When it comes to work or school, you’ll often hear the word “productivity” thrown around a lot. After all, your boss or teacher does want you to get the most work done during the day. This is why from my many years of reviewing monitors, I’ll tell you one thing: To truly be productive, you need an ultrawide monitor, particularly one with USB-C connectivity.
The Dell UltraSharp 34 Curved USB-C Hub Monitor (U3423WE) can help you with that when paired with your Dell laptop or any other computer for that matter. It packs in a crisp 3440 x 1440 resolution, IPS Black technology for accurate color reproduction, integrated speakers, and even Picture by Picture Support.
Coming from using a standard flat screen monitor, I got so much more done here at XDA once I set this monitor up at my desk. I wish it had a better refresh rate and could also be used properly for console and PC gaming, but otherwise, the Dell UltraSharp 34 U3421WE curved monitor is an excellent display that you’ll want to consider if you want to boost your multitasking and everyday workflow.
Dell UltraSharp 34 Curved USB-C Hub Monitor (U3423WE)
Recommended
The Dell UltraSharp 34 U3421WE curved monitor is great to boost your productivity. It packs in a color-accurate IPS Black display panel, USB-C, HDMI, and DisplayPort connectivity. The screen resolution of 3440 x 1440 is also quite crisp, though it’s not ideal for gaming due to the 60Hz refresh rate.
- Brand
- Dell
- Resolution
- WQHD 3440 x 1440
- Refresh Rate
- 60Hz
- Screen Size
- 34.14 inches
- Ports
- DisplayPort 1.4 (HDCP 2.2), 2 x HDMI 2.1 (HDCP 2.2), USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 upstream, 4 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 downstream, USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 downstream (power up to 15W), Audio line-out (mini-jack), USB 3.2 Gen 2 downstream with Battery Charging, LAN (RJ-45)
- Display Technology
- IPS
- Aspect Ratio
- 21:9
- Screen Brightness
- 320 nits
- Display Size
- 34 inches
- Display Weight
- 34.5 pounds
- Mounting Options
- VESA
- USB-C / HDMI mm-Wave Transmitter
- USB-C and HDMI
- Sound
- Dual 5W speakers
- Tilt
- -5/+21
- HDR
- N/A
Pros
- Uses color accurate IPS Black technology
- Has joystick controls
- Has KVM and PIP or PBP support
- Integrated speakers
Cons
- Not ideal for PC gaming due to 60Hz refresh rate
- Not great for use with gaming consoles
- No HDR support
Dell UltraSharp 34 Curved USB-C Hub Monitor (U3423WE) pricing and availability:
- The monitor released in January
- You can buy the Dell UltraSharp 34 right now from Dell.com for $1,260.
- It might become available at other retailers down the line, but so far, it’s only at Dell
The Dell UltraSharp 34 U3421WE curved monitor is only available at Dell.com for $1,260. It’s not currently listed on Amazon or other retailers, but this isn’t uncommon for a new monitor, which was announced back at CES 2023 in January. The price might seem quite expensive, but this is the normal price for ultra-wide monitors like this one. Similar monitors from Lenovo and Samsung are in this same price range.
Design: A sleek design in the back that you won’t see upfront
- The UltraSharp 34 U3421WE sports a sleek, platinum silver color scheme
- The back of the monitor looks great
- The monitor has thicker bezels along the sides
- There are integrated speakers
Coming with the “UltraSharp” branding, this Dell monitor sports a sharp, sleek design intended to fit well with any setup. The back of the monitor is platinum silver, which can blend in with your surroundings very well. It looked perfect in my office, as my desk is colored white.
Unlike gaming monitors, this isn’t a flashy product at all. It’s clean and simple, right down to the actual process of setting it up. Just screw in the base (no tools necessary) and then snap in the monitor mount to the back.
The only problem here is most people won’t end up seeing the back of the monitor a lot, which is the most stylish part. You won’t see as much from the front. There’s a bottom chin to the monitor with the Dell Logo and side bezels about a quarter of an inch thick. I didn’t find these bezels too distracting, but it really is time for Dell to slim things downs on its ultrawide monitors a bit. Other monitors of this size struggle with the same problem, and I don’t understand why. These days, a lot of standard flat-panel monitors have edge-to-edge slimmer bezels.
It is important to note that since this is an ultrawide monitor, it must be used horizontally. You get to adjust the height up to 5.9 inches and can tilt or angle the monitor between -5 and +21 degrees. The swivel angle is 60 degrees, and you also can route cables through the back of the stand. For my setup, I pulled the monitor all the way up, leaving space at the bottom to see the base — which on its own is actually quite large at about 8.5 inches by 10 inches.
I can’t forget the integrated speakers, either. I’m used to using dedicated speakers, so this is a big change for me. The 5W dual speakers are tucked inside the monitor and at the top, and they sound decent, especially for things like video conferencing and watching YouTube. I wouldn’t depend on the integrated speakers for music, but they’re great for general tasks where you don’t need the highest-quality audio.
There are a lot of ports on this monitor, which is great considering the $1,000 price. Along with USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 upstream, which can provide power of up to 90W to a laptop or tablet, there are two HDMI ports and one DisplayPort 1.4. Both are rated for HDCP 2.2. Other than that, you’ll also find four USB-A 3.2 downstream ports, another USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 downstream port, and an audio line-out. There’s even an RJ45 Ethernet jack.
This is an incredible port selection for connections to multiple devices. I hooked up my Xbox Series X, Surface Laptop Studio, and Mac Mini to this monitor simultaneously. I was also happy to see the extra USB-A and USB-C ports under the chin, which I used for the dongle for my keyboard and mouse when a device is connected over USB-C.
