Source
r/ultrawidemasterrace•
sixstringmonk

May 2022 Built AW3423DWs Are Still Arriving Scratched Up

PSA

I know there are rumors floating around indicating that revised packaging is coming for the AW3423DW in order to address scratches to the screen during shipping. However, I received a May 2022 build today and it was the same old packaging which resulted in the same old scratches due to the bubble wrap. In addition to that, my unit had a dead sub-pixel. This is the 3rd one I've purchased and I have a local friend who has the monitor as well. All of the units I've seen in person have had many, many scratches on them.

I've posted some videos going into detail here:
Monitor 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Fod6lTsU20
Monitor 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21JYhWaFlak

~ The Lord of the Dings Trilogy ~
Monitor 3 part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IS3fPzKDoFM
Monitor 3 part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwHd9_S6iUk
Monitor 3 Part 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkCwI1uHw8U

In Dell's defense, I will say that I've only seen one dead sub-pixel so far which is pretty good for OLED.

Am I going to try for a 4th? I don't know. What's that saying about the definition of insanity? I'm definitely mulling over a 42" C2 instead, although I know that one is more likely to have dead sub-pixels.

Let me know what you think.

Posted Jul 14, 2022, 4:41 AM UTC · edited

1130
NereusH•

Mine's on the original firmware. Mine too came with some 'marks' but I could remove almost 95% of them using a microfiber and water.

TBH, those are barely visible when off and not visible at all during operation; unless you play like CS GO players Xantares and Yekindar. I wouldn't bother RMA unless there is 'functionally' no issues with it. I do get your point though. But the pain of RMA (especially availability) outweighs the issue(s) you mentioned IMO.

9
sixstringmonkOP•

Yeah I hear ya about the scratches. I had convinced myself I was going to keep it until I found the dead pixel.

3
Xiztivo•

Yeah, I've been through three of these monitors myself, and they were all scratched up. It bothers me because they are visible in the daytime, when I work, so that's why I returned them.

I don't think it's acceptable for a premium monitor like this to come with imperfections like this out of the box. A plastic film over the monitor would most likely prevent such complications from occurring in the future, but I don't know if Dell is capable of implementing a simple fix like this.

It's kind of annoying because this is the best gaming monitor out there at the moment, and I can't believe poor packaging is what ended up being the deal-breaker for me.

Guess I'll have to wait and see what new monitors come out later on!

7
AMP_USAW3423DW|3080 Ti|12900K•

My first unit was pristine, but I had to RMA it due to a different issue. My RMA unit came in scratched. Now I'm waiting on a TV second replacement. Stay strong bruuuuuhther.

6
sixstringmonkOP•

That sucks. Did Dell give you any indication on how many RMAs they will send before they cut you off?

1
AMP_USAW3423DW|3080 Ti|12900K•

Nope. For my original issue, Dell handled it extremely well. Customer service people I interacted with truly did an exemplary job. I sent their manager a nice complimentary email, which they and he appreciated. Since they are still monitoring my case, I would say that I'm probably in their good graces. But...

I gave them the indication that I video recorded me opening the box and made a Reddit post with >50K views (took a screenshot). So don't fuck with me.

I said, don't send me a replacement until you fix the packaging. They said 24-48 days. We'll see.

3
sixstringmonkOP•

Yeah let's hope they weren't just blowing smoke. I decided to RMA instead of straight up return it. I'm keeping my current one until the replacement arrives which is estimated late September.

2
Nova_BomberAW3423DW•

F

5
favdulce•

My screen was fine, but there's a blemish on the chin of the monitor. I can live with it

3
sixstringmonkOP•

That sucks, but yes that is worth living with if the panel is good.

1
hicks12•

Have you tried cleaning the screen? Like cloth + distilled water?

When I bought my 2 Dell 27 inch monitors 2 years ago I went through 2 sets as they had scratches all over the screen from where they were packaged and at first it didn't look like they would go so I got replaced but the new ones were exactly the same and I ended up trying to clean them and it surprisingly went away to looking perfect.

Not saying it will but it's worth a try, I am disappointed reading how bad this QC is though as the Alienware was top of my list but now I'm really considering a 42inch C2 as it's cheaper, available and has no stupid fan along with none of these packaging issues!

2
sixstringmonkOP•

It is worth trying to clean it for sure. I cover that in monitor 3 video 2. There was a haze that came off but there are still hundreds of scratches etched into the AR coating that are permanent it would seem. I used distilled water at first and then moved up to optic lense cleaner.

1
hicks12•

Ah fair enough my apologies I didn't look at all the videos!

Careful with optic lense cleaner, I assume that's for glass lenses or something which will be an alcohol mix which would destroy any anti glare coating on the plastic (if it's not alcohol base, carry on!)

Best of luck getting dell to correct this, it's a joke anyone needs to deal with so much for an expensive monitor when it's solved by simple packaging that even cheap monitors manage!

