Dell Alienware AW3423DW 34″ QD-OLED 175Hz (3440 x 1440)

[ziocomposite]

While I don’t doubt what you’re saying, he’s not wrong you know. Having BFI for lower refreshes would allow all games to look good. One of my favorite things to do when I got my “new” CRT monitors back in the day (F520, Artisan, FW-900) were to go back and play my favorite games on them. Not all games support cranking the refresh to 175hz. If they allowed a BFI mode that simply gave us that 5.7ms of image persistence at all refreshes then that would have been more than sufficient.

To me it feels like a “so close yet so far”. But yes - we should praise it for what it is too. This is a HUGE step in the right direction and should be praised as such.

For someone who is a die hard CRT because of the clarity aspect in all refresh ranges then I would not suggest this monitor. I do agree with giving users the option to have it. Kind of surprised as a "G-Sync Ultimate" didn't have such a basic function.

That being said, this is absolutely the closest and IMO currently the best monitor out in regards to image fidelity/clarity. I too am excited as this is going to set the trend for better displays moving forward. Monitor tech is so behind everything else, but this really is the turning point.

 

[Sancus]

Fellow Canadians, did any of you receive or have you order ship ?

Just received an email from Dell pushing back my delivery back to June. I ordered on March 9th.
Reading all the feedback so far makes me wish I had the monitor in my hands, but oh well.

Same email. Disappointed, but not surprised. Seems pretty clear they prioritized shipping to Canadians below US orders made at the same time or even later.

Just going to keep my order and see what happens.

 

[l88bastard]

Full SDR desktop brightness @HDR400 setting with HDR off is about equivalent to the PG32UQX @ 50% brightness

 

[jbltecnicspro]

For someone who is a die hard CRT because of the clarity aspect in all refresh ranges then I would not suggest this monitor. I do agree with giving users the option to have it. Kind of surprised as a "G-Sync Ultimate" didn't have such a basic function.

That being said, this is absolutely the closest and IMO currently the best monitor out in regards to image fidelity/clarity. I too am excited as this is going to set the trend for better displays moving forward. Monitor tech is so behind everything else, but this really is the turning point.

If I had the money to throw at it I’d absolutely get it. If anything I want to support these screens. More please! I don’t wish to belabor the point. I think we all agree more than disagree.

Hopefully the next generation will feature BFI or maybe a firmware update will enable it. That being said - doesn’t Gsync require BFI for certification? Or am I thinking wrongly here?

 

[brownvim]

Samsungs own version which is yet to release will probably have BFI but they haven’t done it well on the Odyssey screens.

They should get BlurBusters to look at it ideally.

 

[MistaSparkul]

If I had the money to throw at it I’d absolutely get it. If anything I want to support these screens. More please! I don’t wish to belabor the point. I think we all agree more than disagree.

Hopefully the next generation will feature BFI or maybe a firmware update will enable it. That being said - doesn’t Gsync require BFI for certification? Or am I thinking wrongly here?

No it doesn't. My Acer X27 lacks BFI and so does the PG32UQX I believe.

 

[undertaker2k8]

As someone who has tried over 50 displays over the past decade, this one is very very good. My only wish is that it were 38 or 40 inch but I am also a realist and will take and enjoy what I can today.

 

[Ankle]

Dell AW and UltraSharp are the best for panel lottery, they once shipped me 5 U2312s before I got one I liked.

Considering Dell’s pixel policy requires more than one dead these days I’d feel much better with Costco’s 90 day returns and no restocking fees or return shipping. I’d feel awfully burned getting stuck with 15% restocking and return shipping if they dick me around over one. Heck I’d rather deal with Amazon at that point having done Dell RMAs before for horrific day 1 burn in on two ultrasharps from the same batch.

And if I gotta wait longer I’d much prefer how the Samsung looks looks with everything else on my desk.

Also not enthused by a post on Reddit for a RMA of this display and being told by Dell they won’t have a replacement until June. That would make playing the lottery a real pita.

 

[Ziggy_Stardog]

Dell still showing my US order "in production" and still says it's still gonna make it by the 3/16 delivery date.

