Alienware (or Dell, to its friends) remains one of the most popular suppliers of OLED gaming monitors out there, and I’m pretty sure it’s because it’s the only major supplier that seems laser-focused on value. But its new flagship OLED, announced at Computex, is going for broke. The new model isn’t just its biggest yet at 39 inches, it’s a 5K2K beast packed with new performance tech.
The “Alienware 39 5K OLED Gaming Monitor AW3926QW” (yes, monitor names still suck) is, allegedly, “the world’s first 39″ 5K RGB stripe tandem OLED monitor.” Okay, Dell, cool it with the superlatives. That 5K panel has a resolution of 5120×2160 — essentially a 4K monitor stretched out a bit to roughly the same aspect 21:9 ratio as a 34-inch ultrawide. At its maximum resolution, you get 165Hz of refresh, which isn’t absolutely incredible these days, but you can bump it up to 330Hz at lower resolutions in various esports modes, including 2560×1080.
That RGB triple tandem OLED panel is supplied by LG. It features, allegedly, better color volume and brightness (1300 nits maximum, though the more typical brightness is just 300) and sharper text than older OLED panels. This OLED has more going on underneath than other Alienware designs too, with support for HDMI 2.1, 90 watts of power delivery over USB-C, and a built-in KVM switch. You get two extra USB-A ports and another 15-watt USB-C port, plus a headphone jack. If you’re worried about burn-in, Dell is offering a 3-year warranty on the panel, providing “long-term assurance for buyers making a flagship-tier investment.”
How much of an investment? Alienware isn’t saying. The AW3926QW will be landing on Earth in June in Asia and “fall” for North America and Europe, and as an educated guess I’d put it at somewhere in the ballpark of $1200-1600 USD, based on the price of the current 32-inch 4K model. After scoring a definite hit with a $350, 27-inch OLED, it looks like Alienware is really covering the spread in terms of prices and features here. You love to see it.
Speaking of other models, the popular 34-inch ultrawide format is also getting a bump up. The upgraded AW3426DW model features a faster 280Hz QD-OLED panel that gets a boosted 300 nits of typical brightness (1300 maximum) and a new anti-reflective coating. This one keeps the connections a little more minimal, with only one USB-A and one USB-C and 15 watts, so it won’t be as friendly to laptops. It gets the standard 3-year burn-in warranty.
Once again there’s no price, with a tentative global launch set for July. I’d expect this one to land in the same $800 range that the current 34-inch model occupies, with frequent sales kicking that down to $600 or so.
Author: Michael Crider
Source: PCWorld
Reviewed By: Editorial Team
