I’m in Shock - ASUS 240Hz MLA OLED w/ BFI (PG34WCDM Review)

[@thedisplayguy]

Thank you to Ruipro for sponsoring this video! Buy the Ruipro HDMI 2.1 Certified Fiber Optic Cable (6FT): amzn.to/3wvHB7j Buy the Ruipro HDMI 2.1 Certified Fiber Optic Cable (25FT): amzn.to/432NDGS Buy Ruipro Cables: ruipro.store/collections/all Get access to all my ICC profiles & Discord: patreon.com/TheDisplayGuy Best Ultrawide Monitors Samsung 34" (1440p 175Hz OLED) G8 (G85SB): amzn.to/49sU7Tv Alienware 34" (1440p 175Hz OLED) AW3423DW: amzn.to/49EbFfm LG 45" (1440p 240Hz OLED) 45GR95QE-B: amzn.to/3TayJMZ All links are Amazon affiliate links. (I earn commission).

[@EspHack]

never thought I could find someone that hated mudcoated monitors as much as I do

[@arc00ta]

Yes, we exist.

[@FatalDreidel]

I assume tons of people do. Ever Notice apple monitors and laptops are all glossy?

[@Ilestun]

We are legion. I was always so jealous of iMacs glossy monitors, so jealous. But that jealousy is finished soon, amazone will deliver my MO34WQC2 friday......can't wait to give away my current ultrawide to my big bro (10+ years old PHILIPS-298P4QJEB)

[@Ilestun]

@@FatalDreidel Do not forget our OLED smartphones (and non OLED once also btw), our TV's........everything except (bad and ugly) PC monitors lol.

[@garnitan2706]

"This retinal assault of a coating" 🤣

[@George-um2vc]

He don’t hold back

[@heatnup]

@@George-um2vcdoesn’t*

[@Vaznazza]

​@@heatnup his use of don't is fine in that context as it is used colloquially.

[@lindseyhunt1090garageb]

matte coatings are so annoying. i understand what they do and on generic monitors makes sense. but i feel like anyone who is going to buy a 1000+ dollar monitor probably has a proper room/ setup to put it in.

[@20puskinas1992]

So true brother. Matte only belongs on trash office monitors.

[@MrDutch1e]

Rather have glossy that's slightly dimmer than sand grain matte that reads brighter on measuring tools. Perceived brightness is really what matters.

[@LexLutha]

I have the PG32UCDM and it’s way too dark. I would take brightness all day

[@amariel3310]

@@LexLutha Use RTX HDR. It will significantly increase brightness in games.

[@verttisyrjala2897]

@@LexLuthaDon't use the HDR1000 mode, it's garbage.

[@HeavyComponent]

Thank you for this video! Still waiting for the monitor that you WILL recommend us to get that checks off all your needs! Until I see that video, I'm going to just stick to my old setup.

[@Nedlius]

man, these Asus monitors would be so appealing if they didn't put that light-up gamer notch on the bottom of every goddamn display

[@serantos]

I really hate the gamer aesthetic. Looks a teenager's/kid's PC

[@RonWillemsen]

@@serantosThat is also my issues with some brands, like Asus .. their very visible logo's, or gamer looks. I have multiple TV's and a 32 inch monitor in my apartment, and non of them shows a logo in front. Not my Sony's (QD OLED and LED), the LG (C2 OLED) or the ViewSonic Professional 4K monitor. Although I was looking at a additional 32 OLED monitor, and some are looking really nice, like the Asus 32 inch QD OLED. But again .. that Logo. So I was looking online, and I saw you can turn the logo lights off. Which is for me a must, and now a reason to keep the Asus on my shortlist. My preference would be, no Asus logo at all the bottom. If you have it on a arm, it might be a little distractive, and I do hope that sticking out part, the drop so to say it's not to shiny and glossy, and acts like a mirror, so to speak. There is also a HP Omen QD OLED. But it's partially white and it has a relatively huge edge below. 2 things that would irritate me as well. Why not just a full Black version ? Not gaming look enough would be my guess.