::Crosses fingers::

Update 3/13:
Well crap .. delayed til 5/5/22.

 

[Frameless]

Listen...I'm only gonna say this one time. This monitor is fucking incredible for gaming. I have had EVERY monitor from FW900s to the PG32UQX. Every oled from that failed 31" double strobe 60hz Dell to the curved C6 LG, to C7 LG, to C9 LG and now the C177 LG.

I've had the X34, the 38"UW, the G9 Neo..........Crimminy I've even had the catleap, mango & zisworks modified seiki!

Nothing touches this thing. Nothing. You think you know, but you have no idea.
Its motion clarity, sharp picture and out of this world HDR has blown my mind!

I just played Horizon Zero Dawn for the first time ever. This is a game I would never play...ever.... WHOLEEE FUGGGIN CHITTTTT it looks so damn good its mind melting! The motion clarity is almost CRT like...its right there man....almost better actually because you have the fast crispness.

I don't wanna hear any looser talk about BFI, lack of speakers, lack of DSC, lack of thunderbolt/USBC..... once you try this crazy ass thing, none of that shit will mater!

Cheezus...I can't believe i'm creamin my panties over a 1440peee display....but its that damn good!

PS

BF2042 Uninstalled, Angel does it again! Can somebody direct me to a good modern competitive FPS, with HDR, that is not cartoony or trash or EFT (because I already have a job)?

Don't be sad that's just how it is sometimes!

Good to see someone with experience give their take. Then again, even someone with a lot of experience can be an ignoramus about certain things. Not saying you are.

 

[Frameless]

Samsungs own version which is yet to release will probably have BFI but they haven’t done it well on the Odyssey screens.

They should get BlurBusters to look at it ideally.

It has a matte coating, if you like that crap. I think some people are in for a surprise when companies try to release self-emissive displays with a matte AG coating. On LCDs it might not be so noticeable, but if you just have some light in the room, it will become very noticeable on a OLED how bad it looks when the matte coating traps the light and reduce perceived contrast. FYI: All top model TVs, whether OLED or LCD has a glossy AG coating.

 

[jbltecnicspro]

It has a matte coating, if you like that crap. I think some people are in for a surprise when companies try to release self-emissive displays with a matte AG coating. On LCDs it might not be so noticeable, but if you just have some light in the room, it will become very noticeable on a OLED how bad it looks when the matte coating traps the light and reduce perceived contrast. FYI: All top model TVs, whether OLED or LCD has a glossy AG coating.

Plasmas didn’t have matte coating either.

 

[Soulshot96]

What about the Nvidia reflex latency analyzer? It should be under the Gsync section of the menu.

There is no Gsync section that I have found, or heard about. Just a little Game Enhance Mode section in the Game menu, and it only includes a timer, fps counter and display alignment option.

I don't think the latency analyzer was ever confirmed though, was it? Just heard rumors.

 

[wizziwig]

I'm going to check D65 but it's very likely to suffer metamerism and need an AWP.

See you on Sunday.

Nice to see you here wizziwig.
Using 10% vs 100% windows definitely measure differently even on WRGB OLED, but it should maintain decent consistency through the grayscale. These appear to have less aggressive ABL so I'd expect them to perform a little better there.

Nice to see you here too. Looking forward to reading your results. You might be the first calibrator to post feedback since HDTVtest will take weeks for a full evaluation.

When you do your "before" measurements, try with different window sizes and different menu brightness settings. One of the combinations should align with the printed factory calibration report that Dell includes in the box. Last 15.6" mobile OLED panel I looked at aligned with the factory calibration only using 100% window and max brightness. It was much less accurate at more sensible SDR brightness settings.

Also try my old < 5% near-black gradation pattern. Really curious how far down you can resolve the pattern once it's calibrated for SDR and whether there is any visible tinting in any of the steps.

For anyone who missed the earlier posts about it, Windows has a convenient SDR/HDR toggle shortcut that might be useful when you're not HDR gaming.

Windows logo key + Alt + B

Turn HDR on or off. Note: Applies to the Xbox Game Bar app version 5.721.7292.0 or newer. To update your Xbox Game Bar, go to the Microsoft Store app and check for updates.

