Why you may belief TechSwitch
We spend hours testing each services or products we evaluate, so that you may be certain you are shopping for the perfect. Find out more about how we test.
Mobile Pixels 34-inch mini-LED ultrawide gaming monitor: Three-minute review
Having used an OLED ultrawide for years now, specifically the Alienware AW3423DWF QD-OLED (a mouthful, I know), I’ve been curious about a switch to mini-LED. The idea of higher brightness while gaming is intriguing, to say the least, and in came the Mobile Pixels 34-inch curved mini-LED ultrawide gaming monitor.
This monitor left me impressed with its quality while gaming or watching content built for high brightness – so much so that I didn’t miss using my main OLED monitor. For the first time ever, I’ve been able to push brightness very high in games and enjoy fascinating visuals, and most importantly, without too much exposure.
Images don’t really do it much justice, as it will mostly seem too bright to view in images below. However, believe me when I say it’s a treat to view in person – and it comes down to its HDR1000 VESA certification (allowing 1000 nits of peak brightness), and 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio producing incredible deep black levels.
With an 180Hz refresh rate, which is higher than what you might find on some of the best ultrawide gaming monitors, I used to be capable of take pleasure in my favourite video games simply.
It’s important to note, though, that it’s not all great. Dark level smearing (especially when reading white text against dark backgrounds) and ghosting in games are noticeable, and while that’s to be expected for a VA panel, it will be bothersome for those who are accustomed to faster displays.
While it didn’t completely spoil my gaming or movie viewing experiences, it was a lot more evident for me when playing fast-paced games, especially when using Frame Generation against darker backgrounds in-game. It gets worse (as expected) when enabling any of the overdrive settings via the monitor OSD menu – which I must add, is very finicky, as it sometimes won’t save settings or simply undo them randomly.
The biggest examples for me were using path tracing in Cyberpunk 2077, and notably path tracing mods in Capcom’s Dragon’s Dogma 2, which comes with loads of ghosting already and lacks a denoiser (however served as a better approach for me to note the distinction). When in lighter backgrounds, ghosting was noticeable, however it wasn’t too excessive. When entering into darker areas, the ghosting and smearing had been critically unhealthy.
Perhaps it is a bit unfair coming from utilizing an OLED to a VA mini-LED, however its value is in the identical area as different OLED screens that do not have this challenge. It would have labored in Mobile Pixels’ favor to make use of an IPS panel as a substitute of VA for higher response instances, however that may probably be a downside on the good distinction obtainable right here.
In phrases of blooming, it is stored to a minimal when sitting instantly in entrance of the monitor. Bear in thoughts, what you are seeing under is not the perfect illustration of how effectively the haloing impact is stored to a minimal, resulting from completely different lighting situations.
There’s a ‘Halo Control’ setting within the OSD menu, however I discovered that changes weren’t very obligatory. I used to be fairly proud of how effectively this monitor handles bloom. Compared to my mini-LED TV (particularly the TCL 55QM8B), which has 300+ full-array native dimming zones, I’d say the outcomes had been pretty comparable.
I need to reiterate that this can be a VA panel, so viewing angles are slender. Essentially, blooming is considerably worse when viewing from both aspect, however I’ve by no means used my ultrawide screens when sitting away from my desk (until it is a 32:9 show).
Lining this up with an OLED show, once more, is fairly unfair, for the reason that AW3423DWF is evening and day forward, however it gave me impression of how good the deep black ranges are on the Mobile Pixels 34-inch ultrawide. If you’ve got been utilizing a daily LED show, mini-LED will nonetheless blow you away – and in my eyes, it is the perfect various to OLED.
And the comparability under is proof of that. The OLED’s deep black ranges are genuinely phenomenal, and whereas the mini-LED strays far behind resulting from blooming, it was nonetheless nice sufficient for me to take pleasure in content material – and that is even higher whenever you throw in the advantage of very excessive brightness.
