Being an Early Adopter SUCKS - Alienware AW3423DWF

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Dell-Alienware JUST launched the AW3423DW earlier this year, so how could the $200-cheaper DWF refresh possibly be any different? We did some digging to find out, and you might be surprised by how much of a difference a few months can make when working with a new technology.

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MUSIC CREDIT
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Intro: Laszlo - Supernova

Outro: Approaching Nirvana - Sugar High

CHAPTERS
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0:00 Intro
1:48 Almost Identical
2:42 Differences
4:30 Color Accuracy
5:30 HDR
7:45 DWF Advantages
10:00 Conclusion
12:16 Outro

[gencmaker]

I feel like most times its a tradeoff between getting the newest tech and also having to tolerate the quirks the newest tech has. As the quirks diminish well its not "newest tech" anymore.

[kaidiemulan]

Most likely I never bought anything thinking this is as good as it gets

[aceenterprise]

I heard that the new DWF was going to come in a variety of colors, unfortunately they used Pantone colors in their Adobe software mockups to send to the manufacturer.

[ImAFutureGuitarHero]

11:07
I'm sure this wasn't intentional but the timing of the preview banners on lttstore moving with Linus's hand gesture gets me every time

[greedsmack]

As someone who doesn’t research things like monitors that often, it would be nice if you had references to show what a “normal” display is capable of to give context to the capabilities of the new one. I don’t know how much better (if at all) .16ms black to white is than a regular LCD for example. That being said, I’ve had my heart set on the Alienware monitor for a LONG time and was planning on ordering one in a couple of days. Glad to see this video come out showing a cheaper model that is just as good. Great video as always!

[kabloosh]

I learned a long time ago the best tech equipment to buy is stuff that isn't cutting edge not only due to value but reliability of the item tends to be better.

[JeanBondepays]

I used to purchase everything second-hand through the "local" topic of a hardware forum, and sell my unused gear this way too. I can't imagine how much money I saved this way - and I met some great people too!
So if you are on a budget and something like that exists around you with a real community (so that you don't get scammed, unlike other second hand options), go for it!

[eiyukabe]

I've had an aw3423dw for months, and I don't regret it. It was such an enormous step upwards and has given me enhanced joy while playing games for those months that I wouldn't have if I waited. I am also very happy that technology marches forward for others and myself to keep benefitting from.

[ChristianStout]

In addition to new features, being patient also lets you avoid QC issues. For instance: in 9 months, new RTX 4090 owners probably won't have to worry about their card catching on fire.

[KJEZJ]

I have a Dell Alienware AW3423DW QD-OLED and I have exactly zero buyer's remorse. I've been waiting for this tech for years. Normally you get a new device and it is cool at first but, eventually, the novelty wears off. However, the crazy beautiful colors of this monitor blow me away every single day. Not just good photos and watching movies, but even small things like the color in favicons, emoji, syntax highlighting, or my lock screen. The true blacks are game changing. I love this thing. Quantum dots are the future.

[marcman]

the test colors mentioned at 8:25 built in to the dwf are availabe on the dw as well. if you put your computer to sleep so there is nothing on the display then hold the control stick left for ~5 seconds it pops up all grey. After that continue clicking to the left to get red/blue/green/white/black. I'd really love to have those picture in picture options though :( was very surprised to find them missing on such a large display.

[DarkenedMatter]

I almost bought this monitor on launch and also as recently as two weeks ago. I'm glad I've been patiently awaiting the monitor scene to continue to grow. It will only get better and cheaper from here.

[bigpump]

I bought the AW3423DW when it came out knowingly taking the early adopter risks and don’t regret my purchase at all. I spent a lot of time reading and watching reviews and luckily got to see it in person at microcenter and compare before buying. This monitor is so incredible for literally everything. Revisiting games with hdr is like playing them again for the first time. I still would’ve bought the Gsync version over the freesync anyway. Either one is 100% worth the money.

[shiruba]

I have the original monitor talked about here, and it is probably one of the best purchases I've ever made. I use it for office work at least as much as movies and games. It isn't the highest resolution thing in the world, and I wish it had USB C video in, but the colors are so nice and the lack of any glowing black bars is great. It's super easy in the eyes, and I don't regret the purchase at all

[joshuakb]

I also bought the DW full price and waited 3 months for it to arrive. I don't regret a thing, this monitor is amazing. I only wish more games knew how to take advantage of the display. I end up spending more time than I want to trying to hack HDR support into my games.

Although supporting 4K inputs would be a game changer for me. It would enable me to watch HDR TV and movies on my DW using a little streaming box I have. Netflix is the only streaming service with HDR support on PC :(

[ryancondie]

One thing I like about gsync is variable overdrive. The module uses a frame predictor as a part of its scalar that predicts when the next frame will arrive and adjusts the overdrive to match, meaning you don't get any ghosting artifacts on LCD displays.

For an OLED panel though, this doesn't really matter because the pixel response time is effectively instant. The DWF is a clear winner in my opinion and is definitely going on my wishlist. It's $1900 in Australia right now, hopefully it will come down to ~$1500 on sale.

[kanetw_]

From what I remember, the Gsync Ultimate module is an FPGA, which is gonna be at least $100 in bulk for the transceivers required for DP 1.4. Cutting that would easily explain the cost savings.

[tamegaming]

My story's LITERALLY the exact same as Plouffe's. Huge Oled simp my whole life, immediately went out and copped the AW34. It only puts my LG 27gl850 "to shame" in scenes with a lot of black or darkness, but the vivid colors come close. HEAVILY used since May-June and zero burn in or issues.

[tomsawyer]

A lot of LTT monitor videos have that RGB colour map. I have no idea how to read it, and my only takeaway is hearing the presenter tell me it's good. Could LTT do a video or a short that teaches us how to read that graph, what everything means and why?

[WhisThDctr]

I am extremely thankful for all the early adopters who go through the painstaking work of making purchasing much easier for me months or even years later.