The monitor’s rich 34-inch, 3440 x 1440 display makes it easy to get lost in your favorite virtual worlds, while the device’s G-Sync capabilities and fast response times provide an optimally smooth experience for competitive players. Other features include an on-screen frame-rate counter, as well as Dark Boost, which allows you to lighten in-game environments without blowing the whole picture out. Colors looked impressively vivid on Acer’s monitor by default, though one colleague watching with me suggested that the blacks could be a bit deeper.
The monitor has a number of options that go above and beyond the usual monitor settings you’ll get through your PC. When it comes to gaming monitors, there’s a laundry list of features that you may want. Like many gaming monitors, the Optix errs on the side of glitzy and perhaps garish, with RGB lighting and a stylized design. While MSI claims the display will produce up to 400 nits, our own testing averaged 288.6 nits, with the center producing the highest brightness at 333 nits. The MSI Optix MPG27CQ delivers all sorts of gaming-oriented capability, from a wide color gamut and fast response times to AMD FreeSync support and fancy lighting that’s more than just eye candy.
Modes and Features. You can’t, however swivel the monitor left or right; this makes sense for a display with such a wide viewing angle, but I would have appreciated having an easy way to access the Predator’s fairly hidden rear ports. For under $500, the MSI Optix MPG27CQ is pretty solid alternative to more expensive options, like the Samsung CHG70 ($599), but it does so by skipping HDR support entirely and offering a narrower field of view than wider-screen models. A row of RGB lighting along the bottom of the display can be customized to indicate various in-game information, from your health bar status to timer alerts. You’ll navigate the Predator’s menus using six small buttons hidden under the right side of the screen, a process that took some getting used to.
Bottom Line. Customizable RGB lighting Highly adjustable stand Curved design enhances immersion and visibility Strong overall performance. The MSI Optix MPG27CQ delivers all sorts of gaming-oriented capability, from a wide color gamut and fast response times to AMD FreeSync support and fancy lighting that’s more than just eye candy. The Acer Predator X34 curved gaming monitor provides an impressive level of immersion and strong G-Sync performance — if you’re willing to pay up. The unit weighs 23.4 pounds, which should still be light enough to easily move when needed.
The MSI Optix MPG27CQ delivers all sorts of gaming-oriented capability, from a wide color gamut and fast response times to AMD FreeSync support and fancy lighting that’s more than just eye candy. The panel covered 98.9 percent of the sRGB color gamut, falling a bit short of the 103 percent average. While the Predator’s refresh rate maxes out at 60Hz on standard settings, the monitor can be overclocked to a faster 100Hz for those looking to eliminate motion blur as much as possible. Overall, if you’re looking for pure immersion (and some pretty good looks) and don’t mind splurging, the Predator X34 is one of the Blackberry Mobile Phones best high-end gaming displays you can get. The MSI Optix MPG27CQ ($479) seems to tick most of the boxes, thanks to a curved screen, customizable RGB lighting, FreeSync support, a fistful of optimized gaming modes and strong color performance that will make your games look great.
Our Verdict. Wide angles aside, the game looked simply stunning at 3440 x 1440 resolution, from the reflective neon lights that litter each street to each gritty, lifelike character model. Pricey Navigating menus can be a pain.
The Optix MPG27CQ offers a healthy amount of connectivity for video and audio, as well as USB ports for other peripherals. The Acer Predator X34 curved gaming monitor provides an impressive level of immersion and strong G-Sync performance — if you’re willing to pay up. The monitor preserved the impact of most in-game sounds, from the rattle of an assault rifle in Rainbow Six Siege to the thunderous superhero gut-punches of Arkham Knight. The 27-inch display may be the smallest you would want for a curved monitor, but it still benefits from better visibility. – No HDR support – Audio pass-thru only, Lighting customization is limited.
The monitor itself measures 24.1 x 21.9 x 14.9 inches, which will take up a good amount of space on a desk. On the left side of the monitor, you’ll find two USB 3.1 ports, as well as a pair of 3.5 mm audio jacks – one for audio, the other for microphone. A 34-inch, 3440 x 1440 curved display?
