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

It is kind of interesting that Alienware is releasing a slightly updated model so soon after the first one.

Have they done this before? Released just a little bit different version of the same monitor 6 months later?

Does that mean that current model has known issues and the only way to fix them is release a new updated displayw ith slightly updated tech?

I'm in the market for an OLED screen like this, but makes me worried is it just not the one to buy. Are there too many issues? Better to wait for a new panel?
The reason they are releasing this so close to the other one is because it's going to be the non identical twin of the Samsung Odyssey OLED G8. They either testing it for Samsung or they waited for Samsung to finish that monitor so that they could just customize it in their own flavor minus crippling the refresh rate by 10Hz.
 
I'm in the market for an OLED screen like this, but makes me worried is it just not the one to buy. Are there too many issues? Better to wait for a new panel?
I would wait if you can. The AW3423DW is great, but I would wait for some reviews in case the freesync one is a clear winner for some reason.
 
So the PS5 1440p limitation is an asinine Sony thing and not an issue with the 23dw, unless Sony enables 1440p VRR, the 23dwf won't do it either fwiw.
 
I agree with Vegeta535 that it's a cheaper Freesync alternative more than an update, even though I'm sure Dell took note of the comments. Still I'm looking forward to hear some user feedback on this alternative. I have a feeling a lot of the annoying quirks of the original model will be lessen. At the same time it is still using the same panel, so there are limits to how much improvement we'll see. I don't expect much difference for text clarity for example, if that was something you were sensible too. It'll also be interesting to see how much of the problems of the original came from the GSync module and if any new problems arise from the lack of module.
Text clarity has always been an issue of the subpixel arrangement vs OS subpixel smoothing rather than anything the controller does.

I hope that Dell has learned their lesson by making this variant firmware upgradeable. Shame they did not make it support HDMI 2.1 in the process.
 
Does anybody have any intermittent HDMI connection issues using one of the new Macbook Pros? Mine goes black for a few seconds once every hour or so. Already tried swapping HDMI cables, no dice.
 
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Yah, makes you ponder if we're not there yet with these panels and if waiting for the next iteration would be wiser.

Personnaly, the way I'd use it (pitch black wallpaper, no taskbar, no icons), it would only work when gaming or playing content. My side screens would be used for normal day to day work. So that shouldn't really be an issue. But it's still a bit of a hassle to have to worry about burn-in when you haven't had to deal with that kinda of stuff for the last ~20 years...
 
Yah, makes you ponder if we're not there yet with these panels and if waiting for the next iteration would be wiser.

Personnaly, the way I'd use it (pitch black wallpaper, no taskbar, no icons), it would only work when gaming or playing content. My side screens would be used for normal day to day work. So that shouldn't really be an issue. But it's still a bit of a hassle to have to worry about burn-in when you haven't had to deal with that kinda of stuff for the last ~20 years...
My monitor has 0 burn-in (checked on full screen grey, yellow, and red, not on content like some kind of idiot...) and I've been using it with 0 precautions for 4.5 months. I don't hide the taskbar, and I do work 8-10 hours per day plus some gaming and other stuff, probably 10-12 hours a day normal usage. Brightness setting is 50 and almost all SDR.

I do use dark mode in everything though, but that's largely due to personal preference as I hate white backgrounds on any display.

This is a PC monitor with a 3-year burn-in warranty, so I'm using it as a PC monitor. I have no interest in screwing around, and frankly it doesn't even cost very much. If I have to replace it in 4 or 5 years after the warranty expires, that's totally fine. I'll probably want an upgrade by that point anyway.
 
My monitor has 0 burn-in (checked on full screen grey, yellow, and red, not on content like some kind of idiot...) and I've been using it with 0 precautions for 4.5 months. I don't hide the taskbar, and I do work 8-10 hours per day plus some gaming and other stuff, probably 10-12 hours a day normal usage. Brightness setting is 50 and almost all SDR.

