Alienware AW3423DW 34" Curved QD-OLED Gaming Monitor
(5,066 reviews)
Gaming's great - no question about it. But imagine if you could see and play games the way developers intended. Perfect graphics, crisp visuals, with bright whites and deep blacks. Sounds great right? Well, say hello to your new best friend with this Alienware monitor. Enjoy superb visuals thanks to the 170Hz refresh rate, find just the right angle of view for comfortable viewing with a fully adjustable ergonomic design. Ultrawide QHD OLED Panel Its 3440 x 1440 pixel display comes with a 170Hz refresh rate so the fastest action is super smooth. The OLED panel also enhances details in dark areas, brightening scenes without over-exposing them. Ergonomic design The stand is height-adjustable and the monitor tilts, swivels and pivots, so you can always find the best, and most comfortable, angle. NVIDIA G-SYNC Ultimate NVIDIA G-SYNC Ultimate compatibility helps to keep your monitor and graphics card refresh rate in sync - this will reduce image tear and stutter. Multiple ports including HDMI 2.0 As the monitor has both DisplayPort and HDMI inputs, you can easily hook up a desktop computer, laptop or games console.
Gaming's great - no question about it. But imagine if you could see and play games the way developers intended. Perfect graphics, crisp visuals, with bright whites and deep blacks. Sounds great right? Well, say hello to your new best friend with this Alienware monitor. Enjoy superb visuals thanks to the 170Hz refresh rate, find just the right angle of view for comfortable viewing with a fully adjustable ergonomic design. Ultrawide QHD OLED Panel Its 3440 x 1440 pixel display comes with a 170Hz refresh rate so the fastest action is super smooth. The OLED panel also enhances details in dark areas, brightening scenes without over-exposing them. Ergonomic design The stand is height-adjustable and the monitor tilts, swivels and pivots, so you can always find the best, and most comfortable, angle. NVIDIA G-SYNC Ultimate NVIDIA G-SYNC Ultimate compatibility helps to keep your monitor and graphics card refresh rate in sync - this will reduce image tear and stutter. Multiple ports including HDMI 2.0 As the monitor has both DisplayPort and HDMI inputs, you can easily hook up a desktop computer, laptop or games console.
$2,159.00 - $3,461.00
in 2 offers
Alienware AW3423DW 34" Curved QD-OLED Gaming Monitor
$2,159.00
(5,066 reviews)
Gaming's great - no question about it. But imagine if you could see and play games the way developers intended. Perfect graphics, crisp visuals, with bright whites and deep blacks. Sounds great right? Well, say hello to your new best friend with this Alienware monitor. Enjoy superb visuals thanks to the 170Hz refresh rate, find just the right angle of view for comfortable viewing with a fully adjustable ergonomic design. Ultrawide QHD OLED Panel Its 3440 x 1440 pixel display comes with a 170Hz refresh rate so the fastest action is super smooth. The OLED panel also enhances details in dark areas, brightening scenes without over-exposing them. Ergonomic design The stand is height-adjustable and the monitor tilts, swivels and pivots, so you can always find the best, and most comfortable, angle. NVIDIA G-SYNC Ultimate NVIDIA G-SYNC Ultimate compatibility helps to keep your monitor and graphics card refresh rate in sync - this will reduce image tear and stutter. Multiple ports including HDMI 2.0 As the monitor has both DisplayPort and HDMI inputs, you can easily hook up a desktop computer, laptop or games console.
Gaming's great - no question about it. But imagine if you could see and play games the way developers intended. Perfect graphics, crisp visuals, with bright whites and deep blacks. Sounds great right? Well, say hello to your new best friend with this Alienware monitor. Enjoy superb visuals thanks to the 170Hz refresh rate, find just the right angle of view for comfortable viewing with a fully adjustable ergonomic design. Ultrawide QHD OLED Panel Its 3440 x 1440 pixel display comes with a 170Hz refresh rate so the fastest action is super smooth. The OLED panel also enhances details in dark areas, brightening scenes without over-exposing them. Ergonomic design The stand is height-adjustable and the monitor tilts, swivels and pivots, so you can always find the best, and most comfortable, angle. NVIDIA G-SYNC Ultimate NVIDIA G-SYNC Ultimate compatibility helps to keep your monitor and graphics card refresh rate in sync - this will reduce image tear and stutter. Multiple ports including HDMI 2.0 As the monitor has both DisplayPort and HDMI inputs, you can easily hook up a desktop computer, laptop or games console.
Price comparison
Last updated at 01/06/2025 11:55:38
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Price history
Price history
Reviews
Amazing Monitor, Questionable Packaging
1 December 2022
Jacob
originally posted on dell.com
If you’re looking for the end-all be-all monitor of 2022, this (or the similar DWF model) is it. I didn’t do enough research before purchasing this model over the DWF, but here
is a list of the main differences that would matter to me:The DW comes with 2 HDMI connections and 1 DisplayPort connection, but the DWF comes with 2 DisplayPort
connections and 1 HDMI connection. The DWF allows for a 4k native input, allowing the PS5 to run at high refresh rate. The DW cannot do this.The DW comes with a G-Sync
Ultimate module, which is proprietary Nvidia tech. the DWF comes with Freesync Premium Pro functionality, which is cross compatible with AMD and Nvidia grap...
is a list of the main differences that would matter to me:The DW comes with 2 HDMI connections and 1 DisplayPort connection, but the DWF comes with 2 DisplayPort
connections and 1 HDMI connection. The DWF allows for a 4k native input, allowing the PS5 to run at high refresh rate. The DW cannot do this.The DW comes with a G-Sync
Ultimate module, which is proprietary Nvidia tech. the DWF comes with Freesync Premium Pro functionality, which is cross compatible with AMD and Nvidia grap...
