Alienware AW3423DWF review: Scion to the OLED gaming monitor thrown

Price When Reviewed

$1,099.99

Best Prices Today: Alienware AW3423DWF

$1099.99

Alienware’s AW3423DW, the world’s first ultrawide OLED gaming monitor, demolished its competitors when it arrived in early 2022 at an MSRP of simply $1,299. Though nonetheless costly, it undercut competing OLED and Mini-LED displays by tons of of {dollars}. Yet Alienware apparently was glad with that, and has launched a good inexpensive follow-up: the AW3423DWF. It has a lot of the options of its predecessors however lowers the value to $1,099.

Note: This assessment is a part of our ongoing roundup of the best monitors. Go there to study competing merchandise, what to search for in a monitor, and shopping for suggestions.

Alienware AW3423DWF: The specs

The Alienware AW3423DWF is extraordinarily much like its predecessor, the AW3423DW, which continues to be bought in the present day. So, what’s the distinction? It all comes all the way down to adaptive sync. 

• Display measurement: 34-inch ultrawide
• Native decision: 3,440 x 1,440
• Panel kind: QD-OLED
• Refresh fee: 165Hz
• HDR: Yes
• Ports: 1x HDMI 2.0, 2x DisplayPort 1.4, 5x USB 3.2 Gen 1, 1x Audio & Headphone out
• Stand adjustment: Yes
• VESA mount: Yes
• Speakers: No
• Price: $1,099

The Alienware AW3423DWF helps AMD FreeSync Premium Pro and VESA Adapative Sync, whereas the prior AW3423DW solely helps Nvidia G-Sync Ultimate. Connectivity additionally differs: The new AW3423DWF has one HDMI 2.0 and two DisplayPort 1.4, whereas the older AW3423DW has two HDMI 2.0 and one DisplayPort 1.4. Finally, the AW3423DWF has a most refresh fee of 165Hz, whereas the prior AW3423DW has a barely larger most refresh fee of 175Hz.

Alienware AW3423DWF: Design

Alienware hasn’t modified, up to date, or improved the design of the AW3423DWF over its predecessor other than one noticeable exception: This mannequin is simply obtainable in black, whereas the older mannequin is simply obtainable in white. The black colorway seems to be much less premium than white, principally as a result of it lacks the two-tone motif of the white mannequin, which makes use of each white and black panels to distinction parts of the design. 

It’s merely a distinction of fashion: The new monitor appears simply as well-built and durable because the prior mannequin, which is nice information. This is a hefty beast for its measurement, with thick plastic panels and a big stand. It’s among the many most sturdy and enticing displays obtainable in the present day.

Matt Smith

The stand adjusts for peak, tilt, and swivel, and pivots a couple of levels in both course. It’s additionally heavy sufficient to maintain the monitor planted and dampen motion must you unintentionally bump your desk. However, it retains an issue discovered with its predecessor: The stand is simply too massive and deep, so the show sits a bit nearer than anticipated. Alternatively, the monitor has a normal 100x100mm VESA mount for attaching a third-party monitor stand or arm.

Alienware AW3423DWF: Features and menus

Matt Smith

You’ll discover two DisplayPort 1.4 connections and one HDMI 2.0 on the AW3423DWF’s rear. This is an enchancment over the sooner, dearer AW3423DW. Why? HDMI 2.0 can solely deal with a refresh fee of 100Hz on the monitor’s native decision. Swapping an HDMI to DisplayPort opens the choice so as to add a second PC enter on the full 165Hz refresh fee. 

The monitor has a complete of 4 USB-A ports, two of that are on the monitor’s entrance lip for straightforward entry. They’re pushed by a USB-B upstream port. USB-C stays absent from the monitor. That’s a forgivable downside for a gaming monitor, however no less than one USB-C enter could be most popular. 

Matt Smith

Alienware’s menu system depends on a joystick crouching behind the middle of the underside bezel. It’s simple to entry and responds shortly to enter. The menus are nicely labeled and sorted, too, making them simple to navigate.

The monitor presents a wholesome vary of image-quality changes together with sRGB and DCI-P3 modes, a number of coloration temperature and gamma changes, and RGB coloration changes for hue, acquire, and saturation. There are a couple of annoyances: for instance, the colour temperature modes don’t appear accessible with different calibration choices. Still, these choices ought to assist creators alter the monitor to their wants, which is nice information if you wish to use the monitor for skilled picture enhancing, video enhancing, or graphics design.

