I live in Canada, so the LG isn't available here yet. It checks all my boxes and would be the perfect monitor, but I don't even know if/when it's coming. The Dell is close, and realistically it would probably be just fine, I just hate the gamer aesthetic. Thoughts on what you guys would do?
Posted Apr 9, 2019, 3:38 AM UTC
I will update you with my direct comparison tomorrow or Thursday. I still have my AW which I can return until Saturday and LG is coming to me tomorrow. I paid the same amount of money for both so better one stays.
What's the verdict?
I will probably post something tomorrow with pictures and direct comparisons but that's going to be a long text ;). At least people will have some idea what these two monitors are like in direct comparison.
But just to answer you in a short way I would say for the same price it's worth it. We buy monitors mostly for the picture quality and refresh rates and in picture quality LG beats AW hands down. Colour calibration and representation is phenomenal, no banding, easy menu to set everything how you like it, it's a lot brighter and has better blacks (better contrast).
Obviously build quality, stand and GSync are better on Alienware but by just a bit. Picture quality thrumphs all of those small cons so if you spot some nice deal on it I would pull the trigger straight away. It's not worth 1200$ in my opinion but for 800-900$ it has no competition :)
What was better about the AW g-sync?
A bit lower input lag (feels like vsync off) and when fps drop below 60 it still feels super smooth. With Freesync all is good but you can slightly see the difference. It's definitely not worth the money they want for it but makes the gameplay a bit better.
Will you be testing the LG with g-sync?
Yes definitely. GSync in AW is brilliant so I hope freesync 2 implementation will be just as good.
I'm in the exact same situation, but I don't mind the aesthetic since I'm going to wall mount regardless.
That being said, the Alienware is going for CDN $1200-1250 as it's on sale so often, and I bet the LG is going to be closer to CDN $1400. Could be worth the extra money since you get 144hz and quantom dot stuff instead of 120hz, though I've heard that the Dell support is much better if you have any problems.
Right now the Alienware is $1250, so I've decided that I'll bite if it goes back to $1200 again, otherwise I may wait to see how the LG is priced when it comes.
The dumb part of all this is that I'll have enough trouble ever coming close to 120hz at that resolution, let alone 144hz...
That dell is on sale for $750 on rakuten.
In Canada? I don't see that.
Actually, I ended up checking out Rakuten, which pointed me to eBates, which showed me a pretty solid deal, so I pulled the trigger today.
$1250 minus 10% off Dell monitors promo code and another 10% cash back from eBates.
I'd be perfectly happy with 120hz. Plus, I like the g-sync option. I know the LG is compatible but I've had bad luck with flickering issues on so-called compatible displays (MSI). And no, the CRU range adjustment didn't help.
I haven't had the chance to see either in person yet, unfortunately. I would search both models on this sub, though, for more opinions. The usual I typically see on this sub between the two is the LG having much better colors. For me, that would be worth the difference personally.
It's been on newegg since at least two weeks ago from third-party sellers. Price has been fluctuating between 1520-1650 from what I recall. Currently out of stock since a few days ago.
I’m in the same situation. I’ve been waiting since February for the LG to be back in stock. I do see them for around $1300-$1500 from third party sellers which is beyond my budget. I’m thinking of giving up on waiting and getting the AW3418DW.
I’m in the same boat
I had the same decision last month, and bought the alienware. Im totaly happy with it. Maybe the lg has a better panel, but the alienware is still really good. And 200€ less here in germany. I like the look, doesnt look too much like gaming in my opinion. More like a bit stealthy haha.
What this guy said.
Had a 29UM69G with a flawless panel, but a WLED IC on the PCB fried just out of warranty.
LG won't sell you a replacement PCB directly, and any service must go through some sketchy third-party provider where I am in Canada.
Not sure if LG's PCB work is shit or if the IC was bad (it was a Monolithic Power Systems unit that, according to their site, was about to go out of production if that means anything).
I'm also not sure if Dell uses LG PCBs for the internals or if they just source the panels, but the warranty is going to give you peace of mind.
You could import the lg from europe.
Can ship to border mail?
My friend bought the Dell from Canada. I’m importing the LG.
In the same boat. Have looked up probably 9000 reviews and comparison and it seems everyone agrees if you can, then wait for the LG.
I have seen it in stock on Newegg and Amazon but through third party seller. I'm thinking and hoping when LG officially releases it in Canada it may be a bit cheaper.
Either way, I think waiting for the LG might be better, specially seeing as how often does one change monitors.
Dell for warranty service
I live in Montreal and got my LG 34GK950F 3 weeks ago.
I ordered at www.ncds.ca
Oh interesting, I've never heard of this dealer before. No returns though unfortunately.
Id sooner scrape dog shit off my shoes with my hand before I buy LG. Sure specs are nice but quality is crap.
Can you elaborate more on this?
In a nutshell, LG burnt family for thousands by not honouring the warranty. Many close friends have experienced the same. Ive owned a couple of LG products in the past and its a cheap trash build that just doesnt last and I baby my gear. On reddit alone you'll find endless posts about LG failing or simply falling apart aright around the warranty expiration or right out of the box. Look elsewhere online and its far worse than what you'll find here. Shit warranty, shit quality, shit customer service, shit non existent QC and they make the consumer pay shipping for returns? ...and you may well be waiting for months to get shit sorted with these imbeciles. etc etc etc. Customer service will "lose" your info for months until warranty expires and then say "no service for you, warranty expired". The list goes on and on.
People only look at "stats" instead of actually doing one shred of research into a company and its +/-, and policies, or lack thereof.....but this makes no difference to me, its your money. I always like to know the potential bullshit Im buying into, especially when spending this kind of dough. No company is perfect of course, but IMO and in my extensive experience, LG is at the bottom of the pile..... but LG is the best because "stats", pfft.
Fools and their money.
After reading this it’s still hard for me to decide between the Aw vs 950f. There’s just so many positive and negative reviews on the 950f that I keep changing my mind. Will prob be better off just getting the Alienware but I’d sure love to future proof my monitor
Wait if you can. The panel on the LG is MUCH better.
To me it all depends how well it works with g-sync. I know, people say it's completely fine, but I don't know if they notice the flickering I've experienced when trying to get it to work on other freesync displays. They report that it works on those too. At least with the Dell I'd know it works to an acceptable standard.
There is no flickering.
Yeah but I can't know if you notice it or not...
Same with other reviews. People said the MSI I have in front of me right now has no issues with g-sync but it clearly does. I'd rather have the g-sync module (I think everyone would). So essentially, I'd get the LG if it were something I could return. So it has to be available in Canada before I'll make the jump.
I have this monitor and its outstanding. Zero flicker, use it with a 2080ti and works with freesync no problem. Used custom resolution utility to set bottom end of freesync to 35hz without any flicker, so freesync range is now 35-144hz. Make sure to update firmware as that removes pretty much all the signal processing input lag. 10/10 very happy.
Then go with the Alienware for sure. I had both and thought the Alienware was better for gaming. Their warranty is great too.
How come?
I’ll get downvoted to hell but it felt snappier and smoother. Not sure if that has something to do with the g sync module or not but that was my experience. And yes, I updated the FW on the LG.