Alienware AW3225QF review: The 4K OLED dream you’ve been waiting for

Price When Reviewed

$1,199

Those trying to purchase an OLED monitor had been handled to dozens of latest choices by way of 2023, however some specific sizes and resolutions remained uncommon—together with 4K, 32-inch OLED screens. Though not totally unavailable, most such screens had been extraordinarily costly. The Alienware AW3225QF takes a step in the direction of decreasing the worth, offering a 4K, 240Hz QD-OLED panel for $1,199.

Further studying: See our roundup of the best 4K monitors to find out about competing merchandise.

What are the Alienware AW3225QF’s specs and options?

The Alienware AW3225QF is a fairly uncommon monitor, and never simply due to its 32-inch 4K QD-OLED panel. It’s additionally a curved show and offers a 240Hz refresh charge, the latter of which wasn’t accessible in prior 4K OLED panels (however might be accessible from a number of firms in 2024).

• Display measurement: 32-inch widescreen
• Native decision: 3840×2160
• Panel kind: QD-OLED
• Refresh charge: 240Hz
• Adaptive sync: Nvidia G-Sync, VESA AdaptiveSync 240
• HDR: VESA DisplayHDR True Black 400, Dolby Vision
• Ports: 1x DisplayPort 1.4, 1x HDMI 2.1 with eARC, 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-B upstream, 3x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A downstream, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C downstream with BC 1.2 energy charging
• VESA mount: 100x100mm
• Speakers: None
• Price: $1,199

There’s extra round again, the place the AW3225QF’s connectivity differs from most screens. It has one HDMI port with eARC assist. The AW3225QF additionally helps Dolby Vision HDR, which is pretty widespread amongst HDR televisions however uncommon for an HDR monitor. Alienware appears to anticipate some house owners will use the AW3225QF extra like a small TV than a desktop monitor.

How is the Alienware AW3225QF’s design?

I obtained the Alienware AW3225QF in a lovely white-and-black colorway just like previous Alienware shows. It’s a well-known however alluring look that makes use of various supplies, textures, and colours to craft a extra luxurious and upscale really feel.

It’s nonetheless clad in plastic, like almost all fashionable screens and televisions, however the AW3225QF positively has a contact of sophistication not discovered with most options. Samsung’s just lately revised Odyssey screens are the one rivals I discover equally enticing.

Matt Smith

The AW3225QF is a curved monitor with a modest however noticeable 1700R curve. I’m not a fan of this determination, as I don’t discover 32-inch widescreen screens extensive sufficient for the curve so as to add to my immersion. Those who don’t like a curve might as an alternative take into account the 4K 32-inch Odyssey OLED G8.

Alienware ships the monitor with an enormous, overbuilt stand that adjusts for peak, tilt, swivel. It retains the AW3225QF firmly planted (you’d need to go at it with a baseball bat to knock it over), however the stand’s extensive, wing-shaped design takes up a variety of desk house. It’s additionally deep, which implies the monitor could sit uncomfortably shut in case your desk is slender. A smaller stand can be a better option for the show.

That drawback might be prevented with the 100x100mm VESA mount, which makes the monitor appropriate with third-party monitor arms and stands.

How is the Alienware AW3225QF’s connectivity and menu?

Matt Smith

The Alienware AW3225QF’s video connectivity is uncommon for a pc monitor. It has a DisplayPort 1.4 port, which is typical, however pairs that with two feature-packed HDMI ports.

Both ports are HDMI 2.1, and each assist the monitor’s native decision of 3840×2160 at its most refresh charge of 240Hz. They additionally assist FRL and VRR as laid out in HDMI 2.1, so that they’re broadly appropriate with enhanced refresh charges and variable refresh charge / adaptive sync alerts delivered from a PC or a sport console.

One of the 2 ports additionally helps eARC, which is rare for a monitor. ARC stands for Audio Return Channel. It ought to let customers join a soundbar or different audio gadget by way of HDMI to the monitor, which may then be used alongside any video enter. The eARC port additionally helps Dolby Atmos sound.

With that mentioned, I discovered the eARC function didn’t work with my Yamaha YAS-207 soundbar (which helps DTS:X as an alternative of Dolby Atmos). It’s doable {that a} setting prevented this, as Dell didn’t have a finalized consumer handbook accessible on the time I’m scripting this evaluation. I’ll replace if I’m able to get it to work.

