LG 34UM95 Monitor Review
by Chris Heinonen on June 18, 2014 7:00 AM ESTAnother area where 21:9 displays have shined is in their uniformity. They have had some of the most uniform screens of anything I have tested to date. The LG 34UM95 proves to be a good performer here, but with a couple issues.
As soon as we look at white uniformity we see what the issue is going to be. The upper corners of the display are very dim in comparison to the rest of the screen. If you leave those corners out the rest of the display is very uniform with an all-white screen. The middle 60% of the display is within 3% and even the lower-corners are within 5%. It's those upper corners that are dim that cause a problem with the uniformity.
Black Uniformity is also good except for a bit of brightness in the lower-right corner. The upper corners are darker, which isn’t as much of an issue with black as compared to white. The lower-right corner has a significant rise in black level but very little change in white level. Excluding that point the rest of the display is quite good.
Other than the lower-right corner, the whole display has a contrast ratio of close to 1000:1 with a median of 979:1. The average is dragged down by the lower-right corner as you’d expect but overall the whole screen is good here.
Color Uniformity suffers as a result of the dim corners at the top of the screen. This causes all the color checker samples to miss their target luminance levels and dE2000 errors are higher as a result. As you can see in the center of the screen, uniformity is excellent, but those corners are just not good. The Median color error is only 1.27 but the average falls to 1.65 due to the poor performance in the corners. If you are doing photo work, you can use the center of the screen and be safe, which is basically a 27” display at that point, but avoid the edges due to the light issue.
It is a shame the two upper corners on the LG are so dim. Had they been closer to the rest of the display it would be an excellent performer for uniformity. As it is it only comes in as a very good display. The uniform area is still close to a full 27” QHD display in size, but that is making an excuse for those two corners.
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blackmagnum - Wednesday, June 18, 2014 - link
The Koreans are on a roll with product diversity!SulianJeo - Wednesday, June 18, 2014 - link
I've always felt that the Korean companies seem to push for innovation the most. There are certainly some redundant releases (GS 5), but so many products are really game changing.weiran - Wednesday, June 18, 2014 - link
This is a nice idea using existing hardware and manufacturing with a very niche market.I fail to see where the innovation is.
darwinosx - Wednesday, June 18, 2014 - link
You should read the article you are commenting on then. Also it's hardly a niche market. That is an uninformed and laughable comment.chophshiy - Wednesday, June 18, 2014 - link
"Innovation" is becoming a meaningless word, thanks to marketing-speak. I agree with weiran; Making an obvious evolutionary step with tech that is easily available and understood should not be referred to as 'innovation'.inighthawki - Wednesday, June 18, 2014 - link
Sorry, these displays are definitely niche. Very few people see benefit of ultra widescreen displays. There are more people out there that want to go back to 4:3 than those who want to go to 21:9.FlyBri - Wednesday, June 18, 2014 - link
@inighthawki I would have to disagree that this monitor is "niche". Based on the form factor and resolution, it's actually quite versatile, and a better option than a 4K monitor at the moment (due to the current state of graphics cards). Many reviewers are saying how versatile this monitor is for both productivity and gaming. For instance, you can even use this monitor as a regular 1440p 27" monitor (with black bars, of course) if you so choose. One review I watched had the reviewer stating that he already had negative preconceived notions about this monitor and form factor, and ended up realizing how absolutely amazing it is and how he couldn't be without it now.I don't think it's niche because I think it genuinely could be a better alternative to a dual monitor setup, and I don't believe those to be niche. Not as prevalent? Yes. Niche? No. I would would say 4K monitors are more niche than this monitor.
fokka - Wednesday, June 18, 2014 - link
what you say makes sense, but i'd still call a 21:9 monitor with a unique resolution "niche". 4k is the future and will be the mainstream in a couple years. this? not so much.marcosears - Thursday, October 9, 2014 - link
I agree... Most people will want to get one of the top monitors at a more reasonable price range. /Marco at http://www.consumertop.com/best-monitor-guideMarthisdil - Wednesday, June 18, 2014 - link
It's niche because it's $1000