I do use dark mode in everything though, but that's largely due to personal preference as I hate white backgrounds on any display.

This is a PC monitor with a 3-year burn-in warranty, so I'm using it as a PC monitor. I have no interest in screwing around, and frankly it doesn't even cost very much. If I have to replace it in 4 or 5 years after the warranty expires, that's totally fine. I'll probably want an upgrade by that point anyway.
This minus me checking for burn ins lol. I don't know about others but part of me wishes something does fail in about 4-5 years that way I have an excuse to "Upgrade" lmao
 
Been rocking mine a month now, absolutely love this monitor. Bought it open box at microcenter for 1k and what a deal. This thing looks just fantastic no matter what type of game I play. The auto brightness thing was annoying at first but I've gotten used to it.
 
Been rocking mine a month now, absolutely love this monitor. Bought it open box at microcenter for 1k and what a deal. This thing looks just fantastic no matter what type of game I play. The auto brightness thing was annoying at first but I've gotten used to it.
Just checked my MC and they have it listed at $1750. The fuck? One open box for $1169...
 
Just checked my MC and they have it listed at $1700. The fuck? One open box for $1200...
That's odd, brand new they were going for 1350, but Dell was running a sale around then (Labor Day), so that could be the reason.
 
Finally got Dell to ship me a new replacement, sleep/shutdown bug is definitely gone in MB102 firmware, July build, packaging seems to be better in there are barely any bubble wrap marks on the screen now and it seems they made the AR coating glossier so it absorbs less light.
 
Finally got Dell to ship me a new replacement, sleep/shutdown bug is definitely gone in MB102 firmware, July build, packaging seems to be better in there are barely any bubble wrap marks on the screen now and it seems they made the AR coating glossier so it absorbs less light.
When did you put in the request? I have a stuck pixel on mine, plus the firmware issues, been kinda waiting to put an RMA request in till they resolved most of their problems.
 
When did you put in the request? I have a stuck pixel on mine, plus the firmware issues, been kinda waiting to put an RMA request in till they resolved most of their problems.
About two weeks ago, tried 3 refurbs in Aug that were worse than original so finally called and bitched politely to a decent support person.YMMV.
 
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The guy at MC said they get shipments 3 days a week, and it's random what they get in, don't know ahead of time.

Check in couple times a week in the afternoon to see if it's in.
 
Microcenter got a new batch of shipments on these. I'm so tempted, but wondering if it's worth the $1400 price compared to my 2 year old AW3420DW? Is it a massive noticeable difference, or just a bit?

Games I'm playing;

World of Warcraft
BF 2042 sometimes
I plan to try New World
I plan to buy Halo Infinite once CoOp comes out
 
Microcenter got a new batch of shipments on these. I'm so tempted, but wondering if it's worth the $1400 price compared to my 2 year old AW3420DW? Is it a massive noticeable difference, or just a bit?

Games I'm playing;

World of Warcraft
BF 2042 sometimes
I plan to try New World
I plan to buy Halo Infinite once CoOp comes out
Probably not if you don't have any complaints about your black levels. HDR is great on this monitor but HDR as a whole is still hit or miss depending on the game etc. IMHO, black levels are the reason to get this monitor. Horror games and space sims are so much better on this thing than an IPS. Just my opinion of course.
 
Probably not if you don't have any complaints about your black levels. HDR is great on this monitor but HDR as a whole is still hit or miss depending on the game etc. IMHO, black levels are the reason to get this monitor. Horror games and space sims are so much better on this thing than an IPS. Just my opinion of course.

That's what am I thinking too, thanks. I bought the LG C2 42" last month, and returned couple days later. Was not as wow'd or blown away by it as expected.

I have a C2 65" for my home theater and it's AMAZING, I watch Sci-Fi and Fantasy shows, or Stranger Things, and it looks jaw droppingly good. That TV is an immediate noticeable upgrade.

