Best Value Ultra Widescreen LCD Monitor in 2020

scrimshaw on 16/06/2020 - 17:16
Last edited 17/06/2020 - 12:31

Now that it's midway through the year and the deals are now on, I believe now is a good time as any to re-start the What Should I Buy discussions and to talk about what are the best high resolution, ultra-widescreen monitors are for 2020. We'll be focusing on monitors that are at least 34 to 35 inches in size… and in a price range that 'most' people should consider reasonable.

And there's a monitor for every budget. Here is a list of some bargains currently:

The aptly named Kogan KAMN34QUSA is priced lower than $500, currently selling for $450 at the time of writing. It features a 1440p 75hz (non-curved) display. On paper, this is a good entry level option for those who don't play games. Not height adjustable.

The Asus VP348QG has similar specifications, for $599. Like the Kogan, the display isn't curved either and does not swivel / not height adjustable.

Kogan KAMN34FXQULA is a value oriented, mid-range display with a VA Panel @ 144hz, HDR400 Certification with no height adjustment. The high refresh rate makes it a good candidate for gaming on a budget price bracket. Typically goes on sale for $600-ish.

The Samsung c34h890wje features a 144hz 100hz VA panel for less than $800. It also has a USB Type C port with power delivery. As Samsung sells this intended for business use, the monitor stand features height and swivel adjustment, a feature that is typically omitted from Kogan's offerings

The Lenovo G34w-10 also features a Samsung 144hz VA panel for $900 but seen for less than $700 when on sale. Has height adjustable and swiveling stand. Stock can be a little hard to find.

Titan Army N34QW costs $700-ish and features a Samsung made VA Panel @ 144hz and HDR400 certification. Not height adjustable / swivel.

The Acer Predator X34p is a high end G-SYNC enabled monitor with IPS panels at 100hz. Priced currently over $1000. Great choice for people with Nvidia graphics cards and does not want any compromise at all with display technology. Height adjustable + swivel.

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This is part of What Should I Buy poll for 2020. Check out other recommendations from the OzBargain community.
Computing 34inch 38inch Acer Alienware ASUS Computer Peripheral Gaming Monitor Gigabyte Kogan LCD Monitor Lenovo Samsung Titan Army What Should I Buy Xiaomi

Comments

  • payton on 16/06/2020 - 17:41

    The Asus VP348QG … the display is not curved however, but it might be a good thing for some people?

    That one only does 75hz :(
    I sorta disagree with calling the listed items as the best "high end" screens of 2020. Newer models have come out, granted they are not under $1K, but high-end and cheap normally aren't together.

    Went to HN months ago to have a try at their 27" curved screen setup.
    I honestly reckon it'd be too much effort to try to adjust to curved screens. Buyer's regret and annoyance would soon set in after purchase (especially with the new models costing $1200 and up). Just couldn't adjust to the fact that there are no straight lines and tables on screen, everything is angled and crooked.

    Not much of an issue if its being used mostly for games and movies, but don't people spend too much time already on those and thus further incentives are actually a bad thing.

  • Axelstrife on 16/06/2020 - 18:12
    Suggested LG G34GN850

    LG 34GN850
    Easily the best out right now.

    I typed the suggestion model incorrect, please fix.

    • yfxsmike on 01/07/2020 - 22:26

      Have been looking for this one for a while now, no stock anywhere

    • gelilloabad on 02/11/2020 - 23:10

      I have this monitor and I am incredibly happy with it, but not sure it fits into "value" category, if goes for ~ $1,600

      • Axelstrife on 03/11/2020 - 03:25
        +1

        This post was changed to "value" after i made this comment. It was originally asking for the best ultrawide.

  • cille745 on 16/06/2020 - 18:13
    +2

    None of these are really 'high end'. Best 34 inch would be the LG one for $1599, and the best 49 would most likely be the Samsung G9 that's meant to release this month which is 5120 X 1440 at 240hz

    • Switchblade88 on 16/06/2020 - 21:31
      +1

      Just needs to be renamed 'Best Value Ultrawide monitors 2020', perhaps?

      Then we've got the best value for money with the Kogan, along with the best quality in the Acer.

      I mean, at $450 I'd buy a couple which would sort me out at work!

      • scrimshaw on 16/06/2020 - 23:10
        +2

        Good call, will focus on value proposition instead rather than just focusing on the extreme end of the spectrum.

        • Switchblade88 on 16/06/2020 - 23:16
          +3

          Excellent!

          I'm here for the pub parmies, not macarons haha

      • rodericb on 23/06/2020 - 14:29

        Best cheap UW monitors. There are this lot, then the ones which band around $900 to near $2k and then the crazy stuff like that Asus 35" inch ROG 200hz for near $4k!