 

[Pastuch]

There is no Gsync section that I have found, or heard about. Just a little Game Enhance Mode section in the Game menu, and it only includes a timer, fps counter and display alignment option.

I don't think the latency analyzer was ever confirmed though, was it? Just heard rumors.

I'm not surprised, it's additional hardware and manufacturers typically put it on the super high refresh displays like these:

 

[ChaosCloud]

I'm curious if the monitor can run 1920 x 1080 @ 175 Hz (over displayport). Any lucky owner want to give it a try?

 

[Judd Sandage]

I'm curious if the monitor can run 1920 x 1080 @ 175 Hz (over displayport). Any lucky owner want to give it a try?

well according to the manual there is no profile built in for it, so you might be able to get it to work if you create a user profile in windows or the GPU driver.

 

[SH1]

I don't get any eyestrain from this freakishly amazing gaming display.

Also
Ufo test @ 960 pixels sec is a thing of beauty!
175hz top
88hz middle
44hz bottom


1920 pixels sec still clear
1920 too fast to capture with phone lol.....but you can follow with eyes....its fantabulous
starts to get a lil blurry at 2560 haha

View attachment 452926

Do these UFO images mean we have to get games running at 175 Hz before they start to look clear? Even with a 3090 I don't think I can do that. Cyberpunk worst example maybe...IQ cranked, but DLSS, I'm only able to do about a solid 72Hz at 1200P.

Ordered two with one definitely going to my folks. They've moved on from CRT for sure. However, I still have it seems a great working FW900. Not sure what I'll end up doing for myself....

 

[jbltecnicspro]

Do these UFO images mean we have to get games running at 175 Hz before they start to look clear? Even with a 3090 I don't think I can do that. Cyberpunk worst example maybe...IQ cranked, but DLSS, I'm only able to do about a solid 72Hz at 1200P.

Ordered two with one definitely going to my folks. They've moved on from CRT for sure. However, I still have it seems a great working FW900. Not sure what I'll end up doing for myself....

Correct. It’s sample and hold. So your best clarity will come from 175hz. 60hz will really be no better than ye olde LCD monitors - I don’t care how fast those pixels will transition.

Edit: looking at the image and honestly it’s a hair better than my plasma at 60hz. Definitely worse than my Viewsonic XG monitor*

*At motion clarity!!! Obviously this thing wipes the floor with my plasma and IPS monitor in every other regard - I’m aware of this!

 

[MajorMullet]

Just got my order delay email - new estimate May 3

 

[christpunchers]

How does this compare to a well calibrated FW900? I’ve recently moved to a new city and need a new monitor that can at least match the FW900.

Can the Alienware be color calibrated on a hardware level sorta like what you can do with the Sony CRT’s? Meaning you calibrate the color across all modes, then you just go ahead and play. Don’t need to fiddle with any other software or profiles.

 

[Ziggy_Stardog]

Just got my order delay email - new estimate May 3

Same. New date 5/5. Ordered at 5am cst 3/9.

 

[ChaosCloud]

60hz will really be no better than ye olde LCD monitors - I don’t care how fast those pixels will transition.

Actually at 60 Hz instant pixel transition will make motion look worse than on an old LCD monitor. For the same reason that playing a game at 24 fps feels noticeably choppier than watching a typical 24 fps film - The film has motion blur "baked in" to each frame which softens the frame to frame transition. The slower pixel response on an older LCD has a similar effect.

 

[jbltecnicspro]

How does this compare to a well calibrated FW900? I’ve recently moved to a new city and need a new monitor that can at least match the FW900.

Can the Alienware be color calibrated on a hardware level sorta like what you can do with the Sony CRT’s? Meaning you calibrate the color across all modes, then you just go ahead and play. Don’t need to fiddle with any other software or profiles.

I would assume it has RGB level controls like any other screen. Does it have high/low (gain/bias on the GDM)? Don’t know. In any case, I’ve found that most newer monitors have excellent grayscale tracking with just a single set of RGB controls, so it should be fine I would think.

Keep in mind that this monitor has a wide gamut so you will need to manage that somehow. All Samsung screens that I’ve had in the last few years have had excellent sRGB modes (where the color gamut is mapped properly to sRGB so that the colors aren’t incorrect), so I expect this to be the same.

