** POTENTIALLY THE BEST GAMING MONITORS YET!! ** Acer 34" Ultra-wides

[Rofflay]

FG2421 @ £300 is still the best monitor, If there were a better one i would put it on credit believe me. IPS is a dreadful technology for such a wide display you can be assured bleed will be a big issue here.

The only positives are G-Sync, 100hz and Ultrawide everything else sucks inc the fake two year warranty i mean come on how can you even print that when it clearly falls foul of sale of goods act? If anything went wrong with this at all in under six years the retailer has to refund/exchange.

Really does my head in...

 

[Legend]

FG2421 @ £300 is still the best monitor, If there were a better one i would put it on credit believe me. IPS is a dreadful technology for such a wide display you can be assured bleed will be a big issue here.

The only positives are G-Sync, 100hz and Ultrawide everything else sucks inc the fake two year warranty i mean come on how can you even print that when it clearly falls foul of sale of goods act? If anything went wrong with this at all in under six years the retailer has to refund/exchange.

Really does my head in...

IPS isn't dreadful at all. I've had several IPS monitors and they can be excellent. Any monitor is prone to bleed, it's hardly unique to IPS... and invariably that's down to the the bezels being fitted too tight anyway, rather than always being the panel itself. IPS glow can be an issue of course, but it varies between panels. It's also easily remedied with an ATW Polarizer, but unfortunately no manufacturer seems to want to go to the expense of fitting these anymore... which on a premium monitor utterly baffles me. They're just being cheap.

Compare this to TN with its poor RGB accuracy, colour shift and terrible viewing angles (not to mention being no less a victim of BLB), and you can hardly say IPS is 'dreadful'. It beats TN hands down on all these counts, but it seems things have gone backwards and many so called 'premium' IPS monitors are being produced now with all kinds of faults and without any care or attention to quality and customer satisfaction. But that isn't the fault of IPS.

I agree Acer are totally the wrong manufacturer to bring this monitor to the marketplace, and that warranty certainly fulfills the description of 'dreadful', but Acer are the ones to be directing your anger at, not IPS. It's simply an innocent victim of their incompetence.

 

[Jarrastafari]

...i mean come on how can you even print that when it clearly falls foul of sale of goods act? If anything went wrong with this at all in under six years the retailer has to refund/exchange....

I am interested in this part. Where can I quote this information from a legit source for future reference please?

 

[Legend]

I am interested in this part. Where can I quote this information from a legit source for future reference please?

Well, it isn't QUITE as simple as he implies. Basically, the Sale of Goods Act (which you can find here) does not specify what reasonable durability is in terms of satisfactory quality (except it cannot be more than 6 years) as it is dependent on the type of goods. However, if an item such as a PC monitor suffers a failure after 2 years and 1 day (as an example, based on the Acer warranty) that is NOT due to misuse or wear and tear, then it is quite fair to say that the monitor should have reasonably been expected to last longer. And you absolutely should reasonably expect a monitor to last longer than that, no question! In such a situation you are entitled to a full repair or replacement.

However, if the re-seller/manufacturer disputes a fault and blames wear and tear or misuse (after the official warranty period is over, but under 6 years), then you would have to prove otherwise by having it repaired/tested. Sometimes the re-seller can do this themselves (if they are co-operative), and if not and you needed this carried out independently, you can claim money back for this (up to £200 I believe), after the fact and of course assuming it turns out to be an actual genuine fault and not wear and tear or misuse.

It certainly isn't a simple case of rocking up to the shop that you bought a monitor from 5 years and 364 days ago which has just gone 'bang', and say "give me a new one, that's the law"... I think we can all agree that would be somewhat open to abuse if it were that simple lol! At the same time however, anyone who thinks that all is lost if, after 2 years, their Acer monitor suffers a genuine fault, then they need not worry. This is why extended warranties are such a con.

 

[fantasticCG]

IPS isn't dreadful at all. I've had several IPS monitors and they can be excellent. Any monitor is prone to bleed, it's hardly unique to IPS... and invariably that's down to the the bezels being fitted too tight anyway, rather than always being the panel itself. IPS glow can be an issue of course, but it varies between panels. It's also easily remedied with an ATW Polarizer, but unfortunately no manufacturer seems to want to go to the expense of fitting these anymore... which on a premium monitor utterly baffles me. They're just being cheap.

Compare this to TN with its poor RGB accuracy, colour shift and terrible viewing angles (not to mention being no less a victim of BLB), and you can hardly say IPS is 'dreadful'. It beats TN hands down on all these counts, but it seems things have gone backwards and many so called 'premium' IPS monitors are being produced now with all kinds of faults and without any care or attention to quality and customer satisfaction. But that isn't the fault of IPS.

