Alienware’s AW3423DWF has long been a Digital Foundry favourite gaming monitor for good reason, with its sublime image quality, gorgeous design and great feature set. It’s currently on the receiving end of quite a hefty discount from Dell at the moment, both as part of Dell’s Spring sale and with code HUKDAW3423DWFMT14 which brings the price down to £600, which I think is the best price we’ve ever seen on this panel.
What makes the AW3423DWF so special? Well, its Samsung QD-OLED panel provides the benefit of both a bright image and the signature deep blacks and incredible contrast afforded by the combo of a QLED and OLED into one panel type. You also get the benefit of near-instant pixel response times and wide viewing angles, which is handy on an ultrawide like this one. On that note, the 3440×1440 ultrawide resolution that the AW3423DWF has is well supported in modern PC games and works well for productivity tasks too, and games benefit from FreeSync/G-Sync support and the 165Hz refresh rate.
As the -F variant of this monitor, it is a little bit different to the standard AW3423DW we’ve rated so highly in the past, but the changes it features make virtually no difference in real world testing. For those interested, those changes are a 10Hz lower refresh rate and the fact it doesn’t come with a physical G-Sync module. In addition, the AW3423DWF also comes with a notable upgrade with a pair of DP 1.4 ports and one HDMI 2.0, as opposed to it being the other way around on the AW3423DW.
The AW3423DWF also retains Alienware’s classic space-age futuristic design, and offers a chassis that’s unlike any other gaming monitor. It’s usually on the design front where Alienware set themselves apart, and this monitor is no different. You also get a sturdy stand with it, and support for VESA mounting means if you want to chuck it on an arm, then you most certainly can. The OSD is also said to be pretty intuitive with a good range of options, too.
If I had the desk space for the AW3423DWF, I’d be sorely tempted to buy one of these. Being able to get it for £600 makes it an excellent deal, especially when compared to its usual RRP, and you’re certainly getting a lot of panel for the price.