Not sure about newer titles but most titles out there are more or less designed with sRGB in mind. I say more or less because I don’t think any CRT monitor of the past did beyond Rec 601 colorspace, which didn’t quite reach sRGB. . So I’m not sure which titles truly are sRGB or not. All this to say that unless the game says otherwise (if it touts that it’s designed for wide gamut or HDR or what), assume you’re using the sRGB mode for accurate colors.

 

[undertaker2k8]

CRTs belong in history books now, dumped my last one in 2009 (as in literally left it at the dumpster).

 

[Draver]

What are your thoughts on longevity?

I've never owned an OLED (even less a QD-OLED obviously) so I'm not speaking from experience. I haven’t received the screen yet, with a delivery pushed back in June. I have a busy screen usage schedule with 8 hours of work followed by gaming/streaming time in the evening. My screens stay on around 14-18 hours a day, every day.

Since nobody really knows how QD-OLED will behave in the long run, my plan to maximize the screen life was to use my secondary IPS monitor for most day-to-day stuff, emails, browsing, etc., and keep the AW3423DW free of all static elements with a black wallpaper, no taskbar, and no icons. I'm thinking, the black screen is really the ultimate "screen saver" where you really only use the screen when you actually need it. I've already put all my desktop icons on the secondary IPS monitor with my usual wallpaper on it (thanks to DisplayFusion) and move the taskbar on it, trying it out.

I still plan on using the AW heavily for work when I need the screen space. Considering the screen will be active almost all the time, I'm thinking that removing all those static portions of the desktop should help with longevity. I don’t want to stress too much about it, but at the same time I want to maximize the life of the screen. I have a feeling they may have over engineered the AW3423DW as far as burn-ins.

 

[Odellus]

Considering it comes standard with a three year warranty that covers burn-in, I'd say it'll last a while. Don't think Dell would do that if they expected them to burn-in quickly.

There are people on here that have been using LGs for years with several thousand hours of screen time that don't have any burn-in, and this is supposed to be more resilient than that, so... not too worried about it.

If you plan on keeping it for as long as possible, I would definitely have a second monitor for other stuff.

 

[jbltecnicspro]

CRTs belong in history books now, dumped my last one in 2009 (as in literally left it at the dumpster).

Agreed. It’s just frustrating that we have yet to have a display that can match it on motion clarity (without resorting to being even dimmer than CRT’s to get it).

 

[l88bastard]

What are your thoughts on longevity?

I've never owned an OLED (even less a QD-OLED obviously) so I'm not speaking from experience. I haven’t received the screen yet, with a delivery pushed back in June. I have a busy screen usage schedule with 8 hours of work followed by gaming/streaming time in the evening. My screens stay on around 14-18 hours a day, every day.

Since nobody really knows how QD-OLED will behave in the long run, my plan to maximize the screen life was to use my secondary IPS monitor for most day-to-day stuff, emails, browsing, etc., and keep the AW3423DW free of all static elements with a black wallpaper, no taskbar, and no icons. I'm thinking, the black screen is really the ultimate "screen saver" where you really only use the screen when you actually need it. I've already put all my desktop icons on the secondary IPS monitor with my usual wallpaper on it (thanks to DisplayFusion) and move the taskbar on it, trying it out.

I still plan on using the AW heavily for work when I need the screen space. Considering the screen will be active almost all the time, I'm thinking that removing all those static portions of the desktop should help with longevity. I don’t want to stress too much about it, but at the same time I want to maximize the life of the screen. I have a feeling they may have over engineered the AW3423DW as far as burn-ins.

That's what I'm doing. Pg32 as primary for work and surfin an slower games that i want 4k detail.... aw34 for fast fps and whatever else I feel like.

 

[l88bastard]

Agreed. It’s just frustrating that we have yet to have a display that can match it on motion clarity (without resorting to being even dimmer than CRT’s to get it).

Motion clarity is pretty damn awesome when you can maintaine 175fps.

Games like Halo MCC, BF4, Horizon Zero all hit 175 easily and look incredible motion clarity wise. Add in HDR, better contrast & blacks vs crt and better image crispness and CRT is finally dead.

