Going behind the Asus Designo MX34VQ Gaming Monitor
Gaming monitors may sound like fluffy marketing tactics for companies to sell to the masses. But in reality, monitors with high refresh rates are crucial for those who play competitive eSports titles. The Asus Designo MX34VQ is designed in such a way that most people forget it’s a gaming monitor. Why? Well, we’re about to find out.
For starters, the MX34VQ is a 34-inch curved monitor with a 21:9 aspect ratio, packing a max resolution of 3440×1440. Asus calls this an “Ultra Wide QHD” resolution, and they’re not wrong.
The ultrawide aspect ratio means that you get even more viewing estate for movies and a more immersive gaming experience. The monitor also features a 100Hz refresh rate making it a viable option for high refresh rate gaming. But before we get to all that, we first need to unpack the MX34VQ.
Thinking outside the box
The packaging materials for the MX34VQ ensures that the monitor is firmly in place during transport. Two large pieces of styrofoam keep the monitor safe and sound. The unit also comes with its own power adapter. This might be a bit annoying if you’re used to regular IEC cables and you now have to make room for a power brick as well. In terms of connectivity, in addition to the power adapter, Asus also provides an HDMI cable, along with a DisplayPort cable. These are needed if you are going to use the monitor at its recommended resolution and 100Hz refresh rate.
The monitor also requires virtually no assembly. The monitor and its frame are connected so you literally just take the monitor out of the box, plug in the power brick and connect the monitor to your PC and you’re good to go. Props to Asus for that, especially with a monitor of this size. Trust me, you don’t want to be balancing a 34” monitor in one hand and its stand in the other.
At first glance, the MX34VQ looks extremely classy. Like I said at the beginning, you almost forget that it’s a gaming monitor and think of it as a monitor used for designs and illustrations. You will also notice the lack of any buttons on the front of the unit. In fact, there’s no buttons anywhere on the monitor.
Asus has implemented a five-way mini-joystick controller located at the bottom of the monitor. This is used to navigate the on-screen menus and change settings and values. In terms of connectivity, the monitor comes with 3 HDMI 2.0 ports, one DisplayPort 1.2 port as well as a 3.5mm Mini-Jack so that you can connect a pair of headphones or speakers.
Located at the base of the monitor is a Qi Wireless Charger. This means that if your smartphone or device supports wireless charging, you can actually use the MX34VQ to charge said devices
That’s not all
THe MX34VQ also packs two 8-watt Harman Kardon speakers as well. Given the pedigree of Harmon Kardon, I was quite impressed with the quality of the speakers. Monitor speakers are usually average sounding. These however, packed quite a punch with very little distortion and hints of a tight bass as well.
If your graphics card can pull its weight, the MX34VQ offers an incredibly immersive gaming experience. The 100Hz refresh rate means you get smoother gameplay and because of its curved design, you feel as though you’re on the battlefield and carrying your squad to victory in Apex Legends. Colors are not as good as an IPS panel, but that doesn’t mean that the colors are bad either. In fact, the VA panel used in the monitor can actually trade blows with an IPS panel.
The monitor also incorporates Asus’s Trace Free Technology and Splendid Video technology. The latter gives you 8 color modes to best suit your environment (It is recommended to go with the sRGB option though as it gives the most accurate colors). There’s also 3 skin tone selection modes and four color temperature modes as well. For the gamer in you, Asus has also included GamePlus mode. This gives you an option of showing a Crosshair on screen, a timer, or an FPS counter so you know exactly how many frames you’re getting while fragging some noobs.
You can do more than just play games or watch movies
If you thought the MX34VQ is just for watching movies and/or playing games, then you’re quite mistaken. Asus also wants you to be productive with the MX34VQ and has taken strides to do so. With their own Picture-in-Picture and Picture-by-Picture modes, you can actually split the display into a 2×2 grid. This essentially gives you four virtual screens to multitask. If you’re the type of person who needs to cross-reference data from various sources, then the PnP and PbP modes will be quite useful to you.
But we’re still not done. The MX34VQ has one more trick up its sleeve. Located at the base of the monitor is a Qi Wireless Charger. This means that if your smartphone or device supports wireless charging, you can actually use the MX34VQ to charge said devices. The charging speed isn’t really that fast (It’s rated at 5W/1A).
But if you’re going to be spending a few hours in front of the monitor and you’re too lazy to connect your charger, then you can just place your smartphone or other Qi enabled device on the monitor base and have it charge. While charging the monitor base gives off a pretty cool aurora lighting effect.
The Final Verdict
For the price of LKR 115,000/-, there’s very little to not like about the Asus MX34VQ. Think about it. You’re getting a 34-inch curved monitor, with a resolution of 3440×1440. It also runs at a 100Hz refresh rate, supports Nvidia G-Sync and AMD FreeSync, packs two powerful Harman Kardon speakers, with a Qi Wireless charging base. For the price you pay, you’re definitely getting your money’s worth. If you want to check out the MX34VQ in all it’s glory, visit any Asus authorized reseller.
