Philips Evnia 34M2C8600 review – OLED and Ambiglow in a gaming monitor

The Philips Evnia 34M2C8600 brings Philips’ signature Ambiglow expertise to bear on the world of OLED gaming displays. Including a wash of lighting behind the display that matches the picture on show, it attracts you into what you are watching or taking part in in a very magical method. Philips combines this function with a QD-OLED panel that boasts successfully infinite distinction and dazzling HDR, however there are a number of downsides to this show.

The Philips Evnia 34M2C8600 truly slipped beneath our radar when it was first launched, however has lastly discovered its method into our testing labs and continues to be broadly accessible. Should you’re a fan of the Ambiglow expertise and the immersive really feel it may possibly convey, this Philips panel goes to have robust attraction and make it probably the greatest gaming displays you should buy. We have put it by means of its paces to see simply what its 34-inch, 175Hz, OLED, Ambiglow mixture brings to the celebration.

Specs

Options

Main the cost on the options of this panel is its Ambiglow expertise. This makes use of an array of 14 RGB LEDs on the again and 14 extra on the underside of the panel to offer a flood of lighting behind your show. You possibly can set these lights to be a hard and fast shade, however the easiest way to make use of them is to set them to match the video that is being proven in your show.

With Ambiglow set to match your video feed, you are handled to an extremely absorbing impact that, significantly when mixed with the ultrawide facet ratio of this panel, makes for an incredible expertise when watching widescreen motion pictures or taking part in video games on the panel’s 21:9 facet ratio. At the least that is the idea. As I focus on within the efficiency part, in follow, I discovered the Ambiglow tech comes with a number of caveats.

This show makes use of a Samsung QD-OLED panel with a 3,440 x 1,440 decision – a really perfect match for the 34-inch display dimension. The panel is an older technology than the most recent QD-OLEDs, although. As such, its most brightness tops out at simply 250cd/m². That is sufficient for many sensible indoor use in considerably darkish environments, however is a bit dim to be used in a brighter workplace, as an illustration.

Nonetheless, with successfully infinite distinction, dazzling HDR colours, and a lightning-fast response time – together with a decently speedy 175Hz refresh price – you have got a panel that must be ideally suited for many video watching and gaming. Freesync help is current too, and I confirmed the show offers G-Sync help too on Nvidia playing cards, even when it does not include official G-Sync certification.

Becoming a member of the panel is a decently beneficiant choice of extras. The stand gives peak, rotation, and tilt adjustment, whereas the panel consists of loads of connections. You get a single DisplayPort 1.4, two HDMI 2.0 ports, an audio out, and a four-port USB hub. You even get a pair of built-in 5W audio system that are not completely terrible.

Design

The Philips Evnia 34M2C8600 is one sleek-looking gaming monitor. Its white, barely mottled plastic and silver steel construct actually units it other than most different darker, moodier gaming shows, and there is a feeling of high quality to its construct too.

That stated, it does endure from the frequent downside of ultrawide, curved shows, which is that its stand is quite broad and deep, so it takes up a good quantity of desk house. It isn’t egregious, although, and once more seems to be sensible.

A slight design oddity is the width and uneven nature of the bezels round this display. The aspect bezels are wider than the highest one, and the left and proper bezels aren’t even. The latter is seemingly due to the show’s OLED safety methods, which barely transfer the picture now and again to cease the show exhibiting precisely the identical picture for too lengthy and leading to picture burn-in. Nonetheless, we have by no means seen fairly such an excessive model of this bezel width distinction earlier than.

One last design level to notice is that this show features a cooling fan. This spins successfully consistently and is noticeable in a silent room, so if that kind of background hum is a significant irritation, you may battle with this show. Nonetheless, any kind of background noise – birdsong, wind within the bushes, workplace chatter – rapidly drowns it out, plus it isn’t noticeable when utilizing a headset, even an open-backed one.

Picture high quality

Out of the field, the Philips Evnia 34M2C8600 instantly makes an influence with its picture high quality. It has all the weather you’d hope to get from an OLED panel, corresponding to vivid colours, true black ranges, and successfully infinite distinction. Hearth up a sport or video with brilliant colours and many variation in gentle and darkish, and you will be completely absorbed by its show.

Nonetheless, longer-term use reveals a number of points. Probably the most quick is that the show has a barely too heat/yellow look to it. It is refined in individual, however I examined it with a Calibrite colorimeter and the show’s claimed 6,500K shade temperature measured simply 6,095k. Crucially, there isn’t any solution to manually tweak the colour steadiness both.

You possibly can choose the 7,500K mode, which I measured at nicely under its claimed stage, at 7,059K, however that is nonetheless barely too chilly/blue. This is not an enormous downside for gaming and watching video – the show nonetheless seems to be good – however is not ideally suited for work, particularly in the event you do any duties that require correct colours (video/picture enhancing, design, and so forth), except you have got entry to a colorimeter to calibrate the show utilizing software program.

