Any reason not to get a dell U3818DW?

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urapnes

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Title says it all. I don’t game much at all. Looking for a good monitor for office work. I really like the kvm functionality as this monitor will support two different computers...one USB-c, the other via DisplayPort. From what I can tell, the U3818DW was released in 2018, and it sounds like dell refreshes their monitors every 3 years, so 2021 would be the next time this model gets a refresh.

Is there any news of a new 38-ish sized monitor that might be a step up from this one being available reasonably soon?

I tend to keep my gear for a while. I am happy with my ACD27, but would like the kvm functionality as well as more pixels.
 
https://downloads.dell.com/manuals/all-products/esuprt_electronics_accessories/esuprt_electronics_accessories_monitors/dell-u3818dw-monitor_user's-guide_en-us.pdf
Page 53 implies the KVM cannot be used with DP-Alt Mode on the USB-C connector (basically, cannot have "single cable docking" for your laptop and use the KVM function at the same time).

The KVM aspect is hard for me to really go for or against, since I really like the concept of a good KVM. They are just expensive, lol.

That being said, the problem is solvable, using a separate USB-C dock with charging. Not as pretty as having a single cable, and has the potential to be a bit wasteful.
 
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Realistically, the 38'' market is...not a hot one. You get LG panels, and as far as I can tell there are a couple of 2016 models, and a couple of 2019/2020 models. I'm not altogether sure which one (or which variation) the U3818DW uses.

In any case, on paper, the only potentially meaningful differences between the panels are refresh rates (the newer ones can do 144Hz) and (the tech behind the wide) gamut. The faster refresh rates don't really cut any ice with office work. When it comes to gamut, though, we may be coming to a point where the wider gamut makes sense.

[As a long side note, in case this is helpful for anyone not overly familiar with monitors and colour spaces, there have been wide gamut monitors for ages. They were even common when the OP's ACD was released; IIRC that monitor should have the standard 98% sRGB gamut (like the Dell has as well) and, well, Apple is not the type of company to shun ostensibly fancier imaging. The key issue is that the Windows world has been an 8-bit (per channel), sRGB world by default. This means 256 colours per channel, and plenty of software defining colour based on the assumption only 256 colours (per channel) exist, and they occupy the SRGB colour space.

These assumptions don't hold true when you change the colour space. The monitor still tries to split the intensity of the colour according to a 256 point scale, but because there is a wider gamut of colours, things break: say, the shade of red:225 is more saturated in the wide gamut monitor than intended. I suppose this is a roundabout way of saying that the colours don't match. Over the past decade or so, the way colours are defined has been changing to avoid this pitfall, but that's been a protracted process. Windows 10 seems to be finally moving towards decent wide gamut support, though.

But alongside software, there are hardware hurdles. To access a wider gamut of colour, you need more bits - so the broader colour spaces rely on 10 bits per channel (so 1024 colours per channel). This means that everything from the graphics cards, to the monitor innards, and ending with the monitor panels, must support 10 bits per channel. This, however, has been an absolute dog's breakfast. Between "10 bit monitors" which really are 8-bit + techy cheating, to graphics cards outputting 10-bit, but only in directx (i.e. not for regular office use), it's been a tortuous road. With the HDR standard, though, there may finally be light at the end of the tunnel, even if only for new(er) hardware.]

So, getting back on track, for pure office work, a newer model (if it is indeed released within the next year) is unlikely to include upgrade-worthy changes. The resolution is likely to be the same (so no more free pixels), as are the benefits / pitfalls of viewing angles and contrast. The one key difference may (because specs are unknown at this point) be the gamut. It is quite possible the new monitor will support HDR600, but the extent to which that may be a neat feature will depend on how dimming is implemented / all your hardware doing 10 bit / you being willing to deal with colours being off in (legacy) software.
 
I really appreciate the responses so far. Going to save the $1k and see what comes out later. I’m not in a rush.
 
urapnes said:
I really appreciate the responses so far. Going to save the $1k and see what comes out later. I’m not in a rush.
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Yeah, that's probably what I'd do. Mind you, I only recently parted ways with a fancy, but 15 year old, screen, and that was only because I moved overseas.