Alienware AW3423DWF: SDR picture high quality

The earlier Alienware AW3423DW’s picture high quality was wonderful, touchdown it on the prime of our listing of the best gaming monitors. The AW3423DWF lives as much as the usual it set. It has the identical QD-OLED panel and delivered an identical efficiency in testing. 

Matt Smith

The Alienware AW3423DWF’s SDR brightness is available in at 250 nits, a smidge larger than the 246 nits of the prior mannequin. This is a wholesome degree of SDR brightness for an OLED monitor. It’s larger than typical of 42-inch and 48-inch widescreen shows, just like the Acer Predator CG48, and ties the Corsair Xeneon Flex 45WQHD240. That’s an essential level, because the Corsair monitor makes use of the LG panel that might be present in quite a lot of 27-inch 1440p OLED displays by 2023. 

However, 250 nits isn’t vivid when in comparison with the Asus ProArt PA348CGV, our favourite ultrawide monitor with out OLED or Mini-LED expertise. The Alienware additionally has a shiny show coat that amplifies reflections. A vivid mild supply, like a sunlit window or 60-watt equal LED bulb, could make viewing uncomfortable. OLED stays greatest for darkish rooms with good mild management.

Matt Smith

The distinction ratio knocks it out of the park with an successfully infinite ratio. The precise distinction ratio an OLED panel boasts can fluctuate (Alienware claims 1,000,000:1), however this quantity shouldn’t be a helpful information. In observe, all the OLED displays within the graph above obtain a visually excellent black degree in a darkish room. 

The Asus ProArtwork PA348CGV, which has an edge-lit LED backlight with only some dimming zones, achieved a a lot decrease most distinction ratio of 1120:1. That’s fairly good for a monitor in its value bracket, however the distinction between it and the Alienware AW3423DWF is clear. The Asus ProArtwork seems to be hazy and foggy in darkish scenes, which saps drama from dimly lit films, like The Batman, and darker video games, like Diablo II: Resurrected or Resident Evil Village. 

Matt Smith

Color gamut is a perk, because the Alienware AW3423DWF achieves over 100 % of sRGB, 99 % of DCI-P3, and 95 % of AdobeRGB. Higher is best on this check, and the Alienware hits the best marks amongst equally priced displays. These outcomes are exceptional given its competitors: All of the displays within the graph above are top-notch performers. 

In on a regular basis use, gaming, and films, this results in an oversaturated and vibrant picture that appears excellent in most conditions and stands out in vivid, colourful content material like Overwatch 2 or Pixar’s Rio. The large gamut can also be appropriate for nearly all content material creation: Those who need higher efficiency will want a high-end skilled monitor just like the $3,500 Asus ProArt PA32DC OLED.

Matt Smith

Color accuracy is superb, as nicely. It technically scores as much less coloration correct than the prior AW3423DW, however variations of this quantity usually are not typically noticeable. In truth, all the displays on the graph above are correct sufficient that they may very well be used for all kinds {of professional} workflows, and all look sensible in every day use and leisure.

The Alienware AW3423DWF did nicely in gamma and coloration temperature testing. It introduced the popular gamma curve of two.2, which implies content material seems to be about as vivid as anticipated, and hit a coloration temperature of 6200Ok, which is barely heat however not too far off the goal of 6500Ok. The result’s a pleasing, inviting picture. As talked about, the monitor presents a number of gamma preset modes and coloration temperature modes, so some calibration is feasible for many who desire completely different settings. 

While the AW3423DWF has wonderful picture high quality total, it suffers an issue present in its predecessor: mediocre sharpness. The monitor’s decision of 3440×1440 works out to about 110 pixels per inch. That’s practically the identical as a 27-inch 1440p widescreen however means under a 27-inch 4K monitor, which packs roughly 163 pixels per inch.

The QD-OLED panel additionally has an unusual triangular RGB subpixel format. Windows doesn’t anticipate this format and, in consequence, there’s some fringing and pixelation round small fonts and interface parts. It’s not a dealbreaker, however it might make fonts much less enticing and harder to learn. The downside is far much less apparent in video games, which are inclined to have bigger fonts. That mentioned, the Alienware AW3423DWF seems to be good—in truth, I subjectively prefer it greater than I did once I reviewed its predecessor, the AW3423DW. I’ve had the possibility to check a number of opponents to Alienware’s OLED prior to now 12 months and located that whereas most are wonderful, none of them beat the Alienware’s QD-OLED panel total (apart from the Asus ProArt PA32DC, however it’s in one other league totally). On steadiness, the AW3423DW and AW3423DWF have the most effective SDR picture of any OLED monitor obtainable for $2,000 or much less.