1
sixstringmonkOP•

No worries. It was Eclipse optic cleaning fluid which is Methanol based. I tried a spot cleaning near a corner just in case it damaged the coating. I figured what the hell since it will be going back.

1
alienangel2•

Mine arrived earlier this week. Has the distinctive circular scratches, but the only way I noticed them was standing the monitor up facing a window in direct sunlight and then looking at the screen from a sharp angle. The monitor is basically unusable in that scenario anyway because of the glare, so I don't think this is particularly representative of normal usage for me at least.

I'll probably hit Dell up anyway to see if I can get a discount, but with how long the wait is and the seemingly very high chance the replacement will be the same, I don't see a reason to return it; the screen is basically a black mirror in the location I actually use it, and I've not been able to see the marks even if I try.

Saving the warranty for if some other functional defects crop up.

2
SirMaster•

I got mine 1.5 months ago and not a single scratch or marking on it.

2
icy1007AW3423DW•

My AW3423DW is not due to be delivered to me until Aug 24 so hopefully they send one that has the revised packaging (if it exists). 🤞

2
Valkyrie743•

mine is a may 2022 version. got it last week. i had a little patch of marks at the top right and top left of the monitor but most of it was just residue or something that came off with a microfiber cloth. i do have a few light coating scratches or marks whatever you want to call them on the top right but i lucked out and they are very few and hard to see. i can only the marks mine has with the monitor off and a flash light and my face right up against it.

this whole situation reminds me of the horrible macbook pro staingate thing

https://liveatpc.com/staingate-issue-now-apparent-in-apples-macbook-air-units/

i remember having an older macbook pro and it had this issue. i would start getting outlines of the keyboard keys on the monitor and it was from the keys just touching and rubbing against the monitor while it was closed which in turn wore off the coating on the screen.

being that both are glossy screens. in shipping the should have a peel applied to is that we peel off or change the packing plastic with a layer of felt or something soft. this would not be an issue with most non glossy screens on the market.

sucks to see many people waiting months only to get their monitor with scratches :( hopfully they will revise packing materials used but honestly i dont see them doing that unless gamersnexus or some site does a big article about this and spreads the news

2
akshatprakashAW3223DW•

i bought mine on launch day, stuck with the original firmware, not going to bother with RMA, as long as the screen is working ima keep it.

1
fuktpotato•

I would not be purchasing this given the numerous issues we’ve learned about. It’s not ready.

1
dom61098•

My scratches came straight out and it was a launch unit. I do however have fan noise even when it’s been turned on and idle for 5 minutes. It’s not the loudest but it is audible, especially when others are saying theirs are silent. Still debating whether the RMA process is worth the hassle or not for this!

1
vermesujo•

Mine didn't have bubble wraps in contact with the screen. It was this paper foam thing. But the screen has some dots that I can only see during the day.

1
sixstringmonkOP•

Right - the side touching the screen is a foam layer adhered to bubble wrap. Here’s a picture of what all 3 monitors shipped with as a screen protector: https://imgur.com/a/K3RMIyZ

2
steveybread•

People shining flashlights on their monitors and looking for any imperfections and then sending them back 3 times lol. No wonder it takes several months to get these after ordering them. Fuck it, ill check back in a year, this shit is ridiculous.

1
sixstringmonkOP•

I know it seems that way, but the thing is you have to shine a light on it to get a photograph of it. You can see them in natural light. You can see them with the monitor on if there is light in the room coming from certain angles.

4
AManFromCucumberLand•

My first one had some of those micro abrasions visible with my phone's flashlight. I decided to RMA and get a new one. I RMA'd in May and basically never notice the abrasions. The replacement arrived today and also has the marks. I'm just going to keep my original. Nothing else is wrong with it and I'd rather not risk a new monitor and have other issues (fan noise etc.) come up.

1
sixstringmonkOP•

I've been thinking about that too. What will I do if the replacement is worse? I've currently got a dead pixel, but it's entirely possible that the replacement will have more than one, or a noisy fan.

Did you tell Dell that you wanted to keep the original yet? Were they totally OK with that?

1
guspaz•

I got an RMA today. The shipping material was bubblewrap backed with soft foam, which I want to say is a change from the original? Wasn't the original just straight bubblewrap?

It had MUCH worse scratching than my original launch unit. So either the foam isn't working, or this monitor had been stored with the old packing material and then switched to the new one after the damage was done.

1
sixstringmonkOP•

All three of mine have been the bubble wrap with adhered foam on the screen side. However, my first one was in the 2nd big batch that went out in the US. It's possible that the first batch was different.

1
captainmkd•

Just got first unit today…..unfortunately what a fucking joke. Looks like fedex wanted to test it out first. Box was already sitting wide open on my porch, with obvious damage to the box. Didn’t even bother checking the monitor it’s certainly damaged. And to just kick you when your down revision A01. I’ll be waiting for Samsungs and compare then. Hopefully Dell sorts their shit out.

1