Amazing UW OLED for immersive HDR gaming with some drawbacks for productivity use
11 June 2022
originally posted on dell.com
I've been waiting for an OLED gaming monitor for years and am ecstatic that this one has finally hit the market. It ticks almost all of my boxes and is overall a fantastic
experience.The 3440x1440 is a great resolution for today's GPU hardware, and its 175Hz refresh rate is beyond what I would expect of that resolution. It's hard to hit that
target on more recent demanding games, but makes for a truly immersive experience on games that are a few years old. Combining super smooth motion with a filled
peripheral view and good pixel density makes each game a great to play in a way I didn't fully expect.The HDR1000 mode is also a treat. While Windows 11 doe...
experience.The 3440x1440 is a great resolution for today's GPU hardware, and its 175Hz refresh rate is beyond what I would expect of that resolution. It's hard to hit that
target on more recent demanding games, but makes for a truly immersive experience on games that are a few years old. Combining super smooth motion with a filled
peripheral view and good pixel density makes each game a great to play in a way I didn't fully expect.The HDR1000 mode is also a treat. While Windows 11 doe...
Best all around with some small caveats
9 August 2022
htaige
originally posted on dell.com
The Alienware AW3423DW is everything HDTV test said it is in his in depth video review on YouTube. It makes my previous AW3420DW look awful in comparison. Blacks are
finally true black and not grey and blotchy. The colors on this monitor truly pop and the HDR experience is stunning.You will notice that the bezels are uneven on the screen
but this is simply due to the pixel shift burn in mitigation. The thickness of the bezels will change gradually as the pixels shift to move static elements on the sceen around.
There is also a compensation cycle like on OLED TVs which should also help mitigate burn in. If you are truly concerned about burn in, you can also hide the task...
finally true black and not grey and blotchy. The colors on this monitor truly pop and the HDR experience is stunning.You will notice that the bezels are uneven on the screen
but this is simply due to the pixel shift burn in mitigation. The thickness of the bezels will change gradually as the pixels shift to move static elements on the sceen around.
There is also a compensation cycle like on OLED TVs which should also help mitigate burn in. If you are truly concerned about burn in, you can also hide the task...
Specification
| Display | |
| RGB colour space | DCI-P3 |
| Screen shape | Curved |
| Color gamut | 99.3% |
| Pixel density | 110 ppi |
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Price history
Price history
Reviews
Amazing Monitor, Questionable Packaging
1 December 2022
If you’re looking for the end-all be-all monitor of 2022, this (or the similar DWF model) is it. I didn’t do enough research before purchasing this model over the DWF, but here is a list of the main differences that would matter to me:The DW comes with 2 HDMI connections and 1 DisplayPort connection, but the DWF comes with 2 DisplayPort connections and 1 HDMI connection. The DWF allows for a 4k native input, allowing the PS5 to run at high refresh rate. The DW cannot do this.The DW comes with a G-Sync Ultimate module, which is proprietary Nvidia tech. the DWF comes with Freesync Premium Pro functionality, which is cross compatible with AMD and Nvidia graphics cards, as well as current gen consoles.Finally, the DW does not allow users to upgrade the firmware. ... MoreIf you’re looking for the end-all be-all monitor of 2022, this (or the similar DWF model) is it. I didn’t do enough research before purchasing this model over the DWF, but here is a list of the main differences that would matter to me:The DW comes with 2 HDMI connections and 1 DisplayPort connection, but the DWF comes with 2 DisplayPort connections and 1 HDMI connection. The DWF allows for a 4k native input, allowing the PS5 to run at high refresh rate. The DW cannot do this.The DW comes with a G-Sync Ultimate module, which is proprietary Nvidia tech. the DWF comes with Freesync Premium Pro functionality, which is cross compatible with AMD and Nvidia graphics cards, as well as current gen consoles.Finally, the DW does not allow users to upgrade the firmware. (Likely a side-effect of the Nvidia G-Sync module.) The DWF does allow users to upgrade their own firmware via a USB stick.Now, to the more subjective part of the review. HDR content looks amazing on this monitor, especially with Alienware’s choice to use a glossy coating on the panel instead of an “anti-glare” coating that decreases perceived sharpness of the image. Microsoft’s implementation of HDR in Windows 10/11 is a little rough, but if you run games in Exclusive Fullscreen mode, the game will handle color mapping instead of the operating system, generally resulting in a better picture. You’ll have to use the OSD on the monitor to switch between HDR 400 True Black and HDR Peak 1000, but the menu navigation is wonderful with the joystick implementation on the bottom of the monitor. Depending on the content you’re consuming, there may or may not be a noticeable difference between the two settings, but for day-to-day computing, you’ll want to stick to HDR 400 True Black, because HDR Peak 1000 will cause distracting variations in brightness depending on what you’re viewing.In order to run the monitor at full 175hz refresh rate, you need to drop the color depth to 8bpc. At 144hz and lower, you can run the monitor at full 10bpc color depth, however, I personally cannot see a difference in color reproduction, so I run it at 175hz.Lastly, the biggest disappointment with this monitor has nothing to do with the tech or quality of the product, but instead with the packaging. Because of the chosen packaging, my display arrived with micro scratches on the top two corners of the display. Admittedly, they’re invisible during normal use, and I only noticed them when I had the monitor off. It’s not a big enough deal to me to return the monitor, but it’s still tragic when a brand new, top of the line, 4-figure cost product arrives damaged. I’m not convinced a replacement wouldn’t have the same scratches anyway.If you made it this far through the review, thanks for reading. I hope you found it helpful, and if you do decide to take the plunge, congratulations on the best gaming experience you will have probably ever had.