[@Nedlius]

@@serantos it really does

[@Ratbane]

Agreed. Minimal is best for a premium display

[@charliegrech2026]

And if the prices weren't so dumb

[@ToGrimmToWin]

These coatings are why I still use a 42-in LG C2 OLED for my PC

[@arthur78]

I love you for keeping up the anti-matte coating fight.

[@andrewmorris3479]

White 1271 nits vs 1001. Now let’s compare the rest of the colors in that 1% window and see who wins. :)

[@flokiloki6806]

I just got the Monitor few days ago. Honestly i didnt have any issues with the coating. It looks absolutly black when it comes to dark areas and true blacks. The Monitor is in the living room with big windows, same as my Lg C2. I cant confirm that it makes the blacks worse. The biggest difference i notice between the tv and the asus monitor is the resolution and brightness difference. Ofc im not a specialist and i havent seen a qd oled in comparision but its definetly a good monitor with a great picture quality. Very clear motion clarity and havent used ELMB yet. Overall im happy with my purchase. I only need to adjust switching from 4k to 1440p pixel density again. I would be interested to hear other peoples experiences.

[@a5cent]

Nobody is saying the matte coating leads to poor blacks. If anything the opposite! The coating exists for one reason and one reason only... to diffuse reflected light which would degrade black levels. If you are using it in the living room, it might be irrelevant though, since you are likely sitting so far away from it that it matters not.

[@Hypercube1729]

Same here. The guy is onlu bandwagoning some myths. I have a glossy OLED laptop (the ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024) and I also have this monitor. You can't see any significant difference even if your life depended on it. I use them for gaming and the lag and framerates are most important. The games look better than they've ever looked.

[@Bambledamble]

Turn on ELMB cause I notice with these ROG monitors turning on all the settings like in my case ULMB2 (Swift Pro) brings out a better vivid max capacity type image vibrancy. OLED blacks can actually get so dark preventing you seeing detail in the Grey's it's sometimes overwhelming.

[@a5cent]

@@Bambledamble It's so dark it prevents you from seeing detail in the grays??? That makes no sense. It's when monitors can't show really dark blacks, i.e., when blacks look dark grayish, that everything is just gray and details are lost. The darker the blacks the more details you can see, provided you don't have ambient light reflecting off the monitor, and you haven't turned brightness so far down that things which should be gray are also squashed into blackness.

[@thisiseddy]

I wish I had seen this review before purchasing... I'm experiencing/noticing the same issues you mentioned. Returning it.

[@thecooldude71]

This is an honest review!! Thank you! I owned the monitor at one point, he's not lying!

[@Brandon-jr4ls]

100, I have this and the coating is unusable. All sky’s look like rainbow oil grain.

[@Sean-fj9pn]

Good video. LG please wake up, these coatings are an abomination - you are RUINING your products! How do they get this so wrong when the gloss finish on their TVs is so good?

[@masonrawdon155]

U normally can't see how quality a monitor looks but with my 120hz samsung screen the colors and refresh rate on this look so smooth somehow it's insane I want this so bad

[@Pillokun]

Woled monitor which has issues with dirty gray shades which makes it impossible to use as a monitor in dark mode yet he is complaining about anti glare which nobody really notices at all but him....

[@ToGrimmToWin]

I don't know. I have returned to many monitors because I did not like their anti-glare coatings making things look like film grain effect

[@ghinochips5842]

The PG39WCDM also have BFI?

[@elliotpolanco159]

Couldn't agree more

[@nukmuk]

Wouldn't it be possible to just insert a black frame every second frame in software with all the 240hz OLEDs for 120hz BFI, since the pulse width seems to be 50% anyways?

[@amariel3310]

There's an app called Desktop BFI that does exactly that.