One other problem is textual content high quality and shade fringing on high-contrast edges. Many OLED panels endure from noticeably decrease high quality textual content than LCD panels with the equal pixel density, and that is the case right here too, although textual content continues to be by and huge fairly clear. The likes of the LG Ultragear 27GR95QE are worse, as an illustration, however this panel continues to be on the sting of what I might think about using for each day work, the place a lot of studying or interacting with textual content is required.

As for Ambiglow, this may make a very large influence in sure conditions. As you possibly can see from the picture under, in a darkish room, the glow across the display is kind of absorbing.

Nonetheless, there are a number of minor issues with the implementation right here. The primary is that the taillights aren’t fairly brilliant sufficient, and the decrease lights are comparatively too brilliant, so the impact is a bit misplaced behind the display, particularly in case you have something aside from a white wall shut behind the display (see under). Additionally, the taillights solid a slight shadow of the monitor’s stand on the wall behind.

The opposite problem is that the lighting tends to err on the aspect of being washed out and brilliant, quite than offering a extra vivid show. When it really works, it seems to be nice, however the likes of the Nanoleaf 4D display mirror package present a barely higher precise show, even when it’s a way more cumbersome system.

Lastly, this panel additionally has a shiny end with a decently efficient anti-reflection coating. Even with daylight exhibiting by means of beneath the blind behind me whereas I seen this show, it nonetheless solely mirrored as a lot as you possibly can see within the lighter patch on the underside left space of the picture under, whereas my highly effective images ceiling strip lights solely created the reflections you possibly can see within the picture additional up this web page.

Gaming efficiency

Gaming on the Philips 34M2C8600 is a largely improbable expertise. Its slight points with textual content readability or shade temperature aren’t actually noticeable whereas gaming, and the mix of the ultrawide panel, OLED picture high quality, 175Hz refresh price, and the ultra-fast response time of its OLED panel, makes it vastly succesful for all types of video games.

Whether or not you need the cinematic really feel of a sport like Indiana Jones and the Nice Circle or the quick response wanted for a session of CS2, this show can do all of it. The very newest OLED panels can go even brighter, and the likes of the LG Ultragear 32GS95UE with its 4K decision and as much as 480Hz refresh price (solely at 1080p) can outclass this panel in sure situations, however largely the expertise right here is improbable.

Value

The Philips Evnia 34M2C8600 launched with an MSRP of $779 / $749 however can now be had for $729 /£649. These aren’t large value drops for a monitor over a yr previous, however they’re welcome and, finally, OLED panels nonetheless retain a premium value. As an illustration, it stays aggressive with the value of comparable displays such because the Alienware AW3423DW, which makes use of the identical QD-OLED panel.

Alternate options

Alienware AW3423DW

Launching a yr or so earlier than the Philips Evnia 34M2C8600, however nonetheless utilizing the identical QD-OLED panel, the Alienware AW3423DW was a revelation on the time. It was among the many first OLED panels to essentially really feel like a viable improve for a non-ridiculous value. It stays one of many few 34-inch ultrawide OLED selections and might be discovered barely cheaper than the Philips. Learn our full Alienware AW3423DW evaluate for extra info.

LG Ultragear 32GS95UE

The LG Ultragear 32GS95UE is a costlier show than the Philips, however it makes up for the value with unimaginable versatility. Its 32-inch panel, mixed with a 4K decision, eliminates points with OLED textual content high quality and makes for beautiful visuals. In the meantime, its potential to modify to a 1080p/480Hz mode offers cutting-edge aggressive gaming efficiency. It might probably even do 4K at 240Hz. Learn our full LG Ultragear 32GS95UE evaluate for extra info.

Verdict

The Philips Evnia 34M2C8600 is exhibiting its age somewhat, with the very newest OLED panels offering the next most brightness and tending to have barely higher textual content readability. Nonetheless, this show nonetheless nails the core attraction of an ultrawide show for watching video and taking part in video games. Its response is quick, colours are dazzling, and the broad, excessive distinction view it offers is completely absorbing.

What’s extra, with Ambiglow in the proper situations – a darkish room with a white wall behind it – this show’s immersion outclasses nearly every other show in the marketplace. Add the useful further options and glossy design, and there is a lot that appeals about this show.

Nonetheless, concentrate on its limitations. It would not be our first selection for text-heavy each day work due to its mediocre textual content readability and fan noise – not ideally suited in the event you prefer to work in silence – and its low most brightness will not swimsuit brilliant areas both.

Finally, then, we’d solely actually strongly suggest this show if yow will discover it at a good low cost. At ~$750, it is nonetheless a bit too costly contemplating the a number of caveats to its efficiency.

For extra curved gaming monitor choices, try our greatest curved gaming monitor information, or in order for you a completely new solution to view your video games, why not have a learn of our greatest VR headset information.