Jacob
originally posted on dell.comAmazing UW OLED for immersive HDR gaming with some drawbacks for productivity use
11 June 2022
I've been waiting for an OLED gaming monitor for years and am ecstatic that this one has finally hit the market. It ticks almost all of my boxes and is overall a fantastic experience.The 3440x1440 is a great resolution for today's GPU hardware, and its 175Hz refresh rate is beyond what I would expect of that resolution. It's hard to hit that target on more recent demanding games, but makes for a truly immersive experience on games that are a few years old. Combining super smooth motion with a filled peripheral view and good pixel density makes each game a great to play in a way I didn't fully expect.The HDR1000 mode is also a treat. While Windows 11 does a good job with auto-HDR, games that natively support it like Horizon: Zero Dawn, Cyberpunk 2077, or Destiny ... MoreI've been waiting for an OLED gaming monitor for years and am ecstatic that this one has finally hit the market. It ticks almost all of my boxes and is overall a fantastic experience.The 3440x1440 is a great resolution for today's GPU hardware, and its 175Hz refresh rate is beyond what I would expect of that resolution. It's hard to hit that target on more recent demanding games, but makes for a truly immersive experience on games that are a few years old. Combining super smooth motion with a filled peripheral view and good pixel density makes each game a great to play in a way I didn't fully expect.The HDR1000 mode is also a treat. While Windows 11 does a good job with auto-HDR, games that natively support it like Horizon: Zero Dawn, Cyberpunk 2077, or Destiny 2, truly look next level. It's hard to describe if you haven't experienced it before, but screenshots or videos just can't do it justice. Cyberpunk in particular looks absolutely fantastic, with neon signs and other light sources popping in the dark and steamy Night City. Playing it any other way simply does the game a disservice.Colors in general are vibrant and accurate. If you're the kind of pro that has special calibration software you might find some settings to tweak, but most people won't need or want to do this.The monitor itself feels sturdy and looks quite nice. Its RGB lighting capability also goes the extra mile, though I don't think it can be integrated with other RGB software hubs like Corsair iCUE which may make it less viable for some people. It also has some built in cable management that some people might appreciate for clean aesthetics, especially if the rear of their monitor faces out rather than a wall.The price is also very reasonable, especially considering that it is higher tech than its competitors for less money. It's definitely still expensive at MSRP, but if you have the money I'd say it's well-spent.Despite this being an overwhelmingly positive review, there are some minor drawbacks that would put the rating closer to a 4.5 for me. First, the RGB subpixel arrangement is a nonstandard triangle pattern, meaning that traditional font smoothing does not look good (at least in Windows). I had to install a 3rd-party program to get a different font renderer. Beyond that, this subpixel arrangement also creates a color fringing effect on high contrast edges. It's not noticeable from a distance, but when I am sitting close, like I normally do for immersion, it's unfortunately hard to miss. This should not dissuade you from purchasing this monitor for gaming, but for productivity use (writing, programming, spreadsheets, etc.) it could result in eye strain. Personally I would use my previous IPS monitor for that sort of stuff, especially in a home office situation.The OSD also has a pixel refresh feature that should help prevent burn-in, but it frequently causes a pop-up to appear and obscure the screen which is problematic during intense gaming. There's supposed to be a way to turn off the pop-up and have it just do the refresh automatically when you turn off the display, but my monitor doesn't have that option and Dell said they had to send me an entirely new monitor to address this, since it can't be fixed via software. (I have not yet received the replacement.)The HDR1000 mode offers the bright whites you want for media consumption, but isn't great for normal desktop use. Its auto-brightness feature, which can't be disabled, can cause large shifts in overall brightness depending on how much white or light colors are on the screen. Switching between programs or web pages can be a bit jarring. HDR400 doesn't have as good peak brightness but also has more consistent brightness that is more suitable for desktop use, which I'd recommend. Switching modes is easy, though it does seem to simulate reconnecting the monitor a few times, resulting in about 10 seconds of monitors flashing, windows moving around, and waiting for Windows to figure things out. (If you have separate wallpapers per screen this process will also break that.)Final verdict: There's no better gaming monitor on the market right now. While I'm sure this will inspire a response from competitors who will soon sell similar offerings, this does not feel like early adopter tech. If the drawbacks I've mentioned don't seem like deal breakers to you, I wholeheartedly recommended buying this. The worst part just might be waiting for it to arrive.
originally posted on dell.com
Best all around with some small caveats
9 August 2022
The Alienware AW3423DW is everything HDTV test said it is in his in depth video review on YouTube. It makes my previous AW3420DW look awful in comparison. Blacks are finally true black and not grey and blotchy. The colors on this monitor truly pop and the HDR experience is stunning.You will notice that the bezels are uneven on the screen but this is simply due to the pixel shift burn in mitigation. The thickness of the bezels will change gradually as the pixels shift to move static elements on the sceen around. There is also a compensation cycle like on OLED TVs which should also help mitigate burn in. If you are truly concerned about burn in, you can also hide the taskbar in windows and set the screen to blank during inactivity. The 3 year burn in warranty should ... MoreThe Alienware AW3423DW is everything HDTV test said it is in his in depth video review on YouTube. It makes my previous AW3420DW look awful in comparison. Blacks are finally true black and not grey and blotchy. The colors on this monitor truly pop and the HDR experience is stunning.You will notice that the bezels are uneven on the screen but this is simply due to the pixel shift burn in mitigation. The thickness of the bezels will change gradually as the pixels shift to move static elements on the sceen around. There is also a compensation cycle like on OLED TVs which should also help mitigate burn in. If you are truly concerned about burn in, you can also hide the taskbar in windows and set the screen to blank during inactivity. The 3 year burn in warranty should put you at ease as exhanges with Dell are usually cross shipped meaning you will not be left without a monitor while they send you a replacement.The stand is definitely a con in terms of how the feet are angled inwards more compared to previous Alienware monitors. I felt that previous stands already took a lot of usable depth away from my desk and the stand on this monitor is even worse than before. Definitely recommend using a arm with this monitor if your desk is not super deep.The lack of HDMI 2.1 is a downside especially if you want to have many high refresh rate devices plugged in and switch between them. This is due to the nvidia Gsync module being out of date. A proper KVM like they have in their Ultrasharp would be a great addition for those of us who also use this monitor for work at home and would make switching between my work laptop and gaming desktop much more convenient and seamless.You will not regret buying this monitor.
