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Conclusion

There are many exotic gaming monitors to choose from with jumbo screens that are extremely wide, or extremely curved, or both; and there are OLEDs and glasses-free 3D panels too. But they are all expensive. It’s not that they are a poor value; it’s that not everyone wants to spend $1,000 on a display.

Today, the bread-and-butter category is 34-inch WQHD 21:9 ultra-wides. Once rare and unusual, they are now a solid choice for gaming and productivity. They are versatile in size and format and work equally well as tools for work or play.

The HP Omen 34c G2 is a shining example of this genre. It delivers solid pixel density, excellent contrast, and super quick gaming with competition-worthy low input lag and premium video processing. It also renders a colorful accurate image with deep contrast and some of the best HDR I’ve seen from an LCD.

It clearly stands out from its predecessor, the Omen 34c, and more current competition with fantastic HDR contrast that I measured over 21,000:1. It’s also one of the quickest screens in its class with 21ms of total input lag and premium video processing. The overdrive is very precise and the MPRT backlight strobe works smoothly with a minimum of artifacts.

If you’re contemplating the replacement of your Omen 34c, the new model is more than compelling. Or if you’d like to try an ultra-wide but can’t afford an OLED, it’s a fantastic value. The HP Omen 34c G2 is a superb and attractively priced gaming monitor that is definitely worth checking out.

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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.