Motion clarity is something you can’t really put into a specification,” said Jay Wu, President of BenQ Europe. “When people compare 360Hz to 300Hz on paper, if you look at real performance, you can still see the difference.”
That distinction matters most in games like Counter-Strike 2, where milliseconds matter and being able to clearly see an enemy can decide a round.
“For Counter-Strike 2, the smoothness of the game and being able to see the enemy clearly is the top priority,” Wu added.
Refresh rate plays a major role in motion clarity, but it is only part of the equation. Pixel response times, overdrive tuning, and other behind-the-scenes engineering decisions have just as much influence on how motion looks in practice.
ZOWIE’s continued presence across the Counter-Strike 2 professional scene reflects the company’s belief that real performance isn’t always captured by specs alone.
Performance must be felt
“For us, we want people to believe. You only believe after you experience it," said Jay Wu.
To that end at the Starladder Budapest Major, ZOWIE's booth featured a raised platform stage with a 5 vs 5 setup for CS2. Alongside it was ZOWIE's demo kit table, featuring 7 different models of ZOWIE mice for visitors to try out and compare, with a ZOWIE technician available to enlighten them on the perks of each.
“With a more personal touch, we can explain which product fits better, what research went into it, and why it’s designed that way. That makes a much bigger impact," said Jay Wu.
From asymmetrical to symmetrical design, to hand size or preferred grip, ZOWIE's goal is to genuinely find the perfect product to match the player.
If you want a suit to fit you perfectly you go to a tailor, you don't buy it off the rack. Yet, much like with a tailored suit, educating people on the difference of ZOWIE's hardware when it comes to competitive gaming is an ongoing mission.
“Of course we use websites and social media, but how to make people really understand our design logic is not easy," said Wu. “Before they really touch the product, only a few people will understand it.”
“The problem is that we’re not able to arrange experience events for everyone," added Celsa Wu, BenQ's Director of Esports Business. "It's important for people to meet their community in person. Online tools like Discord are great, but people don’t often get the chance to really talk face to face.”
One such way ZOWIE meets its community is by hosting small intimate LAN events or ZOWIE Day Events for 20 or 30 people for them to get the hands-on experience ZOWIE believes is critical.
“Nowadays, people read the specifications and then decide what to buy. That’s not what we want. We want to position ourselves as the standard, and it’s still based on personal experience.”
Large scale esports event sponsorships such as the Starladder Budapest Major offer unrivalled opportunities for ZOWIE to reach the masses, but the value goes far beyond brand visibility.
Why ZOWIE sponsors Counter-Strike events
Given the popularity of ZOWIE's monitors in the Counter-Strike 2 pro scene, they often end up on stage even without being an official sponsor, so why sponsor the event at all?
"Normally when we come to any kind of tournament we will prepare a Pros Experience room. A private 100 square meters with six stations equipped with our monitors and products for pros to come and try," said Celsa Wu.
The Pros Experience room acts not only as a demo area for ZOWIE products, but also an analyst room for players with existing ZOWIE products. It's an opportunity to gather data and feedback from pro players, with ZOWIE arriving well ahead of the Starladder Budapest Major to set up the room.
“Only when you become an official sponsor can you serve the pro players officially," explained Celsa Wu.
On top of the booth and pros experience room, ZOWIE also provided all of 180 monitors for the Starladder Budapest Major hardware and flew out a specialist team of technicians to check the integrity of each item.
“Before the matches start, we check every single monitor to make sure the firmware and setup are correct," said Jay Wu. "We want to make sure when they play everything is perfect for the players, and to do that does take a lot of effort."
When it comes to ensuring players have the best equipment available, ZOWIE is also working behind the scenes to arm players with custom mice, some of which featured on stage at the Starladder Budapest Major. Some of which are unreleased.
Pro players using invisible ZOWIE tech
During the exclusive interview with esports.gg, BenQ representatives shared that over a dozen players competing at the Starladder Budapest Major were using bespoke ZOWIE mice, customized to their personal specification based on a mix of feedback and play data.
While ZOWIE did not disclose specific players, they mention that one team to have such products was Team Spirit, which houses Danil "donk" Kryshkovets, considered among the greatest active Counter-Strike 2 players.
Yet, ZOWIE has no intention of selling these mice to the mass market.
"Team Spirit do have some unreleased products," said Celsa Wu. "We worked with them on some unreleased personalized custom products which may or may not be released. The players have a very unique grip style, so if we did launch it, it might not sell because it's very different from the normal end user."
Celsa Wu added that requests for customization are common, but rarely approved.
"There are a lot of people who want us to do customized but it's difficult for us to say yes," said Celsa Wu. "When it comes to branded products we are very careful, we don't want people to know that your mouse is adjusted and what was adjusted because we also need to sign NDAs."
Has any player ever won a tournament with a custom ZOWIE mouse?
"Of course," said Celsa Wu.
Those customizations can include everything from click response and button spacing to weight and shape. But the specifics will likely remain a secret — known only to ZOWIE and the players using them — which, perhaps, is part of the magic.
Specs may be easy to compare, but performance is harder to demonstrate without hands-on experience. ZOWIE accepts that reality.
Instead of chasing mass-market appeal, the brand doubles down on experience: hands-on demos, tournament infrastructure, meticulous equipment checks, and even making custom hardware for the best pro players in the world only for them never to reach store shelves.
What becomes clear is that much of ZOWIE’s work is never meant to be noticed. The focus isn’t speed or scale, but consistency — a slow and steady approach that, in Counter-Strike 2, continues to win the race.
Disclaimer: esports.gg’s Lawrence “Malystryx” Phillips attended the ZOWIE Media Tour as one of 30 invited journalists via TARGET Esports Entertainment. Travel and accommodation were covered; however, editorial independence was fully maintained.
