LG Ultrawide 34GN850-B Review
For as long as I can remember, I’ve been playing video games. In fact, I’ve owned or played on just about every system since the original NES with some of my favorite systems being the Sega Genesis, Super Nintendo and the original Xbox system!
I’ve also been gaming on PC’s since back in the day when computers still used used 3.5″ and even 5.25″ floppy disks, some of my PC favorites being Myst, NOX, Command & Conquer, and Need for Speed. Yeah, I’m getting kinda old…
However, in the last few years something’s changed and I’ve found myself not just wanting a computer that I can game on, but also one that I can create one! Specifically for creating videos on YouTube, like this one, as well as editing photos including my favorite type of photography, landscape photography.
So when building my brand new streaming and content creation machine, which I did a review on in my last video, I decided it was also time to upgrade to a new monitor, but I wanted to find one that was not only good for gaming but would also work great when it came to editing photos as well as color grading footage for my YouTube videos as most gaming monitors while great for gaming…obviously…are not that great when it comes to needing super accurate colors like you do when editing photo or video.
While I thought picking out a new monitor would be the least of my headaches when putting together a new system…I quickly realized it wasn’t going to be as easy as I thought…
I realized that most monitors were made for either one or the other and that there wasn’t a ton of options when it came to monitors for doing both gaming and content creation.
Asking for help on Reddit or most other online sources didn’t yield great results as the most common response was to buy two separate monitors. One for gaming and one for content creation.
For myself, that just wasn’t an option as then I’d also have to figure out a way to get the monitors to magically move around on my desk depending on which one I wanted to use as I have a bit of OCD and would never be able to stand having to face different directions to look at a different monitor each time I needed to switch tasks.
Finally, a friend recommended I take a look at the LG UltraWide 34GN850 as it featured some impressive gaming stats while also offering enough for it to be a great content creation monitor as well!
After using it for some time now, I thought I’d create a review to help others that may be in the same boat as myself as it seemed a lot people are just settling not realizing this awesome monitor exists!
Does it have some shortcomings? Absolutely, but if you need a monitor that does both, I don’t think you’ll find a better option…at least for now.
So with that said, let’s jump in to today’s review!
ROLL THE INTRO
Welcome back to the channel friends, if you’re a regular around these parts, don’t forget to drop a like and leave the hashtag #OMG down in the comments below to let me know who you are!
If you’re new around here and you like videos and tutorials related to streaming and content creation, like this one, don’t forget to subscribe by hitting the red subscribe button below and ring the bell next to it to be notified when I post new videos!
Also, I stream on Twitch regularly so if you have any questions or feedback about today’s video feel free to drop in and say hello when you see me live!
Link as always will be in the description below!
Alright, with the formalities out of the way, let’s dive in!
This review is not meant to be a super technical deep-dive in to all the specs on this monitor and whether it meets all the specs it claims to have as there are already reviews out there that do just that and honestly do it much better than I would be able to. I’ll link my favorite down in the description below!
Instead, I’ll be going through what my experiences have been using this monitor the last couple months and why I think it’s perfect for gamers who also want to create content. Especially if you’re like me and the thought of having two separate monitors and going between them depending on whether you’re gaming or editing seems like a total drag.
First, let’s at least go through the basic specs of this beast of a display.
It’s an LG 34″ 1440p UltraWide monitor, specifically, the resolution is 3440x1440p and features a 21:9 aspect ratio. This aspect ratio is what gives it the ultrawide name as most monitors have an aspect ratio of 16:9.
The panel is a Nano IPS display which allows for super accurate colors and features a DCI-P3 98% color gamut with HDR400 certification. Although, it does a great job covering the RGB color space, even straight out of the box with it’s sRGB mode, it’s not really great for HDR content if we’re being completely honest here.
It’s 144hz and for most users should be overclockable to a 160hz and according to LG features new IPS technology that allows for 1ms response times. Admittedly, if you set the monitor to it’s fastest mode it does then come with drawbacks and you’re probably not going to enjoy it as much as if it was a TN panel. Realistically you’re looking at about 4ms response times from my testing.
It also features compatibility for both G-sync and AMD FreeSync technologies allowing the monitor to sync with the FPS of your game up to the maximum 144hz of the monitor.
What really sets this monitor apart from other monitors though is the fact that straight out of the box it has pretty accurate colors which is something not true for most gaming monitors. While it’s not perfect, if you’re willing to download an ICC profile or color correct it yourself even further with a device it gets pretty dang close.
One big problem I had with my last monitor came when I decided to start printing photos to hang them on my wall creating a giant photo collage of all the places I’ve visited as well as important moments in my life.
When I got the photos and started reviewing them I noticed that the colors looked quite different from what they looked like inside Adobe Lightroom when I viewed them on my computer. Skin tones were too orange, pictures too warm and I’d dial in a color to a specific hue I thought looked good only for it to look completely different on the print. And no matter what settings I’d change on my monitor it just didn’t cover enough of the color space to ever get it quite right.
This monitor so far seems to nail it quite well, especially after color correcting it. Honestly, even if you didn’t want to spend $100USD on a device to color correct the monitor, out of the box using the sRGB mode I don’t think you’d have any issues getting what you see on the monitor to be the same as what photos look like when you print them!
Another great feature when it comes to content creation is the ultrawide 21:9 aspect ratio of the monitor. Personally, this is my first ultrawide monitor and now that I have it, I could never see msyelf going back to a normal 16:9 aspect ratio display.
The added real estate inside Adobe Premiere and Lightroom is an amazing feature to have! It allows me to have so much more information in front of me at one time, thus reducing the amount of time I’m wasting switching between different windows, tabs and boxes inside programs.
While having an UltraWide monitor did not completely replace my two monitor setup as I still find a lot of value in having a second display on my desk, it definitely has increased my productivity and to be completely honest is just a nice feature to have and makes editing more enjoyable!
For gaming, I’ve had zero issues with it besides the fact that the HDR400 certification is kinda bogus in my opinion and this really isn’t a monitor to buy if you’re extremely interested in HDR content or gaming.
While it’s not as fast as a TA panel, even though it does claim a 1ms response time, it’s still plenty fast enough at about a 4ms response time and unless you are a hardcore competitive fps player, I don’t think it’s an issue in the least bit.
Again, this monitor isn’t really meant to be the best gaming monitor nor is it meant to be the best content creation monitor.
However, it’s makes about the best compromises, in my opinion, from each category to make it quite possibly the best monitor if you’re wanting something that works well for both!
If you’re a gamer and content creator, the truth is, for the $899 MSRP price tag, I think this thing does everything you’d need it to do outside of HDR content. That’s literally the only thing I wish this monitor performed better at. I can’t even imagine if this thing had a HDR1000 certification!
It’s pricey, yes, but it’s an amazing monitor that looks great, features fast response times, is packed full of features, has accurate colors and should last you for years to come if you were to purchase it.
I’d highly recommend it and I’m glad I allowed myself to be talked in to purchasing it as part of my new setup as so far it’s been a dream to use!
Thank you so much for watching my review of the LG UltraWide 34GN850 monitor and if you’re interested in picking it up for yourself, there will be a link down in the description below!
Also, if you enjoyed this video, don’t forget to smash that like button! It really helps me out!
If you enjoy videos related to gaming, streaming and content creation, like this one, then make sure to click the red subscribe button below as well as ring the bell next to it to be notified when I post new videos!
If you have any additional questions about the monitor that I didn’t answer in today’s video, drop in to my livestream over on Twitch and I’ll be happy to answer any questions you may have! The link for that as always is down in the description below!
And, until next time, peace out everybody!