htaige
originally posted on dell.comBest Performance Display I Could Find for Low Light Emission (Porphyria, Light Sensitivity)
19 October 2022
My situation is a little bit special: I was specifically shopping for a monitor with low light emissions because I have porphyria and that causes light in most visible wavelengths (Near UV -> Blue -> Low Green) to burn my skin.I live in an almost completely dark environment. My windows are all covered in black film to prevent any sunlight from getting in and most of the light I use is from red bulbs that emit minimal light in the harmful range.After researching, I decided that an OLED monitor would be ideal because it should have lower total light emission, and after configuring brightness of the monitor down to 0 (which is not black, it's just less bright), tuning the Game setting to use a custom color that had Blue down to 0, and enabling Windows "Night Light" ... MoreMy situation is a little bit special: I was specifically shopping for a monitor with low light emissions because I have porphyria and that causes light in most visible wavelengths (Near UV -> Blue -> Low Green) to burn my skin.I live in an almost completely dark environment. My windows are all covered in black film to prevent any sunlight from getting in and most of the light I use is from red bulbs that emit minimal light in the harmful range.After researching, I decided that an OLED monitor would be ideal because it should have lower total light emission, and after configuring brightness of the monitor down to 0 (which is not black, it's just less bright), tuning the Game setting to use a custom color that had Blue down to 0, and enabling Windows "Night Light" setting at 80, I'm at about 60 LUX at 2 about 2 feet from the screen on a "mostly white" screen. Obviously, what is display as "white" isn't actually white at these settings.I'm extremely satisfied with this result. I haven't gotten sick or gotten any burns on my face since starting to use this display with these settings.I am also happy with the faster refresh rate, even outside of games, because it makes it easier for me to track the mouse across the screen. I'm running at the recommended resolution (3440x1440) at 125% DPI scaling @ 144 Hz and text is nice and crisp and things feel more "smooth" than they did at 60 Hz.My primary use for the display is office productivity, though I imagine if I ever get back to gaming it will be amazing for that as well.Now for the bad:- With my firmware version, MOB102, the pixel refresh feature to avoid burn in is pretty terrible. Your options are to either have it nag you, basically every day, to run a pixel refresh which makes the monitor unusable for few minutes when you wake it up. The wording in the message box that pops up on the screen indicates that this should be happening while the screen is asleep, but it doesn't actually try to start until the screen wakes up and you acknowledge the message box. Most people apparently just turn off the notification, which as near as I can tell, means that their screen never runs the pixel refresh. This feature *should* have a configurable timer where you can specify something like "If the screen has been asleep for 2 hours, perform this maintenance.", instead of just waiting for it to wake up and interrupting use. If I'm misunderstanding how this actually works and it's doing it while the screen is asleep, despite having the warning disabled, the text needs to be reworded for clarity.- I'm not sure who the configurable LED colors are for, but it's not for me. The absolute best thing I can think to say about it is that they can be turned off. It makes me a little bit sad that I probably had to pay extra for this stupid feature. If there was another version of this screen available at the time that had the same features (G-Sync, 144 Hz, OLED, etc) and wasn't trying to appeal to toddlers by using fancy lights, I would have bought that instead.- The display settings cannot be configured from inside Windows. I was hoping (but wasn't counting on) that using the USB interface, I'd be able to configure the display settings, such as the brightness, from inside Windows, the same way you would a laptop panel, or perhaps through the app. I've reviewed the manual, and despite other Dell monitors having similar features, this "premium" display does not. You can adjust the color of the LEDs (that are on the back of the monitor, which for most people means they're facing a wall, again, stupid), but no setting that actually matters.- The firmware is not end user serviceable, unlike other premium displays. What you get is what you get and if you need a fix, you apparently have to RMA the display within the warranty period. So, if they fix the pixel refresh feature in a later firmware, you better hope you can convince them it's a big enough issue that they'll send you a replacement display and be okay with the fact that it's used. I take really good care of my displays, so I can only hope that if I have to go this route later on, I get something that's similarly unscuffed.My case is fairly special, I get that, but I would really like to be able to turn the brightness down even lower so I could use a less intense color shift in Night Light.If not for the "bad" points I mentioned, I would have given the display 5 stars.