Out of interest, have you tried one of these large screens in the flesh? I've only ever tried one once, but I wasn't immediately impressed; it felt less flexible than a dual monitor setup, and I'd have to adjust my workflow. Obviously, your mileage may vary - particularly depending on whether you'd find it useful to have one ginormous window (say, for photo editing).
 
setekh said:
Yeah, that's probably what I'd do. Mind you, I only recently parted ways with a fancy, but 15 year old, screen, and that was only because I moved overseas.

Out of interest, have you tried one of these large screens in the flesh? I've only ever tried one once, but I wasn't immediately impressed; it felt less flexible than a dual monitor setup, and I'd have to adjust my workflow. Obviously, your mileage may vary - particularly depending on whether you'd find it useful to have one ginormous window (say, for photo editing).
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I’ve used a mono price 32” 4k for the better part of a year at work. 32 is the smallest I’d ever use for 4k (run 100% scaling). Tried 27 4k and the text was too small (I had to run 100% scaling for my work application). The 32 was a nice size, but the monitor itself sucked from an ergonomics standpoint. I really require something easy for my wife to plunk her laptop down and use, while at the same time, letting me connect my desktop to the same display. Ease of switching is critical. Built in speakers are a plus, as is the ability for the keyboard and mouse to connect as well.
 
jeremyshaw said:
https://downloads.dell.com/manuals/all-products/esuprt_electronics_accessories/esuprt_electronics_accessories_monitors/dell-u3818dw-monitor_user's-guide_en-us.pdf
Page 53 implies the KVM cannot be used with DP-Alt Mode on the USB-C connector (basically, cannot have "single cable docking" for your laptop and use the KVM function at the same time).

The KVM aspect is hard for me to really go for or against, since I really like the concept of a good KVM. They are just expensive, lol.

That being said, the problem is solvable, using a separate USB-C dock with charging. Not as pretty as having a single cable, and has the potential to be a bit wasteful.
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Incorrect, use it for single cable docking with my P53 laptop daily.
 
Lol, they did issue a couple of firmware updates for this monitor but it has always worked for me. Worked on my PN60 which I sold to another member recently and on my Lenovo P53 laptop without issue: need USB-C with DP (or TB3 which is basically the same thing afaik) for it to work though.
 
Just switched over to USB C on my 2080 ti desktop and can confirm that it works both for USB C and DP , almost fascinating that such a small connector can replace legacy HDMI, DP etc. with faster speeds of TB3 to boot. They should just switch to USB C everything soon.
 
Wouldn't you be better off with 2 20" inch screens for every 40" you're thinking of buying?

Less costly and more modular. Why do people like these extra large single units?
 
FOSS-I said:
Why do people like these extra large single units?
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Can't speak for all people, but personally do because 2/3 monitor setups mess with my eyes when changing focus from one monitor to the other even on same model monitors (not sure if refresh/brightness diff is the cause or something else). And to a lesser extent, find a big 16:9 screen easier to rearrange, you can switch to full screen no borders in an instant, and have windows on 2 sides just as easy (am using GridMove with keyboard shortcut for that). Am using 32" 4k screen now, could tolerate a little wider maybe (not higher) but don't really want to give up PPI for it (the 38" while bigger, come with lower PPI although still adequate).
 
FOSS-I said:
Wouldn't you be better off with 2 20" inch screens for every 40" you're thinking of buying?

Less costly and more modular. Why do people like these extra large single units?
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the war on bezels hasn't been won yet.

I've had a 55" sony 4k for the past few years as my home office display. I've had an LG OLED in my online cart for costco since it went down to $1299. I have a pair of 34" UW's at work and I prefer a large single screen Ever since win 10 brought us quarter snapping the multiple monitor thing has been dead.
 
mkrohn said:
the war on bezels hasn't been won yet.

I've had a 55" sony 4k for the past few years as my home office display. I've had an LG OLED in my online cart for costco since it went down to $1299. I have a pair of 34" UW's at work and I prefer a large single screen Ever since win 10 brought us quarter snapping the multiple monitor thing has been dead.
Click to expand...

My setup right now is one monitor right ahead of me and another off to the side. This seems preferable vs one big and long flat screen. However I'm mainly interested in office productivity.

So what I'm saying is that my screens aren't even touching each other. There's quite some air space between them. Frankly this set up works really well for me.
 
I like the 55" Samsung js9000 from 2015 be great to have a g sync 55" display to replace it.

It's great for single player games but you do lose a bit when doing fps
 
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