I agree Acer are totally the wrong manufacturer to bring this monitor to the marketplace, and that warranty certainly fulfills the description of 'dreadful', but Acer are the ones to be directing your anger at, not IPS. It's simply an innocent victim of their incompetence.

Why do you view your monitor from strange angles??? I loved my IPS Monitor and I love my current ROG swift TN for different reasons.
Still don't get people that harp on about viewing angles

 

[Legend]

Why do you view your monitor from strange angles??? I loved my IPS Monitor and I love my current ROG swift TN for different reasons.
Still don't get people that harp on about viewing angles

Well that's the extreme, but the colour shift is obvious when sitting right in front of it (although as I understand it some suffer worse than others). I've tried a Swift and coming from a 27" IPS it was immediately obvious to me. The refresh rate etc. was excellent though, I'll give it that.

 

[Matson]

Its really disappointing that the 100hz one is tied to Nvidia Cards. This whole Card specific Sync thing needs to die.

 

[andybird123]

Its really disappointing that the 100hz one is tied to Nvidia Cards. This whole Card specific Sync thing needs to die.

You do realise that its only because of the completely custom controller that it can do 100hz right? Left to their own devices, the monitor makers wouldn't bother commissioning a controller capable of 100hz at all, at least this way we get some choice.

Also, @Legend
This is from techreports review of the Rog Swift, comparing it with an IPS monitor

After calibration, the PG278Q looks even better, with less overall error than the IPS-based PB278

So no, ips does not automatically have better rgb accuracy
I also see no blb on my swfit... I honestly don't know what settings you had your swift on, but it doesn't sound like you bothered to give it a go

I will be ordering either the Acer or Asus gsync version, but any backlight or glow issues and I'll just stick with the Swift

 

[HEADRAT]

2 year RTB is insufficient, even LG offer "3yr (On-Site with LG)" (or not as people experience of LG Customer Service suck)

Would it be possible to pay some extra money to get OcUK to QA before shipment to ensure zero defects?

Buying high end monitors at the moment seems somewhat akin to playing Russian Roulette, manufactures need to lift their game. There's no way I would drop £1K on a monitor at the moment with the current manufactures QA and I just don't have the time/inclination to keep DSR/RMAing a unit until I get a good one.

 

[PCM2]

You do realise that its only because of the completely custom controller that it can do 100hz right? Left to their own devices, the monitor makers wouldn't bother commissioning a controller capable of 100hz at all, at least this way we get some choice.

Also, @Legend
This is from techreports review of the Rog Swift, comparing it with an IPS monitor


So no, ips does not automatically have better rgb accuracy
I also see no blb on my swfit... I honestly don't know what settings you had your swift on, but it doesn't sound like you bothered to give it a go

I will be ordering either the Acer or Asus gsync version, but any backlight or glow issues and I'll just stick with the Swift

What a colorimeter says about colour accuracy from a small point in the centre of the screen, looking perfectly perpendicularly and point blank, is of little consequence. The eyes do not look at the screen in such a manner. The point which Legend was making is that IPS panels have more consistent shade representation. They don't suffer from the variable saturation levels which exist from normal viewing positions on a large TN panel. Anybody who doesn't understand this concept would do well to take note of Legend's observations or read a proper review of the PG278Q (such as mine).

 

[Baddass]

What a colorimeter says about colour accuracy from a small point in the centre of the screen, looking perfectly perpendicularly and point blank, is of little consequence. The eyes do not look at the screen in such a manner. The point which Legend was making is that IPS panels have more consistent shade representation. They don't suffer from the variable saturation levels which exist from normal viewing positions on a large TN panel. Anybody who doesn't understand this concept would do well to take note of Legend's observations or read a proper review of the PG278Q (such as mine).

completely agree. and people who say they don't understand why viewing angle make a difference if you view it head on also need to understand similar points. on modern screens of these kind of sizes, even if you're viewing the screen head on centrally a TN Film panel will show contrast and tone shifts as you glance towards the sides of the screen, and particularly towards the top and bottom. The viewing angles of TN Film make it very resitrctive in this regard, and the bigger the monitor, the more of a problem it is. IPS type technologies have more stable image quality and far less contrast/tone shift across the panel which is why they are considered better in this regard

 

[Jarrastafari]

Well, it isn't QUITE as simple as he implies...This is why extended warranties are such a con.

Thank you for the very knowledgable response to be honest I didn't think it would be that easy but that's why I asked. Good examples too!

 

[Legend]

completely agree. and people who say they don't understand why viewing angle make a difference if you view it head on also need to understand similar points. on modern screens of these kind of sizes, even if you're viewing the screen head on centrally a TN Film panel will show contrast and tone shifts as you glance towards the sides of the screen, and particularly towards the top and bottom. The viewing angles of TN Film make it very resitrctive in this regard, and the bigger the monitor, the more of a problem it is. IPS type technologies have more stable image quality and far less contrast/tone shift across the panel which is why they are considered better in this regard

Exactly. It is funny when you bring up the viewing angles point and people counter with "well I don't look at my monitor from across the room so this doesn't matter" lol!

