Review on Dell FR3PK 34 Inch LED Lit Monitor, 60Hz, Swivel & Tilt Adjustment, Anti-Glare Coating, USB Hub, U3417W, HD by Walter Lanzoni

I bought this monitor to replace the Acer K272HUL with the intention of using it for work and play and I will review the two purposes separately. Work: For work, it met my expectations. My complaint with the K272HUL has always been that it was too bright/sharp to view in a dimly lit room for long periods of time. I turned off the brightness of the monitor completely and touched it up a bit with software drivers. A small brightness adjustment on the U3417W has brought me to a comfortable range where I can read documents and work on the command line for reasonable periods of time with improved text clarity. The extra width is very handy for opening documentation and an IDE or terminal window at the same time. I do very little photo editing or photo publishing, so color accuracy and high contrast are not as important as eye comfort. Gaming: For gaming purposes, I find this a little less than ideal. The "IPS glow" as others have mentioned should be what I'm observing. The black is not very dark, more like anthracite. Depending on my angle to the screen, it can appear a little darker/lighter or even a little silvery. That means my old Acer is better than the Dell in black depth and uniformity. Turning on the preset Game or Movie mode activates Dynamic Contrast Ratio, which helps. There's also a bit of backlighting in the corners, with the bottom left hand being the worst - not bad, but noticeable compared to the backlighting on a very dark screen. Some people claim that the U3415W is inferior, but I haven't had a chance to compare them. I don't normally watch movies on this screen, but if I did, I would see glow and bleed as potential problems. Competitive online multiplayer isn't for me, so ultra-low input lag isn't critical. It's nice to have the extra width in FPS games, though, and I didn't notice any blurring or lag issues. I adjusted to sit a little farther from the monitor to soak it all up.