Alienware AW3423DWF: HDR picture high quality

The Alienware AW3423DWF additionally delivers an HDR expertise that, whereas not excellent, is significantly better than its predecessor. 

First, the unhealthy information: This is an OLED show and, like most OLED panels present in displays thus far, it might’t show excessive ranges of brightness. I measured a most full-screen HDR brightness of 306 nits, and a most brightness of 453 nits when solely 10 % of the show was lit. LED and Mini-LED shows typically obtain and maintain 500 to 600 nits full-screen. This places the AW3423DWF at a drawback when displaying extraordinarily vivid scenes, like a snowy mountaintop. It by no means seems to be as pure and good as an LED-lit rival.

However, OLED’s distinction shouldn’t be forgotten. The monitor’s capability to attain an ideal black degree makes the brightness it might ship seem exceptional in darkish scenes. The neon indicators of Cyberpunk 2077 appear to leap out of the show, whereas the starry skies of Interstellar are introduced with tack-sharp accuracy. The Alienware AW3423DWF is ideal for darkish, moody, high-contrast content material. 

The AW3423DWF additionally drastically improves on the brightness stability of its predecessor. My testing of the older AW3423DW revealed noticeable swings within the monitor’s brightness when transitioning between vivid and darkish scenes, or when transferring vivid home windows throughout a darkish background. It was a serious distraction in day-to-day use. Alienware appears to have conquered these points with firmware updates (and a fast flick thru Dell’s help boards signifies customers have seen this, as nicely). 

I additionally seen the AW3423DWF has a number of HDR picture presets that I don’t recall seeing on the prior mannequin, together with a customized coloration mode with six-axis customization. This is an exceptionally uncommon and far appreciated characteristic for a mainstream HDR monitor. Most HDR displays lock picture customization when HDR mode is turned on.

I’m nonetheless not totally glad with the HDR efficiency of the Alienware AW3423DWF, however most of its issues are shared with different price-competitive OLED displays. Mini-LED displays are sometimes higher for HDR, particularly if HDR brightness is a precedence for you. Still, the Alienware AW3423DWF is an efficient performer total and completely demolishes older displays with edge-lit LED backlights, and it fixes the prior mannequin’s flaws.

Alienware AW3423DWF: Motion readability

Matt Smith

The Alienware AW3423DWF has a most refresh fee of 165Hz. This is a minor downgrade from the AW3423DW’s most refresh fee of 175Hz, however the distinction is insignificant. Motion efficiency is superb normally, with nice movement readability that makes small particulars in fast-moving objects seen. The OLED panel’s quick pixel response instances protect respectable readability even at decrease refresh charges, so readability is best than common even when the refresh fee is restricted to 60Hz.

Alienware is at a drawback in comparison with new 240Hz OLED displays based mostly on LG’s newest panel, nonetheless. Examples embody the Corsair Xeneon Flex and the LG Ultragear 27GR95QE-B. These displays present higher readability in tremendous particulars. For instance, character names in MOBA and MMORPG video games are principally readable when panning the digital camera on a 240Hz monitor, however not at 165Hz. 

Even so, the AW3423DWF’s total efficiency is nice and will please an enormous majority of avid gamers. It’s additionally a sensible choice for graphically demanding titles that may’t maintain a body fee close to 165Hz, nevermind 240Hz. 

The AW3423DWF formally helps the AMD FreeSync Premium Pro and VESA Adaptive Sync requirements, and it might unofficially help G-Sync. The AW3423DW solely helps Nvidia G-Sync Ultimate. This makes the brand new AW3423DWF extra versatile, whereas the AW3423DW is best for Nvidia video playing cards. In observe, each look buttery-smooth in practically all conditions.

Should you purchase the Alienware AW3423DWF?

The Alienware AW3423DWF is a improbable ultrawide monitor that efficiently defends its throne towards current OLED and Mini-LED options. It delivers the identical wonderful picture high quality as its predecessor, fixes a number of of its flaws, and sweetens the take care of a $200 value drop. Make no mistake: This is the ultrawide gaming monitor to purchase.