Jared M.
originally posted on dell.comExcellent picture quality, but some impracticalities
24 October 2022
5 stars for gaming, particularly games with HDR capability. The contrast is unbeatable, with deep dark blacks and rich, bright and vibrant colours and highlights. I've mainly played Elden Ring so far which apparently has a poor HDR implementation, but I have seen no evidence of that, and the experience has been superb. Destiny 2 also offers crisp, fast and smooth gameplay with great contrast once configured. I can understand why there are so many YouTube reviews praising the visual quality of this monitor.However, there is definitely room for improvement with future models.While the screen itself is very thin, the heatsink, fan and electronics at the back of the screen are quite thick, meaning the monitor ends up being much closer than my previous Dell monitor, ... More5 stars for gaming, particularly games with HDR capability. The contrast is unbeatable, with deep dark blacks and rich, bright and vibrant colours and highlights. I've mainly played Elden Ring so far which apparently has a poor HDR implementation, but I have seen no evidence of that, and the experience has been superb. Destiny 2 also offers crisp, fast and smooth gameplay with great contrast once configured. I can understand why there are so many YouTube reviews praising the visual quality of this monitor.However, there is definitely room for improvement with future models.While the screen itself is very thin, the heatsink, fan and electronics at the back of the screen are quite thick, meaning the monitor ends up being much closer than my previous Dell monitor, even with a monitor arm instead of the excellent included stand. This has taken some getting used to and I find myself considering buying a deeper desk to allow the monitor to be further away and hopefully reduce eye strain...There are also some firmware issues which I hope will be fixed in future updates. The fan that cools the heatsink on the back of the monitor (necessary for QD-OLED screens to reduce the risk of burn-in) does not seem to ever operate consistently. Instead, it ramps up for about half a second, spins back down, then ramps up again, and this repeats as many times as is necessary to cool it down. This isn't a problem during gaming, since any game sound will drown it out, but for quiet everyday tasks it is super annoying. Thankfully it happens rarely outside of gaming, but it should be easily fixable with a firmware update.I have also found the AlienFX lighting to be a pain. Whenever I load up a game with HDR the monitor turns black for a second or two, presumably switching mode from SDR to HDR. I could tolerate this alone, but all of the RGB lights on the monitor seem to reset to the default blue colour whenever this happens, despite me manually changing them to other colours often.Finally, while the pixel refresh function is again necessary to prevent burn-in, it has popped up on screen once or twice during a game, which is very distracting and irritating.Overall, I don't regret my purchase as the visual quality of this monitor is head and shoulders above other displays that are available at the moment, and feels centuries ahead of my previous TN panel. If you can accept the practical criticisms listed above I am sure you will be extremely satisfied due to the quality of the visuals.
Scott
originally posted on dell.comGreat, but with some problems.
12 January 2023
The AW3423DWF QD-OLED monitor is the most significant upgrade I've made to a PC in years. The 1440p, 21:9, immersive picture quality is more than good enough compared to 4K, and thanks to its glossy screen coating it allows the vibrancy and the colors to shine more than a traditional matte screen coating. Currently running a RTX 3060 ti, and it is more than adequate to driving this monitor.However, if you are a sensitive individual like me that looks at the smaller details that may plague your purchasing decision, you may be hard-pressed to pulling the trigger on this monitor. Everything regarding the pros, consider checking out other reviews on the same webpage, as they sum up the monitor really well. I will be going over the cons about this monitor, why I gave ... MoreThe AW3423DWF QD-OLED monitor is the most significant upgrade I've made to a PC in years. The 1440p, 21:9, immersive picture quality is more than good enough compared to 4K, and thanks to its glossy screen coating it allows the vibrancy and the colors to shine more than a traditional matte screen coating. Currently running a RTX 3060 ti, and it is more than adequate to driving this monitor.However, if you are a sensitive individual like me that looks at the smaller details that may plague your purchasing decision, you may be hard-pressed to pulling the trigger on this monitor. Everything regarding the pros, consider checking out other reviews on the same webpage, as they sum up the monitor really well. I will be going over the cons about this monitor, why I gave it 3 stars and why I returned my unit. Keep in mind, these cons may affect different people, and the imperfections of many units may differ.*Smaller Cons*1. Text Fringing or the Triangle RGB pixel arrangement, if you sit pretty close to the monitor or sensitive to edges around text or windows, consider looking elsewhere. Fortunately, this did not bother me at all, since I sit about 28–32 inches away from the monitor at 100% regular scaling. Also, downloading a third party ClearType such as Mactype or "Better ClearType" software can help reduce problems in windows (this solution is not universal).2. Launch day firmware issues, if you are going to be doing HDR gaming, check Reddit forums for a full fledge HDR Optimization guide.3. This monitor does have only one fan, but it is much less noticeable compared to the AW3423DW variant4. Burn-in, this is a niche concern nowadays considering OLEDs have gotten better preventing burn-in and the nature of QD-OLED is supposed to be even better at image retention and long term burn-in, but it is worth a mention. Use screensaver after inactivity for 1-3 min, the monitor burn-in preventative strategies, and 3-year warranty should keep a piece of mind.5. Black Gamma Flickering, this can be remedied by reducing the refresh rate, but I wouldn't bother. This only happens in mostly dark scenes, loading screens, and menus whenever freesync/gsync is on. Best to turn off VRR for that particular game or application if you are having issues.6. Blacks turn pink or gray when hit by light, caused by the lack of a polarizer of the display. This can be easily resolved by changing the lighting of your viewing environment.Now, here are the major cons that were an immediate turn-off for me, and this may vary from person to person.**Major Cons**1. Severe Migraines/Flicker like Symptoms, I do not know exactly why I am having mental and psychological issues using this monitor. This happens whenever I am playing games, doing productivity work, media consumption, etc. I tried HDR and SDR (@120 nits) and I still was having issues. This can be a multitude of reasons and factors at play here.The PWM frequency determined by brightness isn't high enough (sensitive to the ~10% of the population of device users), due to the nature of how OLEDs work, some individuals may experience migraines and severe digital eye strain, consider sticking with an LCD for now. Whenever I was using the AW3423DWF within 30 min to an hour I start having mental problems, however when I switched back to an IPS panel, I can use my monitor for hours on end before I need to take a break. I even went to an optometrist to check up on my eyes. At that point, I feel like I was going crazy with myself and did not understand the difficulties at play here. Maybe my body and eyes are not use to OLEDs as a daily driver, or psychologically my brain can not stand the sheer nature of OLEDs, bruh imagine being allergic to OLEDs lmao.Another culprit can be me not taking enough breaks but even still, I drink plenty of water, exercise and always follow the "20-20-20" rule and still had some issues.The weird pixel layout or text fringing can be another culprit, but I do not seem to have issues with it.All in all, if you know you are having problems using an OLED display (Phones, TVs, Monitors), well you are going to have similar, if not more problems using this one as well.2. Questionable packaging, smudges, and marks on the display. I cannot fix the smudges made by the foam.3. New Tech and being an early adopter, if you do not mind trying out new tech and keeping your expectations in check, get this monitor as it does support firmware updates in the long haul. If not, wait for more options to come out, as this is the first QD-OLED generation to be made by Samsung display. At CES now, they are already resolving some issues with 2nd gen QD-OLED technology.In conclusion, while the 'F' variant is better than its twin sister, the AW3423DW, it's still got problems. The minor cons may have been relatively well known for the general consumer base regarding this monitor, but if you are someone that frequently has problems with OLEDs in general, or has mental and psychological issues with certain display technologies, I would not recommend picking up this item.
