Connect with us

Gaming

Review: Nixeus EDG34S 34-inch ultrawide gaming monitor

For the price, it’s hard to beat.

Nixeus edg34s monitor
Image: Joe Rice-Jones / KnowTechie
The Good
144Hz 1440P Samsung panel (one of the only monitors on the market with this spec)
Low-lag for gaming
AMD FreeSync and Nvidia G-Sync VRR support
Good contrast and deep blacks, typical of VA panels
Fantastic price
The Bad
Stand is serviceable (buy the non-S model if you're not putting it on a monitor arm)
VA panel still has black smearing on moving content, but minimal
9.3
Overall

The latest form factor for PC monitors is the Ultrawide, stretching the more common 16:9 aspect ratio to 21:9 for all that extra screen real estate. That gives enough space for two windows side by side at normal width, or extra peripheral vision when gaming.

The latest manufacturer to join the fun is Nixeus, a US-based company that has a string of highly recommended monitors under its belt, so let’s see what the latest from the company is all about.

So, what’s it all about?

Nixeus edg34s monitor on table

Image: Joe Rice-Jones / KnowTechie

Okay, let’s get the skinny on the ultrawide EDG34S. It’s a 34-inch gaming monitor with a 21:9 aspect ratio, a 3440 x 1440 resolution, and a 144 Hz refresh rate. It’s got AMD’s FreeSync tech for silky smooth frames while gaming, with a 48Hz – 144Hz range.

It’s also curved, with a 1500R curvature. If you don’t have a clue what that number is, you’re not alone. Imagine the screen extends into a full circle. Now remember back to geometry class, and make that circle have a radius of 1500mm. That’s where that 1500R number comes from. All you really need to remember is that the lower the number, the deeper the curve on your monitor.

READ MORE: Viotek GFI24CBA 24-inch gaming monitor review

The best panel in the world is useless without good input connectivity, and here we’ve got two DisplayPort 1.4’s, supporting up to 144Hz and two HDMI 2.0 inputs that can support a max refresh rate of 100 Hz at the panels native resolution. Make sure you’ve got a DisplayPort 1.4 compatible cable as well, or you won’t get the full 144 Hz on those either. One does come with the monitor so that’s easy. There are no HDMI cables though, so you’ll have to provide those.

The stand does a good job of keeping the weighty panel stable while bashing the keyboard during gaming. It’s only got tilt adjustment for angle though, so if you need height adjustment either get the non-S version or put the monitor on a VESA arm rated for 25 lbs or so. Oh, and there’s a fold-out headset hanger on the stand, which is handy if a little hard to get to because of the width of the panel.

So, how does the ultrawide EDG34S perform?

Edg34s monitor on table

Image: Joe Rice-Jones / KnowTechie

As you’d expect from a monitor using one of the latest Samsung VA panels, the image quality on the Nixeus EDG34S is great. Whites are crisp, blacks are deep, and colors are vibrant, with its 99-percent sRGB coverage as tested. The image doesn’t change that much when you change the viewing angle either, with Samsung really knowing how to make a panel that’s consistent across the board.

I know VA panels get a lot of flak for smearing on dark areas, but I’ve been trying to notice it on this panel in games and it’s escaped me. I’ve noticed it a little in Windows, where I have dark mode on everything, but it’s not really that prominent. One thing to note is that there’s a small patch of light bleed from the backlight about a third of the way in from each edge, on both top and bottom. This is a normal occurrence for curved panels, and the only time I really noticed it was when the monitor would go into sleep mode and the screen was greyed out.

I’ve almost finished Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order using my personal PC with a Ryzen 3600X and Radeon 5700XT and the experience has been great. Ultrawide gaming really helps with immersion and also with situational awareness, something that I’d not considered before. It’s also been fantastic for racing sims, really helping me judge turns and distance to the other racers.

The Nixeus EDG34S also has HDR support, with a peak brightness of 400 nits. That’s enough to make a small difference in the image quality when using HDR content, mainly with brightness. It won’t be a huge difference as the panel doesn’t have localized dimming zones, but that’s fine. Nixeus isn’t trying to sell this monitor based on HDR compatibility like many other companies, so the basic support is still a happy bonus.

So, should I buy it?

Nixeus monitor

Image: Joe Rice-Jones / KnowTechie

If you’re after a monitor that’s going to be used primarily for gaming, for $549 it’s hard to beat the Nixeus EDG34S. That cash gets you one of the only 1440P, 144Hz 34-inch ultrawide monitors on the market, Variable Refresh Rate compatibility with both AMD’s FreeSync and Nvidia’s G-Sync, and 99% coverage of the sRGB color space for rich media viewing.

Gaming on this monitor is great, with minimal ghosting, mainly just on darker patches of the panel which is a typical issue with all VA-type panels. It’s also fantastic for productivity, with enough real estate for me to have a full browser width, a word document and also a thin file explorer window so I don’t have to keep alt-tabbing all day.

The only real gripe is the tilt-only stand on the S model, which might make it sit low on your desk, below the optimal height for ergonomic viewing. You can either pony up for the fully adjustable stand version or fix it with a monitor arm (just make sure you get one rated for the weight of the panel).

Editors’ Recommendations:

Just a heads up, if you buy something through our links, we may get a small share of the sale. Click here for more. A sample unit was provided for the purpose of this review.

The Good
144Hz 1440P Samsung panel (one of the only monitors on the market with this spec)
Low-lag for gaming
AMD FreeSync and Nvidia G-Sync VRR support
Good contrast and deep blacks, typical of VA panels
Fantastic price
The Bad
Stand is serviceable (buy the non-S model if you're not putting it on a monitor arm)
VA panel still has black smearing on moving content, but minimal
9.3
Overall

Follow us on Flipboard, Google News, or Apple News

Maker, meme-r, and unabashed geek with nearly half a decade of blogging experience. If it runs on electricity (or even if it doesn't), Joe probably has one around his office somewhere. His hobbies include photography, animation, and hoarding Reddit gold.

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

More in Gaming