  • netjock on 16/06/2020 - 18:25

    I expect quite a bit of difference between a $500 and $1000 monitor, don't think it is a fair comparison.

  • Domingo on 16/06/2020 - 18:48

    The Samsung c34h890wje features a gaming-ready 144hz VA panel for less than $800. It also has a USB Type C port with power delivery.

    The Samsung monitor VA panel runs at 100hz. Source

    • Axelstrife on 17/06/2020 - 10:11

      The G7 is a 16:9 monitor not an ultrawide.

  • Riczter on 16/06/2020 - 21:27
    +1
    Suggested LG 38GL950G

    No love for the LG 38GL950G? Only $3000… One Powerball…

    • cille745 on 16/06/2020 - 22:06

      Don't know how they can justify these kind of costs when oled TV's exist for the same price

      • Axelstrife on 16/06/2020 - 22:17

        TV's aren't ultrawide.

        • cille745 on 17/06/2020 - 00:47

          You could easily run said TV at 3840 X 1600 like this monitor, and it would still be a better experience

          • Riczter on 17/06/2020 - 00:51
            -1

            @cille745: No it wouldn't. You dont buy a gaming monitor for screen size or resolution, you buy it for high refresh rates and low response times.

            • cille745 on 17/06/2020 - 09:14

              @Riczter: You do know that LG's new TV's all include G-sync and do 4k at 120hz with a response time of 0.1ms right? Literally better than this in almost every way for the same price, and on top of that you get HDR and much better image quality

              • beeze on 17/06/2020 - 22:49

                @cille745: OLED is very susceptible to screen burn. Games and computing use a lot of static images.

                OLED is not currently suitable for desktop and potentially not a good idea for long periods of console gaming.

                I also don't understand how vsync will work without display port, my understanding is its not supported over HDMI.

              • beeze on 17/06/2020 - 23:00

                @cille745: I think input lag is more relevant than response time, think the new gen is down to 13ms, pretty good.
                Are all the OLED's glossy? Deep blacks are great, seeing my reflection not so much.

                • cille745 on 18/06/2020 - 00:33

                  @beeze: If you look up the Rtings test on burn in its described in detail and is something to watch out for. Also keep in mind that these tests have been done on TV's that are 3+ years old, before they doubled the size of the red subpixel to slow burn in. Even at 10,000 hrs of Call of Duty, none of the HUD has burnt in.

                  It's a Gsync compatible display that uses HDMI VRR.

                  Yes 13ms is around right. Fastest IPS monitors on the market have 3ms of input lag and 4ms response time, so its relatively close.

                  Yes, OLED's are all glossy, but the reflection filter on top of the glass does work quite well. It isn't monitor good, but it's certainly better than a phone

  • Raffyboi on 17/06/2020 - 11:39
    Suggested AOC cu34g2x

    (https://www.centrecom.com.au/aoc-cu34g2x-34-ultrawide-qhd-ad…)

    Free delivery, better brand than the Kogan, maybe the sweetspot in price vs specs atm

  • scrimshaw on 17/06/2020 - 12:18
    Suggested Kogan KAMN34FXQULA

    Kogan KAMN34FXQULA added to the list.

    Added more info on height adjust / swiveling stands for each model
    Corrected refresh rate typo on Samsung c34h890 monitor

  • cosmokram3r on 20/06/2020 - 02:59
    +1

    Absolutely LOVE my X34P. Could not recommend any higher

    • BuIIy on 18/10/2020 - 18:52

      Love mine too. Only wish it supported Freesync too

  • dogzilla on 21/06/2020 - 00:34

    X34p, best thing ever

  • ecomm-deals on 23/06/2020 - 15:39

    is this any good? kogan-28-ultra-hd-4k-freesync-monitor
    https://www.kogan.com/au/buy/kogan-28-ultra-hd-4k-freesync-m…

    • scrimshaw on 23/06/2020 - 15:52

      That's not ultra widescreen. It's a regular 16:9.

      • ecomm-deals on 23/06/2020 - 20:17

        ohh yeah thats a regular one :(

  • fab boy on 25/06/2020 - 21:00
    +1

    I love my AOC CU34G2X. Paid $859 incl delivery + got $100 steam code from AOC promotion.

    • dadgamer on 30/06/2020 - 20:44

      im trying to find on in stock, have the cash burning a hole in my pocket :(

  • EnALup on 29/06/2020 - 11:04

    Good value for money.
    27", IPS, 1440p, 144hz, freesync and low latency. Was around $400

    • scrimshaw on 29/06/2020 - 11:30

      That's not ultra widescreen. It's a regular 16:9.