Daniel S
originally posted on dell.comGreat for me, but many deal-breakers for others.
24 August 2022
This monitor checks off almost every box on my monitor wish list, but brightness is the Achilles heel and the anti-glare solution is terrible.I do not own equipment capable of objectively measuring brightness, but I can tell you that I keep brightness on my monitors lower than anyone I know, and yet it's still a little dim to me. Brightness is already at the highest setting in the OSD from the factory, and contrast is turned up higher than any monitor I've owned just to compensate for the low peak brightness, which in turn makes the color fringing on white text much more noticeable. I've turned down the contrast a few percent to improve the color accuracy and reduce the fringing, but I had to sacrifice some brightness to do so.On top of that, the HDR 1000 ... MoreThis monitor checks off almost every box on my monitor wish list, but brightness is the Achilles heel and the anti-glare solution is terrible.I do not own equipment capable of objectively measuring brightness, but I can tell you that I keep brightness on my monitors lower than anyone I know, and yet it's still a little dim to me. Brightness is already at the highest setting in the OSD from the factory, and contrast is turned up higher than any monitor I've owned just to compensate for the low peak brightness, which in turn makes the color fringing on white text much more noticeable. I've turned down the contrast a few percent to improve the color accuracy and reduce the fringing, but I had to sacrifice some brightness to do so.On top of that, the HDR 1000 setting has such an aggressive automatic brightness limiter that it's unusable. The specular highlights get very bright (by my standards at least) on this setting, but any generally well-lit scene is aggressively dimmed. The HDR 400 setting is certainly a much better option than either the HDR 1000 or SDR settings, so I recommend running that, but know that any reviews raving about highlights on this monitor are probably using the HDR 1000 setting.Finally, the anti-glare solution is terrible. I've read that it has to do with the omission of a polarization filter, but I'm not going to pretend to know whether that's accurate. What I can say is that the glare (for lack of a better term) would be unacceptable to most potential buyers of this monitor. If you have any light sources in front of the monitor (even far to the sides and only slightly in front of the screen), any dark area is going to look like the grayish black levels of an LCD. Think a ceiling light, or a window. I have a window a few feet to the front-side of the monitor, and the monitor gets significant glare even with the blinds drawn. Nothing short of blackout curtains will prevent glare in my office during the daytime. The glare is manageable if the light source is behind the monitor, however. I have lamp to the back-right of the monitor on my desk, and this produces no significant glare.All of that said, I accept these issues because I almost always play games in the dark. I imagine these problems are going to be deal-breakers for most people, and to those people I'd say that a better monitor will come. This is arguably the best monitor right now for playing in a dark room, but I can say with pretty strong certainty that 5 years from now, I will have replaced this with something significantly better. And probably a lot cheaper.
Overpayer
originally posted on dell.comOLED Technology that actually works well as a day-to-day monitor!