[@tusk6489]

It's good someone is finally reviewing BFI / Backlight strobing properly because nobody else out there does this, can you also include brightness measurements ? ALso make screw to do 60HZ BFI since they use 60 HZ

[@ndocds]

This is your personal opinion and personal preference. Most gamers don’t agree and this monitor has raving reviews. Wonder what company is paying you.

[@Dziukens]

After reading the recent TFT Central article exploring the methodology of OLED testing, these peak 1%-10% white window measurements are totally insufficient, while looking at the bigger picture.

[@twistedelegance_]

Should I get this one or 32" 4K version of this? Non-curved.

[@Samahin]

Hello do you recommend this monitor or the Gigabyte MO34WQC2? Which is better?

[@mz1929]

you gonna buff it out? or you gotta return it?

[@thedisplayguy]

It’s a loaner unit from ASUS. It’s going back.

[@mz1929]

@@thedisplayguy lol buff it anyways just to let them SEE the diff

[@Vaznazza]

Wouldn't that void the warranty?

[@YorkPudz]

Are you still experimenting with removing coatings yourself?

[@omnigamerx]

Shitty coating aside, Is the brightness noticeably more impactful compared to the AW3423DW in HDR gaming?

[@OMGitsAFrEaKDuCk]

I got the LG 45GR95QL for £900, so that might a reasonable price compared to this one. But this one is awesome! I'm getting my LG on friday...

[@Jamison_Fawkes]

Did you by any chance check if the monitor is compatible with the ASUS ROG Monitor Desk Mount Kit ACL01?

[@How-xw1ws]

What game was shown at 1:05?

[@s123pongebob]

Ghostrunner

[@TheOldKenobi]

Instant buy for me, thanks!

[@tomgreene5388]

dont do it. spend less and get a better monitor with the alienware

[@jordanwright3024]

wait is this not the coating on the pg32ucdm too?

[@mz1929]

no the QD-OLEDS are glossy

[@mz1929]

it MAY be the same coating on the upcoming *UCDP which he and us all fear for.

[@ployth9000]

its w-oled mla lg

[@user-bt5ur1pr7r]

UCDP will feature an anti-glare panel surface, so there's a good chance it will feature the same, hopefully not.

[@ployth9000]

its not pg32ucdm uses a glossy coating whereas the mla oled lg coating is a matte one

[@BiteSizeWoW]

@the display guy have you seen the recent aorus fo32u2p product page? it says anti reflective coating.. does that mean matte?

[@thedisplayguy]

No it’s glossy.

[@BiteSizeWoW]

@@thedisplayguyawesome. Hope it's good. Waiting for a release date, looks like it'll hopefully be the best all round pick of the new oleds. I want to sell my current monitor though when I buy one of the new ones, do you have any tips on how to sell a used monitor ? thought about ebay but seems kinda risky

[@fattslice91]

It may have a bad coating...but is it worse than the coating the Odyssey Neo G8 4K 32" has? Of all the monitors we have at Micro Center it is hands down the worst matte grainy coating I have ever laid my eyes upon; it looks like its covered in years of dust all the time

[@thedisplayguy]

I think it actually is. And that one is pretty bad too.

[@fattslice91]

@@thedisplayguy Ooof, I'd definitely agree that not even if this monitor was perfect in every respect could it be considered usable with a coating like that

[@MattAmann]

Got this yesterday and HDR doesn’t work on it. Turns all the whites a blueish tint & the colors just don’t seem right.

[@0rda]

you need a firmware update

[@MattAmann]

@@0rda I did the firmware update right after i got it and it still did the same thing. Their Firmware update still isnt fixing the HDR issue

[@Bambledamble]

I noticed some monitors are better without HDR. I have the swift pro vs LG C9. Both have their strengths and weaknesses and surprisingly SDR appears consistently better.

[@mileskt9232]

also, any new qd-oleds ultrawides with 240hz coming out that are glossy besides the gigabyte model?