The AW3225QF additionally has USB connectivity, although it’s fairly tame. It has three USB-A ports and one USB-C port. The USB-C port consists of energy charging, however solely delivers sufficient energy to cost a smartphone at an appropriate pace. Video isn’t supported over USB-C, both. All of the USB ports are pushed by a USB-B upstream port, which implies the USB connectivity is finest suited to work alongside a desktop PC or a big laptop computer.

Alienware’s menu system is managed by a joystick centered on the monitor’s chin. It responds shortly to consumer enter, and Alienware’s menus are straightforward to navigate. A good vary of choices can be found, together with a number of SDR and HDR modes and a customized shade mode that permits for shade calibration. Color temperature adjustment is supported, however solely by way of “Warm” and “Cool” presets. I additionally discovered a gamma setting was accessible solely when “Console Mode” or “Creator Mode” was enabled. That’s complicated, and Alienware would do nicely to put a broad vary of shade temperature and gamma controls in a single location, so they’re simpler to search out and use.

There’s additionally just a few gamer-centric options resembling a “black equalizer,” which will increase the brightness of darkish areas of the show, and an on-screen crosshair. These options are normal for any fashionable gaming monitor, however nonetheless appreciated.

The AW3225QF doesn’t embody audio system. It additionally lacks an audio line-out jack, so it’s not doable to move audio to a 3.5mm headset or related desktop audio system. Alienware says it dropped the audio line-out connection as a result of most fashionable headsets or audio system use USB or have gone wi-fi.

How is the Alienware AW3225QF’s SDR picture high quality?

The Alienware AW3225QF is a 4K OLED monitor, so picture high quality expectations are excessive — and delivered. It’s a top-notch monitor for SDR content material that suffers only one small flaw widespread to many OLED shows.

Matt Smith

The flaw? Brightness. The AW3225QF has a most SDR brightness of 240 nits, which is definitely in the direction of the low finish for a contemporary laptop monitor. Many screens can now exceed 400 nits, however OLED shows are likely to land between 200 and 300 nits. The AW3225QF’s floor is shiny, too, so glare shines by way of.

This isn’t an issue for most individuals, as 240 nits stays greater than sufficient in a room with mild management (like blinds or curtains). I usually used the monitor at simply 25 % of its most, particularly after darkish. But it might change into a difficulty if the monitor is utilized in a room with giant home windows that lack blinds or curtains, or in a brightly-lit house like an workplace bullpen.

Matt Smith

Contrast, however, is a energy of all OLED shows, and the AW3225QF delivers glorious outcomes. It offers an successfully infinite distinction ratio, because the monitor achieves a minimal luminance of zero nits. That means darkish areas of the display seem completely darkish, and provides a way of depth and realism to the whole lot considered on the show. It’s particularly glorious for video games with a darkish presentation, like Diablo IV or Resident Evil: Village.

Shoppers ought to word, although, that this efficiency is typical throughout a broad vary of contemporary OLED shows. The AW3225QF has no benefit, or drawback, when in comparison with options.

Matt Smith

The AW3225QF delivers nice shade gamut outcomes, as its shade gamut spans 100 % of sRGB, 98 % of DCI-P3, and 94 % of AdobeRGB. These outcomes are higher than some OLED screens from 2023, however fall a slight step behind one of the best Mini-LED screens, such because the Acer Predator X32 FP. Still, the AW3225QF performs nicely and delivers a shade gamut that’s way over sufficient for almost any job you’d carry out on a pc.

Matt Smith

Next up is shade accuracy, and right here the AW3225QF is a knockout. The common shade error of 0.42 is among the many finest I’ve ever recorded, and it’s achieved by way of constant outcomes throughout all examined colours. The AW3225QF’s shade presentation is lifelike and real looking total.

The AW3225QF’s picture is a bit heat with a shade temperature of 6200Ok. That’s off a goal of 6500Ok. It ends in a barely redder picture which may look cozy however may also really feel a bit dusty, relying in your desire. The gamma results of 2.2 is immediately on-target and means content material will seem about as brilliant because it ought to. Both the colour temperature and gamma might be adjusted, though, as defined earlier, the menu system is a bit fussy in how shade temperature and gamma controls are introduced.