25 August 2022
In short, as so many others have said, this is a phenomenal monitor, especially for gaming, but has also been very good for day-to-day desktop use. Thumbs-up for Alienware/Dell for jumping on QD OLED for a panel when they liked what they saw from the panel technology and implementing that new tech in a way that makes a very compelling to many.Pros:-Brightness levels (both sustained and peak) make the monitor suitable for all-around use (desktop, games and other content. In terms of text quality/color fringing, I have to be honest- I can’t notice it, not even by pixel peeping, after Cleartype adjustment on both my work and home pcs with Win 10 and 11.-all that is wonderful about OLED and then some. If you haven’t experienced OLED yet, it may not do your wallet ... MoreIn short, as so many others have said, this is a phenomenal monitor, especially for gaming, but has also been very good for day-to-day desktop use. Thumbs-up for Alienware/Dell for jumping on QD OLED for a panel when they liked what they saw from the panel technology and implementing that new tech in a way that makes a very compelling to many.Pros:-Brightness levels (both sustained and peak) make the monitor suitable for all-around use (desktop, games and other content. In terms of text quality/color fringing, I have to be honest- I can’t notice it, not even by pixel peeping, after Cleartype adjustment on both my work and home pcs with Win 10 and 11.-all that is wonderful about OLED and then some. If you haven’t experienced OLED yet, it may not do your wallet any favors (unless compared to the prices of current good HDR FALD Displays), but your eyes will love it, and it’s hard to go back. Great motion clarity without having to fidget with overdrive settings too much. Eye popping colors (I do notice that a little more with this QD OLED versus a LG WO-OLED that I own). The blackest blacks. The right way to do HDR imo.-34", curved and Ultrawide is fantastic for many uses- not too big, not too small.-Stand that comes with it is very impressive. Sturdy, all the adjustments, looks great. (Note- I am using an Ergotron LX Stacking Monitor Arm.-As many of reviewers have said, this is no budget buy, but what you get for the money is extremely fair, in my view. Great image quality comes at a price, but the AW3423DW really does deliver the experience.Cons:-Concerns about long term use. QD-OLED may be less susceptible to burn-in over time- we’ll see. But I think it’s safe to say that this technology is not as durable as LCD. Alienware does seem to implement good burn-in mitigation.-The gloss finish makes the panel look great when it’s on, and that’s what matters most. However, it picks up fingerprints extremely easily and looks like it’s half-applied when the panel is off. Seems to me that one wants to be very careful with how they clean/take care of this thing.-Very much a nitpick, but the back of the monitor seems creaky and plasticky when moving the monitor. Not as bad as Alienware cases, but there seems to be excess of material for looks here, definitely feels like a housing/cover.Longer review-I'm a long-time pc gamer and someone who works from home, and have used the AW3423DW for both for a few weeks now.I've become a huge OLED fan in the last couple of years, I own a 48" LG C1 for gaming/TV use that I tried as a daily driver home/work display, but the overall brightness was just too low, even in a fairly dim room, the automatic brightness limiter is obnoxious and eye fatiguing for desktop use, and 48" is just really big for me as a daily driver/desktop use monitor. My take is that the LG C1's are fantastic for gaming, but they're not "real" PC Monitors, more like gaming displays.I then switched from a 43" AORUS FV43U, (LCD VA Quantum Dot panel) that worked well for work use, but for games- it's good, but I’m afraid even a taste of OLED for gaming has pretty much ruined LCD/VA/IPS Technology for me, possibly even with FALD (haven't tried one yet). More below.I was actually a fairly late adopter to LCD for gaming, for two main reasons- one being motion/response/ ghosting, which has gotten much, much better over the years, of course, and the FV43U wasn't bad at motion at 4K 144 HZ (I'm not a competitive gamer anymore, so input lag is less important to me these days, although I can notice it).The second issue is still a present one for me, and that is image quality, and I've had just had some niggles with LCD over the years. The FV43U is respectable for desktop use and gaming and gets hella bright if you want for HDR, but if I put the IQ up against the AW3423DW, it's seriously NO COMPARISON. None. On both desktop and games, the FV43U looks totally blown out in comparison, the colors less vibrant and accurate. It’s a much bigger display so there’s an immersive element to that, but it’s very much quantity versus the quality of the AW3423DW. Even at 4k versus 1440p ultrawide.At least part of that difference is glossy panel versus matte/anti-glare, quite frankly. Most PC monitors have anti-glare (AG) treatments simply because they will work best in the widest variety of lighting conditions, particularly in bright rooms. However, if the user is using the monitor in a darker/light-controlled environment, glossy finishes look much better IMO. When someone says that "colors really pop" on a monitor, in my experience, very often what I’m noticing is in no small part because it's a glossy panel.The AW3423DW has a glossy panel coating, for sure, however, it is unusual, and I do have some concerns about it. The finish will catch a lot of fingerprints, which I don’t have a problem with, but when screen is off and I got a good look at the coating, it’s not uniformly glossy somehow- TBH it almost doesn’t seem like the panel has been finished, perpetually streaky, and doesn’t clean up very well. Now, when the panel is on it looks glorious, but I do question how that panel finish will hold up with time. I would recommend caution, I’m cleaning mine with microfiber and a little water, no chemicals.Back to image quality, I’ve literally owned dozens of monitors over the years, so I have become a bit of a snob over the years, although I won’t get into the weeds as much as some do. One thing that I’ve learned about myself is that if I must play around with the monitor settings (modes, motion settings, color settings) too much; if I keep fidgeting- I’m not happy with the display. With the FV43U, I kept fidgeting. Acceptable, not great. With the C1, looks great, but then the ABL kicks in and ruins it as a monitor, no way I can work on that thing without getting a service remote, disabling it and voiding my warranty. With the AW3423DW- great out of the box. Based on some settings I’ve read about online, Creator mode in sRGB at 50% panel brightness, and I’m happy as can be. It’s also very reassuring that I don’t have to drive the panel brighter to get the brightness levels I want, I must say.I would highly recommend this monitor for any number of users, but certainly gamers who don’t care about 4k as much they do a great gaming experience and something that also works for all-around use.Some notes about OLED in general- I do think that depending what else comes along, OLED seems to have a most promising future. There are roll-up and flexible OLEDS, and the tech just keeps getting brighter and better. What I would say, in general, is that one of things about OLED is the panel can be made so thin, it’s something to really show off. However, roll ups and flexible OLED aside, the main issue with OLED, whether the more common WO-OLED or newer QD OLED panels, is heat. If you can properly cool the panel, you can driver it harder/brighter and thus might be able to mitigate having to use too much ABL and make the panel last longer to boot. THAT is the way forward IMO. All well and good to have a really thin display, but even better to have one that looks amazing and lasts for a long time.
Will E
originally posted on dell.comStunning display quality.
