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Our HDR benchmarking uses Portrait Displays’ Calman software. To learn about our HDR testing, see our breakdown of how we test PC monitors.
The PG34WCDM supports HDR10 signals with an automatic switchover and three additional picture modes. The default is Gaming HDR and that is where I found the best performance.
HDR Brightness and Contrast
I measured the PG34WCDM using a 25% window pattern with Uniform Brightness turned off. That is the preferred and best way to view HDR since it provides the best highlights. I didn’t find the image fatiguing in any way, and the Asus is a bit more vivid than the others. Clearly, if you want big numbers, Mini LED is still king. The Philips and ViewSonic monitors nearly hit 1,500 nits peak, and I’ve seen other screens top 2,000. However, this isn’t necessary for a stunning image.
Grayscale, EOTF and Color
The PG34WCDM exhibits stellar accuracy in the HDR grayscale test with no visible errors whatsoever. It truly doesn’t get better than this. I noted similar results in the Cinema and Console HDR modes too. Where they differ is luminance tracking. Gaming HDR comes closest to the reference with slightly dark shadows transitioning to above-the-line until the tone-map transition at 70% brightness. These are minor issues that do not impact image quality.
In the color test, you can see slight over-saturation throughout which is typical of wide-gamut HDR monitors. While this gives the image a bit more verve, it isn’t strictly necessary since contrast is so high. This enhances color saturation naturally. But I have no complaints here. The same thing happens when the PG34WCDM is measured against Rec.2020. Inner points are over-saturated until the display runs out of color at around 85% for red and 75% for green. Blue makes it to about 95%. Again, this is typical of wide-gamut screens.
Test Takeaway: If you want the best possible HDR quality for gaming, get an OLED. Any one will do. The PG34WCDM excels for sure with accuracy and bright peaks over 700 nits. But it has a touch less gamut volume than the latest QD-OLED panels. In my observation, there is no difference worthy of concern but that is ultimately up to the individual user.
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