Our Verdict
The Dell Alienware AW3420DW is a good monitor for most uses. Its large 21:9 screen provides an immersive gaming experience, and it allows you to have multiple windows opened at the same time for better multitasking. It's decent for media consumption as well, but the monitor's low contrast ratio isn't suitable for dark room viewing, and it doesn't support HDR. While the monitor has a decent out-of-the-box color accuracy, it may need a calibration for any professional photo or video editing.
- Excellent build quality.
- Outstanding input lag.
- Poor contrast ratio.
- No HDR support.
- Sub-par black uniformity.
The Dell Alienware AW3420DW is a good office monitor. Multitasking is easy due to the large 34 inch screen real estate, and the 1440p resolution keeps text sharp and legible. Viewing angles are decent if you need to share your work with colleagues, though its mediocre reflection handling and peak brightness may struggle a bit in very bright rooms. Its ergonomics are decent, allowing you to adjust the monitor easily, but it can't rotate into portrait mode.
- Excellent gray uniformity.
- Outstanding input lag.
- Mediocre reflection handling.
The Dell Alienware AW3420DW is an impressive gaming monitor. Gaming feels smooth and responsive thanks to its fast response time, low input lag, and G-SYNC support. Its large 21:9 screen gives great immersion in RPGs or atmospheric games, but it doesn't support HDR. In addition, it's not recommended for dark room gaming, as it has a rather poor contrast ratio and sub-par black uniformity.
- Outstanding input lag.
- Excellent response time.
- VRR support.
- Poor contrast ratio.
- Sub-par black uniformity.
The Dell Alienware AW3420DW is a decent monitor for media consumption. Its 21:9 aspect ratio is great for watching movies, as most modern movies can fill up the whole screen with no presence of black bars. With a 1440p resolution, images are delivered with great detail, but the monitor's low contrast ratio and sub-par black uniformity makes it hard to recommend for dark room viewing, as blacks tend to look like gray when viewed in the dark.
- Excellent gray uniformity.
- Excellent response time.
- Poor contrast ratio.
- No HDR support.
- Sub-par black uniformity.
- Mediocre reflection handling.
The Dell Alienware AW3420DW is decent for media creation. Its resolution and size allow you to work with multiple windows opened simultaneously, and it has excellent gray uniformity and gradient performance. However, if you need to share your work, its viewing angles are only decent, and the monitor's peak brightness may be an issue in very bright rooms.
- Excellent gray uniformity.
- Outstanding input lag.
- Poor contrast ratio.
- No HDR support.
- Sub-par black uniformity.
- Mediocre reflection handling.
The Dell Alienware AW3420DW is disappointing for gaming in HDR. Although this monitor has a fast response time, low input lag, and G-SYNC support to make it a great gaming monitor, it doesn't support any HDR format. Furthermore, it can't produce dark or saturated colors due to its low contrast ratio.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the Dell Alienware AW3420DW and it's only available in this size and resolution. There's a smaller 27 inch monitor with the same outer design, the Dell Alienware AW2720HF, but it has a 27 inch screen with a 16:9 aspect ratio, a 1080p resolution, a 240Hz refresh rate, and FreeSync support.
If someone comes across a different type of panel or if their Dell Alienware AW3420DW doesn't correspond to our review, let us know and we'll update the review. Note that some tests, such as the gray uniformity, may vary between individual units.
Our unit of the Dell Alienware AW3420DW was manufactured in October 2019, and you can see the label here.
Popular Monitor Comparisons
The Dell Alienware AW3420DW is a large monitor with a 21:9 aspect ratio, which is becoming increasingly popular among gamers. Its overall build quality is better than most monitors in this category, but its performance doesn't really stand out. Additionally, it doesn't have as many extra features as other gaming monitors like the Gigabyte Aorus FI27Q.
You can also see our recommendations for the best gaming monitors, the best ultrawide gaming monitors, and the best 144Hz monitors.
The LG 34GP83A-B is better than the Dell Alienware AW3420DW for most uses. It has a higher 160Hz refresh rate compared to the Dell's 120Hz, and its response time is significantly better. Also, its higher peak brightness makes it more ideal for well-lit rooms, and it supports HDR. The Dell has better ergonomics because it allows for swivel adjustment, and it has more USB ports. In terms of VRR support, the LG is compatible with FreeSync and G-SYNC, while the Dell has native G-SYNC support and FreeSync compatibility.
The Dell Alienware AW3423DW replaces the Dell Alienware AW3420DW and improves it in many ways. The AW3423DW has a QD-OLED panel with much better dark room performance than the previous version, and it supports HDR, which the AW3420DW doesn't. The AW3423DW also has a higher refresh rate and better motion handling. The main advantage of the AW3420DW is that it has a different subpixel structure, resulting in better text clarity.
The Acer Predator X27 bmiphzx is much better than the Dell Alienware AW3420DW in most uses. Although the Acer has a smaller screen and a 16:9 aspect ratio, it has a much sharper 4k resolution, a higher refresh rate, and it supports HDR. The Acer also has significantly better viewing angles and peak brightness, but the Dell has a better build quality, much better color accuracy, as well as a lower input lag.
The Dell Alienware AW3420DW is better than the Nixeus EDG 34. Build quality and ergonomics are much better on the Dell, and its IPS panel has much better viewing angles. The Dell also has a faster response time and better color accuracy; however, the Nixeus has a significantly higher peak brightness and better contrast ratio.
We buy and test more than 30 monitors each year, all of which we purchase ourselves, without cherry-picked units or samples. We put a lot into each unbiased, straight-to-the-point review, and there's a whole process from purchasing to publishing, involving multiple teams and people. We do more than just use the monitor for a week; we use specialized, custom tools to measure various aspects and deliver objective, data-driven results. We also consider multiple factors before making any recommendations, including the monitor's cost, its performance compared to the competition, and whether it's easy to find.
Test Results
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