      • EnALup on 29/06/2020 - 14:10
        +1

        Aha. Should have read the title. Ignore the suggeston please.

  • NotAnAudiophile on 05/07/2020 - 18:30
    +1

    Can I ask why everyone is voting for the predator x34p?

  • MustResistPurchase on 07/07/2020 - 11:29

    Do any of these have dual input so I can have a laptop on one side and my desktop on the other?

    • scrimshaw on 07/07/2020 - 14:25

      Most monitors, even smaller and basic ones typically have at least two inputs. You do have to manually select a source though usually via the OSD button.

      • MustResistPurchase on 08/07/2020 - 09:49

        Sorry I should've been more clear. Do any of these have picture in picture or split screen dual input? Probably an unnecessary feature but I would like to manage the screen real estate via multiple systems.

        • NotAnAudiophile on 08/07/2020 - 13:39

          Yes I pulled the trigger on the AOC which has PiP mode.

  • juleshoolio on 10/07/2020 - 21:49

    What would people recommend as an ultra wide for business use and no gaming just to replace two 24 inch monitors with one and have dual screen capability. USB-C also preferred. Budget under $1000

  • jasonisdoing on 11/07/2020 - 11:13

    I purchased Acer X34P from Harvey norman with a price match of this
    $952.02

    Recently, the monitor has some issues with a black screen, so I sent it. and then I received a new monitor from them.
    I can communicate via any channels including FB messager, phone, and emails.
    All experiences with Acer was fantastic

  • NotAnAudiophile on 12/07/2020 - 01:42
    +1
    Suggested Xiaomi Mi Surface Display

    Xiaomi 34" Surface Display…..Allphones are bringing it in….

  • cerealJay on 17/07/2020 - 13:26

    does not want any compromise at all with display technology

    When you buy into IPS, the compromise you must live with is "IPS glow". The glow is more pronounced on large displays when viewed at night. With day time ambient light, IPS glow is not a problem, but after the sun goes down, your blacks will no longer look black, they will be patchy grey, and you get lots of shifting over the surface. That's a very real and noticeable compromise.

    I moved to a VA panel after years of only buying IPS. My current Philips ultrawide 34 inch 349p is a VA panel, 100hz, adaptive sync, and is easily the best monitor I've owned. The current equivalent Philips is the 346B1C which basically has the same specs, but with more curve.

    Which brings me to the curvature. My ultrawide has a 1800r curve, but the new Philips model which I think replaces it, has a 1500r curve, which is less flat / more curvature. Personally I wouldn't want more than 1800r curve in a monitor. Even that takes some getting used to.

    So my recommendation for an ultrawide would be less about brand, and more about making sure it's no more curvy than 1800r, and has at least 100hz refresh rate, and isn't IPS if you care about black levels when viewing at night in low-lit rooms. I note that IPS is superior in uniformity in controlled tests, but ask yourself how often you look at a single block of colour on the full screen? Designers might, but even then VA is not too bad and has good sRGB coverage.

    • NotAnAudiophile on 21/07/2020 - 23:43
      +1

      Guess I'll be putting this to the test. I bought the Xiaomi 34" VA panel, and currently have a LG 27GL850 IPS panel. Going to run them side by side.

      • Riczter on 22/07/2020 - 00:08
        +1

        Will be interested to hear your thoughts on the comparison

        • cerealJay on 23/07/2020 - 15:13

          Even better than thoughts, are pictures! Here's a picture of IPS glow on the LG 27GL850… (from someone on reddit complaining about it).

          https://imgur.com/BDT0pec

          That's classic IPS glow, perhaps a little exaggerated but not by much. And it gets worse when not looking straight on, even a tiny shift in viewing angle triggers IPS glow. This is why an ultrawide IPS is not a good idea if you're sensitive to the glow and mainly use the monitor in low ambient light. The wide screen means your angle of view is more inconsistent, even with the curve, so it's possible some will go from never noticing IPS glow, to being bothered by it.

          • pinkybrain on 19/08/2020 - 17:15

            @cerealJay: is IPS glow worse than VA ghosting
            and color not as good as IPS as well as the viewing angles not as good?

            Would it be OLED or MicroLED be better and not have these issues?

            • cerealJay on 23/08/2020 - 22:56

              @pinkybrain: IPS glow for me, is worse than VA ghosting, which I don't notice. I don't see any ghosting on my monitor when playing games.

              Viewing angles worse on IPS, because it triggers the IPS glow a lot (night time use, dark scenes only).