 

[Pastuch]

Motion clarity is pretty damn awesome when you can maintaine 175fps.

Games like Halo MCC, BF4, Horizon Zero all hit 175 easily and look incredible motion clarity wise. Add in HDR, better contrast & blacks vs crt and better image crispness and CRT is finally dead.

If you enjoyed Shadow of Mordor and Shadow of War, those games will look absolutely stellar on this display (they look amazing on my woled) and 175fps should be quite attainable.

 

[jbltecnicspro]

Motion clarity is pretty damn awesome when you can maintaine 175fps.

Games like Halo MCC, BF4, Horizon Zero all hit 175 easily and look incredible motion clarity wise. Add in HDR, better contrast & blacks vs crt and better image crispness and CRT is finally dead.

Fair enough. I'm not going to keep arguing. When BFI is an option then I'll concede that it reigns supreme. I would concede that now. I'm just pointing out that it's frustrating to have to hit 175 fps to get this screen's clearest motion clarity when simply implementing a decent BFI option would suffice. Your typical user doesn't change displays the way they change video cards. Having to hit that framerate will be difficult to do in the long run and will force people upgrade more frequently. Whereas if it had a BFI option, you could lower the framerate and still retain the benefits of OLED.

Put another way. Most video cards these days would still sweat to maintain the FW900's max res and refresh (2304x1440 80hz). And if you're in a situation where you need to lower the resolution or refresh rate, you still get to enjoy that clear picture. Also - there's a lot of legacy content / console ports that are locked at 60 fps. With this monitor I'm staring at 16.7 ms of image persistence, which is awful. The screenshots you uploaded - my plasma looks almost as clear, and I don't need 175hz to get that clarity.

Again - this screen is great. Lack of BFI was a stupid omission and even more tragic when you consider the peak brightness this screen is capable of hitting. It should easily match LG CX's 4.2 ms of image persistence and be brighter to boot. That's all I'm saying. Enjoy your screen. I hope they continue to make these and refine them because I myself will eventually join you all on the OLED wagon.

 

[l88bastard]

Fair enough. I'm not going to keep arguing. When BFI is an option then I'll concede that it reigns supreme. I would concede that now. I'm just pointing out that it's frustrating to have to hit 175 fps to get this screen's clearest motion clarity when simply implementing a decent BFI option would suffice. Your typical user doesn't change displays the way they change video cards. Having to hit that framerate will be difficult to do in the long run and will force people upgrade more frequently. Whereas if it had a BFI option, you could lower the framerate and still retain the benefits of OLED.

Put another way. Most video cards these days would still sweat to maintain the FW900's max res and refresh (2304x1440 80hz). And if you're in a situation where you need to lower the resolution or refresh rate, you still get to enjoy that clear picture. Also - there's a lot of legacy content / console ports that are locked at 60 fps. With this monitor I'm staring at 16.7 ms of image persistence, which is awful. The screenshots you uploaded - my plasma looks almost as clear, and I don't need 175hz to get that clarity.

Again - this screen is great. Lack of BFI was a stupid omission and even more tragic when you consider the peak brightness this screen is capable of hitting. It should easily match LG CX's 4.2 ms of image persistence and be brighter to boot. That's all I'm saying. Enjoy your screen. I hope they continue to make these and refine them because I myself will eventually join you all on the OLED wagon.

See you in 2-3 years when the next monitor comes out!

 

[SH1]

Fair enough. I'm not going to keep arguing. When BFI is an option then I'll concede that it reigns supreme. I would concede that now. I'm just pointing out that it's frustrating to have to hit 175 fps to get this screen's clearest motion clarity when simply implementing a decent BFI option would suffice. Your typical user doesn't change displays the way they change video cards. Having to hit that framerate will be difficult to do in the long run and will force people upgrade more frequently. Whereas if it had a BFI option, you could lower the framerate and still retain the benefits of OLED.