5 September 2022
For a TL;DR, this monitor is stunning cutting edge technology. If you are looking for a desktop gaming OLED gaming experience this will be your best option currently.As for a longer review, I really love this monitor. Coming from the AW3418DW, its a huge step up. Moving from a 120hz (overclocked) VA panel, to a 144hz (10-bit color) lower latency QD-OLED panel, has my images popping a ton more, with lower latency, all at the same mid ground resolution of 3440x1440. I like the ultrawide aspect ratio for ease of use when multi-tasking on the desktop, and the size of the 34 inch monitor is the maximum I can easily drop into the my setup. The slimmer stand compared to the first iteration also allows my keyboard to sit ontop of it as my desk its fairly short.For ... MoreFor a TL;DR, this monitor is stunning cutting edge technology. If you are looking for a desktop gaming OLED gaming experience this will be your best option currently.As for a longer review, I really love this monitor. Coming from the AW3418DW, its a huge step up. Moving from a 120hz (overclocked) VA panel, to a 144hz (10-bit color) lower latency QD-OLED panel, has my images popping a ton more, with lower latency, all at the same mid ground resolution of 3440x1440. I like the ultrawide aspect ratio for ease of use when multi-tasking on the desktop, and the size of the 34 inch monitor is the maximum I can easily drop into the my setup. The slimmer stand compared to the first iteration also allows my keyboard to sit ontop of it as my desk its fairly short.For gaming, this monitor is amazing. Ever since I first tried OLED all the way back with the original PS vita, I have been chasing that quality for a desktop gaming environment. I have an OLED tv which I never really set up cleanly for gaming, and a gaming laptop which I loved to play lower demanding RPG's on. But this is the first time I have been able to comfortably sit at my desk and just live that life with everything. This monitor is NOT at it's best with content consumption however due to the aspect ratio. However it is much better than the edge lit AW3418DW as instead of seeing the backlight in the corners when you are full screening 16:9 content, the sides now just turn off which is neat.There isn't much to complain about this monitor in terms of usage. My main gripes would be centered around the lack of innovation with the design. Instead of using a modern A - C or C - C hub for this "cutting edge" monitor, they went with an OLD USB A - B connector. No included C - DP cable, or even USB C input on the monitor. I complain about this as I did get a mini DP cable in the box which is nice (not that I needed it), just why not something a little more modern? The HDMI port is also only 2.0 so you can't run it at full speed off that port (I think its max 85hz). It feels a little lazy, or they were rushed to get this thing onto the market first. Other than the choice of I/O, the only other gripe would be the panel protection pop ups, which you can thankfully disable ( and if Reddit was right, it still automatically runs the protections when the monitor turns off). If they had consistently popped up like they were, it would have been an easy game breaker.Overall, coming from an older LCD panel, you can immediately see the difference when daily driving QD-OLED. Many game scenes with various lighting objects amidst a dark scene LOOK AMAZING. I will say, office tasks are a bit easier to eye up on something like my dimmer side monitors, but this thing absolutely kills it in any gaming scenario. I do recommend upgrading to Windows 11 for auto HDR if you plan to get more out of your display without finagling around with menus, as it has been helping me out a bit. I do recommend this display to anyone with way to much of a gaming budget, and interested in one of the bigger display jumps available on the market today.
Garrett S.
originally posted on dell.comThe best PC gaming monitor you can buy.
26 July 2022
This is easily the best monitor you can buy right now. There are issues, but most of them aren't the fault of the monitor itself, more in the support on the PC side. HDR support is not the best it should be at the moment and not a whole lot of games properly take advantage of HDR support, but when they do, they elevate what looks like other rather rubbish and mediocre looking games into something they were supposed to look like to begin with.Jedi Fallen Order looks like a different game with HDR turned on with this monitor. Doom Eternal is eye seeringly great to look at. Star Wars Battlefront 2 looked amazing before, and looks perfect with HDR turned on this monitor that fully supports it.If you want to play games and have a good experience viewing anything in ... MoreThis is easily the best monitor you can buy right now. There are issues, but most of them aren't the fault of the monitor itself, more in the support on the PC side. HDR support is not the best it should be at the moment and not a whole lot of games properly take advantage of HDR support, but when they do, they elevate what looks like other rather rubbish and mediocre looking games into something they were supposed to look like to begin with.Jedi Fallen Order looks like a different game with HDR turned on with this monitor. Doom Eternal is eye seeringly great to look at. Star Wars Battlefront 2 looked amazing before, and looks perfect with HDR turned on this monitor that fully supports it.If you want to play games and have a good experience viewing anything in HDR, this is the monitor to get. Nothing else on the monitor market comes close. The color, the response times and quality of the picture, everything. I'm an average level FPS player, but in several matches in Halo Infinite, I was hitting impossible shots that even on some of the best monitors I've used. I would've never hit those shots if it weren't for being on this monitor instead.The only things I wish this monitor had was support for console with HDMI 2.1, and had use DSC for the DisplayPort to allow for 10bit RGB color depth at 175hz and maybe slightly larger sizes with 36" or 38" models.This is also my first time using a 21:9 monitor, and a curved one at that. I can say that they got the curve right to where it's not really a bother at all. I would like to see a 36" version or 38", since it feels a little bit short in that regard, but it is close enough. The curve also does help in making games that support 21:9 more immersive. And even on games that are still stuck in 16:9, it doesn't feel as bad or as noticable as say how on a 16:9 monitor, 4:3 could be bothersome.Despite what you could say, I'm aware of other issues as reviewers and others have noted such as the text issue (which I haven't really noticed or had), the fan issue (which I don't hear at all with my model), etc. But regardless of it all, this is easily the best monitor I've ever owned.
Angel
originally posted on dell.comSpecification
| Display | |
| RGB colour space | DCI-P3 |
| Screen shape | Curved |
| Color gamut | 99.3% |
| Pixel density | 110 ppi |