It’s additionally price noting that there is not any fear of burn-in, not like OLED screens. It’s been a breath of contemporary air to not child my Alienware show with OLED care and pixel refreshes. In some methods, you may virtually say that makes mini-LED the higher alternative, as you are getting the perfect of the ‘brightness world’, whereas nonetheless taking some advantages of nice distinction – and with an OLED, you are principally getting the perfect of the latter.
Yes, a number of OLED screens just like the AW3423DWF can make the most of HDR1000, and OLEDs are about to get brighter with True Black HDR1000 VESA certifications. However, my show has a really aggressive Automatic Brightness Limiter (ABL), which kicks in when making an attempt to make use of HDR1000, and I’ve not needed to take care of that on the Mobile Pixels ultrawide.
It’s taught me to respect mini-LED screens, which I as soon as noticed as too low of a step down from OLED, and I’d very a lot think about using one in a multi-display setup.
I’m more than happy with Mobile Pixels’ determination to position the ports of the monitor instantly on its rear, as a substitute of the underside like most screens do. I get that that is accomplished to keep away from pressure on cables standing upright and stop any injury, however it’s really easy and handy to achieve if it is advisable to unplug or plug any of them – and it is tremendous useful if in case you have a cramped desktop setup like me.
The 90W USB-C reverse charging port is a welcome addition, and I might use it to cost different units – and I actually noticed the advantage of this since I’ve tons of units occupying energy sockets.
It options 4-array microphones with DNC noise discount, however it doesn’t matter what I attempted, I could not my PC would not acknowledge this, so I had no luck with testing there.
The RGB lighting is respectable sufficient, however not brilliant sufficient to understand. I will not knock the monitor down for this, although. Most screens I’ve used haven’t got RGB lighting that stands out, apart from the Philips Evnia shows which have a particular Ambilight function to sync content material on the display to its RGB lights.
Mobile Pixels 34-inch mini-LED ultrawide gaming monitor: Price & Availability
- How much does it cost? $899.99 / around £660 / AU$1,370 without import costs
- When is it available? Available now
- Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK, and Australia (shipping from the US)
The Mobile Pixels 34-inch mini-LED ultrawide monitor retails at $899.99 / around £660 / AU$1,730, and while this display’s high brightness and contrast ratio have left me impressed, I think it should be much cheaper. Some OLED ultrawide monitors are currently cheaper and don’t have issues like dark level smearing or ghosting.
It’s not a bad monitor despite some of its issues, but I’d have been more fond of it if it didn’t cost this much. Import fees will also bump up the cost if you’re outside of the US, which makes its potential total price even more unappealing.
Fortunately, it gets a lot right, specifically within the region of HDR brightness and contrast; there’s hardly any loss of detail when looking at bright scenery in movies or games when at maximum brightness, so it’s something to consider if you’re looking to get your hands on it.
Mobile Pixels 34-inch mini-LED ultrawide gaming monitor: Specs
|
Screen Size |
34-inch |
Row 0 – Cell 2 |
|
Aspect Ratio |
21:9 |
Row 1 – Cell 2 |
|
Resolution |
3440×1440 |
Row 2 – Cell 2 |
|
Brightness |
450 nits (Min) 1000 nits (Max) |
Row 3 – Cell 2 |
|
Contrast Ratio |
1,000,000:1 |
Row 4 – Cell 2 |
|
Refresh Rate |
180Hz |
Row 5 – Cell 2 |
|
Color Accuracy |
99% sRGB | 94% DCI-P3 | 99% Adobe RGB |
Row 6 – Cell 2 |
|
Speakers |
2x 5W Midrange, 1x 12W Bass |
Row 7 – Cell 2 |
|
Microphone |
4-array microphones with DSC noise reduction |
Row 8 – Cell 2 |
|
Weight |
18.51 lbs |
Row 9 – Cell 2 |
|
Wall Mountable (VESA) |
100 x 100 mm |
Row 10 – Cell 2 |
|
FreeSync Premium technology |
Yes |
Row 11 – Cell 2 |
|
Power Consumption |
Typ. 65W, Max. 270W |
Row 12 – Cell 2 |
|
Panel Type |
VA |
Row 13 – Cell 2 |
|
Connections |
2 × USB-A 3.0 1 × USB-C 3.1 2 × HDMI 2.0 1 × DP 1.4 1 × 3.5mm Audio out |
Row 14 – Cell 2 |
Should you buy the Mobile Pixels 34-inch mini-LED ultrawide gaming monitor?