[@kennethgomez1760]

so what’s the best 4k 240hz monitor to get ?

[@faspro8165]

I have the aw3423dw alienware, but I'm gonna get this one too when it goes on sale.

[@alk1317]

well how is this compared to 45GR95QE-B?

[@mileskt9232]

can you change the red rgb by chance? i cant stand red

[@Kruk1975]

What 34, 240, OLED….. is there that is glossy? Is there one yet??

[@Ansive]

Main issue with BFI is that you can't use adaptive sync. So it's only good for games where you can sustain 120 fps, otherwise you start getting double frames and other nasty CRT effects. Also, as mentioned, motion clarity with BFI is only 100% better (120 fps BFI looks the same as 240 fps without BFI). Backlight strobbing is much better (but OLEDs don't have one). I would only use it for games where I can't hit 240 but can maintain 120 fps.

[@Bambledamble]

LG C9 gloss coating to the ROG SWIFT PRO.. I adore the matte coating on the ROG display. Not sure how they can make a bad decision with the extensive engineering. I'd have to look more into this coating although the monitor from a distance looks excellent.

[@camillakristinekarlsen5358]

thank you! I was just about to buy it until you mentioned the coating.

[@faspro8165]

Don't base your decision on one video. He just seems really disappointed that it's not a glossy screen. Maybe look at one at a store.

[@Hypercube1729]

Listen, I have a glossy OLED laptop (the ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024) and I also have this monitor. You can't see any significant difference even if your life depended on it. I use them mostly for gaming and the lag and framerates are most important. The games look better than they've ever looked.

[@PlayNeth]

Can this one be saved with your matte coating removal method?

[@thedisplayguy]

Probably yes.

[@Serfer325]

@@thedisplayguy Out of curiosity, what method are you talking about? I always thought the matte layer is hot-glued onto the screen and can't be removed

[@Vaznazza]

Wouldn't that void the warranty?

[@Faenus]

Great review! We have to be harsh on the trash coatings or we will never see change in the industry.

[@adrogrossz]

I am still waiting for a flat 34 oled :'(

[@amariel3310]

If this MATTE display costs 1,500$, the matte coating makes it a 499$ monitor at BEST.

[@xxchanhonamxx]

Im over the OLED dim gaming hype. Gonna wait till next gen when overall brightness is improved.

[@RaenRyong]

The new ones are actually really bright. I also found the first gen too dim, but I actually had to turn down the brightness on AW3225QF

[@Bambledamble]

Try the ROG Swift Pro panel. Brightness is excellent.

[@faspro8165]

Ain't it funny how you tube influencers change people's perceptions?

[@doctorfresh3856]

$1,299.99 Why would I buy that instead of just the ASUS 4K 240Hz QD-OLED monitor for $100 extra. Why does Asus always over price there shit. This monitor is worth $1,099.99 max.

[@Bambledamble]

800R

[@Comrade_Broski]

I wish you would have mentioned glossy in the beginning, what a waste of time.

[@CovertOperative]

need a matt finish as opposed to that glossy garbage

[@faspro8165]

It is a matte coating...

[@arondyte318]

Sigh. Looks like I’ll be waiting for the MSI 341CQP

[@duncethedoctor]

Same here man. Supposedly used a 3rd gen panel but that’s really hard to believe when nobody else released new 34” QDs and the specs are identical. At least it’s way cheaper though.

[@arondyte318]

@@duncethedoctor Yeah but at least we’re still getting OLED Care 2.0 like the newer MSI QD-OLEDs

[@samanwayphotography8376]

Matte display = No Deal!

[@ployth9000]

the real problem here is lg and asus will be using this same coating on the upcoming dualmode monitors LG 32GS95UE Asus PG32UCDP 480hz @ 1080p on a matte 4k @ 240hz matte

[@Asbel-]

I need a good 32 or 34 inch oled monitor, @thedisplayguy csn you recommend a very good one for work day and gaming. ?