 

[Legend]

Thank you for the very knowledgable response to be honest I didn't think it would be that easy but that's why I asked. Good examples too!

No problem... it's good to know what your rights are in these instances. Doesn't change the fact that the Acer warranty is a big pile of poo though, and SHOULD something go wrong with your monitor a day after that 2-year period expires, it's not a situation you would want to find yourself in... but it certainly isn't a calamitous no hope one either as some people may fear.

 

[Clav]

I really want this to be good! I'd stump up for the Freesync one if it proves reliable.

 

[wickeruk]

Hello, I've been lurking the monitor thread for a few months now looking for a bedfellow for my Zotac Geforce GTX 980 ti amp Extreme edition. I was going to pick up the XB270HU but the quality of the bezel put me off.
I then wanted the ASUS PG279Q but that doesn't seem to want to come out and play anytime soon.
Then I saw the beast that is the X34. Looks great... all the features that I want.

I know the problem with the XB270HU from Acer but my understanding is that a large percentage went out fine (something like 60/40?) so I know it is a bit of a gamble, I hope that Acer will have learnt from their previous mistake and make better judgements on the QC process.

I have put my order in with Overclockers... roll on October.

 

[Cycrow]

I am interested in this part. Where can I quote this information from a legit source for future reference please?

Its not even close to true. The sales of goods act and manufacturer warranties and completely separate.

for one, to use the sales of goods act, its against the retailer, ie OcUK. It doesnt give you any rights with Acer.

The manufactures warranty is in addition to your statutory rights, they dont even have to offer one at all. If they dont, you still have the same rights against the retailer under the sales of goods act.

The 6 years is from the limitations act, and its time you have to pursue legal action for breach of the contract, it doesn't mean goods have to last for 6 years, and it doesn't mean you can get a refund within that time.

The sales of goods act simply says the goods should last a reasonable time (this time will depend on the goods and the price you pay, cheaper items are not expected to last as long as more expensive ones) and be fit for purpose. And only covers inherent faults (using sub standard parts so it doesn't last as long as it should would be classed as an inherent fault).

However, 6 months after purchase, its upto the consumer to prove the goods had an inherent fault, which you can do via an independent report. If you prove the fault, then the retailer must give you a remedy, either a Refund (which can be partial based on the length of time you've had it), Exchange or repair. But you cant insist on a remedy thats more costly to the retailer (so its effectively their choice which they can give you).

If the retailer refuses, your only option is to take them to court and let a judge decide.

The sales of goods act only applies to retailers in the UK (running under UK law)

 

[Marine-RX179]

Its not even close to true. The sales of goods act and manufacturer warranties and completely separate.

for one, to use the sales of goods act, its against the retailer, ie OcUK. It doesnt give you any rights with Acer.

The manufactures warranty is in addition to your statutory rights, they dont even have to offer one at all. If they dont, you still have the same rights against the retailer under the sales of goods act.

The 6 years is from the limitations act, and its time you have to pursue legal action for breach of the contract, it doesn't mean goods have to last for 6 years, and it doesn't mean you can get a refund within that time.

The sales of goods act simply says the goods should last a reasonable time (this time will depend on the goods and the price you pay, cheaper items are not expected to last as long as more expensive ones) and be fit for purpose. And only covers inherent faults (using sub standard parts so it doesn't last as long as it should would be classed as an inherent fault).

However, 6 months after purchase, its upto the consumer to prove the goods had an inherent fault, which you can do via an independent report. If you prove the fault, then the retailer must give you a remedy, either a Refund (which can be partial based on the length of time you've had it), Exchange or repair. But you cant insist on a remedy thats more costly to the retailer (so its effectively their choice which they can give you).

If the retailer refuses, your only option is to take them to court and let a judge decide.

The sales of goods act only applies to retailers in the UK (running under UK law)

So long story short, the manufacturers are getting away with poor QC and screw both retailers and consumers alike in the process should problem with their products arise

 

[Cycrow]

So long story short, the manufacturers are getting away with poor QC and screw both retailers and consumers alike in the process should problem with this products arise

Well, as far as the law goes, pretty much yeah.

 

[Legend]

So long story short, the manufacturers are getting away with poor QC and screw both retailers and consumers alike in the process should problem with this products arise

Essentially yes. And of course WE are the ones who end up suffering. Even though there are legal remedies that are in place to protect us being totally screwed over, most people aren't actually aware of this... and even those that are hardly want to have to endure the whole process, which can be stressful and drawn out... not to mention leaving you without your 'premium' product that you paid a huge amount of money for in the first place. It's not something we should even need to discuss, but here we are. Sad state of affairs really.