But the 42" for gaming just didn't have that punch to me, colors look good, but not drool worthy or anything, yes blacks were PERFECT, I play World of Warcraft mostly, with no deep blacks, I didn't really notice a night and day difference on the C2 42" compared to my AW3420DW in WoW.

I also play some Battlefield and stuff, and yeah the C2 looked nice, but again, not mind blowing major upgrade over my 3420, as far as image quality goes.
 
For gaming which is better?

10bit @ 144hz

8bit @ 175hz

Which gives a more vibrant colorful beautiful image, but also smooth as butter.
 
For gaming which is better?

10bit @ 144hz

8bit @ 175hz

Which gives a more vibrant colorful beautiful image, but also smooth as butter.
entirely up to you, 10bit vs 8bit, just means less banding in colors like in the sky.. otherwise if you don't care to much about that, go 8bit with the higher refresh rate.
 
I currently have the AW3420DW the past two years. And with it calibrated have pretty happy with it all this time. I primarily game on it and use it just for typical desktop stuff.

I got bored and wanted to go a big screen again so picked up the LG C2 42-in last month but a weekend later I returned it. First off the colors actually didn't seem that vibrant and did not pop to me like expected. Yes, the blacks were amazing and dark content looked awesome. Also it was awfully large. I have the monitor within an arms length of my face.

I returned it and then picked up the 38" AW Ultrawide, and man that 38 inch size might be the damn near perfect size. But the screen was way too washed out and terrible backlight bleeding, no blacks just greys.

So now I'm back on my 34" AW3420DW and thinking give the C2 42" another chance? Or go for the OLED Alienware? Main thing I want are punchy vibrant colors that pop, along with the ultra smooth response time. Yes deep blacks are great too, but the colors are #1 to me, and the butter smooth frame rate #2 and the deep inky blacks #3.
 
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I currently have the AW3420DW the past two years. And with it calibrated have pretty happy with it all this time. I primarily game on it and use it just for typical desktop stuff.

I got bored and wanted to go a big screen again so picked up the LG C2 42-in last month but a weekend later I returned it. First off the colors actually didn't seem that vibrant and did not pop to me like expected. Yes, the blacks were amazing and dark content looked awesome. Also it was awfully large. I have the monitor within an arms length of my face.

I returned it and then picked up the 38" AW Ultrawide, and man that 38 inch size might be the damn near perfect size. But the screen was way too washed out and terrible backlight bleeding, no blacks just greys.

So now I'm back on my 34" AW3420DW and thinking give the C2 42" another chance? Or go for the OLED Alienware? Main thing I want are punchy vibrant colors that pop, along with the ultra smooth response time. Yes deep blacks are great too, but the colors are #1 to me, and the butter smooth frame rate #2 and the deep inky blacks #3.
Colors pop on the QD-OLED
IMG_3148.JPEG

IMG_2555.JPEG
 
Hey, has anything changed with the AW3423DW on Windows 10 when it comes to being turned off? Today, I noticed when it is turned off, Windows 10 still acts as if it is connected?

Before, whenever it was shut off, Windows would move everything to my secondary monitor. Common for turning a Displayport monitor off. With Alienware's, this was extra annoying due to it shutting off during sleep for the frequent pixel refresh every 4 hours.

Today, I noticed after waking my PC up, while the Alienware was off like usual, and my Cintiq woke up like normal, my login screen wasn't visible on the Cintiq, it was actually on the Alienware. Windows 10 still things it's there even though it was off.

Right now, if I manually turn off the Alienware (Displayport), I hear a beep from Windows, like hardware being removed, but my my software and windows stays on the Alienware screen. Yet, when I turn off the Cintiq, not the primary display, its windows moved to the Alienware. So odd.

I don't know if this is due to a recent Windows 10 update, Nvidia Driver update, or something to do with the Gigabyte 4090 I just installed.
 
Interesting. Looks like the new AW3423DWF may indeed support firmware update as shown here. If true, I'm pleasantly surprised!

On the other hand, looks like it will still have at least 1 fan in there.
 
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