Overall Experience: The picture is more beautiful than a monitor has any right to be. Playing games (especially in HDR) on this thing will make you feel like you’ve been playing games wrong your whole life. This is the nicest thing I own, and I’m not even ashamed of that, nor do I deserve it. If you’re in the market for a high end gaming monitor, buy this one. Full stop.
Price vs alternatives (and my biggest dilemma):
So let’s get the big thing out of the way early- this thing is expensive. But if you’re in the market for a high end monitor with all the bells and whistles, this is the one. I was biting my nails over whether to go with the (few) 4K monitor that has similar features (true HDR, G-Sync, high refresh rate, low latency) at 27” or to go with this one at lower resolution with a larger/curved screen and I feel really good about making the call to go with this model.
First off, I would argue that at less than 32 inches (and possibly bigger), the difference between 4K and 2k is somewhere between negligible and not observable by the human eye. This is debatable, but if you’re on the other side of the fence on this one, just go buy a 4K monitor. Now factor in that the only real competitors to this monitor in terms of features AND available at 4K resolution are only available in 27 inches (at time of writing; bigger options are allegedly coming out and priced at roughly twice the price of this monitor), I think this monitor is an easy win over those options. The immersion in/appreciation of graphics you will get out of the larger and ultra wide, curved form factor, in my opinion, outshines a monitor with the same features in a flat screen in 4K at 27”. This monitor is more expensive than some of those options, but when you’re talking about a price point of over $1000 for a gaming peripheral, the price difference might be negligible for you. So if you’re in the same dilemma as I was, that is my personal take on it, and I don’t regret the decision for a second. For reference, I watch UHD movies on a 55” 4K TV and have never once thought “man I wish the resolution on that monitor was twice as good (or even a touch better)!” Just because you have a GPU that can run smooth 4K, doesn’t mean a 4K monitor will give you a better experience 100% of the time. If you need to feel like you’re on the bleeding edge by having a 4K monitor thats totally legit but it’s a different argument. My final point on this: If this monitor were available in a 4K option for $500 more (and lets be real, it would be way more than that), I still would have gone with this model.
Other features:
HDR: After you play in HDR 1000, you can’t go back. You’ve been warned.
Refresh Rate: Higher refresh rate than you will need. This is a good thing.
G-Sync Ultimate. Man, it just works better than FreeSync and I’m sorry but it does. It’s hardware, not just software and it’s the difference between helping to reduce screen tearing And stuttering (FreeSync) and eliminating it entirely (G-Sync). This upgrade stresses out my GPU a little on some games on ultra settings compared to my old one (running a 2070 on this machine, I’m upgrading soon, chill), but G-Sync means it STILL runs smoother on this thing. It’s actually nuts. Whatever monitor you go with, shelling out the extra cash for a monitor with G-Sync is worth it.
Curved Screen: This was also my first curved monitor, and I was more nervous than excited about it. Don’t be like me. Be excited. It’s awesome. The curve is just the right angle to be immersive but not distracting. Ultra wide is the way to go for gaming for sure, but it’s also underrated in productivity. If you’re working from home and in spreadsheet purgatory like me for a large portion of your day, having 3 windows open at once comfortably lets you escape just a little bit faster. And if that excites you like it excites me, I’m sorry, but at least you’re not alone. (Pro tip: for productivity turn off HDR and turn on the blue light filter so you don’t burn out your retinas).
Construction: It’s put together pretty beautifully. The stand is rock solid and it’s a heavy beast, but that’s kind of what you want in a monitor this expensive. It also comes totally assembled out of the box which is a nice little bonus. It also has really convenient settings buttons (even a little joystick).
Fixes: Some reviews state that the fan settings causes noise that is quite loud and annoying- at time of writing, this seems to have been fixed. I never noticed an issue (I do typically wear headphones while using this monitor). If you do, allegedly - recent and easy to instal firmware update solves this. I have installed the firmware update and haven’t so much as noticed the fan even when not using headphones and sitting 3 feet away from my monitor, or behind it. I would consider this issue solved. I’ve also seen some complaints about flickering screens; I haven’t experienced this at all.
Cons (ish?):
Expect to fiddle with color settings. I used the NVIDIA interface and found it to be pretty painless.
This monitor has built in speakers. They’re fine for general productivity, but they won’t win any awards, that’s for sure. They make sound which is better than no sound and are loud enough for general productivity. They’re more of an added free bonus (compared to the ASUS model with the same panel). That is all I’ll say about them though. They are speakers.
I notice some halos with bright colors on black screen. It is VERY noticeable when viewed from off/odd angles, but from straight on (the way a curved screen is meant to be viewed), you’ve almost got to be looking for them to find them. This is the only real con in my opinion, and it’s so barely noticeable I can’t say it has negatively impacted my experience in any way yet.
Price. I lied, the price is another con. Not saying it’s not worth it- if you’re going to spend more than $1000 but less than $3000 on a monitor, this is probably one of the best options available, but it will still hurt to click “buy”. And if it doesn’t... well then why are you reading this- go buy an 8k TV and pick up a 3090 in a few weeks like the other rich kids, and send me one of each to boot!
| Standing screen display size | 32 Inches |
|---|---|
| Screen Resolution | 3840x2160 |
| Max Screen Resolution | 3840 x 2160 |
| Number of USB 3.0 Ports | 1 |
