Acer Predator X34 OLED Curved gaming monitor review: Extreme curve and performance

The Acer Predator X34 OLED is a 34-inch 21:9 display with 240 Hz, WQHD 3440x1440 resolution, HDR400 and 800R curvature.

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Acer X34 OLED
(Image: © Tom's Hardware)

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I had no trouble finding other 34-inch 21:9 OLEDs for the X34 OLED’s comparison, but 240 Hz examples are still relatively new; I’m up to four now. We have Corsair’s 34WQHD240-C, Gigabyte’s MO34WQC2 and Asus’ PG34WCDM. At 175 Hz are Samsung’s OLED G8 and Philips 34M2C8600.

Pixel Response and Input Lag

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Acer Predator X34 OLED
(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

Four milliseconds is the expected draw time for any 240 Hz monitor, OLED or otherwise. Remember that an OLED is smoother at a given refresh rate than an LCD. In other words, a 240 Hz LCD will have a little motion blur, but an OLED won’t have any. The X34 OLED has perfect motion resolution in test patterns and real-world content. For my test, I left FreeSync turned on and still recorded a super-quick 20ms total lag time. Only the Corsair is 1ms faster and I doubt even the most skilled gamer will perceive that difference. The X34 OLED is fast for sure. If you choose to run without Adaptive-Sync, total lag is 20ms.

Test Takeaway: All the 240 Hz OLED gaming monitors I’ve tested are fast. They, and the X34 OLED, are in the top category for both screen response and input lag. You can have a little less lag with a premium LCD running at 500 Hz, but then you’ll give up that magical image that only an OLED can produce. At this point in time, there is nothing better for gaming.

Viewing Angles

Acer Predator X34 OLED

(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

The X34 OLED shows the same near-perfect off-axis image as every other OLED I’ve photographed. The side view shows no appreciable difference in color, brightness or gamma. This is an ideal panel for an 800R curve because it’s tough to sit such that your eyes are equidistant from all parts of the screen. An OLED won’t penalize you for that extreme curve. The top view shows a slight gamma reduction and a bit of green.

Screen Uniformity

To learn how we measure screen uniformity, click here.

Acer Predator X34 OLED

(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

I have yet to see an OLED deliver anything but visually perfect screen uniformity. As a premium display, that should be the case and the X34 OLED doesn’t disappoint. I saw no glow, bleed or hotspots from my sample using a variety of field test patterns from full black to full white and in all primary and secondary colors.

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Christian Eberle
Christian Eberle
Contributing Editor

Christian Eberle is a Contributing Editor for Tom's Hardware US. He's a veteran reviewer of A/V equipment, specializing in monitors. Christian began his obsession with tech when he built his first PC in 1991, a 286 running DOS 3.0 at a blazing 12MHz. In 2006, he undertook training from the Imaging Science Foundation in video calibration and testing and thus started a passion for precise imaging that persists to this day. He is also a professional musician with a degree from the New England Conservatory as a classical bassoonist which he used to good effect as a performer with the West Point Army Band from 1987 to 2013. He enjoys watching movies and listening to high-end audio in his custom-built home theater and can be seen riding trails near his home on a race-ready ICE VTX recumbent trike. Christian enjoys the endless summer in Florida where he lives with his wife and Chihuahua and plays with orchestras around the state.

3 Comments Comment from the forums
  • Makaveli
    This monitor looks nice.

    The Acer Predator X34 X5 coming out in Q4 will be the same thing but 1800R.
    Reply
  • helper800
    800R curve means its DOA for the vast majority of people. 1500R+ or its e-waste even at 400 dollars.
    Reply
  • A Stoner
    800R looks like it would be the absolute perfect curve for a 3 monitor setup. A 34 inch like this with 2 27 inch ones side by side would perfectly fit my 62 inch wide by 32 inch deep deskspace. It is actually 72 inches wide, but the far right side is where I keep my workstation. I would not want it to be a singular screen, I like to delineate where I keep different programs by monitor. Games and active content in the 21:9 central region. Other things to either side. It would cover 142 degrees of side to side vision and at that distance a 34 inch monitor covers about 33% of my up/down vision range, but covers 100% of my focusable area.
    Reply