ASUS VG34VQL1B 3440 x 1440 UltraWide with 165Hz VA panel
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The 34″ 3440 x 1440 experience and advantages it brings are well-documented on this website. The ASUS VG34VQL1B is an UltraWide addition to the burgeoning TUF Gaming lineup. In keeping with other models in the series, the design is simple with plenty of matte black plastic. The stand has a ‘penguin foot’ design and the bottom bezel is moderately thick matte black plastic. The top and side bezels are slimmer, with a dual-stage design. This includes a reasonably slender panel border that’s flush with the rest of the screen plus a slender hard plastic outer component. The OSD is controlled by a joystick and buttons at the rear of the screen, running vertically down the right side as viewed from the front.
The monitor uses a 34″ VA (Vertical Alignment) panel with 3440 x 1440 and 1500R (moderate) curve. This curve is designed to draw you into the experience a bit, whilst potentially enhancing viewing comfort. A light matte anti-glare screen surface is employed, offering decent glare handling without impeding the image as much as ‘stronger’ matte screen surfaces. This model is based on a CSOT panel rather than one of the usual Samsung SVA panels seen on such products. A 165Hz refresh rate is supported, alongside Adaptive-Sync. This includes support for Nvidia’s ‘G-SYNC Compatible Mode’ and AMD FreeSync Premium, with a 48 – 165Hz VRR range alongside LFC support. A 4000:1 static contrast ratio is specified, higher than the more usual 3000:1 specified for models using Samsung panels. 178° horizontal and vertical viewing angles are specified, whilst 8-bit colour support is included. The monitor employs a flicker-free WLED backlight, with 90% DCI-P3 colour gamut (120% sRGB) and 550 cd/m² typical maximum luminance. VESA DisplayHDR 400 support is included, allowing the monitor to make use of its colour gamut and relatively high luminance level. 10-bit processing is also enabled, with the help of GPU dithering. It does not require that local dimming is used.
Low Blue Light (LBL) settings are included to promote higher levels of viewing comfort. A 1ms MPRT response time is specified, with the ELMB (Enhanced Low Motion Blur) strobe backlight setting used in place of Adaptive-Sync. As usual, don’t pay too much attention to such specifications. The monitor supports variable overdrive, meaning the level of grey to grey acceleration is re-tuned for different refresh rates. The idea here is that it’s slackened off as the refresh rate reduces, avoiding ever-increasing levels of overshoot. The monitor offers tilt, height and swivel adjustment and includes provision for 100 x 100mm VESA mounting if the included stand is removed. The ports face downwards and include; AC power input (internal converter), 2 HDMI 2.0 ports, 2 DP 1.4 ports, a 3.5mm headphone jack and 4 USB 3.0 ports (plus upstream).
Further details are available on the manufacturer’s website. The monitor is listed for ~$500 USD.
