VA Freesync Monitors - Ultrawide, UHD and WQHD

eddyr · 20 Jun 2018 at 18:39

I find myself stuck trying to decide which way to go on this one. Are there any stand out recommendations (or warnings!), and is there anything up and coming, particularly in the £3-500 price range that anyone could point out?

Thoughts and advice are welcome. I've put together a small list below of some VA freesync monitors which have passed my eyes as I look about. I'll add to it any that get recommended which will hopefully be useful to others also looking. It looks as though Samsung are ahead at the moment with VA panels with pixel responsivness from a gaming perspective. Happy to be corrected if it's not the case anymore. I know there are a few Samsung models out like the Samsung C34F791 UW which is a little out of my price range. There is also the 27" CH711 WQHD, however it is 75hz only which is a shame as it won't feature low framerate control.

On the one hand I am tempted by triple monitor goodness with a 34" Ultrawide and two 27" 16:9 monitors. On the other I am thinking to go all in on a UHD screen and just create a custom 21:9 resolution for any, increasingly infrequent, gaming. Or perhaps for now it's best to go with a good 1440p VA screen and see how I like it and move from there. For reference I am moving on from a 29" 2560x1080 UW (LG 29UM68-P) alongside which sits a 24" FHD monitor.

UHD (3840×2160)

£800? - Phillips Momentum 43" 48-60Hz HDR1000 flicker-free

There doesn't seem to be much available in the 38-42" range. Mostly IPS and TN at this size. 32 inches feels a little too small for 4K especially with a custom 21:9 resolution.

£??? - LG 32UD60 31.5" 60Hz
£400 - Acer ET322QK 31.5" 60Hz

Ultrawide 1440p (3440×1440)

£700 - Samsung C34F791 34" Curved 1800R 48-100Hz flicker-free
£700 - ASUS MX34VQ 34" Curved 1800R 48-100Hz flicker-free
£750? - Philips 349P7FUBEB 34" Curved 1800R 40-100Hz flicker-free

WQHD (2560×1440)

£350 - Samsung CH711 27" Curved 1800R 75Hz flicker-free

32" panels seem interesting options, if a little on the larger side being about the PPI of 24" 1920x1080 screens.
£200 - AOC Q3279VWF 75Hz
£350 - HP Omen 32" 48-75Hz
£400 - AOC AG322QCX 32" Curved 1800R 48-144Hz
£??? - BenQ EX3203R and AOC AG322QC4. These two 32" monitors announced recently. 144Hz, curved 1800R with min spec HDR400, flicker-free.

JediFragger · 20 Jun 2018 at 22:16

What is the main use, gaming? If so then UW is hard to beat imo, it's the sweet spot between screen size/resolution/refresh rate.

I think their is a new LG UW due soon-ish, 3440x1440 w/144hz native refresh and DP 1.4. Worth waiting for imo.

eddyr · 21 Jun 2018 at 17:52

JediFragger said:
What is the main use, gaming? If so then UW is hard to beat imo, it's the sweet spot between screen size/resolution/refresh rate.

I think their is a new LG UW due soon-ish, 3440x1440 w/144hz native refresh and DP 1.4. Worth waiting for imo.

Do you happen to know the model number of the LG? A quick google didn't throw anything up. I'll keep looking.

Gaming is definitely a usage requirement despite not having much time for it lately. So for that a higher refresh (current 29" is 75Hz) and freesync, preferably with LFC, are key features.

Otherwise it's also the bigger screen real-estate for productivity and deeper blacks for media which are also driving it. From a media perspective UHD and 21:9 UW would make a lot of sense too. Although I am aware of the hurdles with HDCP for 4K playback of protected content. That puts a bit of a dampener on UHD alongside the low refresh rates.
I was going through PCM2's review at pcmonitors on the Phillips Momentum 43" and his comment about VA being beneficial in mitigating the halo effect of HDR around bright areas has also stuck with me. But there doesn't seem to be much out quite yet in the way of decent HDR VA monitors?

JediFragger · 21 Jun 2018 at 18:20

eddyr said:
Do you happen to know the model number of the LG? A quick google didn't throw anything up. I'll keep looking.

Looks like it's the LG 34GK950F (and the 34GK950G being the Gsync version).

eddyr · 21 Jun 2018 at 21:50

The LG 34GK950F is an IPS screen from what I can see unfortunately.

I might find myself tempted to go with an 34" 21:9 IPS screen and pair it with a quality 27" 1440p VA. Huh, so many options.

Stu · 26 Jun 2018 at 13:12

I would wait for reviews on the LG 34GK950F before discounting it... it has a new generation panel, so may provide better performance compared to previous IPS monitors (but it might not be significantly better!).