Check. However, the monitor’s Y-shaped, three-point base offers good stability while still leaving things open enough for running cables unimpeded. While the Predator’s port selection covers all of the essentials, I didn’t enjoy having to crane my neck to get around its massive display in order to plug my gadgets in.
The rear ports are all downward facing, which is a little awkward, but that’s generally a one-time issue for most users. It’s just as sleek as it is savage, though, thanks to its jet-black paint job and slim, aluminum legs. The screen’s anti-glare finish is subtle, but effective at taming reflections from overhead lights and windows. Acer’s curved gaming monitor definitely earns its name, with a fierce-looking Predator logo below the display and a scaly, triangular pattern lining the monitor’s mouthlike rear vent. And, if you want even more flexibility, the back of the monitor will accept a 100 mm x 100 mm VESA mount, letting you attach it to a wall-mounting bracket or an articulated monitor arm.
The monitor recorded a Delta-E color-accuracy rating of 1.77 (closer to 0 is better), beating the 4.9 average. Bottom Line. Ports and Interface.
Compare this with the Asus VG245H (252.6 nits), the Samsung CFG70 (266 nits) and the LG 34UC89G (292 nits), and the overall brightness starts looking pretty good. The side-mounted ports are set in 3 inches from the edge of the monitor chassis, making them a little inconvenient for plugging in flash drives and headphones. It delivered strong performance in our lab testing.
Navigating the on-screen display is fast and intuitive, since the joystick lets you move up and down the menus quickly and select individual items with a click. If you want to run a game in windowed mode on one side while viewing your Twitter feed or Twitch chat on the other, Acer’s display makes it pretty easy to do so. Against.
This is especially helpful on a curved monitor, where narrow viewing angles can cause unsightly distortion even when sitting directly in front of the monitor. Watching a 4K trailer for Elysium on the Predator made me feel like I was in a mini movie theater. The Acer Predator X34 curved gaming monitor provides an impressive level of immersion and strong G-Sync performance — if you’re willing to pay up.
While I didn’t notice much of a difference when playing games at 60Hz versus 100Hz, those with an especially discerning eye for smoothness may appreciate the option to ramp the rate up. But unlike many gaming monitors, it’s not all needless flash. You will miss out on some more premium features, like built-in speakers or HDR support, but with a price that’s under $500, the Optix MPG27CG is one of the best curved monitors you can buy. The Optix features a 27-inch curved screen, with a 1800R radius, which translates into a very subtle curve that puts the entire screen an equal distance from the eye. Ports and Interface.
You should probably pick up a good headset or set of speakers if you want to get as immersed as possible, but the Predator’s speakers are perfectly suitable. There are two primary picture modes: Gaming and Professional. The monitor netted a latency of 9.7 milliseconds, which is notably quicker than our 14.42-ms average for gaming displays. Navigating the on-screen display is fast and intuitive, since the joystick lets you move up and down the menus quickly and select individual items with a click.
I had never been truly sold on curved gaming monitors, but that all changed the minute I booted up Batman: Arkham Knight. The monitor’s DisplayPort (required for G-Sync) and HDMI port should handle whichever PC, console or media box you want to attach to it, while the device’s four USB 3.0 ports, USB Type B port and headphone jack should be more than enough for your peripherals. – Pricey – Navigating menus can be a pain. The MSI Optix MPG27CQ offered distortion-free visibility at nearly any angle. Additional image settings include brightness, contrast, sharpness, color temperature and screen size, which actually changes the aspect ratio used on the display.
For other features and adjustment to the RGB lighting on the front and back of the display, you’ll need to use Steel Series’ GameSense software. The Acer Predator X34’s specs read like a wish list for gamers. Gaming Performance. A bright, colorful monitor is no good if it’s laggy, but fortunately the Predator proved to be as responsive as it is good-looking. The curved display uses a VA (Vertical Alignment) panel for the higher refresh rate, better-than-IPS contrast and strong color performance.