              Colour uniformity is better with IPS

              I don't know anything about OLED monitors, I didn't think they were available yet.

      • venomx2 on 10/08/2020 - 16:19

        how do you find the Xiaomi 34" VA panel?

    • Davesday on 06/09/2020 - 00:31

      Just curious, would the new Samsung Odyssey G7 qualify into this thread? What are other people's thoughts on this product? Seems to check a lot of boxes despite being a VA panel. The 27" is close to X34P's price range.

      • cerealJay on 06/09/2020 - 18:26

        The 1000r curve of the Samsung Odyssey is ridiculous. The hardware unboxed guy said he "hates the curve", and questioned who even asked for that feature. (https://youtu.be/go1qsBetgV0)

        It makes sense on an ultrawide to have a curve, although even then I would say 1500r would be the maximum tolerable curve. I'd prefer 1800r. But 1000r, and on a 16:9 ratio display? That's just marketing people telling their engineers "we want the most curve so we can say we have most curve". But nobody wanted that!

        • Davesday on 06/09/2020 - 19:38

          Yeah thats true. Not sure how they came about that decision. They did explain that it was for aligning with the curvature of the human eye. I think thsts marketing BS. Apart from the ridiculous curvature, it seems very competent in all other departments. I am waiting till I moved to a new house before deciding on this (need space for dual 27"). Might have to see one in person.

  • gmail92 on 05/08/2020 - 22:41
    +3

    I feel like the title says "Best Value"; but then the description just says "Best" which seems misleading as they are two very different things no?

    Sure the X34P is leading votes with "Best"; but is it "Best Value"? Probably not.
    But given the existing votes I reckon the poll is already skewed beyond fixing 🤷

    • jace88 on 30/08/2020 - 01:03

      This. I was puzzled when I saw the X34P winning something on OzBargain given the competition.

  • conza on 27/08/2020 - 10:07

    Hi there, another X34P owner here, and I'm content with it, however I am not sure I'd recommend it to anyone, not because of it's bad, but because it's an ultra wide.

    Sure, most modern games support ultra wide, it's a great middle step in terms of resolution between 1440p 16:9 and 4K 16:9 (look it up, it's almost exactly inbetween in terms of Megapixels at 5MP).

    However, I can run mine at 120hz no problem, getting games to run at 1440p UW and 120fps, that's very difficult, and yes, since G-SYNC is on I don't get tears, stutters or input lag, I think a regular 16:9 1440p monitor with G-SYNC would be my recommendation instead. It'll be easier to hit higher frame rates for longer with whatever GPU you're using.

    Also, G-SYNC compatible Free Sync monitors mean you can switch between AMD and NVIDIA GPUs more freely, yes I know the minimum fps is something like 44 or 40 hz before it stops working, but at that point you're probably running on too high a setting and/or could consider upgrading GPU anyway.

    Lastly, 21:9 is great for specific cinema content, but how much of that do you watch, and how much of that is on your gaming PC? The draw backs are for 4:3 content and 16:9 content (videos or games), you get those black bars. Plenty of older games I like playing don't support 21:9 very well, so the extra monitor is then wasted.

    That's my 2 cents, I'll be going to a 4K monitor with G-SYNC probably in a few years when GPUs can run that resolution consistently above 100fps without costing $2k per GPU

  • limucat on 30/08/2020 - 21:16

    Hi thanks for this poll OP. Just wondering are there other polls for other pc parts? My pc is still running a GTX 7xx… that’s how long I last build a pc.

    Interested to see what’s best value parts for building a pc with the intention of playing The new Flight simulator and maybe some AAA games. Thx

  • Pelicannn on 02/09/2020 - 07:59
    +1

    I’ve got an X34P mated to a 9900K/2080ti water cooled set up and in some games I’m still struggling to run 120+ FPS @ 1440p at high to ultra. The people who are buying cheaper monitors and looking for fast refresh rate probably aren’t running enough CPU/GPU power to even get close to frame rate > refresh rate.

    My mate bought an X34P after seeing mine, but was running a 980Ti (oldie but goodie) - ended up refunding monitor cause he couldn’t even push the frames on newer games. So keep that in mind when buying a 100hz display.

