I've been hearing for years how great 144Hz monitors are for gaming, but I didn't want to spend the cash to upgrade, especially since I already had a 34" 3440 x 1440 ultrawide. I saw this monitor on sale for Prime Day, and I thought the price point made it worth the switch, even with the lower resolution - I didn't think it would be that noticeable.
Boy was I wrong. 1080p is just not a high enough screen resolution for a 34" monitor, perhaps unless you sit unusually far back from your monitor. Even compared to the 27" 16:9 1080p monitors I use at work, the pixel density on this thing is just painfully low. I found the gaps between individual pixels extremely noticeable - not as bad as the "screen door effect" of using a first-generation VR headset, but definitely unpleasant.
On the bright side, I can report that the higher refresh rate and G-Sync really do make a huge difference for first-person shooters. Particularly in Apex Legends, I used to have a ton of trouble tracking moving targets, and once I started firing I'd frequently lose track of what I was actually shooting at due to the muzzle flash. I thought maybe I was just getting old and my FPS days were done, but at 144Hz the problem has been dramatically reduced, and I'm consistently doing more damage and getting more kills in every match.
Nevertheless, I can't recommend this monitor because the picture quality just isn't good enough in my opinion. I ended up returning it, but I couldn't go back to 60Hz, so I splurged and bought the Alienware AW3418DW instead. It's expensive and only goes up to 120Hz, but it's worth it for the higher screen resolution and improved picture quality, IMO.
My recommendation is, if you must have ultrawide, save your money and get a 3440 x 1440 120Hz monitor. If you're okay with 16:9, get a 1440p 144Hz monitor instead.
| Standing screen display size | 34 Inches |
|---|---|
| Screen Resolution | 2560 x 1080 |
| Max Screen Resolution | 2560 X 1080 Pixels |