|
Attributes |
Notes |
Rating |
|---|---|---|
|
Value |
Plenty of high brightness to enjoy across movies, TV shows, and games, but could benefit from a slightly cheaper price tag. |
3 / 5 |
|
Design |
Bogged down by the mediocre speakers on the bottom of monitor, but is adequate in other areas. |
3.5 / 5 |
|
Performance |
Besides dark level smearing and ghosting, the high brightness with HDR 1000, significantly enhances visual experiences, standing as a great alternative to OLED. |
4 / 5 |
|
Features |
OSD needs an improvement, but a 180Hz refresh rate and USB-C 90W reverse charging port are a very welcome addition. |
4 / 5 |
|
Average rating |
The Mobile Pixels 34-inch mini-LED ultrawide would be much better with a lower retail price, repositioning of the speakers, and an IPS panel for less ghosting and smearing, but excels at high brightness for immersion, making it a good option for PC gamers. |
3.5 / 5 |
Buy it if…
Don’t buy if…
Also consider
Acer Predator X32QFS
If dark level smearing and ghosting are a big issue for you, and you don’t mind a 4K mini-LED instead of an ultrawide, then the Acer Predator X32QFS should be on your radar. This features a mini-LED IPS panel, which handles ghosting much better, and compatibility for both PS5 and PC with HDMI 2.1.
Read our full Acer Predator X32QFS review
|
MSRP/RRP |
£899.99 / AU$1,099 (No US availability) |
|
Panel Size |
31.5in |
|
Panel kind |
Mini-LED IPS |
|
Panel decision |
3840 x 2160p; 4K |
|
Aspect ratio |
16:9 |
|
Refresh price |
150Hz |
|
Response time |
0.5ms |
|
Brightness |
700 nits (native) / 1000 nits (peak HDR) |
|
Contrast ratio |
1000:1 |
|
HDR |
VESA DisplayHDR 1000 |
|
Ports |
1 x HDMI 2.1, 1 x DisplayPort 1.4, 1 x USB-C, 2 x USB-A, 1 x audio jack |
|
Color gamut |
99% Adobe RGB, 99% DCI-P3 |
|
Display colours |
1.07 billion |
|
Warranty |
2-years |
How I examined the Mobile Pixels 34-inch mini-LED ultrawide
- Two weeks of utilization on films, TV exhibits, and video games, notably titles that implement HDR effectively
- Some examples are Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Street Fighter 6, Dragon’s Dogma 2, Resident Evil 4 remake, and Cyberpunk 2077
- Multiple distinction checks and comparisons with Alienware AW3423DWF OLED ultrawide monitor
Throughout my two weeks of testing, particularly when gaming, I had loads of enjoyable with the Mobile Pixels 34-inch monitor, and put my OLED monitor apart as a secondary show. Despite the drawbacks of blooming and ghosting, it was straightforward to take pleasure in brilliant content material with out dropping a lot element.
Testing Stellar Blade, Assassin’s Creed Shadows, and Cyberpunk 2077 first left nice preliminary impressions, particularly in Cyberpunk 2077, the place neon lights and vivid streets present distinctive visuals on any show, however it took issues up a notch. The ghosting points turned much more noticeable when utilizing Frame Generation in Cyberpunk 2077 and Dragon’s Dogma 2, and much more so in fast-paced FPS video games like Call of Duty: Black Ops 6.
Placing this subsequent to Dell’s Alienware OLED monitor, allowed me to level out the mini-LED monitor’s drawbacks extra simply. However, when it comes to deep black ranges, I used to be impressed with the Mobile Pixels 34-inch show, with simply how shut it will possibly get to OLED, albeit nonetheless fairly far off.
I used it for work and multitasking, which proved to be useful, compared to OLED, which notoriously has readability points – and the mini-LED was a breeze to make use of whereas deep into productiveness.