In order to make sure the Predator fills up as much of your peripheral vision as possible, you can tilt the display 5 degrees forward or 35 degrees back, as well as raise or lower it about 5 inches up or down. Once you’ve created your ideal combination of all of these settings (on top of color and brightness), you can save up to three custom profiles for booting up all of your favorite features at once. The MSI Optix MPG27CQ is well-suited to gaming, with its 2560 x 1440 resolution and 144Hz refresh rate. Impressive design Gorgeous picture quality Strong G-Sync performance Low latency Solid built-in speakers. Acer’s curved gaming monitor was just as impressive in our lab tests as it was during everyday use.
I found the Predator especially useful for multitasking on Windows 10, as I split the screen between a Google Doc and a Netflix video and never felt like I was sacrificing space on either side. For switching display modes and monitor settings, the Optix MPG27CQ has a five-way clickable joystick. Placing a few USB ports and a headphone jack on the side might have messed with the Predator’s sleek design, but I’d prefer the extra convenience. MSI Optix MPG27CQ Curved Monitor Review: Cool RGB Lighting, Enticing Price. Professional modes include Reader, Cinema and Designer, with settings adjusting to reduce eye-strain-inducing blue light, enhance contrast with HDCR and maintain color accuracy, respectively.
You have a choice of three different crosshair types, and while there’s no guarantee that they’ll help you play better, they all lined up perfectly with the in-game interfaces of shooters like Rainbow Six Siege and Borderlands 2. You’ll find all of the Predator’s inputs tucked away toward the bottom of the device’s rear panel. Design. In actual testing, we saw the Optix produce 140 percent of the sRGB color gamut. If you’re willing to shell out $1,299 for a gaming monitor, the Acer Predator X34 is worth every premium penny, and rightfully earned the top spot on our best curved monitors page.
I found myself immersed in Rocksteady’s version of Gotham City like never before, enjoying a wide view of the game’s beautifully moody skylines as I glided from building to building. With a 144Hz refresh rate and AMD FreeSync capability, it offers smooth, tear-free gameplay that will work with even modest graphics cards, and the customizable RGB lighting adds a dash of eye candy that should appeal to gamers. The buttons are tiny and fairly close to each other, which sometimes made it hard to figure out how to move left and right or select a submenu.
On the back of the cabinet you’ll find one DisplayPort and two HDMI inputs, along with a PC to monitor audio connection. I accidentally turned the Predator off more times than I would have liked. Fortunately, I found the Predator to be just as dependable for competitive games as it was for cinematic ones. Multimedia Performance.
Design. Tom’s Guide Verdict. Tom’s Guide Verdict. + Impressive design + Gorgeous picture quality + Strong G-Sync performance + Low latency + Solid built-in speakers.
Brightness was also a tad lower than expected. G-Sync and 100-Hz overclocking? You bet. The stand has a range of ergonomic adjustments available, letting you change the screen angle (between minus 5 degrees and 20 degrees), the side-to-side swivel (40 degrees in either direction) and even the height, from 0 to 120 millimeters.
Naturally, there’s more to do on a curved, ultrawide monitor than just playing games at super-immersive resolutions. Lastly, you can turn the monitor’s RGB lighting on and off. Performance.
There’s also a USB Type A port, for connecting to your PC. You can set the lights to glow red, green, blue, orange or white, as well as dictate whether they stay static, pulsate in and out, or — my personal favorite — ripple side to side. Once you’re in the Predator’s main menu, you’ll be able to adjust finer settings — such as brightness, contrast and color — as well as control the system’s external lights. Along the back is a glowing pattern of RGB-lit markings that fall somewhere between circuitry and the Nazca Lines of Peru. + Customizable RGB lighting + Highly adjustable stand + Curved design enhances immersion and visibility + Strong overall performance. Watching a 4K trailer for Elysium on the Predator made me feel like I was in a mini movie theater, from the sheer sharpness of the film’s futuristic landscapes to the engulfing 21:9 aspect ratio.
Our Verdict. I was able to distinguish every clump of snow and chunk of ice when battling on Hoth in Star Wars Battlefront, and had no problem picking out camouflaged snowtroopers in my peripherals. Other gaming features include an on-screen reticle and FreeSync anti-tearing.
