Dell Alienware AW3426DW 280Hz QD-OLED Ultrawide
As an Amazon Associate and Newegg Affiliate I earn from qualifying purchases made using the “Buy” button at the bottom of this post. Where possible, you'll be redirected to your nearest store. Further information on supporting our work.The new generation of QD-OLED ultrawides, such as the MSI MPG 341CQR QD-OLED X36, offer some attractive benefits over older QD-OLED models. This includes an improved refresh rate, RGB stripe subpixels to tackle fringing, higher brightness and a screen surface which is more scratch-resistant and less prone to lightening up in ambient lighting. The Dell Alienware AW3426DW provides these benefits in a slightly more ‘streamlined’ and lower cost form, with a 280Hz variant of the new panel and DP 1.4 support rather than DP 2.1. The monitor provides the more pared-back styling we’ve seen with a few recent models from the brand, with a fairly simple and compact stand design. The top and bottom bezels are dual-stage, with panel border flush with the rest of the screen plus hard outer part. The OSD (On Screen Display) is controlled by a joystick behind the central region of the bottom bezel. Customisable RGB ‘AlienFX’ lighting elements include a ring around the power button and an alien logo at the rear.
A 34″ Samsung Display QD-OLED panel is used with 3440 x 1440 (21:9 ultrawide) resolution, 1800R (fairly gentle) curve and 280Hz refresh rate. The monitor uses a vertical RGB stripe arrangement for subpixels, which panel manufacturer Samsung refers to as ‘V-Stripe’. This is designed to massively reduce or eliminate fringing issues caused by the traditional triangle RGB layout of QD-OLEDs. The screen surface is glossy with anti-reflective treatment, including Samsung Display’s ‘QuantumBlack’ screen surface treatment. This is claimed to provide “40% deeper blacks” (i.e. lightens up less in ambient light) and is “2.5x more scratch-resistant” with 3H rather than 2H ‘hardness’. The monitor supports VRR via Adaptive-Sync and HDMI 2.1 VRR, allowing technologies such as Nvidia ‘G-SYNC Compatible’ and AMD FreeSync Premium Pro to be used, with assumed 48 – 280Hz VRR range plus LFC. A 120Hz ‘4K’ UHD signal is supported on compatible games consoles, alongside VRR. Other aspects of note include a 1.5m:1 static contrast ratio, 10-bit colour, a 0.03ms grey to grey response time and factory calibration with specified average DeltaE <2. The monitor is 'flicker-free', with 99% DCI-P3 colour gamut and 300 cd/m² (1300 cd/m² HDR peak) typical maximum luminance, significantly brighter than the original QD-OLED specification of 200 cd/m² (1000 cd/m² HDR peak).
The monitor is able to provide a dynamic HDR10 experience with 10-bit colour used alongside the generous colour gamut and per-pixel illumination. Dolby Vision is supported as an alternative format, not applicable in the PC gaming space but potentially useful elsewhere. The monitor is VESA DisplayHDR True Black 500 certified – requiring higher brightness levels, including full screen white brightness, than the more common True Black 400 certification. HDR settings with stronger brightness peaks are also included. The stand includes tilt, swivel and height adjustment. It includes a central quick-release attachment and can be removed to reveal provision for 100 x 100mm VESA mounting. The ports face downwards and include; AC power (internal power converter), 2 HDMI 2.1 ports, DP 1.4, USB-C (15W PD) and USB-B upstream. Outside the main port area, at the bottom of the screen for easy access, there’s a USB-A port and USB-C downstream (15W PD). The 3-year warranty included with the monitor covers OLED burn-in for peace of mind. The monitor will be available from July 2026, pricing details not currently available.