[@faspro8165]

He only likes glossy screens, obviously.

[@Asbel-]

@@faspro8165 that’s what I’m noticing and the guys doesn’t even reply haha that’s the sad part. I mean I like his KZbin channel and all but idk man.

[@thecooldude71]

It's hot trash I returned mine and got a PG34WCD, QDOOLED >>>> WOLED, the text clarity truly is awful! On top of it being glossy of course too

[@Bambledamble]

Probably cause you guys are sitting so fucking close lol

[@zeerox8637]

I experienced this monitor first hand, my friend bought it and received it a couple of days ago, it was crazy expensive here in Sweden ($1 640,97) the image quality was so horrible :(. I actually have an old 60 hz IPS monitor with glass coating, its more than 15 years old, THAT has better image and I got that one for free from my dads work, they were going to throw it away... I have no idea what a hell ASUS is thinking, 99% of the gamers sits in dim light or in complete darkness, I don't know why ASUS think that every gamer sits in the sunlight, omg.. lets hope they do better next year, this is a god damn travesty!

[@20puskinas1992]

It is travesty! I have matte display and sunlight completely washes out colors. Playing in bright room means much worse picture quality unless brightness of the monitor is very high to overcome the sunglight

[@zeerox8637]

@@20puskinas1992 agreed!

[@ClearAlera]

Dearest display guy, Thanks for not pulling your punches and calling out product-breaking features for what they are. Other reviewers are like "welp if you wanna play your games through a monitor that has the same clarity as a stained glass window that's really your personal preference and I don't have a problem with that." The sad part is that glossy monitors are also bad in an average environment, but they at least have the potential to be great under the right conditions. We all need to riot to get better monitor coatings =P

[@vette-4-life]

When am I getting a 49” OLED with high PPI with great NITS? Willing to pay $6K. Need to replace my Apple XDR.

[@calebs2crazy]

This monitor on Amazon claims glossy wtf?

[@genocidehero9687]

Next vid: "Update: it's S tier!"

[@MA-jz4yc]

Such a shame LG ruined such a beautiful panel with this awful vaseline coating. For those who think it doesn't matter they should try driving a car with a matte coated windscreen and see how well that goes.

[@goldkat94]

I wish someone would make a coating catalog of all monitors. Im so sick of this.

[@bogie170]

Curve on these monitors is too aggressive as well. Roll on next years OLED's....

[@RaizuYT-vb5sv]

Thanks for mentioning the terrible coating. ugh

[@SaruEMSEducation]

Sounds like good review..........but then hocks a "8k" (no such thing) "super-fast" HDMI cable when all HDMI cable are basically the same. Proved over and over again.

[@oldseabear]

Personally, I think the monitor is great, even if even current games don't support high resolutions. I won't buy them. The glossy monitor surface doesn't appeal to me, as I wear glasses, and it makes my eyes tired. I've tried it before, and I don't like the fact that every light source is reflected in my monitor.

[@ivan-j4l9x]

Just give us a bright oled with a big ass heat sink and active cooling

[@fjorddenierbear4832]

The AQDM is really un-impressive compared to the Samsung G8 OLED, so I'm glad to know this is a shit monitor too. I am actually happy with the Samsung G8 OLED, so I'll probably wait for a 21:9 5120x2160 240 hz or something like that. It may be that my AQDM requires calibration, but that should not be necessary.

[@jlee5990]

price...so broken..not worth i better choose aw3423dwf

[@Moleanimationchannel]

Isn’t better than my Samsung s90c 65” 😊

[@thrice5560]

waiting for under $700

[@veilmontTV]

They're getting there

[@Cysmoke]

Data driven opinion 😂

[@TheNoNameOneManShow]

120 hz only 1080p …. For console …. Ew

[@alb.1911]

Another 1440 text crap festival 🤦🏻‍♂️