The software itself has a limited number of supported games and apps, including Counter-Strike: Go, and Discord, but it does provide some general features and deep customization for anyone with some coding knowledge. This is a nice touch, especially for those who swear by gaming gear that oozes with RGB backlighting. The Predator delivered mixed color results. The feature definitely made a difference during my playtime; I noticed some nasty horizontal lines when quickly looking up and down in Arkham Knight, a problem that activating G-Sync cleaned up immediately. In fact, we consider the Predator to be one of our best gaming monitors.
The Predator features a handful of extra bells and whistles, including the ability to add a special crosshair overlay to the screen for some extra aiming help in shooting games. No HDR support Audio pass-thru only, Lighting customization is limited. You can also turn the "Zero Latency" feature on or off to reduce lag time, engage the "Anti-Motion Blur" feature for sharper fast action, adjust the refresh rate and tune black levels to your liking.
Tactical shooter Rainbow Six Siege ran smoothly and played responsively, and in a game where a few shots can kill you, I appreciated having the extra field of view for spotting bad guys. Actual color accuracy, as measured with our Klein K-10A colorimeter, had a Delta-E rating of 1.02, putting it a bit off compared with the Samsung CHG70 (0.09), but slightly better than the LG 34UC89G (1.08). That’s the only real complaint I have about the physical design of the MPG27CQ. All of these are respectable results for uncalibrated, out-of-the box results.
That result is expected on a DCI-P3 monitor, which exceeds sRGB standards. Once you press a button, you’ll see large tabs for activating Game Mode, switching profiles, activating overclocking and switching inputs. Other menu options let you select the video source, use picture-in-picture (PIP) and picture-by-picture (PBP) for viewing two video inputs at once, and adjust settings for menu language, transparency and other aspects of the monitor interface. While far from room shaking, the Predator’s built-in 7-watt speakers are impressively loud and crisp.
Still, the monitor’s actual menus are pretty intuitive. Acer Predator X34 Review. Those HDMI ports mean that you can connect to either a desktop computer or a gaming console (or even both). I had never been truly sold on the concept of a curved gaming monitor, but that all changed the minute I booted up Batman: Arkham Knight on the Predator.
Audio. The display registered a strong 261 nits on our brightness test, topping our 223.5 gaming-monitor average. In our gaming tests, using Hitman and Batman: Arkham Knight, we saw clear color, whether it was the sun-drenched shores of coastal Italy or the shadowy back alleys of Gotham. This lighting is also customizable.
The Predator isn’t alone in the curved gaming monitor arena; BenQ’s $999 XR3501 features a bigger 35-inch display, a faster 144Hz refresh rate and picture-in-picture capabilities, but lacks G-Sync and has a lower 2560 x 1080 resolution. The Predator proved to be an impressive all-around multimedia display, whether I was watching movies or getting some work done. Gaming mode can be fine-tuned for several game styles, such as first-person shooters, real-time strategy games and racing games, with each optimized for the characteristics of each game genre. Its bottom-facing LED lights probably aren’t necessarily, but they sure as heck look cool.
Built-in LED lights? Yeah, why the heck not? Fortunately, all of these elements blend together wonderfully, resulting in a rich and immersive monitor that makes playing games an absolute joy — so long as you can afford the Predator’s high price tag and put up with its pesky interface. A row of RGB lighting along the bottom of the display can be customized (using the included SteelSeries GameSense software) to indicate various in-game information, from your health bar status to timer alerts. And, if you plan on getting two or three of the monitors and using them side by side, the curve should offer a fairly nice level of immersion.
Against. The Predator is even further distinguished by its set of bottom-facing LED lights, which will help illuminate your probably already-glowing keyboard and mouse. The Predator is one of the first curved monitors to tout Nvidia’s G-Sync technology, which is designed to eliminate stutters and screen tears by syncing a monitor directly with a PC’s graphics card.
The MSI Optix MPG27CQ is a decent gaming monitor, thanks to its curved display panel and solid collection of gaming-oriented features. A Kensington lock slot lets you physically lock down the monitor for added security when using the monitor in a public place, like an office or a gaming event. Brightness, Color and Latency.
It’s also in line with what we’ve seen in other wide-gamut monitors, like the LG 34UC89G (126 percent) and the Samsung CHG70 (154.1 percent). Viewing angles are also nice and wide, with 178 degrees of clear viewing.