Put another way. Most video cards these days would still sweat to maintain the FW900's max res and refresh (2304x1440 80hz). And if you're in a situation where you need to lower the resolution or refresh rate, you still get to enjoy that clear picture. Also - there's a lot of legacy content / console ports that are locked at 60 fps. With this monitor I'm staring at 16.7 ms of image persistence, which is awful. The screenshots you uploaded - my plasma looks almost as clear, and I don't need 175hz to get that clarity.

Again - this screen is great. Lack of BFI was a stupid omission and even more tragic when you consider the peak brightness this screen is capable of hitting. It should easily match LG CX's 4.2 ms of image persistence and be brighter to boot. That's all I'm saying. Enjoy your screen. I hope they continue to make these and refine them because I myself will eventually join you all on the OLED wagon.

A very frustrating omission. The picture on my FW900 and F520s is still gorgeous. And that UFO thing best I can tell is crystal clear on the CRT. Much better than those images from the Dell. It's 2022. This should not even still be a thing at this point. Sorry. </rant>

EDIT: I'm not cancelling my orders though. QD-OLED is awesome by all accounts. Maybe a better and more meaningful comparison at this point is against other flat panel technologies as opposed to comparing it to CRT, which apparently will be taking some unique advantages to the grave...

 

[kasakka]

Full SDR desktop brightness @HDR400 setting with HDR off is about equivalent to the PG32UQX @ 50% brightness

View attachment 453087

So basically it has a more sensible range of brightness than most monitors nowadays that seem to be designed to be used outdoors on a sunny day based on how bright they get.

Could you take a few closeup pics showing how the same text looks on these? How do you feel about the difference yourself? Obviously it's not going to be quite the same thing as the 4K screen is higher res.

 

[ziocomposite]

Yes but no lol, Display settings in windows shows "Desktop resolution 1920x1080" with "Active signal resolution 3440x1440"

I'm curious if the monitor can run 1920 x 1080 @ 175 Hz (over displayport). Any lucky owner want to give it a try?

Couple of images:
Loading Screen of Horizon Zero Dawn compared to x34 Predator (2015), text close-up.

 

[Zepher]

What are your thoughts on longevity?

I've never owned an OLED (even less a QD-OLED obviously) so I'm not speaking from experience. I haven’t received the screen yet, with a delivery pushed back in June. I have a busy screen usage schedule with 8 hours of work followed by gaming/streaming time in the evening. My screens stay on around 14-18 hours a day, every day.

Since nobody really knows how QD-OLED will behave in the long run, my plan to maximize the screen life was to use my secondary IPS monitor for most day-to-day stuff, emails, browsing, etc., and keep the AW3423DW free of all static elements with a black wallpaper, no taskbar, and no icons. I'm thinking, the black screen is really the ultimate "screen saver" where you really only use the screen when you actually need it. I've already put all my desktop icons on the secondary IPS monitor with my usual wallpaper on it (thanks to DisplayFusion) and move the taskbar on it, trying it out.

I still plan on using the AW heavily for work when I need the screen space. Considering the screen will be active almost all the time, I'm thinking that removing all those static portions of the desktop should help with longevity. I don’t want to stress too much about it, but at the same time I want to maximize the life of the screen. I have a feeling they may have over engineered the AW3423DW as far as burn-ins.

there is a pixel refresh feature built into the monitor that runs for a few minutes when you turn off the monitor, I am guessing this helps negate burn-in.

 

[GameLifter]

I tried some older games on it last night that don't have in-game motion blur as well as Doom: Eternal with motion blur turned off and I am very impressed with the motion clarity. High refresh rates plus OLED pixel response times is the closest we are going to get to CRT motion clarity without BFI and having to deal with its drawbacks.

 

[Arkanian]

Are there going to be any 38” OLED screens coming out this year? I would jump on this screen but I currently am using a 30” 16:10 screen and cannot give up 2.5” of vertical space.

 

[l88bastard]

I tried some older games on it last night that don't have in-game motion blur as well as Doom: Eternal with motion blur turned off and I am very impressed with the motion clarity. High refresh rates plus OLED pixel response times is the closest we are going to get to CRT motion clarity without BFI and having to deal with its drawbacks.

If you have a 3080 or better try Horizon Zero, it's HDR and high refresh rate / motion clarity is a total panty dropper.