The only bad thing here is that the monitor isn’t rated for HDMI 2.1, partly because the resolution maxes out at 60Hz. It’s not the best for console gaming; you’ll end up with a stretched image and won’t get the maximum refresh rate. You’d usually want higher than 60Hz for competitive gaming, not to mention features like GSync. I’m not too surprised by this, though, as productivity is the point, not gaming.
Interface and buttons: Simple and easy-to-use joystick controls
- The monitor has joystick controls
- Switching between inputs and changing the volume is easy
- The on-screen display menu has various color profiles
One thing I always look for in a monitor is easy-to-use buttons for getting into the on-screen display (OSD) menu, and that’s exactly what you get with the Dell UltraSharp 34 U3421WE. It makes the everyday use of this monitor so much easier.
These joystick controls are off to the right side rear of the monitor and are a huge time saver. Press in on the joystick once, and you summon the OSD menu. Depending on where you were last in the menu, you can then click the joystick over to INPUT and press down on it to select the input of choice. Even getting to the volume is easy, requiring just two clicks after getting to the main OSD menu.
The OSD menu also has toggles for various color profiles that can impact the color accuracy of your monitor. There’s Standard RGB, which is the default that I spent most of my time in. However, you also can choose Movie, Game, and a Color Space mode for either sRGB, Rec. 709, DCI-P3, or DisplayP3. Other OSD settings let you change the sharpness, brightness, aspect ratio, response time, and power settings. You even can have the monitor auto-select a specific input if you please.
Display: IPS Black technology is quite color accurate
- It’s quite accurate for an IPS display
- The monitor has incredible contrast ratios
- IPS Black technology makes images look more vibrant
The design, ports, and buttons are great, but a major reason to buy the Dell UltraSharp 34 U3421WE will be the color accuracy. The Dell UltraSharp 34 Curved USB-C Hub Monitor covers an excellent color spectrum and has amazing levels of contrast. It’s only lacking HDR certification and a higher refresh rate.
By default, the monitor is set to Standard and RGB color mode. The brightness and contrast are also turned up to 75% each. On these defaults, webpages were super bright, and the black text on articles really stuck out against white backgrounds.
Despite the video being letterboxed (normal since this is a widescreen monitor), the multimedia experience was great. When watching a trailer for Gravity, I especially noticed how much whiter a spacesuit looked against the black depths of space. Even when gaming in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020, the small print on the gauges in the cockpit was a bit extra readable thanks to the boost in contrast. This is thanks to the IPS black technology, which limits the light leakage from pixels for a cleaner image.
I also noticed there was no light bleed around images when, for example, I was scrolling through Twitter and switched my timeline over to dark mode. The large 34-inch curve is also quite natural. I didn’t need to move my head back and forth a lot when expanding my windows across the monitor. Everything I needed to see when I stacked three Microsoft Edge windows side by side was in my peripheral vision.
That’s one more window than It’d usually fit on my standard flat monitor, and there’s still enough room to stack one more if I needed. Heck, thanks to the picture-by-picture support, I even fired up my Mac Mini and had both the Mac and Windows PC video inputs running side by side. Quite cool, right?
In terms of actual display image quality, Dell has claimed that the monitor has 98% sRGB, 100% Rec 709, and 98% DCI-P3 with a 2,000:1 contrast ratio and 300 nits brightness. My results came close to that when testing with my Spyder 5 colorimeter. I focused primarily on the sRGB color space in my tests since it’s commonly used in photo editing and content creation, but those Rec 709 and DCI-P3 gamuts are more important for other industries like video production.
The numbers I got in across both the standard mode and the SRGB color space modes hit 84% Adobe RGB, 79% NTSC, 87% P3, and 98% sRGB. These are above the 70% scores we usually look for on IPS monitors. The contrast and brightness actually hit above Dell’s quote, too, coming in at 2,200:1 and about 310 nits. In the case of the sRGB color space mode, the numbers were just a percentage or two higher, not making too much difference. You can also individually set your own custom color mode for better color accuracy.
Whatever the mode is, though, this monitor is still great for photography and professionals. You can not only fit more than one window on it at once, but it almost perfectly replicates colors in videos and photos, and for web browsing, things look vibrant. I just wish it had HDR support for an even brighter image, but I can see that HDR isn’t necessarily important for productivity.
Dell UltraSharp 34 Curved USB-C Hub Monitor (U3423WE): Should you buy?
You should buy the Dell UltraSharp 34 Curved USB-C Hub Monitor (U3423WE) if:
- You want to feel extra productive at work or school
- You want a monitor that can connect to multiple devices
- You need a monitor with integrated speakers and a USB hub
You shouldn’t buy the Dell UltraSharp 34 Curved USB-C Hub Monitor (U3423WE) if:
- You’re a PC or console gamer
- You need HDR support
- You’re on a budget
There’s no doubt about it. You should absolutely buy the Dell UltraSharp 34 U3421WE curved monitor if you need the best for increased productivity and multitasking, especially if you do creative work. It doesn’t fit into everybody’s budget, but it sports great color accuracy and contrast ratios, and it has a plethora of ports for using the monitor over USB-C with a laptop. Even the OSD menu and joystick controls are intuitive. Gamers might want to stay away from this monitor, though, due to the lack of HDMI 2.1, HDR, the 60Hz refresh rate, and the standard 5ms response time. B
Dell UltraSharp 34 Curved USB-C Hub Monitor (U3423WE)
Recommended
The Dell UltraSharp 34 U3421WE curved monitor is great to boost your productivity. It packs in a color-accurate IPS Black display panel, USB-C, HDMI, and DisplayPort connectivity. The screen resolution of 3440 x 1440 is also quite crisp, though it’s not ideal for gaming due to the 60Hz refresh rate.