  • scrimshaw on 11/09/2020 - 12:00
    +1
    Suggested Gigabyte G34WQC

    GIGABYTE has a budget oriented 34 inch 144hz monitor now. It went on sale for $399 USD on Newegg but Mwave here is selling for $679

    Gigabyte G34WQC talking points on reddit
    https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapcsales/comments/iq1lua/monit…

    interestingly one of the comments say IPS is going the way of the Dodo 🤔

    • Screen size: 34-inch 21:9, with 1500R curvature
    • Panel type: VA with 3‎440 x 1440 pixels and 1‎78° viewing angles
    • Performance metrics: 1‎44Hz refresh with FreeSync Premium / G-Sync Compatible, 1ms MRPT
    • Colour metrics: 9‎0 per cent DCI-P3 / 120 per cent sRGB coverage, 3000:1 contrast ratio, 350cd/m2 brightness, VESA DisplayHDR400 certification
    • Ports: HDMI 2.0 x2, Display port 1.4 x2, headphone jack
    • Other: stereo 2W speakers, stand with -5°~+20° tilt and 100mm height adjustment, 100x100 VESA wall mounting option
    • porcho77 on 18/09/2020 - 14:16
      +2

      tempted to get this. was sold on the Xiaomi but tempted to get this instead now.

  • scrimshaw on 27/09/2020 - 00:07
    +1

    Hardware unboxed has (finally) reviewed the Xiaomi Mi Surface 34inch
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hMAw8xCd0Y

  • gunnerz on 02/10/2020 - 13:55

    Hi Guys,

    What do you think of the AW3420DW?

    https://www.dell.com/en-au/shop/alienware-34-curved-gaming-m…

    Currently 25% off till 08.10 and can use Super7 discount code bring it down to $1395 delivered.

  • trankillity on 07/11/2020 - 15:16

    Have had a Predator X34P for a few months now. Paid around $1300 for it during COVID. No complaints at all. Incredible display. Refresh can be overclocked to 120hz too (which wasn't highlighted in original post). Having a IPS panel makes it easily the best value for money if you don't like VA panels.

  • twister292 on 14/11/2020 - 11:26
    Suggested Alienware AW3821DW

    Alienware AW3821DW (3840x1600, hardware GSync)

  • Davesday on 26/11/2020 - 11:28
    +1

    I got the Xiaomi Mi Curved Gaming Monitor 34" that every Ozbargainer has been talking about yesterday. So I wanted to drop a post here to provide more information to people who are still on the fence to take advantage of this weekend's Ebay Plus deal on this monitor.

    Previously I had reservations to VA panel due to the dark smearing issue that is common for this type of panel. When I got the Dell S2721DGF monitor, I began to understand that VA is good at one thing, contrast ratio. For some reason my Dell monitor looks washed out in certain situations. My games doesn't look vivid like my previous monitor, the Aorus AD27QD. This is despite colour calibrating it. Some dark scenes looks greyish and washed out on the Dell. However please don't get me wrong, this Dell monitor is great at what it is advertised to do. Fast motion gaming is a champ on this monitor. So I am definitely keeping this monitor for this type of use.

    So with this, I explored the Xiaomi monitor for productivity use. I can appreciate what people have been saying about the dark level smearing on this monitor and I can even reproduce it (intentionally if I want). However, I don't notice it on gaming, normal productivity work, scrolling of texts (white or black background), etc. I think 95% of people buying this monitor will be happy with their purchase.

    GSYNC works on this monitor at 144Hz provided you use DP and from what I read, you need to use a good DP cable. I've set the response time to medium and it seems to do very well on the majority of games I tried. However motion clarity isn't that great unless you turn it all the way up but it will overshoot. The monitor does seem to accept 10-bit signal (I mean I could set it on Nvidia Control Panel). I think the panel is 8-bit + FRC. There is some slight banding with some colours but nothing major. My unit has no backlight bleed, clouding, etc. The build quality is great FOR the areas you will see and touch. But me being a product person, I can see where Xiaomi has controlled costs on.

  • ooooooooyeahhhhh on 02/12/2020 - 11:21

    I went with the CRG9 49" (5120x1440@120hz), with the G9 released the price drop on the CRG9 made it good value to me.

    I don't think the G9 is worth $500+ more over the CRG9.
    Bigger curvature and higher refresh rate is not worth considering the monitor is still same resolution, VA panel and the new one is actually slight less brighter. 120hz on the CRG is plenty as I'm not a hardcore gamer and don't have hardware to push 5120x1440@240

    So far the monitor has been good, is not as crisp as the IPS 27"4k@60hz I was using but with a couple of adjustments the contrast, brighteness are great and the fonts are alright. The extra real estate has been good for productivity. The extra refresh rate makes everything snappier as well.
    Gaming is good but not the wow factor I was expecting.

    I don't think I can downgrade from 49" now though, being able to have all windows I need opened side by side is great, I'll keep this monitor for a couple of years until there is a 49" with higher resolution and hardware to handle it.

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