For the past two years the Acer Predator X34 has remained ane of the best gaming monitors on the market. I've been so satisfied with it since launch that that I've kept it as my personal monitor for both gaming and video production. I love the combination of a 34-inch 21:nine 3440 x 1440 display with a 100 Hz maximum refresh rate, 1000-Sync, and even corking color accurateness for a gaming monitor.

Simply this new monitor from Acer, an upgraded version of the X34, is even meliorate in nearly every style. Information technology's called the Predator X34P, and it could be the perfect monitor to tide united states of america over before the HDR-capable X35 finally hits the market.

As an interesting notation, the Predator X34P has received its fair share of launch troubles. This monitor was really unveiled all the manner dorsum at Computex 2016 , so it's taken a long fourth dimension for the new panel in this brandish to become gear up for mass production.

And yes, there is a new panel in the X34P. It retains the same 34-inch size and 3440 10 1440 resolution as the original X34, only information technology now comes with a 100 Hz refresh rate as standard with the ability to hands overclock up to 120 Hz.

Previously, the X34 came as a 60 Hz monitor with a 100 Hz overclock, though some buyers couldn't hit 100 Hz stably due to flickering. The X34P solves this offering native 100 Hz with an added boost up to 120 Hz. My retail unit had no problems striking that mark and I hope this is the case for others as well.

The other central change to the panel is a more aggressive curve, moving from 3800R to 1900R. I'1000 not a massive fan of curved displays, but the X34 is so wide that the increased curvature does amend the experience.

With the new 1900R curve, the edges are just slightly more in your field of view, which I like to think helps me gun downwards foes more easily in games. The truth is I'yard probably just as mediocre as earlier, merely with a new fancy monitor to look at.

Almost other specs remain the same: IPS, 300 nits maximum effulgence, a g:one native contrast ratio, 4ms grey-to-greyness response times, 100% sRGB coverage, and M-Sync support. Ability consumption is apparently the same, likewise, though in my testing the X34P uses well-nigh 8W more ability when overclocked to 120 Hz, and about 6W more at 100 Hz.

The X34P design has received an overhaul that fixes basically every problem with the original X34. The annoying glossy plastic has been nuked in favour of plastic with a faux-brushed metal finish, while all other plastic has received a subtle upgrade to a more classy pattern that better suits the monitor's lofty price tag. Unfortunately the 'chin' along the lesser remains, though this is likely a by-production of how the panel itself is designed.

The good news for slim-bezel fans like myself is the bezels have also shrunk marginally with the X34P, moving from 13mm to 10mm on near sides, which is a great though minor upgrade. The stand has become more than versatile besides, now supporting a greater range of pinnacle adjustments along with new swivel support. The stand is a chip uglier from the rear as a result, merely the added flexibility is certainly a overnice bonus.

The monitor gods take listened to my prayers as the X34P finally includes a directional toggle for the on-screen display, rather than the awful five-button approach of the original pattern. The toggle makes it so much easier to movement around the OSD and make adjustments as necessary. Information technology's complemented by three buttons for quick adjustments to input, brightness and display modes.

There'southward zero revolutionary about the OSD, in here you lot'll find basic color controls along with overdrive settings, the overclocking option, typical features like shadow boosting and low bluish low-cal, forth with additions like crosshair overlays and even a refresh charge per unit counter. Most of the additions I never bother using, though yous might find something interesting in there.

The 20 Hz refresh rate boost the X34P provides over the original is certainly not as noticeable as the jump from 60 to 100 Hz, merely it's dainty to get that chip of actress refresh rate headroom. Back when the X34 launched, information technology was much harder to hit 100 FPS at 3440 x 1440 with ultra quality settings in AAA games, simply with mod cards like the 1080 Ti, this monitor's extra speed genuinely comes in handy.

Unfortunately it appears AMD users are once over again left out of the party, as in that location's no FreeSync equivalent, leaving Acer'south best 3440 10 1440 FreeSync monitor stuck at 75 Hz. This is one of the cases where the G-Sync model not but supports Nvidia's variable refresh technology, just too packs additional features exclusive to the G-Sync variant.

Acer generally makes accurate claims about the functioning of their monitors, and the X34P is no exception. Contrast ratio is around 1040:1, just slightly improve than what is listed on the spec sheet, while peak effulgence I measured at 294 nits, close to the rated 300 nit mark. A contrast ratio of higher up 1000:1 is maintained throughout the brightness range too, which is good to see.

Like many curved displays, the X34P does endure from a few uniformity issues, though it's not nearly as bad as I've seen with other panels. The correct side is slightly tinted yellow relative to the heart, with a maximum deltaE difference of 2.ii with an all-white brandish. This is somewhat noticeable when viewing solid colors.

Ghosting and pixel response appears virtually-identical to the X34, which means the 'normal' overdrive setting remains the platonic choice for most users. The IPS console used is adequately quick for this sort of display technology, so ghosting is not a big issue for the about office.

Viewing angles are also very skillful, every bit you'd expect from an IPS console, though contrast ratio isn't as adept equally you'd run across from a VA brandish. With that said, while the contrast ratio doesn't reach the heights of VA displays, the X34P does non exhibit any noticeable backlight bleed.