Sharpness, which is normally a draw back for OLED screens, is sweet. The 3225QF’s OLED panel packs 137 pixels per inch, an enormous improve over a 32-inch 1440p monitor, which has simply 91 pixels per inch. 1440p OLED screens are likely to endure in sharpness because of a sub-pixel format that disagrees with Windows, however I discovered this a lot much less noticeable on the pixel-dense 3225QF.

The Alienware AW3225QF’s SDR picture high quality outcomes add as much as incredible picture high quality. It gives a sensible picture with vibrant shade and a fantastic sense of depth. Brightness is a bit low, however that’s solely a difficulty if you wish to use the monitor in a brightly lit room, and the monitor’s many perks make that draw back straightforward to overlook.

How is the Alienware AW3225QF’s HDR picture high quality?

Most OLED screens assist HDR, however the AW3225QF’s certifications counsel it’s a reduce above the remainder. It has VESA DisplayHDR 400 True Black certification, but additionally a Peak 1000 (as in, 1,000 nits) mode. And it helps Dolby Vision HDR, a function widespread to HDTVs however uncommon on a pc monitor.

And, because it seems, the AW3225QF’s HDR efficiency is healthier than most OLED screens I’ve examined. It’s nonetheless dim when displaying a full-screen white HDR picture, attaining simply 220 nits. But that goes as much as 306 nits when the picture covers 50 % of the show, and 480 nits when it covers 10 % of the show (the picture ought to lead to no less than 1,000 nits).

That’s not unhealthy. A number of different OLED screens, such because the Asus PG27AQDM, carry out higher: It was brighter in each the 50 % and 100 % checks. But the AW3225QF’s HDR outcomes are higher than each most competing OLED screens and a tad superior to prior Alienware OLED screens, such because the AW3423DWF.

I discovered the AW3423DWF a powerful HDR monitor total, and never solely due to its brightness. It additionally has a shade gamut extensive sufficient to ship a vivid, lovely expertise, and rising the decision to 4K (as an alternative of the 1440p beforehand widespread to OLED screens) brings large positive factors in sharpness when viewing a 4K supply.

The finish result’s a extra cinematic expertise than what most prior OLED screens might obtain. It as an alternative feels near the Asus ProArt PA32DC, a $3,500 4K OLED show meant for probably the most demanding professionals. The PA32DC was even brighter in my checks, and reached a wider shade gamut, however the Alienware AW3225QF’s total efficiency will not be far off that top benchmark.

Mini-LED shows are usually higher when it comes to HDR brightness, and people trying to maximize the HDR expertise ought to look in the direction of a Mini-LED show. But the AW3225QF is not any slouch and, given its many different strengths, it’s a aggressive selection. That’s very true when you plan to attach an Xbox Series X alongside a PC to play console video games and watch Blu-Ray films, because the Xbox Series X helps Dolby Vision.

How is the Alienware AW3225QF’s movement efficiency?

Matt Smith

The AW3225QF’s 240Hz refresh charge doesn’t set data (LG has introduced an OLED monitor with a 480Hz refresh charge), however it offers glorious movement readability. Fast-moving objects are straightforward to determine and high-resolution textures retain most of their element when scrolling or shifting the digicam in a 3D sport.

Gamers ought to keep in mind that OLED panels typically obtain higher movement readability than IPS or VA panel screens at any given refresh charge. That’s true as a result of the person pixels of an OLED monitor reply extra shortly to adjustments than IPS or VA. As a consequence, the movement readability of the AW3225QF is extra just like a 360Hz IPS or VA panel monitor.

The monitor additionally helps adaptive sync to remove display tearing and supply clean body pacing in 3D video games. Its official assist consists of Nvidia G-Sync and VESA AdaptiveSync 240 certification. AMD FreeSync will not be formally supported, however it functioned when examined with a Radeon RX 7800 video card.

Is the Alienware AW3225QF value it?

Alienware’s AW3225QF is a incredible 4K OLED monitor. Prior OLED screens additionally seemed nice, however the reliance on 1440p decision was a draw back for many who need the best possible picture high quality accessible. The AW3225QF’s improved sharpness is gorgeous and comes paired with further options, like Dolby Vision HDR and assist for 4K/240Hz throughout a number of video inputs. Alienware’s outsized stand is an annoyance, and the curved show panel is an acquired style, however these points are comparatively minor. Its pricing isn’t unhealthy, both: $1,199 is pricey, however it’s an enormous discount in comparison with prior 4K OLED screens, which regularly retailed for $2,000 to $3,000 (or extra).