Ultrawide 1440p monitors

Blueyoshi03 · 31 Aug 2018 at 16:43

I’m completely confused and torn between what to do in terms of upgrading my display at this point because there’s so many conflicting opinions on the options out there. I’m looking for an ultrawide, 100hz+, gsync, with good contrast but I just want it to work. I want VA cos of the darks but I hear how there is ghosting, overshooting, flickering and how VA is worse than a flaming pile of trash according to some. IPS also sounds like a cool option since I have a quantum dot IPS 4K tv and looks stunning for colour but is pretty poor at dark scene, however I hear about IPS glow all over the shop.

I think my options at the moment are between the Z35P, X34P, AG352UCG6 and whatever the Alienware one is. I’ve read and watched all the reviews and find some saying that all of the above are stunning, yet have also heard from others how these are the worst screens they’ve experienced. I’m also hearing some people saying ultrawide is in such a state at the moment that it’s only worth buying 16:9 atm. I would rather not even bother buying a high end monitor now if I’m only going to be buying another expensive monitor when 21:9 are less problematic.

I’m currently using a bog standard 16:9 1080p TN 60hz, but don’t see the point buying something over 7 times the price and be disappointed by smearing, ghosting, glow, flickering or something like this.

Is there anyone out there that has had a good experience across the board with an ultrawide 1440p high refresh monitor? I’m mostly leaning toward the Z35P but would appreciate any input to why that might be a good or bad option.

Legend · 31 Aug 2018 at 17:12

Well first of all, you can ignore the extremes... anyone saying a monitor is the most amazing thing since sliced bread, and others who say it's worse than death.

VA will give you better blacks at the expense of worse colour accuracy (no big deal unless you do professional work), but also with some ghosting and overshoot. That said, the LG 32GK850G is probably the best VA panel you can get at the moment with very little of either... I had one myself and can attest to that, but unfortunately I returned two of them due to stuck pixels/dust. The Z35P (and AOC AG352UCG6 which uses the same panel) do suffer from this based on reviews I've read, so it's something to be aware of. How much it will bother YOU though is impossible to know. Some people certainly seem more sensitive to it than others.

There is the Asus PG35VQ and Acer Predator X35 which are due out sometime late 2018/early 2019, although no one really knows and could be delayed beyond that. These both feature a VA panel, G-Sync, 35" curved with 512-zone FALD HDR @ 200Hz. Definitely ones to watch out for as these could be quite stunning, but the price is no doubt going to make us cry ha!

On the IPS front, the upcoming LG 34GK950G/F (G-Sync and Freesync) is, based on latest info, due out in November, but both will be over £1K. The cheaper Dell AW34 and Acer X34P use a slightly older UW4 panel vs the UW5 that will be in the LG's. The UW4 is 100Hz native and overclocks to 120Hz, but both monitors have been known to suffer from flicker. The Dell however, is apparently deemed to be faulty if it does so, which is a good thing... albeit frustrating if you have to return it. Not sure if that applies to the Acer. I have seen the Dell for as low as £850, which isn't bad. The UW5 panel in the LG is 144Hz native, but maxes out at 120hz in the G-Sync version due to the 1.2 G-Sync module it uses. The Freesync version will run all the way to 144hz plus has 1ms MBR... the G-Sync doesn't, but it's hard to say if that will matter to everyone or not. Both versions will feature Nano IPS but no one really knows if that's going to make that much difference.

IPS monitors are always going to suffer from BLB/Glow to some extent... it's inherent to the technology, but very much a lottery as to how bad it is on any given monitor. I've noticed IPS TV's do seem to fair better in this regard, although I'm not sure why. With a TV though, you are limited to 60Hz unless you downscale to 1080p with HDMI 2.0 and you can then hit 120Hz.

I own an original X34 myself and it does suffer from some bleed, but it's never bothered me that much. I'd like to do without it, but I've come to accept it as part of the territory with IPS. I'd find it hard to switch back to 16:9, although the time I spent with the 850G was actually OK, as it was a similar width to my X34. I certainly couldn't go back to 27" 16:9 now though.

Blueyoshi03 · 31 Aug 2018 at 17:24

Thank you very much for the detailed response!

I guess it’s now just, buy now and hope I’m not disappointed by the current condition of ultrawides under £1k or wait until the fancier ones release early 2019; but considering the prices will be ridiculous I would guess only 2020 will show affordable desirable displays.

Man I can’t wait that long so unless something changes my mind by the RTX release I’ll put my money on the Z35P

Legend · 31 Aug 2018 at 17:26

Blueyoshi03 said:
Thank you very much for the detailed response!

I guess it’s now just, buy now and hope I’m not disappointed by the current condition of ultrawides under £1k or wait until the fancier ones release early 2019; but considering the prices will be ridiculous I would guess only 2020 will show affordable desirable displays.

Man I can’t wait that long so unless something changes my mind by the RTX release I’ll put my money on the Z35P

I think based on what's available NOW, I'd say either the Z35P or Dell AW34 would be good shouts. As OCUK don't sell either, I'd advise buying on the rainforest if you can, as their return policy is super easy and they won't question you returning it for any reason. Given how much of a lottery a monitor purchase is, this will give you more piece of mind.

Jim Jervis · 1 Sep 2018 at 17:12

I love ultra wide, couldn't go back to 16.9 now, I have the Acer X34a and had zero issues with it. Just get what takes your fancy and don't worry to much about any negative views on it, chances are you'll wonder what the hell they were moaning about.

chaparral · 2 Sep 2018 at 13:49

Jim Jervis said:
Just get what takes your fancy and don't worry to much about any negative views on it, chances are you'll wonder what the hell they were moaning about.

Many people moan because they go looking for something to moan about...

mohawk · 3 Sep 2018 at 09:33

I have the AG352UCG6 Black edition and im happy with it. i had the asus pg279q previously (well about 6 of them) i ended up getting a refund due to either awful backlight bleed or stuck/dead pixels.

after the issues i have had with ips im not sure i could go back to an ips again, ive had too many issues to trust them at the moment!

Radox-0 · 3 Sep 2018 at 10:49

Like others once you go 21:9 you can't go back

With that said, some people do get kinda poor panels with the IPS ones sadly, I did with my initial one, but the replacement panel work's perfect.

In regards to support, most modern titles and even older ones support the resolution very well out the box. Out of the 70 or so titles I have launched this year, only a few had issues with the resolution out the box, but it seems there is enough people with the format in the community that popular titles which do not support it out the box get a fix or tweak posted to get things working pretty quickly.